TMZ Sports - Page 50

If someone's gonna posterize your ass on national TV ... it might as well be a former slam dunk champ coming off an assist from Ken Griffey Jr., so says Bill Bellamy, who actually speaks from experience.

It all went down back in the early 90s on "Rock N Jock" -- that MTV show where entertainers played sports with pro-athletes -- when Bill says Junior dished a pass to ex-NBA star Isaiah Rider, who then "jumped over [him]" to throw down the jam.

So how do you bounce back from that kinda on-court shame? You don't ... but check out the clip to see how Bill handled it -- and here's a reminder of Isaiah's dunking prowess.

Ladies and gentlemen, the legendary "East Bay Funk Dunk" ...

Allen Iverson's ex-wife says the former NBA star can't be trusted with the nearly HALF MILLION DOLLARS he's about to earn from Reebok ... so she's asking a judge to make sure the money stays out of his pockets, TMZ Sports has learned.

We've obtained court docs filed in Georgia ... in which Tawanna Iverson says the former NBA star "flagrantly, repeatedly, and willfully" violated certain terms of their divorce ... and now she wants at least HALF of his upcoming Reebok check.

A.I.'s scheduled to earn a payment exceeding $450,000 from his recent shoe sales in January, according to the docs ... and Tawanna says that if the company hands the money over to Iverson, she'll never see a dime.

So, Tawanna is asking the judge to order Reebok to pay her $225,000 ... or at least, "further restrain him from using" the money, and require him to deposit the funds with the court immediately.

NFL star Nate Burleson was on the brink of losing his football career to depression and addiction ... when he was able to turn his life around by pursuing his dream of starting his own clothing line.

According to Nate, it all started when he tore his ACL back in 2008 ... and began to seriously question his future in the NFL.

The Lions WR tells TMZ Sports "I vividly remember sitting in my hotel room, with pain pills next to me, thinking I could take these pills and go down to happy hour at the hotel bar, and drown away my pain."

Burleson says although he never abused the pills -- the temptation forced him to find a goal outside of football ... so he decided to pursue his passion for designing clothes.

Nate founded Lionblood Clothing earlier this year ... and proudly tells us the company is already turning a profit, and his threads are on racks in 25 retail stores in the Detroit area.

NB says he's tossed a few free samples to teammates Calvin Johnson and Reggie Bush. Smart move ... can't find a bigger billboard than Megatron.

Gilbert Arenas' baby mama Laura Govan is 100% behind him making a big comeback to the NBA next year ... and she tells TMZ Sports, he's still got what it takes to light it up in the league.

With Gilbert recently saying he's flirting with the idea of a comeback, the "Basketball Wives" alum tells us hanging up the towel would be a HUGE waste of talent!

Laura says Gilbert "still has it in him" to play and said she doesn't know why he isn't back already because "he's still good as hell."

It's interesting, considering just a few weeks ago Gilbert told us he would NEVER play pro basketball again because he doesn't want to and he doesn't need the money.

After we shot Laura, Gilbert told our friends at Bleacher Report he's changed his mind and would consider a comeback.

Twas two weeks before Christmas and all through the ward .. .
Yasiel Puig was greeting kids ... with one of his Dodgers teammates on board.

Along with Adrian Gonzalez, they spread Xmas cheer
at Children's Hospital L.A. they passed out signed gear!

But while the two sluggers were out doing good ...
there was another jock helping out in another neck of the woods.

Giants kicker Steve Weatherford was on the East Coast ...
giving toys to homeless children who need them the most.

Steve was working with a group called Second Chance Toys
to make sure it's a great holiday for all the girls and boys.

So, props to the athletes for donating their time ...
now this is the end, we've run out of rhymes.

#merrychristmas.

There will never be another athlete like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders .. so says Prime Time himself who claims the days of the professional 2-sport athlete ARE OVER.

Deion called in to "TMZ Sports" this week and told us why Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson (who was just drafted by the Texas Rangers) should seriously consider pursuing a career in baseball.

But during the convo, Deion made it clear, Russell will have to choose a sport -- he can't have both.

In fact, Sanders says the way athletes are bred down at the high school level prevents them from getting the proper exposure to multiple sports. Sanders points the finger at "selfish" coaches.

Noureen DeWulf -- who's married to Buffalo Sabre's goalie Ryan Miller -- says hockey players can do things in bed most other pro athletes can't ... and last night, she went into detail.

So, what's the sexual advantage? According to the "Anger Management" actress -- who was leaving the Christian Louboutin store in West Hollywood -- it doesn't have to do with dongsmanship ... it centers around another body part.

Alex Rodriguez caught a major break in his war with the MLB -- a judge will NOT hold his publicist in contempt of court for refusing to testify in A-Rod's steroid case ... TMZ Sports has learned.

As we previously reported ... A-Rod's high-powered publicist -- Michael Sitrick -- has been fighting tooth and nail to avoid flying from LA to NYC to testify ... so the MLB wanted the court to slap him with daily fines for being dodgy.

The judge said no dice on Friday ... ruling that holding Sitrick in contempt would be "unseemly" and "inappropriate" while he is appealing baseball's demand for him to testify.

Sitrick's attorney tells TMZ Sports, "We never believed there was any basis for a contempt motion, and we're pleased the court saw it our way."

The decision means Sitrick might avoid taking the stand, because by the time his appeal is sorted out ... A-Rod's fight to get his suspension dropped could be decided.

Peyton Manning is one step closer to JUSTICE ... 'cause Denver cops have arrested the two men suspected of robbing the QB's Papa John's restaurant at gunpoint last month ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... 29-year-old Derrick Ervin and his older brother Jeremy Ervin were taken into custody last week ... after investigators connected them to the Nov. 17 robbery at Peyton's Denver-area pizza joint.

We broke the story ... 2 men entered the pizza joint with guns and demanded cash from the workers while the Denver Broncos were playing the Kansas City Chiefs.

We're told ... police believe the suspects are a criminal duo nicknamed the "Milli Vanilli Bandits" ... a duo suspected of robbing more than a dozen restaurants and other small businesses in the area.

The duo got the nickname because they bare a slight resemblance to the disgraced lip-synchers.

After months of silence, Jameis Winston is personally defending himself on TV ... saying, "I just know I did nothing wrong."

The FSU quarterback went on SportsCenter this afternoon and was asked how he felt about the accuser's lawyer addressing the media this morning and claiming the rape investigation was botched from the start.

Jameis played dumb ... saying, "I have no idea what's going on down there. I just know I did nothing wrong."

He continued, "I have a smile on my face, I’m just glad the whole thing is over."

Bruce Jenner is flattening his Adam's Apple ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the Olympian met with a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon today for a consultation for a procedure called a Laryngeal Shave -- which smooths out the Adam's Apple.

The procedure is typically done on patients who are in the first stage of gender reassignment, but Bruce tells TMZ that is NOT the case with him. He says, "I just never liked my trachea."

We know this is Bruce's second visit to the office.

The doctor took photographs today and sources tell us surgery has been scheduled for early next year, but Bruce insists no surgery has been set yet -- it was just a consultation.

We got video (below) of Bruce earlier today leaving the doctor's office.

5:10PM PDT: Jenner just called TMZ and wanted to add this ... He says he initially went to the plastic surgeon because the basal cell carcinoma that was removed from his nose in September left a large scar that didn't heal well. He wanted plastic surgery for his nose, and says while he was there he consulted the doc on the Laryngeal Shave.

Georges St-Pierre just OFFICIALLY relinquished his title as reigning UFC welterweight champion ... after stepping away from the sport to handle all sorts of issues in his personal life.

The move comes roughly 1 month after GSP defended his title at UFC 167 -- where he made a cryptic announcement about his problems outside the octagon.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... GSP knocked up a woman in Canada and she wants to keep the baby ... and the issue has been driving GSP crazy.

GSP's father is also sick ... and it's derailed him.

Today, GSP made it official ... saying he's stepping away from the sport indefinitely ... saying, "I need to have a normal life for a bit."

He said, "I believe one day I will come back ... I can't put myself through another training camp right now. I don't want to make anybody wait."

Tom Brady doesn't give a CRAP about what his wife thinks when it comes to football ... admitting he IGNORES HER OPINIONS because she doesn't know what she's talking about.

Brady dropped the bombshell during an interview with Jim Gray on WestwoodOne Sports radio Thursday night ... saying lots of people in his life bombard him with opinions about his on-the-field performance, including Gisele, but "none of those opinions matter."

Jim, like most husbands, was in shock at the statement ... saying, "You ignore [your wife's opinion]? You're the only husband in the world that can do that."

Brady retorted -- "I'm sure there's a few others too ... sometimes they speak out of school a little bit."

Jameis Winston's FSU teammate Chris Casher BROKE THE LAW by secretly videotaping Jameis and the accuser engaged in a sex act without her knowledge ... and he admitted it to police ... so says the accuser's attorney.

The accuser's attorney Patricia Carroll clams Casher -- a defensive end for the Florida State football team -- told investigators (on tape) that he was at the apartment on the night of the alleged rape and secretly recorded parts of the sexual encounter on his phone.

He also told investigators he later DELETED the video.

Carroll says ... in the State of Florida, it's ILLEGAL to record someone who's not aware of it. She says the fact he deleted the video is destruction of evidence.

Carroll says she's PISSED at State Officials because they did NOTHING to recognize the pattern of illegal activity committed by Casher.

As we reported, Carroll believes the case was entirely mishandled and wants the Attorney General to investigate just about every agency involved.

The officials who investigated the Jameis Winston rape case NEVER TESTED THE ACCUSER'S BLOOD FOR RAPE DRUGS ... so says the accuser's attorney.

The attorney, Patricia Carroll, just TRASHED investigators in her first public news conference ... saying investigators completely bungled the case and sabotaged her client in the media.

Among Carroll's allegations -- she claims the State Attorney failed to interview key witnesses. She also claims the accuser's blood was never tested for rape drugs.

Carroll says the state is still in possession of the blood -- and doesn't understand why officials didn't run it through the proper testing.

Carroll also claims officials never released the correct medical records to the media, which show the accuser suffered several injuries from the incident ... including pain in her lower back, sore muscles, and an injury to her foot. Carroll says the accuser was prescribed prescription medication for her pain.

Of course, the State Attorney ultimately decided NOT to pursue charges against the Florida State QB.

Carroll says, "If this doesn’t strongly ring as an investigation of a rape victim, instead of a rape suspect ... then I don’t know what it is."

Carroll says she wants Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to launch an investigation into the State Attorney and the Talahassee PD.