TMZ Sports - Page 50

The NFL may be a passing league, but when it comes to fantasy ... the greatest wide receiver of all time says your #1 pick should still be a RUNNING BACK.

We got Jerry Rice out in NYC Thursday -- and he told us Adrian Peterson is the key to a fantasy championship.

Interesting pick, considering A.P. has crossed the dreaded 30-year-old barrier AND he didn't play a single snap last season.

If L.A. gets the Olympics in 2024, the Mayor says he already has one person in mind for the all-important lighting of the Olympic Cauldron ... Olympic legend Caitlyn Jenner!!!

NY Jets stud Nick Mangold is an All-Pro level crime stopper after playing a crucial part in cops busting a roving pack of teenagers, turned alleged car burglars.

Here's how it went down ... cops say Nick was awakened early Sunday morning at his Chatham, NJ home when his car alarm started blaring. Nick ran to his garage and found the door was open ... so he immediately dialed 911.

Cops rushed to the 'hood and tracked down 5 suspects, just one mile from Mangold's crib. An 18 and a 19-year-old were arrested, along with 3 juveniles -- and the J-E-T-S center might have hit the jackpot with that phone call.

We're told there's been a string of more than 40 car burglaries in the area recently!

"Clueless" star Stacey Dash says Curt Schilling has the truth on his side, and ESPN was way outta line when it benched him for his controversial Muslim/Nazi tweet.

H/T BSO for pointing out Dash jumping to Schilling's defense. She tweeted that the worldwide leader actually owes the ex Red Sox ace an apology. As Dash put it ... "So, now we can't tweet things that are true?"

You'll recall Schilling posted a meme comparing today's radical Muslims to Nazis in the 1940s. ESPN immediately pulled him from its Little League World Series coverage.

Schilling hasn't had this kinda rotation support since Randy Johnson.

Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Russell Westbrook is getting a ring even before the NBA season begins -- he's marrying his longtime GF this weekend in a pretty baller setting.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Russell and Nina Earl will walk down the aisle in Beverly Hills on Saturday -- just about a year after they started planning. As we reported, they announced their engagement last September ... when Nina posted a pic of her $700k ring!

We're told the couple is having a low-key ceremony, and wants to keep the exact location under wraps, but trust us ... the wedding pics will be spectacular.

Mazel tov!

Don't hand LeBron James the crown just yet when it comes to NBA stars turned actors -- Bulls legend Horace Grant is riding with his old teammate Michael Jordan until LBJ passes one big test.

Horace was at LAX when asked him to grade King James' debut in "Trainwreck" against Jordan's movie skills. As Ho explained ... for him, MJ still takes the cake until he sees some receipts from LeBron.

But check out the clip, because Horace couldn't stop gushing about Jordan in a bunch of other areas too. You name it, Jordan's the best at it -- although HG did diss him on one topic!

NBA legend Darryl Dawkins -- nicknamed "Chocolate Thunder" for his monster dunks -- has died at the age of 58 ... TMZ Sports has confirmed.

Segway wants NO BLAME for the crash that took out Usain Bolt this morning -- with the company telling TMZ Sports ... the finger should be pointed right at the DRIVER, not the device!!

A rep for the company says, "Although we cannot verify from the footage we’ve seen that it was indeed an official Segway Personal Transporter, it’s apparent that this incident can be attributed to the rider hitting an obstacle."

Translation -- WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING ON THAT THING!!!!

Sacks really do come easy for J.J. Watt ... 'cause the NFL superstar is getting straight up jocked by one of the hottest models on Instagram ... who's inviting him to "slide into my D.M.s."

The model calling out Watt is Lindsey Pelas -- who's already racked up more than 2 MILLION followers on Instagram ... and is basically the "it girl" on social media right now.

So, when we saw her at LAX Wednesday, we asked if there was a man in her life -- and that's when she invited the Houston Texans star to fill that gap.

Dude, do it.

So, when Macklemore throws "fish to a player" in his brand new music video ... turns out the "player" who catches it is none other than The Kid himself, Ken Griffey Jr.

Griffey has a super brief cameo is the new Macklemore video "Downtown" -- wearing his old Seattle Mariners uniform.

Of course, Macklemore's from Seattle ... loves Seattle ... and with Griffey's history with the city, it's really not THAT big of a surprise he's in the video.

No Ichiro or Randy Johnson though? Maybe next time ...

Ex-L.A. Kings player Mike Richards has been charged with possession of a controlled substance over an incident involving prescription drugs ... TMZ Sports has learned.

As we previously reported, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were investigating the NHL player for allegedly transporting Oxycodone across the border back in June.

Now, we've learned he's been charged with a crime -- and if convicted as a first time offender, he faces up to 6 months behind bars.

Rafael Nadal required ZERO crotchal photoshopping for his Tommy Hilfiger underwear ads ... so says Tommy himself who insists Nadal's nether region definitely stands on its own.

Tommy was on his way out of Madeo in L.A. last night when we brought up Nadal's bulgeous pics ... and Hilfiger basically told us what you see is what you get (if you're Xisca Perello ).

"I wasn't on the shoot, all I can tell you is that the people on the shoot said that he didn't need any touching up."

Advantage, Nadal.

What the hell, mon?!?!!?!

Jamaica came thiiiiis close to declaring war on China this morning ... when a cameraman on a segway CRASHED INTO USAIN BOLT at the Track and Field World Championships in Beijing!!!!

It appeared to be an accident ... the photog was rollin' next to Bolt as he took a victory lap right after he took 1st place in the 200 meter race.

Don't worry, Bolt popped back up and appeared to be okay ... but for the love of Jah, KEEP THE SEGWAYS AWAY FROM BOLT!!!!!!

Here's a first ... Floyd Mayweather is using the Forbes list as diss fuel -- saying Ronda Rousey is still way too poor to be mentioned in the same breath as the boxing champ.

Derrick Rose and his attorney are coming out swinging against the ex-girlfriend who sued him for allegedly drugging and gang raping her -- saying she's repeatedly tried to squeeze him for money.

Lisa Cohen, a rep for Rose's legal team, tells TMZ Sports the lawsuit is "an attempt to shake down a highly respected and successful athlete."

Cohen adds the plaintiff and the Chicago Bulls superstar were in a "non-exclusive, consensual sexual relationship for over two years" ... and there were never any complaints until lawyers started telling her to go after Rose for a payday. Cohen claims this is the third attorney the plaintiff hired to sue Rose.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the plaintiff -- going as Jane Doe in the suit -- claims Rose and 2 friends drugged her, then broke into her apartment and gang raped her while she was out of it. She says she waited 2 years to come forward because of embarrassment.

Cohen says, "We have complete confidence that the case will be dismissed and that Mr. Rose will be vindicated. This lawsuit is outrageous."

Common seems genuinely happy Serena Williams is back with Drake ... which is especially impressive given the history between the 2 rappers over the tennis superstar.

We got Common leaving Ebaldi in Bev Hills Wednesday, and his well-wishes seem heartfelt.

You gotta watch the video ... Common is the gold standard.