TMZ Sports - Page 50

Ronda Rousey's Hollywood career is still ON THE RISE -- according to Bruce Buffer who says he's friends with a HUUGE director who has "big plans" for the UFC superstar.

Buffer -- the voice of the UFC -- says he's very close with Hollywood powerhouse Nick Cassavetes (directed "The Notebook," "Alpha Dog," "John Q.") ... and he's not turning his back on Rousey after the beating she took from Holly Holm.

Cassavetes also happens to be directing Ronda's next movie -- "Road House" -- and says he's pumped about having her star the film.

It's a pretty big endorsement for Rousey ... who's been a little "off" ever since the loss ... leading some people to question if she'll still be able to slay at the box office.

And get this ... Bruce says he MIGHT get a role in the flick, too.

The AMAZING 911 operator who helped Iman Shumpert deliver his baby last week is a STUD who will "definitely" be nominated for service awards ... his boss tells TMZ Sports.

We spoke with Cleveland EMS Headquarters chief David Miller who wouldn't reveal the ID of the heroic 911 operator -- but told us, "He's always been a really good employee."

So good ... that Miller says the operator will "definitely be nominated" for several prestigious awards for emergency workers which are announced at a ceremony during EMS Week in Cleveland in May.

Miller says everyone was impressed with the cool, calm and collective way the operator handled himself during the call with Shumpert -- but adds, "We aren't surprised at all."

Miller says the guy has always been popular around the office ... "but even more so this week."

Congrats!!

Santa Claus is 6'2", 282 pounds and wears a Carolina Panthers jersey... 'cause DT Charles Johnson just hooked up 10 local families with a $30k SHOPPING SPREE!!

Johnson tells TMZ Sports he took 10 families to a Charlotte, NC Walmart ... and gave them 60 minutes to pick out whatever they wanted.

Total bill? 30,000 BUCKS ... according to Johnson.

Although C.J. took care of the whole bill ... teammates Kawann Short, Charles Tillman, and Roman Harper came out to show their support.

So, why drop that much cash? "It's just something I wanted to do."

#Undefeated & #Charitable

Justin Blackmon admitted to having "2 drinks" at a local bar before getting behind the wheel of a 2015 Jeep Wrangler ... but appeared WASTED ... this according to the police report obtained by TMZ Sports.

The ex-NFL star was initially pulled over in Ardmore, OK on Saturday morning when cops spotted a defective brake light on his ride at 2:46 AM ... but when they approached the car, Blackmon reeked of booze.

According to the report, Blackmon had bloodshot watery eyes and he was slurring his speech -- and admitted to drinking at Chevy's Bar earlier that night.

Our sources tell us Blackmon goes to Chevy's a lot -- and is popular with the staff. One person tells us, "He's one of favorite people."

Cops say Blackmon bombed several field sobriety tests -- unable to walk in a straight line or balance himself.

Blackmon was eventually taken into custody on suspicion of DUI -- and cops say he became angry during the booking process ... refusing to give police his phone number.

According to the police report, Blackmon is listed at 6'2", 215 lbs.

Gilbert Arenas might wanna pay attention ... 'cause his baby mama CAN HOOP!!!!

Check out former "Basketball Wives" star Laura Govan BALLIN' OUT at Floyd Mayweather's celeb charity basketball game at Calabasas High School this weekend.

She drains a 3-pointer ... then gets back on defense and gets RIGHT IN FLOYD'S FACE, forcing him to miss his ensuing shot.

Plus, when the action goes back the other way ... Laura boxes out the champ LIKE A BOSS!!!

Ex-NFL star Justin Blackmon was arrested for DUI in Oklahoma this weekend -- his 2nd DUI in three years.

The 25-year-old wide receiver -- a 1st round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft -- was arrested at 4:45 AM on Saturday morning in Carter County, OK.

He was taken to a nearby station where he was booked and posed for a mug shot.

The Jacksonville Jaguars player was suspended indefinitely from the NFL since last year ... when he was arrested in Oklahoma for marijuana possession.

Matthew Stafford's wife says she has NO REASON to apologize after selling her tickets to tonight's "Monday Night Football" game ... saying she bought 'em herself and has a right to get her money back.

Kelly Stafford has been under fire on social media after posting 5 tickets to the Lions vs. Saints game on StubHub ... with critics pointing out that her Detroit Lions QB hubby has reportedly made close to $100 MILLION and she should've given the tickets away to fans.

But Kelly hit back on Instagram -- saying, "I bought those New Orleans tickets to take my family to the game, but found out at the beginning of this week my grandfather is very ill so I am going home to see him instead."

"I'm also sorry for being HUMAN and wanting to sell the tickets we purchased because we are not able to go."

"We do a lot for this community and I'm beyond tired of getting badgered for this ... get over yourselves."

Snoop Dogg is MADDDDDD as hell at Chip Kelly ... blasting the Eagles coach for screwing over his fantasy football team ... and it ain't pretty.

"Chip Kelly, kill yourself you dumb ass coach ... You sorry as f**k cuz."

Here's the deal ... Snoop was playing a team that had the Cardinals defense -- and with the Eagles getting BLOWN OUT 40-17 by the Cards last night, Snoop unleashed the fury.

Here's Meek Mill hitting the heavy bag and doing a little mitt work ... and not exactly looking like Mike Tyson (or even Mike Myers).

The Philly MC has reason to sharpen his hand game ... he's awaiting a February sentencing date for a probation violation that might send him to jail.

Check out this footage of Paul McCartney having a BLAST at the NY Rangers game this weekend -- yelling, screaming, towel-whirling -- while the guy next to him looks COMPLETELY MISERABLE.

By the way, that guy is Paul's son, James.

It's funny stuff ... the crowd went crazy for the Beatles legend -- despite the fact the Rangers got beat down by the Washington Capitals in a 7-3 rout.

Paul was a man about town this weekend -- he appeared on 'SNL' on Saturday and hit up a Brooklyn Nets game on Sunday.

Derrick Rose says pictures of his accuser wearing a "sex belt" can help prove he's not a rapist -- claiming his accuser BRAGGED about using it during sex with the NBA star ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We broke the story ... the Chicago Bulls star is being sued for more than $20 million by a woman who claims Rose and his friends gang raped her during an incident back in 2013.

Now, a woman who says she was the accuser's ex-roommate and co-worker is coming forward to defend Rose -- claiming she was with the accuser the day after the incident and all the woman wanted to talk about is the "sex belt" she had planned to use with Rose.

In legal docs filed by Rose's attorney, the ex-roommate says the accuser showed her a picture that she had sent to Rose wearing the sex belt ... a belt the accuser claimed Rose had asked her to buy.

The ex-roommate says she had no idea what a sex belt was -- so the accuser explained, "A sex belt with two bars for the man to hold enables the man to get leverage and hold the bars during the 'doggie style' position."

A few days later, the ex-roommate says the accuser was complaining that Rose had not reimbursed her for the belt -- and she wanted to find legal representation to take action against him.

The ex-roommate says the accuser never mentioned rape or gang rape until after she became upset with Derrick.

NBA superstar Paul Pierce says he's thrilled with Lamar Odom's progress -- telling TMZ Sports he's been praying for his "brother" to make a full recovery.

Pierce was at Floyd Mayweather's charity basketball game at Calabasas High School when we told him Odom finally took his first unassisted steps since the incident in Nevada back in October.

"He's family," Pierce said ... "He be like a brother of mine and we just want him to fully recover."

NFL superstar Jason Pierre-Paul says his Madden days are OVER -- since you can't play the video game without an index finger -- but not to worry, since he's killing it in real life.

TMZ Sports spoke with the NY Giants superstar the night after he recorded his first sack of the season on Sunday ... and despite his injury, JPP says he feels like he's in his football prime!!!

You've seen him crush the mitts ... but now 7-year-old boxing phenom Nijee "The Future" is obliterating real life sparring partners -- and they're all WAY OLDER THAN HIM.

After bursting onto the scene with a YouTube video that racked up more than 1 MILLION views, Nijee is now training with real opponents ... but his dad says he'll only put him in the ring with older kids -- for their own safety.

Check out this recent video (above) and you'll see why -- Nijee delivers a series of devastating body shots on a kid two years older than him ... putting an end to the session.

We're told the other kid is no chump -- he's a respected 9-year-old fighter who's "very experienced" and has been training for a while.

Not to worry parents ... the two tykes hugged and shook hands after the fight.

Question is ... when will Nijee fight for real?? We're told USA Boxing requires fighters to be at least 8 years old to compete in a sanctioned bout. So, soon.

In the meantime, check out Nijee working below ... and hide your kids.

Lil Wayne and Andre Berto brought some good holiday vibes to a school in Haiti ... giving out tons of toys and Trukfit gear.

Berto, a Haitian-American boxing superstar dropped his gloves for a Santa suit and toys for the kids. That's not all, Wayne chipped in a bunch of clothing from his Trukfit line ... enough shirts, shorts and hats for 500 students in need.

Scholastic Corporation stepped up too ... donating 500 books to the kids, the whole thing was brought together by Karen Civil whose parents grew up in the country.

Lamar Odom made a huge stride in his recovery this week ... taking steps for the first time without assistance.

Sources close to Lamar tell us he hadn't been able to move without a walker. We're told Thursday Lamar ditched the walker and took three steps, shocking the docs.

Lamar has had limited range of motion in his hands, but during a recent visit from Khloe he was able to reach above his head to put his hood on ... a BIG step.

And that's not all ... his brain function is slowly improving. He was able to recognize a hospital staff member, which is significant considering at one point he couldn't even recognize family.

We're told Lamar will soon be moved to a rehab facility.