TMZ Sports - Page 50

You can clearly tell just how much George H.W. Bush was liked and respected simply by the incredible number of celebs who turned out for the late President's funeral in the Lone Star State.

Reba McEntire sang "The Lord's Prayer" and The Oak Ridge Boys gave a powerful rendition of "Amazing Grace" during the funeral services Thursday at St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston.

Everything's bigger in Texas, including Houston sports stars -- past and present -- who turned out to say goodbye to 41 ... former Rockets centers Yao Ming and Dikembe Mutombo towered over the crowd, while Texans defensive lineman J.J. Watt brought the muscle with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Naturally, Chuck Norris was there, and legendary Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda made the trek from Los Angeles.

Tristan Thompson's one-finger salute just cost him a chunk of change ... 'cause the Cavs star's been slapped with a $15k fine for flipping off hecklers at the Nets game on Monday.

TMZ Sports posted the video ... T.T. snapped at the end of the Cavs-Nets game at Barclays Center ... flipping off some courtside fans after Cleveland sealed the W.

The league announced Thompson's punishment on Thursday ... and it's a bargain compared to the $25k fines handed to Kevin Durant and Patrick Beverley for their recent fan incidents.

It's the only recent blemish in Thompson's hot streak ... as the dude is averaging a double-double so far this season and has been helping the Cavs keep from being a complete embarrassment.

Well, that didn't take long ... LeBron James has already turned the Lakers into the biggest spectacle in Hollywood -- 'cause all the stars were out to watch him Wednesday!!

Of course, the regulars like Floyd Mayweather and Denzel Washington were in their usual seats ... but Adam Sandler, Benicio Del Toro, Andy Garcia and a whole lot more had to get a glimpse last night.

The King didn't disappoint ... dude dropped 42 points in front of the A-list crowd -- and the Lake Show rolled to a 121-113 win over the Spurs.

The bad news for Bron?? The crowd might've cost him a future teammate -- 'cause before the game, Kevin Durant said the environment LBJ brings to teams can be too "toxic."

Does having John David Washington, Flea, Ray J and even Alex Bregman sitting feet from the bench qualify?? Maybe.

Remember when Drake was the biggest Kentucky Wildcats fan on the planet??

The dude's leanin' more towards Duke, now ... 'cause Drizzy's added a FULL R.J. Barrett Montverde Academy basketball uniform to his insane collection ... and he's proudly showin' it off.

We all know the 6 God has a TON of rare prep jerseys -- from John Wall to Boogie Cousins to Barrett's Duke teammate Zion Williamson.

The newest addition might leave some people scratching their heads considering Drake's a big BBN fanboy ... and Barrett's tearing it up for the Blue Devils this season.

It's especially interesting because Barrett destroyed Kentucky in his college hoops debut earlier this season with 33 points and 6 assists ... but we take it Aubrey's had some time to heal.

The only explanation here -- Drake's pride for the North outweighs his Kentucky fandom ... and considering Barrett's one of the best Canadian hoopers since Steve Nash, he's probably cool with pissing off a few 'Cats diehards.

But, the full jersey AND shorts combo, Drake??

Sheesh.

Seems the Rodgers Family Feud might FINALLY be coming to an end ... with Aaron Rodgers saying he spent his birthday with his parents!

Now, why is this a big deal?

It was just last week that Aaron's brother, Jordan Rodgers (from 'Bachelorette'), blasted the QB on social media for not calling his mother while she was getting ready to evacuate during the California wildfires.

But earlier this week, Aaron subtly let the media know that he spent time with his "folks" for his birthday over the weekend.

Aaron was speaking with reporters about the firing of Packers head coach Mike McCarthy and he was asked what he was doing when he found out.

That's when Aaron slickly dropped the info about the reconciliation with his parents.

"I found out I’m sure the same way most of you found out. I was at home with my folks in town for my birthday.”

See that? HE WAS WITH HIS PARENTS!!!!

Remember, this feud was so bad, they made a dramatic scene out of it during Jordan's hometown visit on "The Bachelorette" ... where they left an empty chair at the dinner table for Aaron, who refused to participate.

Aaron's ex-girlfriend Olivia Munn said she had tried to get Aaron to speak with his parents years ago -- but things were too nasty.

Lance Armstrong is still pissed that fellow admitted cheater Alex Rodriguez has essentially been forgiven by society while he's still considered a villain -- since Lance says he's done WAY more to help people.

"A-Rod didn't raise half a BILLION dollars and try to save people's lives," Armstrong said on the "Today" show ... obviously referring to the work he did with the Livestrong foundation.

Armstrong then threw even more shade at the baseball player ... sarcastically saying, "Look, it's great when somebody hits home runs and maybe does an event here and there for the Boys & Girls Club."

Armstrong has previously griped about A-Rod ... telling "Freakonomics Radio" back in July, "The one key thing is that Alex Rodriguez was allowed to come back and play. And, Alex Rodriguez was part of a team sport. And thirdly, Alex Rodriguez never stood for anything else other than baseball."

The woman who claims she was attacked by NFL star Reuben Foster says reps from the 49ers tried to undermine her credibility with police during the investigation ... telling cops she had lied about domestic violence in the past.

Elissa Ennis appeared on "Good Morning America" Thursday where she accused Foster of roughing her up on 3 separate occasions ... including the Nov. 24 incident at a team hotel in Tampa, Florida.

As we previously reported, Ennis called 911 and told the operator Foster had slapped her and roughed her up during a dispute. He's since been charged with 1 count of misdemeanor domestic violence. She revealed the injury photos during the interview with 'GMA.'

Ennis told 'GMA' they had been arguing because she threatened to tell his new girlfriend that he paid for her flight out to Florida to see him.

"Even when I called the police, the 49ers came up there," Ennis said ... "I have pictures of the 49ers coming up there trying to talk to the police telling them I'm the same ex-girlfriend that set up there and lied."

The 49ers have not commented on Ennis' claims.

She's referring to the previous domestic violence allegations she made against Foster back in February -- when she told officials Foster beat the daylights out of her in their California home ... but later recanted her story and told a judge she made the whole thing up.

Now, Ennis admits she lied in court to protect Foster -- saying, "I did what I had to do for the person I love. I thought that he would change, anybody in my position would do the same thing."

Foster was cut by the 49ers -- but later picked up by the Washington Redskins and Ennis claims she was "shocked" another NFL team would take a chance on such a bad guy.

Ennis says she's now getting help and realizes her relationship with Foster was destructive and "not love."

Ice Cube is jacked up for Lamar Odom's dreams of a pro basketball comeback ... but he says there is a catch if the ex-Laker wants to make it in the BIG3 ...

"He's still gotta try out like everybody else."

Yup ... Ice Cube ain't doing the 2-time NBA champ any favors -- telling TMZ Sports, L.O.'s gotta work out just like the rest of the ballers who want in on his 3-on-3 league.

But ... Cube tells us video he saw recently of Odom on the court and in the gym was promising -- and he's hopeful Lamar can make a squad.

That said, Cube notes that Odom was training in a gym without elite players trying to shut him down -- and the game is A LOT different when there's a defense on the court.

Cube's advice on the next steps Odom needs to take to make it? "Get healthy, get in shape and get to the combine!"

Seems Lamar's already on it ...

Our TMZ photog was out in Washington D.C. today covering the George H.W. Bush funeral ... when Roger Goodell came walking down the street.

So, we had to ask about the obvious issue involving the NFL and TMZ ... Kareem Hunt.

We got right next to the NFL Commish and asked him if he thinks Hunt will ever play another down in the league. We asked some follow-up questions too.

But, Goodell wasn't ready to have that conversation.

The NFL has issued several statements on the Kareem Hunt situation so it's not like the league is stonewalling the media -- but so far, we haven't heard from Goodell directly.

Back in 2014 during the Ray Rice situation, Goodell held a press conference and took questions from reporters about the league's attempts to obtain the video.

So far, we haven't heard of any plans for Goodell to hold a similar media event in regards to Kareem Hunt.

The Cleveland Police Dept. says one of its officers leaked a copy of the Kareem Hunt police report to the NFL back in February -- and now it's launched an internal investigation.

"Following an internal review, it has been determined that in February 2018 a member of the Cleveland Division of Police provided a copy of the police report involving the February 10, 2018 assault incident at The 9 to a representative from the National Football League," the PD said.

"The report did not go through the official public records request process."

So, what's the takeaway? The statement implies the NFL did go outside of official channels in an effort to gather information about the incident.

The CPD also says it's looking into the "overall response" by the PD regarding the Hunt incident -- but did not get specific about other issues.

One big question ... why didn't the responding officers make more of an effort to view the surveillance video on the night of the incident?

The woman was seen on police body cam video begging the officers to view the tapes -- but cops said they were stuck because the hotel is a "private facility" and "they don't have to show us unless they're ordered by a court."

Lincoln Riley tried to poach ... so did Arkansas and Notre Dame -- but Ohio State's top recruit (a stud WR from Texas) says he's sticking with the Buckeyes, despite Urban Meyer's retirement.

"If coach [Ryan] Day is going to be leading the team, then I'm going to be there right beside him," Garrett Wilson tells TMZ Sports.

It's great news for the Buckeyes -- Wilson is a 5-star recruit who some say is the best wide receiver prospect to ever commit to Ohio State.

It's been a wild year at OSU -- between the Zach Smith scandal, Meyer's suspension, and now Urban stepping down -- but Wilson says he's all set to sign later this month regardless.

Why?? The senior from Lake Travis H.S. in Texas explains it's all 'cause of the man OSU tabbed to replace Urban -- Ryan Day.

"If coach Day is going to be the head coach, then I'm 100 percent done. I trust in him, I love him."

Other schools tried to sway him from that opinion ... the 5-star recruit said Oklahoma, Arkansas, Notre Dame and others all reached out after Urban's announcement.

But, the WR -- who some consider the top recruit in the country -- says there wasn't a chance ... especially after he spoke with Urban a few days ago.

"He called me, which meant a lot."

As for Meyer's health ... Wilson says the coach told him, "he was putting himself at risk" by going out and coaching every day ... but he expects to see him around when he gets to school next year.

"He's gonna have a football office on the campus!"

Guess that means Urban will still be around plenty to enjoy this next year ...

Emotional moment between Brian Ortega and his UFC 231 opponent, Max Holloway -- when Ortega told Max he's been praying for him ever since the Hawaiian's health scare back in July.

Brian and Max are set to fight each other on Saturday -- it'll be Max's first time in the Octagon since he backed out of UFC 226 with "concussion-like symptoms" just days before the fight.

Holloway says he never got a clear answer about his health -- so he's launched a "private medical investigation" to find out what happened to him.

Still, he's been cleared to fight Ortega -- and at the pre-fight press conference in Toronto on Wednesday, Brian got very serious when asked about Max's health.

"At the end of the day, I really do care about your health and how you are and how you're doing," Ortega told Holloway.

"I know you've got a son. I mean, bullsh*t aside, I know we're fighting and all that sh*t, but I do hope you're alright."

Ortega continued ... "I pray for you. Swear to god."

The crowd cheered and Holloway appeared to thank Ortega for the kind words.

UFC star Kamaru Usman says Dana White offered him a fight with Colby Covington next month ... and he's waiting on Donald Trump's favorite fighter to sign the contract.

Both fighters have been dying to get a shot at the welterweight champ Tyron Woodley -- and it seems the winner of the proposed January 19 bout would get their wish.

TMZ Sports talked to Usman ... who tells us Dana called this week and made the offer.

Kamaru ain't exactly confident the fight will actually happen ... saying Colby has refused to accept the match on 4 other occasions in the past.

So yeah, Kamaru and Colby hate each other ... and straight-up, Usman says Covington is scared.

If he accepts, Usman vs. Covington would join a bunch of solid fights on the first UFC event on ESPN -- including Paige VanZant vs. Rachael Ostovich and Greg Hardy vs. Allen Crowder.

Usman just dominated Rafael dos Anjos when they clashed on Saturday night at "The Ultimate Fighter" finale.

Covington's last fight was also against RDA -- Colby scored the "W" in a 5-round decision at UFC 225 back in June.

After the fight, Colby underwent surgery to correct a nasal issue. He visited Trump at the White House in August and took a pic with POTUS while Donald held the UFC interim welterweight championship belt over his shoulder.

We reached out to Covington for comment ... so far, no word back.

Kareem Hunt and Reuben Foster, listen up ... Ezekiel Elliott is handing down advice on how to get through the lengthy suspensions you're about to face.

"Just focus on your day-to-day life, making sure you’re winning the next day," Elliott told reporters Wednesday.

"Because when you start looking down the road, you kind of get bogged down."

Of course, Elliott has already walked a mile in Hunt and Foster's shoes ... having been accused of domestic violence and getting slapped with a subsequent suspension.

In Zeke's case ... the Cowboys superstar -- who was never arrested or charged -- was popped for 6 games and often spoke about how difficult it was to get through the month-and-a-half absence.

So, his message for Hunt and Foster this week was simple ... "Focus on day to day, doing better day to day, and things are going to work themselves out."

Cops are on the hunt for the scumbags who broke into the home of L.A. Chargers star tight end Antonio Gates and his wife, Sasha, over the weekend ... while their kids were inside the house.

Scary situation ... surveillance cameras at the San Fernando Valley home captured multiple suspects climbing a gate and stalking around the property over the weekend.

We're told the men targeted Antonio's garage where they stole a number of items and rummaged through some of Antonio's high-end cars, including a Rolls-Royce.

All the while, we're told Antonio's kids were inside the home.

The burglars never made contact with the family -- but they stole a bunch of stuff including a hoverboard belonging to one of Antonio's kids.

Cops have the surveillance footage and are hunting for the suspects.

Sources connected to the investigation tell us it appears the men may have cased the property before they struck because they knew exactly where to head once they climbed the fence.

Gates is the latest high-profile burglary victim in the area -- as we previously reported, cops have made a bunch of arrests after stars like Yasiel Puig, Robert Woods and Rihanna were also burglarized.

Unclear if cops believe the suspects in the Gates incident have any connection to the other cases.

Greg Hardy's 1st UFC opponent says he has extra motivation to destroy the ex-NFL star -- telling TMZ Sports he wants to get the victory to honor Rachael Ostovich.

Hardy is set to fight Allen Crowder at UFC on ESPN on Jan. 19 -- the same night Ostovich will return to the Octagon after her domestic violence incident.

As we previously reported, Ostovich was hospitalized last month following an altercation with her MMA fighter husband Arnold Berdon, who was later arrested and charged with assault.

Some critics are upset with the UFC -- claiming the organization is tone deaf putting Hardy and Ostovich on the same card because of Hardy's past domestic violence issues.

FYI, Hardy was found guilty of domestic violence by a judge in 2014 -- but the conviction was thrown out in 2015 when he appealed to have the case go in front of a jury ... and his accuser stopped cooperating with prosecutors.

Dana White has previously told us he's spoken with Hardy about the incident -- but he's convinced Greg is a changed man.

So, how does Greg's new opponent feel? We spoke with Crowder -- who's fought against beasts like Curtis Blaydes and Justin Willis -- and he spelled it out for us.

"I definitely want to win this fight for [Ostovich]. I'm very against men beating women. And, I'm definitely not a woman, so he's gonna have a lot harder time with me then he did the last person."