TMZ Sports - Page 50

Luke Rockhold's firing back at Anthony Smith ... a fighter he says is a soft, talent-less bitch who'd get OWNED in a fight with the former UFC champ.

TMZ Sports talked to Luke after he was BLASTED by Smith at a UFC press conference ... where Anthony called him "a f**king piece of sh*t" and promised to "beat that dude's f**king ass.”

Smith hates Luke's guts ... and the feeling's mutual.

"I don't think much of Anthony Smith. I don't think he's very tough, technical, talented. He ain't got what it takes."

Rockhold thinks Smith sucks as a fighter, but he's still down to fight him ... especially after Smith said he'd "drill a hole thru Luke Rockhold’s f**king face."

Luke's response ... "He's not gonna be drilling nothing. I will own that kid from start to finish, anywhere he wants to go."

Both guys have fights booked this summer (Luke's fighting Jan Błachowicz at UFC 239) -- and seem to be on a collision course with each other -- but Rockhold says Smith should talk less about him and concentrate on his opponent, Alexander Gustafsson.

"He better focus on the fight coming up, cause my opinion is he's about to get his ass kicked," Rockhold says ... "So go out there go take your ass-whoopin', and come talk to me afterwards."

Tim Tebow and Reggie Bush are NOT the greatest college football players ever ... so says Brett Favre, who tells TMZ Sports that honor belongs to Southern Miss QB Reggie Collier.

"Not only is he the greatest player in Southern Miss history, he is, in my opinion, the greatest college football player ever."

So, who is Reggie Collier? He was a star quarterback for the Golden Eagles from 1979 to 1982 ... and he piled up 3,662 passing yards and 2,304 rushing yards in his 4 collegiate seasons.

Favre says he knows those numbers don't exactly compare to Tebow's and Bush's -- who, by the way, both won Heisman Trophies -- but he still says the guy is the best he's seen.

"Physically, he was second to none," Favre tells us ... "And would still be second to none at 6'4", 225, 230, ran a 4.4 40, could throw the lights out of it ... I don't think that any person watching him could not marvel at what he was able to do."

"I certainly wanted to be him."

Favre can't exactly be him these days ... but the Packers legend has a chance to BEAT him -- the two will square off as honorary coaches in this weekend's Southern Miss spring game.

As for the whole best college football player ever debate ... here's some vid of Collier. Does he look as good as Tebow or Bush to you???

The baseball Barry Bonds smacked for his last-ever home run is hitting the auction block ... and it could fetch $750,000 (!!!!!!!!!) -- TMZ Sports has learned.

Baseball's home run king launched the final dinger of his career -- No. 762 -- on Sept. 5, 2007 ... when Bonds took Rockies pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez deep at Coors Field in Denver.

It was a mad scramble to catch the ball -- and turns out, for good reason ... 'cause the first time the ball went up for sale back in 2008 -- it sold for $376,612.

Now, we're told the ball is set to hit the auction block on Monday at Goldin Auctions -- and it could fetch three-quarters of a million dollars by the time bidding ends!!!

The ball is a pretty remarkable piece of history ... it has dirt smudges all over it and comes with three separate affidavits that prove its authenticity -- and it could be all yours if ya got the cash.

Bonds -- in addition to being MLB's all-time home run leader -- was a 7-time MVP, 14-time All-Star and 8-time Gold Glove winner.

If you're somewhere in a barber shop comparing the careers of Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade, you're getting on Shawn Marion's last damn nerve ... and he wants you to stop.

Both Wade and Dirk called it quits this year, so of course, the NBA community had to start talking about which guy is higher on the all-time pecking order.

It's a pretty close race any way you slice it, with Dirk having more stats, and Wade having more rings (he also played defense) so people are pretty split.

Marion played with both men, on the Mavs with Dirk and the Heat with Wade ... and he has an opinion ... he thinks everyone should shut the hell up.

"Everybody gotta compare somebody to somebody. Stop that sh*t."

Marion's aggravated point is that the 7'0" Dirk and the 6'4" Wade had two TOTALLY different games and comparing them is pointless and almost insulting to their legacies.

"Respect what they done. They both were true professionals, and they left a legacy to live and continue to live out now that they're done."

Here's a video that could finally set up a boxing superfight EVERYONE wants -- with Vasyl Lomachenko calling out Gervonta "Tank" Davis right on camera.

"Let's do this! Let's do this," Loma said to TMZ Sports ... knowing full well there's a TON of interest in seeing Floyd Mayweather's prodigy step in the ring with "High Tech."

Lomachenko is 13-1 -- and has earned the nickname "No Mas Chenko" because he's made guys straight up quit in the ring.

Davis is 21-0 and he's the reigning WBA super featherweight champ.

There's one issue according to Loma -- boxing politics -- because Vasyl's promoter is Bob Arum and Tank is with Al Haymon ... two guys who don't exactly get along.

There is one thing both sides can agree on ... THEY ALL LIKE MONEY -- and if there's enough of it, we can finally get the fight we want.

Vasyl wants it -- and he's challenging Tank to talk to his people to get them on board.

In the meantime, Loma is fighting Anthony Crolla on Friday night -- but he's a MASSIVE favorite and should slice through Crolla with ease.

Davis just fought -- and destroyed Hugo Ruiz -- ending the fight in the 1st-round.

Awesome gesture from Reggie Bush ... the ex-NFL star is making sure Nipsey Hussle's kids will be taken care of -- donating $10,000 to them and hoping to raise over $90k more.

Unclear how close Bush was to the late rapper ... but as a San Diego native and a former USC superstar -- it's clear the SoCal legend was able to touch Reggie in some way during his life.

So, Bush is giving back to Hussle in the wake of his tragic death last month ... by donating $10,000 to Nipsey's two children and encouraging his followers to chip in as well.

"[Nipsey] touched a lot of lives in a positive way. He wanted to make a difference in his community, and communities like it all around the world," Bush said.

"As a tribute to Nipsey, I would like to offer support to his children, and all funds from this GoFundMe will be transferred directly into a trust that was created solely for his legacy, his two children, Kross & Emani."

Reggie added, "I'm making a donation to start this off. Please join me in honoring him in this way."

One NFL player has already contributed -- Patriots wideout Phillip Dorsett donated $1,000 to the campaign just an hour after Bush made the announcement.

Bush says his fundraising campaign will end on April 19.

The Luke Walton era in Los Angeles is over -- he's out as the Lakers head coach ... but both sides are saying it was a "mutual" decision.

So, not fired???

"We would like to thank Luke for his dedicated service over the last three years," Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said in a statement.

“We wish Luke and his family the best of luck moving forward.”

Walton also issued a statement saying, "I want to thank Jeanie Buss and the Buss family for giving me the opportunity to coach the Lakers."

"This franchise and the city will always be special to me and my family.”

The Lakers were 98-148 under Walton -- who was hired in April 2016. This season, after adding LeBron James, the Lakers finished with an abysmal 37-45 ... 10th place in the Western Conference.

Back in February, we spoke with Luke about the situation with the Lakers and he told us he LOVED being the head coach.

So, who's next for L.A.? There are reports Ty Lue could take over -- reuniting LeBron James with his old coach from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

There are also rumblings Luke is the frontrunner to be the next head coach of the Sacramento Kings, which just fired their head coach Thursday.

It's been a wild week for the Lakers -- with Magic Johnson surprisingly stepping down as the President of Basketball Operations on Tuesday ... minutes before the Lakers played their final game of the season.

Magic insisted he just wasn't happy in the role -- and wanted to be free to tweet about NBA topics and players without being fined by the league.

Lakers owner Jeanie Buss says the team is actively looking for Magic's replacement.

UFC superstar Jon Jones is firing back at Israel Adesanya -- saying he would DESTROY the 29-year-old so badly when they fight down the road ... "I’ll make you call me daddy by the third [round]."

Jon is responding to comments Israel made during an interview with TMZ Sports, when Adesanya told us a fight with Jones "tickles my loins" ... and added, "I already killed one G.O.A.T. and I'm hunting the next."

The "G.O.A.T." Adesanya says he killed is Anderson Silva -- who Israel defeated in a 3-round unanimous decision back in February.

Just a few weeks ago, Jones told us he thinks a fight with Israel is on the horizon -- and after seeing Adesanya's "G.O.A.T." comments, Jon is clearly fired up about the possible match up.

"If you think you killed 44 yr old Anderson, you didn’t," Jones tweeted out ... "I’m not really sure what fight you’ve been watching."

"You got past the legendary GOAT, now come f*ck with the King of the jungle. I’ll make you call me daddy by the third."

Before he can focus on Jones, Adesanya is fighting Kelvin Gastelum for the interim middleweight title at UFC 236 on Saturday ... a massive fight on ESPN+ PPV (click here to order).

Adesanya told us he's laser focused on Kelvin -- and will deal with Jones after he gets his "W."

UFC fighter T.J. Dillashaw has broken his silence on his cheating scandal -- finally admitting, "I messed up."

The former bantamweight champ tested positive for EPO -- a banned substance -- before his January title fight with Henry Cejudo. He's accepted a 2-year ban and won't be eligible to fight until Jan. 2021.

"I'm having a hard time trying to forgive myself for this," 33-year-old Dillashaw said ... "Which I SHOULD have a hard time."

"But, I got to man up to what I did."

Dillashaw initially played dumb about the positive test -- saying he would look into how the positive test came about.

But, now he's admitting he knowingly cheated -- and says he understands all of the criticism and scrutiny that comes his way.

Dillashaw says he vows to return to the sport and wants to prove to his 15-month-old son that he can come back after making a tremendous "mistake."

"This is who I am. I'm a fighter ... and I'm gonna have to fight my way through this one."

While he's on the bench, Dillashaw has already had surgery on one shoulder and will get surgery on the other soon.

Mathew Knowles says he BALLED UP Kobe Bryant when they faced off in some 1-on-1 twenty years ago ... and he'll gladly kick Kobe's ass again if Mamba wants to run it back!!!

We spoke with Beyonce's dad after he unearthed video from the set of the Destiny's Child "Bug A Boo" video -- where he took on Kobe while wearing dress pants, dress shoes and a Polo shirt.

Mathew actually got a bucket on Kobe -- and Knowles says it was ALL SKILL, BABY!!!

"He was talking a lot of trash," Mathew says ... joking that Kobe was trying to show out to impress all of the beautiful women on the set that day.

But, Knowles says he's a former basketball player himself -- played at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga -- and shocked Kobe with his hoop skills.

The best part ... Mathew says he's still in shape, still got skills and would WRECK Kobe if Mamba wanted a rematch.

"I told you I can play some ball! 20 years later, I could still take Kobe to the hoop!"

"Kobe, I just want to let you know bruh, I think you are one of the greatest -- if not the greatest basketball player ever."

Whoa!!!!!

UFC fighter Anthony Smith HATES Luke Rockhold's guts. Like REALLY hates him.

And, moments ago, Smith issued a threat to Rockhold, despite the fact they don't even have a fight on the books.

"That guy’s a f*cking piece of sh*t," Smith said at the UFC press conference in Atlanta moments ago.

"F*ck Luke Rockhold."

So, why the hostility?

It stems back to a radio interview Rockhold did earlier this year when he called Smith a "sloppy bum" who wasn't worthy of a fight with Jon Jones at UFC 235.

Smith was clearly offended -- and used his opportunity Friday to lash back at Rockhold.

"The first opportunity I get I’m gonna drill a hole through Luke Rockhold’s f*cking face. I promise you guys that.”

“The first opportunity I get after this fight, doesn’t matter what happens. I’ll fight Luke Rockhold on one f*cking leg. I’m gonna beat that dude's f*cking ass.”

10:30 AM PT -- Prosecutors admitted during the hearing that despite their initial thoughts ... they have NO evidence of human trafficking at the Orchids of Asia spa. They also said there is no longer an ongoing investigation for any such evidence.

Kraft's attorneys have long argued cops knew all along there was no evidence of human trafficking.

The hearing is getting heated ... with Kraft's team insisting prosecutors are holding the threat of releasing the surveillance videos "like a sword" over Kraft's head ... in order to force him into taking a plea deal.

Robert Kraft's legal team marched into a Palm Beach County courthouse Friday morning prepared for war -- gearing up to argue why the Asian Spa video should NOT be released to the public.

Attorneys Alex Spiro (left), Jack Goldberger (center) and William Burck (right) arrived at the courthouse early Friday morning for the case with their game faces on.

As we previously reported, Kraft's team has been fighting like hell to keep the surveillance videos under wraps out of fear it could hamper his chances of getting a fair trial.

Several media outlets have filed court docs in the hopes of getting access to the video -- but Kraft thinks the judge has a duty to block it.

Cops say they recorded graphic footage of Kraft (and other men) inside the Orchids of Asia Day Spa in Jupiter, Florida in January showing the 77-year-old receiving sex acts in exchange for money.

Kraft argued in several motions that the videos should NOT be released to the public ... saying they were not only obtained illegally -- but they'd do "irreparable harm" if they got out.

The judge is currently hearing arguments from both sides.

LeBron James says he's INCREDIBLY PROUD of stats showing the students at his "I Promise" school in Akron are making tremendous gains in statewide testing ... just 1 year after it opened.

There are only 240 students in the inaugural 3rd and 4th grade classes at the Akron school -- but numbers obtained by the NY Times show test scores in math and reading were up BIG after the first year.

In reading, the 3rd and 4th graders had initially scored in the lowest percentile -- the 1%.

But, after a year, when the students took the district-wide exams, the 3rd graders JUMPED to the 9th percentile and the 4th graders moved to the 16th!

Take a second and reflect on that -- those are HUGE gains.

And that's not all ... when it came to math, the 3rd graders jumped from the 1% to the 18th percentile -- and 4th graders moved from the 2% to the 30th!!!!

When asked about the incredible improvements, LeBron told the Times, "These kids are doing an unbelievable job, better than we all expected."

He added, "When we first started, people knew I was opening a school for kids. Now people are going to really understand the lack of education they had before they came to our school."

"People are going to finally understand what goes on behind our doors."

So, what does go on behind their doors?

Besides access to teachers and materials, the school also provides clothing and snacks to families that need it ... which is partially funded by LeBron's foundation.

Michael Rapaport has a message for Jeanie Buss -- "Stop running the Lakers like it's a mom and pop donut shop!"

Rap was leaving The Improv in Hollywood on Thursday when he went off about what's WRONG with the Lake Show ... and it's clear, he thinks the problem starts at the top.

"Here's the point about the Lakers," Rapaport said ... "Jeanie Buss, everybody loves you. I love you. I've met you, you've been nothing but nice to me. Stop running the Lakers like it's a mom and pop donut shop."

"It's not a little shoe store down in Downtown in L.A. It's big business. You gotta hire a killer. You gotta hire some kick ass people."

Jeanie took over the Lakers in 2013 after the death of her father, Dr. Jerry Buss -- who originally purchased the team back in 1979.

Since she became President of the team during the 2013-14 season, the Lakers have not posted a winning record.

Rap also says Jeanie also needs to let LeBron run things while he's under contract with the team -- "Let The King run the show. Give him 3 years to do what he wants to do."

"He made Magic Johnson cry!!! Magic Johnson was crying the other day!! We all know who made him cry."

Bottom line ... "Jeanie Buss, it's not a family business. It's a basketball team. Get some killers in there!"

Well, it's confirmed -- Jay Cutler sucks.

... this according to his wife Kristin Cavallari who says the ex-NFL quarterback helped to unclog her milk ducts by "sucking harder than he’s ever sucked."

K-Cav made the statement on camera for an upcoming episode of "Very Cavallari" -- when she was telling a dinner table full of friends how she solved a major breastfeeding issue.

"Major clogged ducts. Jay had to get them out for me, sucking harder than he’s ever sucked ... and you know what? Saved my life."

Jay just cracked a smile and threw up his hands as if to say, "Yeah, so what?!"

Cavallari has really introduced the public to a side of Jay nobody really knew during his 12 seasons in the NFL -- when he had a reputation for being boring, introverted and the opposite of fun.

Now, he's posing naked on the beach, blossoming into a legit reality star ... and unclogging milk ducts with his face.

CUTLER!!!

HQ Trivia host Scott Rogowsky is leaving the company for his new gig as a baseball host ... because HQ wouldn't play ball and give him the green light to work 2 jobs.

For weeks, people have been wondering why Scott hasn't been popping up on their smartphones to host the daily trivia show ... and we've learned it's because the "Quiz Daddy" left HQ in the dust after striking out in his quest to add a new nightly MLB show and keep his HQ gig.

Scott's last appearance on HQ Trivia was March 24 ... right before he announced he was accepting a second hosting gig with DAZN's new show called, "ChangeUp."

Sources at HQ Trivia tell us, Scott was trying to work out an arrangement to stay on as the weekend host for HQ, but CEO Rus Yusupov wouldn't budge.

For his part, Scott tells us there is anything but hard feelings. He tells TMZ, "Nothing in my decade-plus entertainment career has meant more to me personally and professionally than my involvement with HQ." He couldn't be more grateful for all the people who grew the co., and for the "HQties" who kept it thriving.

He states, "While the decision to leave HQ was a difficult one, I am delighted to begin this next chapter in my career with the amazing people at MLB and DAZN. If you miss me on HQ, you can now get three hours of me every weeknight watching ChangeUp on DAZN."