TMZ Sports - Page 50

Sikorsky, the manufacturer of the helicopter that crashed with Kobe Bryant and 8 others, had actively taken steps to make sure other fliers of the S-76 add the critical system missing from Kobe's chopper.

The specific model flying Kobe was the S-76B and, as you know, the NTSB said it wasn't equipped with a Terrain Awareness and Warning System (TAWS). It was an optional feature until 2005 -- Kobe's was built in 1991.

Sources familiar with Sikorsky tell us before Kobe's crash ... the company frequently reached out to customers of older S-76 models and urged them to implement new safety measures like TAWS.

The company says it regularly notifies customers of enhanced technology offerings, but for obvious reasons ... it's a top priority now.

The NTSB also revealed Kobe's helicopter didn't have a cockpit voice or flight data recorder (aka a black box) -- because, once again, they weren't standard until recently.

Sikorsky tells us TAWS and a black box have been standard since they rolled out their S-76D in 2012.

As we reported ... the NTSB says it previously made 2 safety recommendations to the FAA about the warning system and the black box, but the FAA didn't take action. The strong insinuation is those instruments could have helped Kobe's pilot avoid catastrophe ... and helped investigators figure out what went wrong.

The NTSB first recommended mandatory black boxes and warning systems in 2006 following a crash the year before, but neither are currently mandated by the FAA for commercial flights.

Sikorsky says it's deeply saddened by the Kobe tragedy and is "actively supporting the NTSB investigation," adding ... "Safety is our top priority. If there are any actionable findings from the investigation, we will immediately inform our S-76 customers."

Russell Wilson may have come up short on his quest for the Super Bowl this year, but he's winning off the field -- Ciara's pregnant ... and this child matches his jersey number.

The husband and wife made the announcement together Thursday morning ... via back-to-back posts on Instagram with the simple caption, "Number 3."

Russell's selfie featured a pregnant Ciara posing in the background, and he made sure to flaunt a #3 around his neck too.

This will be the couple's second child together, but her third. She has a son, Future Jr., from her previous relationship with Future. Wilson became his stepfather when he and Ciara wed in England in July 2016.

Ciara and Russell welcomed their first kid, a daughter named Sienna Princess, in April 2017.

It's unclear when Ciara's due, but she's due to take the stage at Rolling Stone's Super Bowl concert Saturday in Miami at SLS South Beach.

And, now we know ... she'll be singing for 2.

NY Knicks player Marcus Morris is backpedaling in a BIG way after using anti-women insults to attack Grizzlies player Jae Crowder.

Morris ripped Crowder for stealing the ball and shooting a 3 with just seconds to go in a 127 to 106 ass-kicking at Madison Square Garden ... saying the move was "unprofessional."

And, that's when the sexist insults began to fly ...

"I think dude is just, he plays the game a different way. A lot of female tendencies on the court," Morris said following Wednesday night's game.

"Flopping, throwing his head back the entire game. It’s a man’s game and you just get tired of it. Obviously, at the end that was very unprofessional."

There's more ... "His game is soft. He’s soft. That’s how he carries [himself]. It’s just very woman-like."

Yeeesh.

Obviously, people were PISSED at Morris for the ridiculous comments ... and he issued an apology a short time later on social media.

"I apologize for using the term 'female tendencies,'" Morris said ... "I have the upmost respect for women and everything they mean to us."

Maybe a woman should have copy edited his statement ... he would have known the word is "utmost" not "upmost."

Anyway, he continued ... "It was a Heat of the moment response and I never intended for any Women to feel as though in anyway I’m disrespecting them."

"Again I apologize with my comments."

Good news, Saints fans ... Sean Payton tells TMZ Sports he fully expects Drew Brees to return for his 15th season in New Orleans next season!!!

"Listen," Payton tells us, "I think he's playing at a high level."

Of course, there's been a lot of talk about Brees possibly hanging it up this off-season ... he's 41 years old and coming off a year in which he threw for less than 3,000 yards for the first time since 2003.

Plus, he's a free agent who would need to renegotiate yet another tough, high-priced deal with New Orleans leadership.

But when we got Brees' head coach out in Miami at a Super Bowl event Wednesday night ... he sure seemed like a guy who was confident he'll have his Hall of Fame QB back in 2020.

Payton wasn't alone in that sentiment ... we also got legendary Saints O-lineman Willie Roaf in Miami as well, and he told us he has ZERO doubts Brees will be back.

"He ain't retiring," Roaf says. "He's coming back one more year ... I promise he's coming back one more year."

Aldon Smith has cleaned himself up and is laser-focused on getting back in the NFL, so says Jay Glazer who tells TMZ Sports ... the former All-Pro deserves a 2nd chance.

The 30-year-old defensive end was a MONSTER in the league before substance abuse issues and domestic violence allegations derailed his career.

But, Glazer says Smith had an epiphany -- and made a life choice to turn his life around, starting with joining Jay's Unbreakable gym in West Hollywood.

"Aldon's great because Aldon's been working out with our [military veterans] in our MVP program every single Wednesday night," Jay said.

"Aldon has been sober for a while and he's been helping a lot of our vets with their sobriety."

Smith - who hasn't played a down in the NFL since 2015 -- is now trying to show NFL teams he deserves another shot in the league ... and Glazer believes he's earning it.

"We've given a lot of guys second chances. He deserves it as much as anybody I've been around," Jay told us at his GlazerPalooza event at Prestige Imports Miami, where a bunch of SICK exotic cars were on display!

The event benefits Jay's MVP charity which helps military vets and athletes who are dealing with mental health issues.

Jay says Aldon -- who set the 49ers franchise single-season sack record in 2012 (19.5 sacks) -- is currently at a solid 285 lbs and SHREDDED.

"He is a freak if nature."

Shaun Weiss -- best known for playing Goldberg in "The Mighty Ducks" films -- has reached the point of grave concern ... and desperately needs help before it's too late.

Sources close to the troubled 41-year-old actor tell TMZ ... he's currently living on the street and dealing with several life-threatening problems, including diabetes, mental illness and drug addiction.

We're told friends of Shaun's have been trying to get him into various rehab facilities for years now, but it's been difficult due to long wait lists ... along with his inability to stay out of trouble.

Our sources say things have gotten so bad for Weiss that he's basically in survival mode right now ... which is why he resorts to trying to steal stuff.

We're told anytime he manages to get his hands on some clothing or money, he gets attacked by other homeless people and robbed. Even worse, a friend bought him a van to live in ... and it was allegedly set on fire.

Those close to Shaun say he's in dire need of detox, rehab and medical aid including dental work ... because he's lost most of his teeth, which makes it difficult to eat.

It's sad stuff for sure, and our sources say even his own sister has been unable to help. We're told she agreed to take Shaun in at her Northern California home a few weeks ago but kicked him out a few days ago due to his behavior.

He was arrested for residential burglary and being under the influence of methamphetamine shortly afterward.

As we've reported ... Weiss posed for another shockingly sad mug shot back in August 2018 when he was arrested for public intoxication, but his downward spiral started about a year before that with arrests for petty theft and meth.

Kobe Bryant's wife, Vanessa, has made her first public move since her husband and their daughter, Gigi, died tragically in a helicopter crash ... sharing a heartbreaking image of her lost loves.

Vanessa just changed the profile image on her official Instagram account to a picture of Kobe and Gigi ... and it's the first time she's publicly acknowledged the shocking loss.

In the pic, Kobe is embracing Gigi. She's got her arm on his shoulder, and he's lovingly gazing down. The snap is from the 2016 NBA All-Star Game in Toronto, the last of Kobe's 18 All-Star appearances.

Vanessa hasn't said anything publicly yet about her husband and daughter's passing, and you gotta feel for her in this extremely rough time ... but this picture speaks volumes.

TMZ broke the story ... Kobe and Gigi died in a devastating helicopter crash in Calabasas on Sunday morning, which claimed the lives of 7 others.

All 9 passengers of the chopper have been identified ... including Kobe, Gigi, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester, Christina Mauser and the pilot, Ara Zobayan.

Kobe and Gigi were heading to the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks for her basketball game.

Ex-Laker Smush Parker knows exactly what he would have said if he and Kobe Bryant ever crossed paths again -- but now that he can't, it's become a huge regret.

Parker, the starting point guard for the Lakers for from 2005 to 2007, told us ... he wishes they could have officially buried the hatchet, man-to-man, over having said playing with Kobe is an "overrated" experience.

The 2009 interview obviously caused a huge rift, with Kobe eventually responding ... "I tell Steve [Nash], you won MVP, but I was playing with Smush Parker. [Nash's] playing with [Leandro] Barbosa. I'm playing with Smush and Kwame [Brown]. My goodness."

Kobe added, "Smush Parker was the worst. He shouldn't have been in the NBA, but we were too cheap to pay for a point guard. We let him walk on."

Despite the shots fired -- in both directions -- it's obvious Smush is now hurting over Kobe's death. He's even more upset about never getting the chance to square things right with his former teammate face-to-face. Smush says he did apologize in a letter to Kobe, who never responded.

Not making the Super Bowl ain't all that bad ... 'cause some of the NFL's biggest stars like Baker Mayfield, Sterling Shepard and Saquon Barkley are teaming up to party in paradise!!

It's become an annual tradition for this group of guys and their lovely WAGs to head out for an off-season getaway ... and this year, they've touched down in Antigua & Barbuda.

Bake, Sterling and Saquon were spotted sans shirts with fellow NFLers Aaron Colvin and Alec Ogletree ... and it's a sight that belongs in the Louvre.

But enough about the dudes ... the big takeaway here is the unbelievably attractive Chanel Iman (who *just* had a baby with Sterling last month), Saquon's BM Anna Congdon and Odell Beckham's GF Lauren Wood -- who had their own lil' yacht party!!

Remember ... OBJ, his NY Giants teammates, and Trey Songz had that epic boat pic -- wearing Timbs and all -- 6 days before a big playoff game back in 2017.

We like this new boat pic better.

Kawhi Leonard says he knew the pilot on Kobe Bryant's doomed helicopter -- and had flown with him regularly -- even describing the guy as "one of the best."

The L.A. Clippers star opened up about his business relationship with Ara Zobayan during a media session after Wednesday's practice ... clearly still emotional about the tragedy.

"[I had] flown with him a lot," Leonard told reporters ... "Great guy. Super nice. He was one of the best pilots."

Leonard says Zobayan would often joke about how he was dropping off Kawhi and going to pick up Kobe ... and would pass along messages between the two NBA superstars.

"He'll drop me off and say he was about to pick up Kobe -- 'Kobe said hello!' -- Or, he'll just be like, 'I just dropped Kobe off and he said hello!' You know, vice versa."

Leonard added, "He was a good dude. I'm sorry for everybody."

As we previously reported, Zobayan was an experienced pilot and certified flight instructor who had logged over 8,000 hours of flight time.

Officials believe Zobayan got caught in extremely thick fog on the morning of the fatal flight -- and crashed into a mountain while trying to fly out of the bad weather.

9 people were killed in the wreck including Zobayan, Kobe, his daughter Gianna and others.

When asked if he would continue to use private helicopters to travel, Leonard admitted he was still thinking things through ... saying, "There's a lot of thoughts in my head."

Leonard has previously talked about the major influence Kobe had on his NBA career -- and how Mamba motivated him to win a championship during his run with the Toronto Raptors.

Nikki Bella's not quite at the bulging baby bump stage, but she's still drawing attention to the bun in her oven ... her first!!!

Check out this pic of the WWE superstar doing the classic bump cradle during a walk Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles. She was on her way to visit a friend, and it ain't hard to figure out what they'll be discussing.

It's pretty crazy ... Nikki and her twin, Brie Bella, are both pregnant, and their due dates are only a week and a half apart. That's some serious womb symmetry!!!

As we reported ... Nikki got engaged back in November to her former "Dancing With The Stars" partner, Artem Chigvintsev, and she says they weren't even trying to get pregnant.

Brie says she was also shocked by her second pregnancy with husband -- and fellow WWE superstar -- Daniel Bryan after resigning herself to being a mother of one.

No word on sex or baby names yet. We sense a synchronized gender reveal in the near future. Congrats!!!

LeBron James is back to doing what Kobe Bryant would probably want him to do -- putting in work at the Lakers practice facility to gear up for his big game on Friday.

Bron and Lakers teammate Anthony Davis were grinding hard outside the team facility in El Segundo, CA on Wednesday ... working on their abs, footwork and even doing some soccer drills.

The Lakers haven't played since Saturday -- and a game scheduled for Tuesday was postponed in the wake of Kobe's death.

But at this point, the Lakers are still scheduled to play on Friday at Staples Center against Carmelo Anthony's Portland Trail Blazers ... in what will certainly be an emotional event for the players and the fans.

We're told the Lakers are planning on paying tribute to Kobe in some way on Friday, but the details are still being worked out. You can expect a moment of silence at the very least.

The last time LeBron took the court, he passed Kobe on the NBA's all-time scoring list ... moving up to #3.

After the game, Kobe tweeted at Bron saying, "Continuing to move the game forward @KingJames. Much respect my brother."

It was Kobe's final tweet.

Kobe was not only close with LeBron and several other Lakers players, but was super-tight with Carmelo. And he played with Trevor Ariza during TA's time with the Lake Show.

"You got a cast on, bitch -- you lucky!!"

Jorge Masvidal and Kamaru Usman almost got into an all-out brawl on radio row at the Super Bowl in Miami ... and video of their heated confrontation is EPIC!!!

The near-fight all started with some friendly trash talk ... but things got more serious when Usman begged Masvidal -- repeatedly -- to "do something!"

Masvidal seemed to be down for the scrap ... but he told Usman he wasn't going to hit him because of a cast Kamaru apparently had somewhere on his body.

"That's the only reason why nothing's happening to you!" Jorge said.

The two were ultimately separated by their entourages ... but it begs the question, is this the next fight for the two UFC superstars?!?!

Neither has an opponent lined up for their next tilt ... and Dana White himself told us earlier this month that would be "an incredible fight."

After seeing the two in Miami on Wednesday ... we gotta agree. MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!

The comedian who openly celebrated Kobe Bryant's death is triggering a wave of threats aimed at the comedy club where he was supposed to perform ... forcing cancellations.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Ari Shaffir was scheduled to do stand-up at the New York Comedy Club Tuesday night at 9:15 PM, but the club was forced to call cops after getting multiple phoned-in threats.

Our sources say someone called threatening to shoot up the place because a comedian scheduled to perform there made a vile joke about Kobe. We're told the caller didn't mention Shaffir by name, but it's no secret -- he DID stir anger just hours after Kobe's death.

Our law enforcement sources say the shows were canceled by the club due to numerous threatening calls.

The day Kobe died, Shaffir tweeted a selfie video, saying, "Kobe Bryant died 23 years too late today. He got away with rape because all the Hollywood liberals who attack comedy enjoy rooting for the Lakers more than they dislike rape. Big ups to the hero who forgot to gas up his chopper. I hate the Lakers. What a great day!"

Yeah, pretty vile.

Shaffir posted another video later and doubled down, saying Kobe's death was a "good story" because "the guy got away with rape." Shaffir deleted it, but the damage was done.

We're told the club filed a complaint with the NYPD for aggravated harassment 25 minutes before Shaffir's set time. No arrests have been made and the case is still under investigation.

Shaffir, who swiftly got dropped by his talent agency after the Instagram video, later took to Instagram to explain his video in epic failure.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the league is ready, willing and able to help Antonio Brown get his life back on track ... saying, "We are confident that can happen."

AB's life has been a mess over the past several months -- he's been fired from multiple NFL teams, gone to war with the mother of his children and most recently, he was arrested for allegedly attacking a moving truck driver.

Brown's estranged girlfriend has said publicly that she's concerned about Antonio's mental health -- and it seems like Goodell and the NFL agree that he needs help ASAP.

During a media event in Miami on Wednesday for Super Bowl LIV, Goodell was asked about the league's efforts to help the embattled WR ... and he insisted the NFL is actively involved.

"I think the first thing for all of us is to think about the wellbeing of Antonio. To understand what Antonio's going through," Goodell said.

"We don't talk about the wellness of our players publicly but I would tell you that you can be assured that the NFL and the NFL Players Association have a tremendous amount of resources that are available to all players. They are going to be made available to Antonio."

Goodell continued ... "We want to help get him on the right track and get him in a position where he is in the zone where he thinks he can be successful in life."

"We are confident that can happen. We want to work to do that and for our standpoint, that's the first step ... and the first step is making sure we're doing everything to help Antonio."

For his part, AB is still training as if he'll get another shot to play pro football -- though it seems unlikely at this point.

During the media event, Goodell also addressed the investigation into the New England Patriots for illegally videotaping the Cincinnati Bengals during a 2019 regular-season game.

Goodell said, "Our responsibility is to make sure we're being extremely thorough. Our team has been on it. We've been focused on this. We're going to get it right. And when we come to a conclusion we'll certainly make sure that people are aware of it."

NFL D-lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches says his life has been turned upside down over a "completely false" story about him abandoning a dog ... saying he's been forced to move due to serious threats.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers player is accused of leaving his Cane Corso, Jitterbug, on the side of a Florida road last month ... where it was later found tired, hungry and alone.

The Buccaneers have announced they're investigating the incident ... but in a lengthy statement Wednesday, Nunez-Roches says he had nothing to do with the abandonment.

"We would never abandon a dog," Nunez-Roches says. "We were expecting our first baby, so we thought it would be safer to have only smaller dogs in the house."

"Jitterbug is a Cane Corso, which is an Italian Mastiff and not a Pit Bull as was incorrectly reported, and we gave her to a family that wanted one. We have no idea how she ended up in an animal shelter, but we absolutely did not and would never abandon her or any other dog."

Nunez-Roches says the allegations caused him to receive so many violent threats ... he was forced to call the cops and physically change his address.

"We love and have taken care of dogs for years," Nunez-Roches says. "But, because a few overzealous people mistakenly assumed we had abandoned a dog that was no longer ours, we have received threats and had our reputations smeared in the media."

Nunez-Roches says the Tampa Police Department is now handling the case ... and he says he wants retractions from people who made the accusations against him.

"Hopefully the groups who falsely accused us ... realize their mistake and we can all go back to living normal lives and taking care of our dogs and other pets."

As for Jitterbug, the dog was adopted shortly after it was found in Florida ... and we're told it's doing well and is very happy in its new home.