TMZ Sports - Page 50

Oakland Raiders cornerback Sean Smith just pled not guilty to felony assault over a July 4 incident in which he allegedly stomped out his sister's BF.

Officials say Smith -- who signed a $40 mil contract with the Raiders in 2016 -- went ballistic on the victim in the early hours of July 4. Investigators say witnesses identified Smith as the attacker.

Officials say the victim was beaten so badly, he was hospitalized in critical condition with multiple broken bones in his face.

Smith -- who posted $80,000 bond -- faces up to 7 years in state prison if convicted.

It was date night for Michael Jordan in NYC on Thursday.

Hot wife? Check.

Chauffeur driven SUV? Check.

MJ's trademark overly baggy dad pants? Check.

Expensive, rare Air Jordans? Of course.

The NBA legend took Yvette Prieto out to Marea bar and restaurant in Midtown. He was in a great mood. He was super nice to the paparazzi and fans on the street.

But we wanted to know what the face of one of the biggest shoe lines on the planet rocks out for a fancy dinner.

The answer -- it appears MJ's wearing the Air Jordan 1 Pinnacles ... brown leather kicks with 24K gold-plated accents. They retail for $400 a pair.

Wonder if he ever wears the same pair twice?

There is NO reality romance for Tim Tebow -- but he does have a very attractive new female friend.

Ever since "Chrisley Knows Best" star Savannah Chrisley posted a photo with Tebow at a Sam Hunt concert earlier this week, the Internet went crazy with dating rumors ... especially with Savannah's penchant for dating pro athletes.

We happened to see Tim and Savannah at LAX (different flights) -- and both of 'em shut down the dating talk pretty quickly.

Savannah says Tebow's a great guy, a nice guy ... and her mom already gave him the stamp of dating approval.

So, maybe something in the future?

Colin Kaepernick took it all the way back to 1995 this week ... surfacing in Manhattan with a Tupac shirt that reads, "Me Against the World."

The song essentially encapsulates the message Kaepernick is trying to send. As a reminder, here are some of the lyrics ...

"When will I finally get to rest through this oppression? They punish the people that's askin' questions."

And this one ...

"Dreamin' of riches, in a position of makin' a difference. Politicians are hypocrites, they don't wanna listen."

Kaepernick hasn't sat down for an interview with anyone since his national anthem demonstration began last season. But he's been spotted out in NYC twice this week. Something coming?

Chad Johnson says NFL protests have been "politically whitewashed from why it started in the first place" -- and says kneeling has turned into "a goddamn Ice Bucket Challenge."

The ex-NFL superstar was smokin' a stogie in West Hollywood on Thursday when we asked how he felt about the Denver Broncos releasing a statement saying they will no longer kneel for the anthem.

Johnson sighed ... and said the whole protest situation in the NFL has become "unfortunate."

"We're not kneeling for the same reasons that Kaepernick kneeled for 14 months ago," Johnson said ... "It's completely different."

Johnson essentially echoed the feelings of L.A. Sparks player Essence Carson -- who told us why she's upset people have made the protest about the flag and Trump ... instead of racism and police brutality.

Tony Ferguson says he wasn't messing around when he threatened to fight Fabricio Werdum during a UFC media lunch on Thursday ... despite nearly a 100 POUND difference.

Fabricio exploded during the lunch -- shouting insults and threatened to backhand Ferguson during (what was supposed to be) a routine media event.

After the incident, Werdum said he felt disrespected by Ferguson -- and claimed the fighter had a "dark energy" about him.

Ferguson told TMZ Sports it was Werdum who was "rude" -- and if he really wants a piece, he'll gladly beat his ass in front of everyone.

[h/t MMA Fighting]

Herschel Walker says Donald Trump is RIGHT when it comes to national anthem protests -- saying the NFL needs to impose rules banning players from kneeling during The Star-Spangled Banner.

Walker has been a Trump supporter from the beginning -- and while he says they don't agree on everything, he's HAPPY Donald is sticking to his guns on the anthem issue.

The ex-NFL superstar says if anyone should fight for Americans to stand up for the flag, it's the President.

Walker says he's not trying to minimize the issue of racism in America, or police brutality -- in fact, Herschel says he'll gladly protest WITH activists after the season is over.

Ex-WWE superstar Torrie Wilson is celebrating Hugh Hefner's life -- telling TMZ Sports she's incredibly grateful for everything Hef and Playboy did for her career.

Wilson famously graced the cover of Playboy twice -- once in 2003 and again in 2004 -- and says the magazine took her already booming career to the next level.

But her favorite Playboy memories? It's all about the mansion ... telling the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show she'll always remember the crazy parties at Hef's place.

"I'm so glad that I have those stories for the rest of my life."

Check out more of Torrie tonight on "TMZ Sports" on FS1.

Ex-Indianapolis Colts fullback Roosevelt Potts was sentenced to 2 years in prison for a domestic violence incident in which he slashed a woman with a knife ... but he likely won't spend another minute behind bars.

The story is pretty crazy ...46-year-old Potts -- a pretty solid player back in the '90s -- was found guilty of domestic battery by means of a deadly weapon over a 2016 incident at his Indiana home.

Officials say the victim had two stab wounds on her shoulder following an altercation with Potts.

The woman told police she had grabbed a knife to slash Roosevelt's tires -- when he grabbed a knife of his own and cut her up.

Potts says the allegations are BS -- claiming the woman had gone after him with a knife and got cut as he tried to wrestle it away from her.

The case went to trial and Potts was found guilty of domestic battery. He was sentenced to 2 years in prison -- but that sentence is suspended with the caveat that he must complete 18 months of probation without a problem.

Albert Pujols won't have to cough up a single cent to the cousin who sued him for $27 MILLION in a case related to a fatal police chase in Missouri.

Long story short ... Albert was being sued by his cousin Wilfrido Juan Pujols -- a former baseball prodigy who was a passenger in a 2007 police chase in which a man was struck by the car and killed.

Wilfrido's brother was driving and cops say the guy was messed up on booze and drugs at the time. Wilfrido, however, was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Still, Wilfrido says Albert and his wife were involved in crafting an email that went public -- which wrongly painted Wilfrido as a murderer. He wanted $27 mil for defamation.

But after spending more than a year in court, the judge ruled that Albert did nothing wrong -- and kicked Wilfrido's massive lawsuit out of court.

Did you know ... "Baby Driver" star Ansel Elgort is a DIE-HARD Knicks fan?

It's true -- and when we saw the actor out in NYC on Wednesday he sounded off about losing Carmelo Anthony.

"I'm happy for Carmelo, he didn't belong on the Knicks anymore."

Don't get it twisted, Elgort isn't throwing shade -- but says he's definitely not gonna root as hard for Melo now that he's playing for the OKC Thunder.

Cristiano Ronaldo's got a shiny, new $2.9 MILLION toy ... and he's already takin' it out for a victory lap.

The international soccer superstar posted a vid showing off the brand new 2017 Bugatti Chiron on Thursday ... with his ever-so-lucky son, Cristiano Ronaldo, Jr., ridin' shotgun.

CR7 pauses to say something to the camera -- we're not sure what -- but it's probably something like, "I'm rich, beeeyotch!!"

And, since we knew you were wondering ... the car goes from 0 to 60 in 2.3 seconds.

The Denver Broncos players say the days of kneeling for the national anthem are over -- and beginning Sunday, they will all STAND together.

The players issued a statement moments ago ... acknowledging the split this past Sunday when several players took a knee and others stood for the anthem before playing the Bills.

"Last week, members of our team joined their brothers around the NFL in a powerful display of unity ... As controversial as it appeared, we needed to show our collective strength and resolve."

But now, the players say they will be united in standing together moving forward.

"We may have different values and beliefs, but there's one thing we can all agree on: We're a team and we stand together -- no matter how divisive some comments and issues can be, nothing should ever get in the way of that."

"Starting Sunday, we'll be standing together."

Nothing says "You Can't Sit With Us" like Donald Trump's 3 predecessors crashing the Presidents Cup to watch the first tee shots -- sans the current Prez ... who loves golf.

Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended the trophy presentation together Thursday at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey, before the foursome matches kicked off between America and its international competition.

The ex-Presidents looked super chummy, greeting the crowd and shaking hands. The irony, of course, is Prez Trump is a big-time golfer, and even has a golf course just 40 miles away from where the ex-Presidents were chilling.

Then again, Trump has bigger things to worry about now -- while these guys have done their duty already.

L.A. Sparks player Essence Carson is telling TMZ Sports why the team walked off the court for the national anthem during games 1 and 2 of the WNBA Finals this week ... and why it's NOT about the flag.

FYI, the Sparks were booed in Minneapolis when they returned to the floor following their demonstration -- but Carson says people are completely missing the point of the protest.

"Everyone's so focused on the flag. It's not even about the flag. It's about racial equality, criminal justice reform, police brutality and everything along those lines and I feel like people are forgetting that."

Carson says she hopes "one day [people] will finally understand the point of it all."

Essence also says she feels like she's truly standing up for something she believes in -- and it doesn't sound like the team will stop the demonstration anytime soon.

Washington Wizards baller Kelly Oubre is setting the record straight -- saying he's "NOT a lesbian" ... despite what some fans say.

The 21-year-old rising star was talking to CSN Mid Atlantic about some of the crap he gets from opposing fans ... and dropped this shocker.

"People call me a lesbian a lot. They think I look like a female girl or a teenage girl or something."

So, why the lesbian jabs? Oubre says he thinks he knows why ...

"I understand I'm a pretty dude. They might be mad that their wife likes me or something."

But to be clear -- "I'm not a lesbian. I'm a grown man."

"I've heard that multiple times. I guess it's something to try to get under my skin, but at the end of the day I know who I am."

And now you know.