TMZ Sports - Page 50

TMZ's staff channeled 2017's biggest stories into some kick-ass Halloween costumes -- featuring Cash Me Outside Girl, Beyonce, some "Game of Thrones" stars, Kellyanne Conway and many more.

Competition was tough, but we think costume of the year goes to the 'GoT' crew with Daenerys Targaryen, the Night King and an actual freakin' Iron Throne ... of cardboard.

Honorable mention to the Rugrats and their epic Reptar -- and Harvey's take on "The Handmaid's Tale."

12:05 PM PT -- A rep for the Texans says Clowney insists there "was no hidden meaning behind his Halloween costume. He was not taking a 'shot' at anyone. It was just that – a costume at a Halloween party," according to the Houston Chronicle.

Jadeveon Clowney rocked an ORANGE PRISON JUMPSUIT to the Texans' Halloween party ... seemingly in response to Houston team owner Bob McNair's controversial comments.

JC isn't the first Texan to outwardly show displeasure with BM after his "you can't have the inmates running the prison" comment.

DeAndre Hopkins bolted practice last week and most of the squad -- including Clowney -- took a knee for the anthem before Sunday's game against the Seahawks.

As for the actual party ... it went down last night in H-Town, with everyone from Deshaun Watson, Kareem Jackson, Alfred Blue and Bruce Ellington in attendance.

Jerry Jones says Roger Goodell is trying to redeem himself for mishandling the Ray Rice situation by going extra hard on Ezekiel Elliott ... saying the commish turned Zeke into a "victim of an over-correction."

Zeke's request for a preliminary injunction was denied by a U.S. District judge on Monday ... upholding his 6-game suspension.

Jones addressed the newest update with "Shan & RJ" on 105.3 The Fan ... saying Goodell knows he went too easy on Rice, and is now trying to appease the public by burying Zeke.

Yasiel Puig didn't let the intensity of the World Series -- and Tuesday's Game 6 -- stop him from doing something awesome to honor a victim of the Las Vegas shooting who was a Dodgers super fan.

Laura Shipp was one of the nearly 60 people killed in the massacre, and was described by her family and friends as a lifelong fan of Big Blue.

We're told Puig heard about Laura's story and last night decided to do something for her son Corey -- a Marine reservist. He autographed a baseball with a message for Laura.

He wrote, "To Laura, RIP" and added his signature. We're told the ball will be delivered to Corey today before Game 6 begins.

Go Blue!

LeBron's a nightmare to opponents on the court ... but he was even more frightening at the Cavs Halloween party, 'cause the King's Pennywise costume is sure to keep you up at night.

The Cavs always go over-the-top for their annual team gathering ... and Monday night was no exception -- from Kyle Korver's Willy Wonka (complete with Oompa Loompas!!) to J.R. Smith and his wife, Jewel, going as the Coneheads.

But it was Tristan Thompson and Khloe Kardashian taking the best couples costume award for their Khal Drogo and Daenerys Targaryen outfits from "Game of Thrones."

Check it out ... the party was lit.

A blowout game ain't gonna come between Kevin Durant and DeAndre Jordan's friendship ... 'cause the 2 baller buddies grabbed dinner together after the Warriors beat up on the Clippers Monday night.

K.D. and Jordan hit up Catch LA around 11 PM after the Dubs destroyed the Clips 141-113 at Staples Center ... and Jordan was all smiles despite the loss.

Catch appears to be the go-to spot when DJ's friends are in town ... the All-Star center's also been spotted there with his pals Jimmy Butler and Russell Westbrook after games.

How do you celebrate Halloween when you're hot, rich and insanely fit??

You suit up (or strip down) with a baller costume -- kinda like women's tennis star Genie Bouchard, whose Bae-watch look gave us prime Pam Anderson flashbacks.

Tons of other sports stars showed out too, including Steph Curry, Danica Patrick, Giancarlo Stanton, and Floyd Mayweather -- who had a trifecta of get-ups for his hallo-weekend parties.

Who wins the costume contest?

We do. Kick back with some candy and enjoy the pics.

There's a brand new trick shot challenge -- ya gotta hit 2 tough shots in a row -- and Drake not only pulled it off ... he's challenging two huge NBA stars to follow suit.

It's called the #OneAndDoneChallenge -- first, ya gotta hit a QB style overhand 3-pointer ... then immediately sink a half court shot FROM YOUR BACK (with no video edits)!

Drake got the challenge from the guy who invented it -- rapper/skills guru Dribble2Much -- and hit both shots like a champ.

Now, we're told he's calling out Raptors stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry -- who better put some NBA-style flair into their videos!!!

He pop and locked during his brawl with Dominick Cruz -- but now UFC champ Cody Garbrandt says he's upping his dance game for UFC 217 ... with some Michael Jackson moves!

To get straight to the point ... Garbrandt says T.J. Dillashaw is a "piece of sh*t" -- and he wants to humiliate the guy in the worst way possible.

"If he gives me the chance to dance on him, I'm gonna make him act like a fool too," Garbrandt says.

If you need a reminder about Garbrandt's dance fighting skills -- check out the video below ... and imagine Cody MOONWALKING after landing a shot on Dillashaw.

Or a crotch grab? Or the Thriller dance? Could be very entertaining ...

Brock Lesnar's WWE hype man, Paul Heyman, got Desiigner to jump on stage and do his thing for his son's bar mitzvah ... and it didn't cost him a dime.

Paul threw his son, Jacob, a party at the Glenn Island Harbor Club in NYC Saturday for the day he became a man. Desiigner -- who's Paul's pal and an invited guest -- decided to perform "Panda."

It was pure shock and awe ... especially when he brought Jake up with him to hype up the crowd.

Mazel!!!

It pays to mock Colin Kaepernick ... just ask the guy who walked away with a cash prize at a major Louisiana casino for being "Colin Krapperdick."

It all went down at the Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City -- a hotel owned by Caesars Entertainment -- where 53-year-old James Pendarvis mocked the QB in an effort to win a share of a $1,500 prize.

Pendarvis sported a jersey that read, "Krapperdick" across the front -- with accessories that included an adult diaper, a pacifier and an afro.

Also, he had a fake body dressed as a soldier grabbing his waist -- strategically positioned to remain standing when "Krapperdick" took a knee.

The casino says the contest winners were voted on by casino guests -- NOT STAFF -- and has already apologized saying, "As a company that embraces inclusion, we apologize to all those who are offended."

As for Pendarvis, he issued a statement to the Shreveport Times saying, "As a society we have freedom of speech. But yet, I get hammered for a costume."

The Chief of the University of Nevada, Reno Police Dept. -- where Colin Kaepernick went to school -- is apologizing for an officer who mocked the QB at a Halloween party.

The officer in hot water is Antonio Gutierrez -- who wore a Kaepernick jersey with a "Will stand for food" sign ... while sporting an afro wig and a fake nose in an effort to make fun of the QB.

But the UNR PD ain't laughing ... Chief Adam Garcia issued a statement condemning Gutierrez saying, "For those who have seen the Halloween costume of one of our officers apparently mocking a citizen who has chosen to take advantage of his constitutional right to protest, I offer my sincere apologies."

"Members of our profession are held to a higher standard and denigrating another -- on or off duty -- is insensitive for its lack of respect and lack of understanding on how others may negatively view their actions and may be impacted."

When asked if the officer was punished, we were told, "We have no policy that would dictate any disciplinary action."

FYI, Kaepernick was a standout QB at UNR from 2007 to 2010 -- before being drafted by the 49ers.

The plane that was carrying the OKC Thunder during a scary in-fight incident that crushed the nose of the plane has been repaired ... and it's ready to get back in the air, TMZ Sports has learned.

The incident took place Saturday morning -- Delta, which was operating the team's chartered flight from Minnesota to Chicago -- says initial reports suggest a possible bird strike smashed the front of the plane.

But Delta works fast ... a rep for the company tells us, "The aircraft, a Boeing 757-200, has since been inspected and its nose cone replaced."

Impressive since the plane was repaired roughly 48 hours after the incident.

"The damaged nose cone has been sent to a maintenance facility to undergo additional evaluation," Delta adds.

The Houston Astros fan who stole Yasiel Puig's home run ball from another fan and threw it back on the field did NOT get his ass kicked ... turns out, it was all part of the plan.

TMZ Sports spoke with Vim Head -- whose wife Sarah caught the ball -- and he told us the guy who snatched it was his brother, Kirk!

Vim says before the game they ALL agreed that if they caught a Dodgers HR ball -- it was going back on the field ... no matter what!

The only issue ... Kirk acted so quickly, he robbed Sarah of the honor of the throwback ... but there are definitely NO hard feelings!

"We had so much fun after the fact that it didn't matter," Vim says.

At one point in the HR catch video, it looks like Vim winds up to smack Kirk -- but Vim says that didn't happen.

So, what's next? Vim says he wants to go to Game 6 ... in L.A. ... and if someone gets him tickets, he promises his family will throw any Dodgers HR ball back again!!!

For the first time, video of Peyton Manning's deposition -- in which he denies sexually assaulting a former University of Tennessee trainer -- has gone public.

Peyton sat for the deposition back in 2003 ... after Dr. Jamie Naughright sued him for defamation over a chapter in his autobiography about the 1996 incident.

Naughright had accused Manning of shoving his testicles and anus into her face while she was examining him on a training table at UT.

Manning claims he was simply trying to "moon" a friend -- and in the deposition video, obtained by "Inside Edition," he explains:

"I briefly pulled down my pants to so-called 'moon' him. One second, one and a half seconds. Pulled my pants back up and continued with Jamie's examination of the bottom of my foot."

Naughright says Manning is lying and refused to back down during an interview with "Inside Edition."

Manning's attorney is adamant the NFL legend did nothing wrong.

Ex-NFL star Antrel Rolle knew damn well he wasn't screwing the IRS out of millions of dollars -- he was being set up ... and officials say he helped catch the scumbag at the heart of the scheme.

Long story short ... Rolle's former tax attorney was arrested by federal agents Monday morning after prosecutors say he filed tons of fake documents to score huge tax refunds in Rolle's name, only to pocket the money for himself.

Officials say Hiram Martin -- who Rolle hired as a rookie in 2006 -- stole at least $1.2 MILLION over the years but Rolle had no clue since Martin hid all the tax documents from him.

By the way, Rolle reportedly made more than $60 mil during his NFL career -- guessing Martin figured he wouldn't notice if he skimmed a couple mil.

Rolle finally realized something was up when he got hit with a $2 million tax bill in 2011 despite the fact he thought he made all his payments to Uncle Sam.

Rolle smartly hired another lawyer who was able to get the $2 mil tax judgment thrown out because of Martin's alleged fraud. That seemingly alerted the feds who cracked down on Martin and arrested him.