TMZ Sports - Page 50

Tons of huge stars flocked to Staples Center to watch the Lakers retire Kobe Bryant's #24 and #8 jerseys ... but Floyd Mayweather's terrible outfit almost stole the show.

Take a look ... it's like if a couch pattern was an NBA uniform.

There was more crazy fashion ... LaVar Ball was covered head-to-toe in BBB gear. Allen Iverson paid tribute to Kobe with his G.O.A.T. shirt. Adam Levine rolled out the sweatpants and Gucci boots.

Shaq, Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, Caron Butler ... just some of the huge names paying tribute to the Mamba on Monday.

Su'a Cravens' race had NOTHING to do with why he was pulled over in Virginia last month -- it all had to do with the speed of his car ... this according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office.

As we previously reported, the Washington Redskins safety claims he was racially profiled and roughed up by cops during a Nov. 29 incident. He even made a video from the scene and shared it on social media.

But the LCSO tells TMZ Sports straight-up ... "This traffic stop was not a case of racial profiling."

Officials tells us Cravens was pulled over as part of a crackdown on speeders in school zones.

"A deputy’s LIDAR received a reading on a vehicle that was traveling over the posted speed limit of 25 mph in a school zone. The deputy initiated a traffic stop and the driver pulled over into a shopping center."

Cops tell us Cravens was ticketed for speeding and illegal tint and is due back in court next month.

Kate Upton in a one-piece swimsuit bouncing cross-court and getting her sweat on is really all the setup you need for this video.

The supermodel suited up for day 19 of LOVE Magazine's Advent calendar ... and we have to say ... B-R-A-V-O. Kate outdoes herself in this #StayStrong campaign -- showing off her athletic skills while rocking heels, and a fancy Burberry scarf.

Kobe Bryant's next move should be running for political office ... at least that's what Magic Johnson intimated Monday night at Staples Center.

Magic gave a rousing speech to honor his fellow Lakers great during Kobe's jersey retirement ceremony. Besides giving props to the Mamba's basketballs skills, he seemed to tap him for public office.

Magic said, "We need you right now. When I look into this audience there's all race of people come together. This country needs to come together, and you were able to bring us all together as a city for 20 years."

No doubt, Magic was taking a light jab at President Trump -- but suggesting Kobe parlay his sports popularity into politics would be a first.

Diddy just got a huge endorsement from one of the most powerful men in the NFL -- New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft ... who says he's a huge fan of the rap mogul.

It's high praise -- and the timing couldn't be better ... with Diddy publicly declaring his intentions to become the next owner of the Carolina Panthers.

So, when we saw Kraft in Bev Hills with his GF, Ricki Noel Lander, we asked if he thinks Diddy has the chops to crush in the NFL.

"I'm a big fan of Diddy," Kraft tells TMZ Sports ..."He's a good businessman. He's a very good businessman and I have a lot of respect for Diddy."

Tennis legend Jimmy Connors is pretty cool and calm ... considering there's a raging fire threatening his mansion in Montecito, CA.

The 65-year-old (who looks great, btw) was out with his family at Madeo when he told us the Thomas Fire, raging in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, is too close to his home for comfort.

"I'm trying to avoid the fires up in Montecito ... so, hopefully that works out and everybody's safe out there for the holidays."

Connors reportedly owns an 8,000 square foot mansion in the area, where he's lived since 2001.

This is a pretty hilarious clip ...

We saw Kyle Kuzma out in L.A. over the weekend with one of his pals and asked the Lakers rookie if he's supporting Lonzo Ball's Big Baller Brand.

Remember, Kuzma clowned on his teammate on social media last week -- saying, "Y'all really spending 600 dollars for this hat?" ... followed by some trash emojis.

So, we followed up with Kyle -- and while Kuzma didn't speak, his friend sure did ... "F*ck no he wouldn't buy one!!!"

That's when Kyle tried to do some damage control ... but it was too late.

We know ... it's all in good fun -- but still pretty hilarious.

The famous tattoo artist who inks up NBA stars including LeBron James, Tristan Thompson and Danny Green is suing the company behind the NBA2K17 video game ... claiming they used his art without permission.

The man behind the suit is James Hayden -- a famous Cleveland-based tat artist who's been inking up LeBron for years ... and owns the copyrights on several designs he put on the NBA star. Ditto for Tristan, Danny and Kyrie Irving.

In his suit, obtained by TMZ Sports, Hayden claims he owns the copyright to Bron's famous "Gloria" tattoo as well as his "Lion Design" and LJ's shoulder stars.

Problem is ... Hayden says the makers of the video game -- 2K Games Inc. -- created the players in the NBA2K16, '17 and '18 with such detail, they even got the tats right.

The suit reminds us of the time Mike Tyson's tattoo artist -- the guy behind the face tat -- sued the people in "The Hangover 2" for not getting his permission to feature the design in the movie.

Now, Hayden is suing for a portion of the NBA2K franchise profits. He didn't specify a number -- but the game is a huge success, so we're guessing he's gunning for several million bucks!

Washington Redskins safety Su'a Cravens is threatening to sue cops in Virginia -- claiming he was racially profiled and roughed up during a recent traffic stop ... and he's got video of the aftermath.

TMZ Sports has confirmed the 22-year-old safety was pulled over by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Dept. on Nov. 29.

According to official records, Cravens was cited for going 39 in a 25 and also for having illegal tint on his windows. He has a court date set for January 26.

But, Cravens says the entire situation is BS -- claiming he was only pulled over because "I'm black. I've got tattoos on my neck. I'm out here in a nice car."

Cravens says he was put in handcuffs and made to sit in a squad car while officers searched his whip for marijuana.

Cravens says the cops found nothing. He was eventually released and flipped on his camera phone -- showing the officers he claims roughed him up.

Johnny Manziel's fiancee, Bre Tiesi, almost had one of her lips torn off by a dog ... but it looks like she's gonna be OK after one of the Kardashians' plastic surgeons worked his magic.

Bre detailed the scary incident on social media -- saying her lip was "legit hanging off" after she tried to break up a canine throwdown involving her two pups.

But the IG model wasn't about to let a random ER doc mess with her kisser ... so she hit up Garth Fisher -- a Beverly Hills surgeon who's worked on Kris Jenner -- and he stitched her up, good as new.

Well, not exactly ... but Bre says she should be scar-free in just a few weeks!

Not like she wouldn't be smokin' hot either way.

The Kobe vs. LeBron debate ain't as close as you think -- so says Ice Cube, who told us why it's Bryant "all day" on the eve of his double-jersey retirement.

"Just because of his tenacity -- nobody has the killer instinct like Kobe," Cube told TMZ Sports. "I don't think we've seen that since Michael Jordan."

It's pretty clear Cube's talking about the Mamba Mentality -- something he says Kobe and MJ had, but LeBron doesn't.

"That's what you pay for when you go see basketball. You don't pay to see friends play, you pay to see enemies play."

FYI, the ceremony's Monday at halftime of Lakers-Warriors. Congrats!

Anna Kournikova and Enrique Iglesias are first-time parents -- she gave birth to twins over the weekend ... TMZ has learned, but the real miracle is ... no one had a clue she was pregnant!

Sources in Miami tell us Anna had a boy and a girl Saturday in Miami, and their names are Nicholas and Lucy. The only thing overshadowing the blessed occasion is the fact they kept this whole thing a secret for 9 months.

Fact is ... Anna's been way out of the spotlight for more than a year now. The last photo we can find of the 36-year-old in public is this shot on a boat in Miami ... from November 2016.

This is definitely their M.O. -- the couple's always been super private.

They've been together since 2001, and although there have been marriage rumors for years -- fueled by a HUGE rock on her hand -- neither's ever confirmed it.

Congrats to the fam ... and welcome to MILF-dom, Anna!

Danica Patrick is officially single ... her 5-year relationship with NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is over after the guy publicly pumped the brakes when it came to marriage.

How do we know? Because Danica shared her frustration about the relationship situation back in July.

Here's the deal ... 35-year-old Danica had pulled an April Fool's gag on social media claiming one of her rings was an engagement ring.

So, when we saw Danica and Ricky out we asked if there was any movement on the engagement front. She told us Ricky had not proposed but added, "I was ready yesterday."

That day never came ... and now the relationship is over.

Newly-retired Matt Barnes says the 'B' in his last name could stand for BILLIONAIRE in just a few years ... revealing his master money plan to join the 3 Commas club by the time he's 50.

Barnes was getting ready to attend an event for his new company, Active Dreamers -- which makes NBA pillows and blankets -- when he told us why he's dead serious about getting to that next level of wealth.

There's more ... Barnes says his portfolio is ready to explode -- he's even got a production company kicking out big projects, including a documentary called "Tale of Four Cities" due out in 2018.

Multiple ESPN staffers tell TMZ Sports they're in complete shock over John Skipper's sudden resignation and admission of substance addiction ... with everyone we spoke with telling us he was extremely well-liked.

We spoke with people from all facets of ESPN -- current talent, producers and past employees -- and the sense we get is that no one saw this coming.

As one current ESPNer tells us, "People are just stunned ... a lot of us truly respected him."

"You will be hard pressed to find anyone with a negative word about him."

Another staffer told us, "I'm shocked. I liked the guy a lot."

Moments ago, Dan Le Batard went on the air on his ESPN show and got emotional talking about how much Skipper has meant to him.

Allen Iverson says it's "definitely an honor" making Odell Beckham's leg sleeve Hall of Fame ... and he's showing love to OBJ for the ink.

"I thought that was dope," A.I. told TMZ Sports at Baron Davis' Black Santa Basketball Fundraiser and celebrity game in Santa Monica. "I'm a big fan -- that's my little man."

FYI, Odell finished up his leg mural a couple weeks back ... putting the iconic play where Iverson took Tyronn Lue's soul next to black revolutionaries like MLK and Obama.

A.I. clearly loves the piece ... but we had to ask -- how does Coach Lue feel about it?!

"I know he don't have no problem with that."

Still waiting on confirmation from Ty ...