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Colin Kaepernick is officially a children's book author --- after signing a multi-book deal with Scholastic!

The former star NFL quarterback made the announcement Thursday ... saying he's partnering up with a publishing company and will release several new children's books starting next year.

"I’m excited for Kaepernick Publishing to be collaborating with Scholastic on books with Black and Brown voices at the forefront," Kap said.

"I hope that our books will inspire readers to walk through the world with confidence, strength, and truth in all they do."

The first picture book to be published will be called 'I Color Myself Different' and is based on a moment Kap had in kindergarten -- when he realized he was different from his adopted white family.

"This story is deeply personal to me, and inspired by real events in my life. I hope that it honors the courage and bravery of young people everywhere by encouraging them to live with authenticity and purpose."

Scholastic's VP Debra Dorfman says it was a no-brainer to get the deal done with Kap ... saying, "we knew instantly that we wanted to share his stories, which will be impactful messages of identity and belonging for Black and Brown children.”

"Colin’s reputation as a thought leader precedes him, but it was also clear when we met that his mission and purpose were very much aligned with Scholastic’s."

Lamar Odom is on the hook for a huge chunk 'o change after allegedly missing the payments on an SUV ... at least according to the lender, who's now suing over it.

U.S. Bank Leasing just sued Khloe Kardashian's ex claiming he owes back payments on a 2017 Chevrolet Suburban. In docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, the lender claims he hasn't made his monthly $668.40 payment since February 15, 2020.

U.S. Bank claims it sent Lamar a letter demanding payment or surrender of the SUV but he's failed to do so.

So now ... U.S. Bank claims Lamar owes a cool $35,116.76. They want the car back or, if they can’t get it, then the money. We've reached out to Lamar for comment, no word back.

This is just the latest drama in Lamar's personal life. As we reported ... Lamar said on "The Megan Pormer Show" things with Tristan Thompson "could have turned ugly" when they beefed over a steamy pic from Khloe ... but, thankfully, cooler heads prevailed.

For the uninitiated ... LO left a "hottie" comment on Khloe's outdoor shower pic. Wasn't long before Tristan responded with a not-so-veiled threat ... while bringing up Lamar's nearly-fatal OD.

Boxing fans are going to have to wait 3 more months to see Tyson Fury fight Deontay Wilder again ... the tilt has now officially been moved to October in the wake of a big COVID outbreak in Fury's camp.

The announcement came out Thursday ... with officials saying the fight has now been postponed from July 24 to Oct. 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

"I wanted nothing more than to smash the 'Big Dosser' on July 24, but I guess the beating will have to wait," said Fury, who, along with several members of his team, tested positive for COVID earlier this month.

"Make no mistake, I will be back and better than ever. We will fight Oct. 9, and I will knock him spark out!"

The two boxers fought to a draw in their first matchup in December 2018 ... but Fury handled Wilder soundly in their second matchup in February 2020.

You'll recall, Tyson was set to move on from Wilder and face Anthony Joshua this summer ... but Wilder won a big decision in court to make sure this fight happened before that one.

Wilder's manager, Shelly Finkel, said the Bronze Bomber is fine waiting a few more weeks to get another shot at Tyson ... explaining, "This is what we went to arbitration for."

How did Patrick Mahomes and Brittany Matthews ask their best pals to be in their wedding??

ROLEX WATCHES AND CARTIER BRACELETS, BABY!!

The power couple clearly spared no expenses when it came to their future bridal party ... with some of their close friends/family revealing the NFL star and his fiancee went all out for them this week.

Matthews' good friend, Sydni Paige, revealed Matthews' presents in a social media post Wednesday ... showing Brittany hooked up her future bridesmaids with a personalized robe and a gorgeous Cartier Love bracelet.

As for Mahomes' future groomsmen ... his little bro, Jackson, revealed the Chiefs QB gave out personalized flasks, a shot of Fireball, and a silver Rollie.

Mahomes' gift basket also included a little freestyle on the card ... with the QB writing, "The time has come to help me with the task … be my groomsman for the wedding weekend with help from this flask!"

Of course, both Jackson and Sydni responded with resounding yes's ... because, uh, how could you turn that down?!?!

As for the wedding itself, Patrick dropped some hints on how and when it'll go down on his card ... finishing his rhyme with, "Drink up and let me remind, in March set your Rolex to island time!"

Conor McGregor was released from a Los Angeles hospital ... just days after surgeons used a rod, plate and screws to fix The Notorious' broken leg.

TMZ Sports talked to Dana White ... who updated us on McGregor's status.

"I think they just released him right now from the hospital about 10, 15 minutes ago."

Remember, Conor cracked his tibia AND fibula during the last 10 seconds of the 1st round of his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier.

We broke the story ... McGregor underwent successful 3.5-hour surgery at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles Sunday afternoon.

Doctors surgically placed an intramedullary rod in the tibia ... and attached a plate and screws to the fibula.

After the surgery, Conor made a video message addressing his fans, saying, "Everything went perfect. I'm feeling tremendous" ... adding after 6 weeks on crutches "we begin to build back."

Count the UFC prez as a believer ... 'cause Dana told us he expects McGregor to return to the Octagon.

"He'll be back in a year."

As for Conor's immediate plans ... White says the UFC superstar will spend some time recovering in SoCal.

"He'll be in L.A. for a little while. I don't know if he's gonna fly home, or what he's gonna do."

FYI, today is Conor's 33rd birthday ... and being released from the hospital ain't too bad a present.

British police say they've arrested 4 people for racially abusing Black England soccer players following the team's Euro 2020 loss ... and officials say the hunt for more is nowhere near over.

Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka -- who are all Black -- were ambushed by racial slurs on social media after they each missed key kicks in England's shootout loss to Italy on Sunday.

The comments and remarks were vile -- many featured the n-word and others contained violent threats -- and it got so bad, UK police launched an investigation into it all.

And, in an update on the probe Thursday, British officials said they've arrested four in connection with the online attacks ... adding more arrests could be coming soon.

"We are working very closely with social media platforms, who are providing data we need to progress enquiries," British police official Mark Roberts told reporters.

"If we identify that you are behind this crime, we will track you down and you will face the serious consequences of your shameful actions."

Of course, in England, it's illegal to make racist statements or threats, as there's no First Amendment protection.

Pittsburgh Steelers QB Dwayne Haskins suffered "substantial" injuries -- including a knocked-out tooth -- after his wife allegedly hit him during an altercation in Las Vegas ... this according to cops.

It's all spelled out in a police report, obtained by KTNV, in which cops say they were called to the Cosmopolitan on July 3 to investigate claims that Kalabrya Gondrezick-Haskins had attacked the NFL player in their hotel room.

In the report, cops say Dwayne told them the fight went down because his wife was disgruntled after he had gone to a nightclub with friends without waiting for her and the rest of the group.

Cops say Dwayne had a busted lip that needed stitches, as well as a missing tooth. They described the injuries as "substantial in nature."

Cops also say in the report that the 24-year-old QB "would most certainly require dental work to repair his teeth."

In the report, cops say Kalabrya told them she was not sure how the football player suffered the injuries.

Kalabrya was eventually arrested ... and court records show she's been since hit with a felony charge of battery which constitutes domestic violence with substantial bodily harm.

Records show she's due in court next month for a hearing in the case.

As for the couple's relationship, it's clearly a confusing matter ... 'cause just over the weekend, the two had posted what appeared to be an engagement announcement.

In their social media posts ... the quarterback and Kalabrya showed a video of Dwayne getting down on one knee at a Vegas restaurant and giving Kalabrya a massive ring.

But, in the police report, cops say the couple told them they had actually already gotten married in March after dating for over a year.

Cops say the two also told them they were in Vegas with friends and family this month to "celebrate their commitment to each other."

Move over, Gronk ... Green Bay Packers WR Devin Funchess just came through and set a new record for the longest helicopter catch ever --- at 750 feet!!!!

...and, he did it in his house slippers!!

It went down at the Denver Broncos stadium for a Global Field Day charity event where they were having some cool activities -- and that included trying to break Rob Gronkowski's record for longest catch from a helicopter.

In the clip you can see the chopper hovering above tossing the balls down as Funchess missed over and over!

But, then the Packers WR finally gets 2 hands on the rock rom what we are told is 750 feet -- A NEW WORLD RECORD!!!

It's unclear if the folks from Guinness World Record were on hand to certify the new record.

Everyone around DF went CRAZY -- hoisting up the new catch king to celebrate!

Gronk initially set the record back in April at the Arizona Stadium, his former college team -- catching a 600 yarder from the chopper in full AZ Wildcats gear.

Dana White says it was a "massive f*** up" by the UFC for NOT showing former President Donald Trump during the Conor McGregor fight card.

The UFC prez tells TMZ Sports the flub was a mix of his production team dropping the ball, a technical issue, and the unpredictability of live television.

The way Dana explains it ... there was a plan in place to show Trump sitting near the Octagon. Cameras were supposed to pan from some big-name celebrities to the former Prez ... but things didn't go according to script.

“We were getting ready to show him right between the co-main and main events, I think you remember that we showed OBJ. We showed OBJ, then it was supposed to go to David Spade, 2 Chainz, and then the president, and we had some kinda glitch in the truck. Then the Conor fight ended up ending in the 2nd round so we never got a chance."

White continued ... "Let me tell you what, massive f*** up by my production team, but ya know, it’s live TV and these things happen.”

We obtained video of DT arriving at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas midway through the main card ... and you see Trump being greeted by Dana and getting a nice ovation from the packed crowd.

But, Trump was never seen on the broadcast ... leading some to speculate there was something nefarious going on with the ESPN broadcast.

Dana says that's NOT the case ... telling us any former president deserves to be shown on TV, regardless of political affiliation.

Zaila Avant-garde's on the roller coaster of a lifetime after winning the National Spelling Bee, and her next stop just might be 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. -- we just hope it goes smoother than her NYC visit.

We got the newly-crowned champ and her mother, Alma Heard, Wednesday after landing at LAX, and -- like most of us -- our photog was duly impressed by the 14-year-old wonderkid who just became the first Black American teen to win the event.

We had to ask if she was getting the same perks as most sports champions ... namely, an invitation to the White House. You gotta see her response ... Zaila's first thought was to be super-considerate of President Biden's time, but then mom revealed something might already be in the works. #Fingerscrossed.

Hey, she's already getting invited all over the place -- it's Hollywood this week, but last week she was at the ESPYs in NYC, and Zaila told how things went a little haywire there.

A 911 caller says Richard Sherman drank two bottles of hard alcohol and was threatening to kill himself before he was arrested on Wednesday ... new police audio, obtained TMZ Sports, reveals.

In the call, which was 4 minutes in length, a woman who ID'ed herself as Sherman's wife told dispatch the NFL star was "drunk and belligerent and threatening to kill himself."

The woman was frantic -- breathing heavily and speaking quickly -- and was pleading for dispatch to send officers to her home in Washington right away.

"I need officers here now!" the woman can be heard saying on the call. "He's trying to leave now. In the house, he was being aggressive. He was wrestling with my uncle. He's threatening to kill himself. He has sent text messages to people saying he's going to hang himself."

"And, he's saying that if the police show up -- please don't shoot is what I'm asking."

The woman continued, "He said if the police show up, he'll try to fight them."

The woman then can be heard saying she was worried that Sherman was going to leave the home ... telling dispatch, "It's Richard Sherman! Like, ma'am, this is, like, a f***ing emergency! I need officers here now!"

It should be noted the 911 dispatcher appeared annoyed and frustrated multiple times with the woman on the call ... telling her at one point, "Listen to me! I'm handling this! You need to stop telling me that!"

The caller eventually told the 911 dispatcher that Sherman had drank 1 bottle of vodka and 1 bottle of Hennessey ... and was concerned for everyone's safety.

As we previously reported, Sherman was arrested a short time following the call ... after cops say he tried to break into his in-laws' home in Redmond, Wash.

Lamar Odom says things with Tristan Thompson "could have turned ugly" when the two ended up fighting over a steamy pic from Khloe Kardashian ... but cooler heads prevailed.

Khloe's ex-husband is speaking out for the first time since the social media spat last week, saying Tristan made a mistake by seemingly throwing a threat his way.

As we reported ... Lamar left a "hottie" comment on Khloe's outdoor shower pic, and Tristan was quick to respond by bringing up Lamar's nearly-fatal OD and warning him of what was to come if he didn't back off KK.

Lamar says he forgives Tristan because they don't really know each other, are both Black men and part of the NBA fraternity ... but he told "The Megan Pormer Show" the situation could have ended up a lot worse.

LO says he can't be rattled by some tough talk on social media, though ... and he's wishing Tristan the best.

As we first told you ... Lamar's looking to rekindle things with Khloe, who he was married to from 2009 to 2016, and he was shooting his shot with the IG comment.

Logan Paul wants a rematch with Floyd Mayweather ... and the YouTuber turned boxer says he's sure Money's gettin' his ass knocked out this time around.

TMZ Sports talked to Logan at a media event for his bro Jake's upcoming boxing match with former UFC champ Tyron Woodley ... and when we asked Logan if his bro would ever fight Floyd, LP said it's him who wants the fight.

"Let me ask you what you would rather see, Jake Paul versus Floyd, or me versus Floyd again?" Logan said. "Because, let me tell you something, if I fight Floyd again, I promise I’ll knock him out. Promise."

Remember, Logan and Floyd fought an exhibition fight June 6 in Miami ... and the fight went the full 8 rounds. No winner was declared.

This time ... Logan suggests they fight more rounds -- and he says that won't bode well for Mayweather.

"I got it figured out. I got it. End of the 8th round, he’s breathing heavy, I’m coming alive. It’s gonna be a 10-12 round fight. We run it back, and this time I finish him."

Now ... will this happen? Even Logan says probably not.

"I don’t think it’s gonna happen. This is all just hypothetical bulls***."

Future Hall of Famer Richard Sherman was arrested early this morning in Washington for "burglary domestic violence" ... and has been denied bail, TMZ Sports has learned.

The 33-year-old NFL free agent was booked into the King County Correctional Facility in Seattle at 6:08 AM ... and is currently sitting behind bars.

The Burglary Domestic Violence charge is a felony in Washington state ... and can carry a lengthy prison sentence, if convicted.

The details surrounding the arrest are not yet clear.

Sherman -- who played with the San Francisco 49ers last season -- is one of the best players of his generation. RS is a 5x Pro Bowler, Super Bowl Champ, and a lock to be immortalized in Canton, Ohio.

We've reached out to Sherman's rep ... but so far, no word back.

WNBA superstar Candace Parker is making history again ... she will be the first female ever to be on an NBA 2K video game cover!

The Chicago Sky center and NBA 2K made the announcement Wednesday ... saying the basketball legend will grace the front of one of the editions of this year's NBA 2K22 game.

"I’m honored to work with a company that’s investing in women and betting on us to succeed," the 35-year-old baller said.

"Being a player in 2K was a dream of mine; having the privilege to be a broadcaster in 2K was a goal of mine, and now being on the cover brings it all full circle."

Parker is certainly deserving of the honor -- she's a 2-time MVP, a 6-time All-Star and she owns a WNBA championship plus 2 Olympic gold medals.

And, before going #1 in the 2008 WNBA Draft, she won 2 NCAA championships and completely dominated at Tennessee.

Oh, she's also the first female to dunk twice in a college game!!

"I don’t take any of this for granted and I appreciate all of those who came before me and laid the groundwork for this moment. I’m hopeful there will be many more badass females to follow."

NBA 2K also announced Luka Doncic, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kevin Durant and Dirk Nowitzki will be cover athletes on other editions of this year's game.

Former Marshall football star Jaquan Yulee tragically died in a horrific car crash in Virginia on Tuesday ... law enforcement officials confirmed.

He was just 24 years old.

According to the Suffolk Police Department, Yulee was driving alone in a rural area of Suffolk when his car was involved in an accident and flipped on its roof.

Cops say they arrived on the scene at around 7:12 PM Tuesday ... and pronounced Yulee dead a short time later.

Officials say an investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing.

Yulee was a touted recruit at Indian River H.S. in Virginia back in 2016 ... and despite receiving offers from Alabama, Clemson and Florida, he decided to go to Marshall instead.

The 6-foot-1, 242-pound linebacker played a key role for the Herd after redshirting in 2016 ... logging 42 total tackles, 3 forced fumbles and 1 sack in his redshirt freshman and sophomore seasons.

He got his first career start in his junior year in 2019 ... but in that game, he broke his neck and didn't play for the rest of the season.

Yulee, though, worked his ass off the last two years and was finally medically cleared to play again just last month.

He had been looking to enroll at Virginia State University, Central State University or Virginia Union University for his next college football stop.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of former Marshall football student-athlete Jaquan Yulee," the Marshall football team said in a statement Wednesday.

"His energy and ability to connect with so many in our fanbase was exemplary. He will be missed by so many in the Thundering Herd."