TMZ Sports - Page 43

The cause of death of John Elway's longtime agent and friend Jeff Sperbeck has been officially ruled as blunt head trauma, TMZ Sports has learned.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Office told us Friday the Coroner’s Bureau made the determination just days after Sperbeck's April 30 passing ... adding the death has also been ruled an accident.

A final report in the case is expected to be released once toxicology results return.

Most Valuable Prospects 12 is slated to go down on Friday ... and TMZ Sports has already done the heavy lifting for anyone wanting to track down the promotion's newest ring girl -- her name is Marissa Ayers, and we talked to her ahead of her big debut!!

We chopped it up with the MVP newbie and fellow models Delia Sylvain and Rapha Milagres ahead of fight night in Orlando ... and the rookie opened up on how she ended up in the family.

It turns out Rapha played a role in getting the Georgia native and Alabama student on board ... and after a few convos, she was handed her sparkly blue outfit and got to work as an MVP event model.

Draymond Green believes he's unfairly being made out to be an "angry Black man" ... saying in a heated post-game interview he's sick and tired of the narrative.

The four-time NBA champ expressed his frustrations to a reporter in the Target Center locker room on Thursday ... right after the Golden State Warriors fell in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

It's unclear what initiated the conversation ... but Green did receive a technical foul in the loss after he struck Wolves center Naz Reid in the head -- his fifth of the postseason.

After a public campaign to unretire jersey numbers worn by several New York Giants greats ... the team's 2025 first-round draft pick, Abdul Carter, has settled on a number -- 51!!!

The G-Men announced the jersey numbers Friday morning ahead of rookie minicamp, which Azeez Ojulari last wore before he departed in free agency.

While it's just a number ... it was a long road to get to this moment. After being drafted, AC was hopeful Lawrence Taylor would give him his blessing to take down number 56 from the rafters.

Bill Belichick's girlfriend will still be allowed to hang with her man while he's at work ... UNC just called B.S. on a report Friday that stated Jordon Hudson had been banned from the Tar Heels' field and facilities.

In a statement the school wrote ... "While Jordon Hudson is not an employee at the University or Carolina Athletics, she is welcome to the Carolina Football facilities."

The report of a Hudson bar came from former ESPN personality Pablo Torre ... who said on his YouTube channel that multiple sources told him Bill's 24-year-old partner was persona non grata in Chapel Hill.

Before it was Pope Leo, it was "Let's go White Sox" for Robert Prevost ... as an unearthed photo shows the new pope cheered on the Pale Hose in person at a 2005 World Series game.

In the picture -- which was obtained by The Chicago Sun-Times shortly after Prevost was elected Pope Leo XIV on Thursday -- you can see the new pontiff chatting on a phone at U.S. Cellular Field as some of his close friends posed for a picture inches away.

According to Sports Illustrated, the image was from either Game 1 or Game 2 of the Series against the Houston Astros. The Sox won both -- the first by a score of 5-3, and the next 7-6. They went on to win the whole shebang, four games to none.

L.A. Rams star Quentin Lake is passing along some advice to Shedeur Sanders ... and given how similar the guys' NFL draft experiences were -- Deion's son would be wise to listen up.

The 26-year-old defensive back delivered a pump-up speech of sorts to the Cleveland Browns rookie just ahead of his first-ever pro practice on Friday ... and Lake made it clear, Sanders can find success as a late-round pick with a famous dad, just as he once did.

Lake -- the son of former All-Pro Carnell Lake -- went in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL Draft ... but he was able to go on to become a team captain and one of his squad's best players.

The Knicks have inspired belief and confidence in their fanbase after going up 2-0 on the Celtics ... but legendary film director and diehard backer Spike Lee believes there’s a more divine reason the New York fans can expect a title this season -- the new Pope!!

Apparently, Spike is all about Leo XIV because Robert Francis Prevost is a Villanova grad. Villanova -- the only Augustinian Catholic university in the United States -- is also the alma mater of three Knicks: Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges.

If you ask Spike -- a regular at Knicks games -- the 'Nova connection is a sign from God his squad is going to win it all this season.

Paul Pierce has finally clocked in for his day job at the Fox Studio Lot ... and he's adamant he walked the full 20 miles to get there.

The NBA legend told TMZ Sports as he was finishing up his trek that he paid off his bet to his "Speak" colleagues in full -- using no means of transportation other than his feet to get him from The Valley to West Los Angeles on Thursday.

He also said he doesn't regret making the wager -- which, of course, he placed on Wednesday afternoon when he believed his former Celtics team would beat the Knicks in Game 2 of their playoff series at TD Garden.

UNLV football player Ben Christman's cause of death has been revealed ... with officials stating the 21-year-old passed away naturally.

The Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner shared the results with TMZ Sports on Thursday ... which determined he died from cardiac arrhythmia and cardiomyopathy.

Cardiac arrhythmia is an irregular heartbeat -- either too fast or too slow -- and cardiomyopathy is a disease that impacts the heart muscle.

The LeBron James haters are out in full force after the Lakers were abruptly booted from the postseason ... but the King doesn't seem to be fazed one bit -- claiming he's not losing any sleep in his early offseason.

The four-time champion opened up during a chat with Steve Nash on the "Mind The Game" podcast ... when the Hall of Famer asked James about the narratives surrounding the team's early elimination.

Nash asked one of the main questions on everyone's minds -- how did the Lakers lose to the Timberwolves when they have James and Luka Doncic, one of the top players in the league, on the same roster??

Gloria Estefan says Diddy was nice to have as a neighbor ... but that doesn't mean they had any "Freak Off" parties together.

We got Gloria leaving iHeartRadio in New York City on Thursday and our photog asked her about a lawsuit she was named in last month ... where a man claimed he was sexually assaulted, raped and humiliated at a "freak off" party in Miami attended by Jay-Z, Beyoncé, LeBron James, Diddy, and Gloria.

Gloria says the guy behind the lawsuit is "not well in the head" ... and she's doubling down on her vehement denial of some serious allegations against her.

Aaron Rodgers might not be married after all -- the NFL legend was spotted out in the wild this week with no jewelry on that finger.

The 41-year-old -- who rocked what certainly looked like a wedding ring while out at Kentucky Derby festivities last weekend -- was seen leaving a Malibu, Calif. gym on Wednesday with no sign of the small black band that made headlines this week.

Of course, it's possible the signal-caller merely didn't want to pump iron with a hindrance on his left hand ... but it's also entirely possible the whole ordeal was a Rodgers ruse.

Kristin Cavallari’s no stranger to the spotlight -- but she hit pause on her main character era to shine it on someone else for a change ... her son Jaxon.

In a Wednesday IG post, Kristin was every bit the proud mama, sharing a sweet tribute to Jaxon -- her 11-year-old son with ex-husband Jay Cutler -- along with a bunch of adorable pics from the boy's birthday bash.

The pics were seriously heart-melty -- Jaxon rocked a velvet suit like a mini style icon, with the celebrations starting at home, surrounded by balloons, before Kristin whisked him off for a birthday dinner.

The New York Knicks' unexpected 2-0 lead in their playoff series against the Boston Celtics isn't sitting well with the green team's core fan base ... and veins are popping out of temples as a result!!!

On Thursday, Benzino dared all Knicks fans to bet him that his Celtics would prevail in Game 3 ... at Madison Square Garden with their backs against the wall.

Benzino noted how the Knicks haven't won a chip since 1973 and didn't foresee it happening this year ... they're running with the Mets colors, for cryin' out loud.

Rolly Romero's making it clear it's totally fine for men to cry ... and he tells TMZ Sports anyone who's making fun of Ryan Garcia for his emotional outburst after their fight last week can go pound sand.

The star boxer -- who upset Garcia in Times Square on May 2 -- passionately defended his opponent while out in L.A. on Wednesday ... explaining he, too, had a big cry following their tilt.

"It's OK for men to cry, bruh," Romero said ... adding, "It just shows we're human."