TMZ Sports - Page 50

Mark Cuban is making sure his Mavericks employees are being taken care of following his sale of the majority stake in the NBA franchise ... promising to dole out $35 million-plus in bonuses in the near future.

The former Dallas owner made the announcement in an email to Mavs staffers on Friday, according to ESPN ... explaining new owners Miriam Adelson and Sivan and Patrick Dumont will be helping to contribute to the large bonus pool as well.

Cuban said the payouts will be based on "a framework that took into consideration how long you have worked for the Mavs." He added the cash will be hitting bank accounts "in the very near future."

"I'm excited to continue our work making the Mavs the best franchise in all of sports!" Cuban said in the letter.

Of course, Cuban officially gave way to Adelson and the Dumonts late last month ... selling the families his controlling interest in the team for $3.5 billion.

The 65-year-old, however, still maintains a 27% stake in the org. ... and he told reporters after it all became official that he'll still have control of basketball operations.

As for why he made the surprising move ... he said it's simple -- he thinks the new owners can grow the business exponentially.

"When you get a world-class partner who can come in and grow your revenue base and you're not dependent on things that you were in the past," Cuban said, "that's a huge win."

ESPN is distancing itself from Aaron Rodgers' recent comments about Jimmy Kimmel ... chalking his controversial appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" up to a bad attempt at comedy.

The New York Jets quarterback sparked an intense feud with the ABC late-night host earlier this week ... when he suggested Kimmel could be among the famous names on Jeffrey Epstein's client list.

Kimmel was furious with Rodgers ... firing back by claiming the comments could put his family in danger -- and threatening to take legal action if he continued to bark up that tree.

Mike Foss -- ESPN's senior vice president of digital and studio production -- addressed the whole issue in an interview with Front Office Sports on Friday ... and he said the comments never should have came out of Rodgers' mouth.

"Pat announced today that he’s planning on Aaron joining the show Tuesday," Foss told the outlet. "Aaron made a dumb and factually inaccurate joke about Jimmy Kimmel."

"The show will continue to evolve. It wouldn’t surprise me if Aaron’s role evolves with it."

Based on the latter part of that statement, it certainly sounds like the network won't step in and prevent Rodgers from going back on the show ... but on Friday's show, Pat accused ESPN exec Norby Williamson of sabotaging his program amid the drama.

Of course, the beef between Rodgers and Kimmel is complicated -- McAfee and the TV personality are both in the Disney family and wildly popular in their respective fields.

Talk about fishing for attention -- some guy is in serious trouble after stripping naked and jumping into a Bass Pro Shop pond -- and footage from horrified bystanders has captured everything.

You gotta see it to believe it -- the man executes a cannonball from the top floor of the store in Leeds, Alabama Thursday ... cops say the guy, 42-year-old George Owens, performed the stunt just before closing time.

The videos show Owens yelling something to officers as he shamelessly hangs on the edge ... legs spread wide apart and all -- before dramatically hurling himself over the side and onto the wet cement floor, smacking his head and ass in the process.

Cops get Owens into cuffs though he continues to put up a fight. However, he eventually calms down.

At one point, another man covers him with a blanket to spare bystanders the naked sight ... and police slide him away on his belly.

As for what led up to the erratic fish tank display, Police Chief Paul Irwin tells TMZ, Owens was driving in a car with 2 family members around 9 PM when he hit a pole in the store's parking lot.

From there, he decided to get out, strip naked and walk inside the wilderness-themed store.

Chief Irwin tells us that once he was under arrest, Owens kicked one officer in the groin ... and he later kicked in and damaged the back door of their police vehicle.

Katt Williams can count on at least one comedic ally after his royal roast of Kevin Hart, Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer -- "Wild 'N Out" vet Bobb'e J. Thompson cosigns everything Katt's saying!!!

We linked with Bobb'e in Hollywood to discuss Katt's super-viral sit-down on Shannon Sharpe's podcast as the numbers for the nearly 3-hour chitchat breached 15 million views in just a couple of days.

Many comedians and even rappers such as Ludacris and Trick Daddy, took Katt's unfiltered thoughts as fightin' words.

TD suggested he's ready to get physical, as he reminded Katt he's from the streets.

But, Bobb'e tells us there's never any reason to rumble over a joke ... unless you can fight, and he says Katt has no issues in the fisticuffs department. He also doesn't feel like Katt spoke out a turn, especially in the pursuit of being credited for his work.

Katt accused guys like Steve and Ced of stealing his material over the years, and even had damning allegations for Michael Blackson ... claiming the Nigerian accent is faker than everything sold on Canal Street.

Bobb'e worked with both Katt and Michael on "Wild 'N Out" and can't confirm or deny Mike's 24/7 speaking patterns ... but does say tensions will arise if a joke gets stolen on the 'WNO' set.

The NFL is shining a light on Damar Hamlin's recent charitable efforts -- the Buffalo Bills safety was just selected as the Community MVP for Week 18 after giving back to his hometown during the holidays.

Hamlin received the honor for his 4th annual toy drive that went down last month ... where he distributed more than 2,000 toys, hundreds of books, and 50 bikes to hundreds of kids in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania.

Hamlin has been helping out those in his area since before his NFL days, but this one was extra special -- it was the first toy drive since he suffered cardiac arrest against the Bengals on Jan. 2, 2023.

Hamlin said one of his first memories waking up after the incident was seeing the $9 million raised for his fundraiser. With the exceeded amount, Hamlin did his own personal Santa Claus impression, donning the big man's classic red suit and spreading some holiday cheer.

In a year that began with turbulence, this was one of the brightest moments for Damar ... which he explained when speaking about the drive.

"I just couldn’t wait for this," Hamlin said. "I've received so much love, so many blessings. I just couldn’t wait to pay them all forward."

The full $9 million raised after Hamlin's medical emergency won't just help his toy drive -- he said it will also go toward improving his community through CPR education, sporting events in the summer, and turkey drives.

Alex Rodriguez isn't a pro athlete anymore, but don't tell his abs ... the legendary slugger shared a shredded shirtless photo, posing with his equally jacked girlfriend, and they look incredible!

48-year-old A-Rod and his fitness trainer boo Jaclyn Cordeiro are on vacation in the Dominican Republic ... and the couple shared some snaps from the trip. Alex's daughter Ella is also on the vacay.

Rodriguez last played baseball in 2016 as third baseman for the New York Yankees, before hanging up his glove and leaving the sport as one of the most feared hitters ever.

Despite being an immortal player, A-Rod admittedly let himself go a bit in retirement, so much so his family expressed concern for him in late 2021, saying he "looked unhealthy."

Rodriguez decided to make some changes to his life (more plants, less red meat, intermittent fasting, and walking) ... and he says it made all the difference.

In 2023, Alex revealed, with help and support from Jac, he'd lost 32 pounds!

Rodriguez didn't spend the whole trip posing without a shirt (though could you blame him?) ... he also spent some quality time with his fam, from some fun in the sun to a chess game with his daughter.

Ludacris and his wife Eudoxie also fell victim to the wrath of Katt Williams' viral "Club Shay Shay" interview, but in a fiery freestyle response ... Luda's telling Katt to get back because he doesn't know him like that!!!

The "Fast & Furious" star doesn't do much rapping these days, but returned to the studio Thursday night to bust out a freestyle over Kanye West's classic "Devil in a New Dress" instrumental -- clearly aimed at Katt's noggin.

During his 3-hour sit-down with Shannon Sharpe, Katt swore Luda had joined the Illuminati after selling his soul to the "Fast & Furious" franchise in exchange for $200 million.

Katt also hinted Luda was stripped of his Blackness and sent an insane shot at Luda's spouse for being a "light-skinned ugly-face wife" -- a wild insult, especially considering Luda collaborated with Katt on his 2004 hit single "Pimpin' All Over the World."

Luda kicked off his anti-Katt flow shouting out Snoop Dogg and then slyly responding to Katt's disses and clarifying his sexuality ... "They throwing shade ‘cause n****s could never take my shine ... Never been Illuminati, only Ill-Luda-nati/And I only left with bitches when coming from any party."

The freestyle ended with an RIP to "2 Fast Too Furious" director John Singleton and a final warning to Katt ... "Afro with the sideburns, yeah that’s my signature/Addiction’s on the rise, comedians check your temperature.”

Ryan Garcia is blockin' all jabs when it comes to his friendship with Floyd Mayweather ... saying the boxing legend is mentoring him and he "loves and respects him."

The 24-1 (20 KOs) fighter took to social media on Thursday to defend his new bond with Mayweather after receiving backlash for hanging out with Floyd on several occasions, including their infamous 3 AM jog in Las Vegas.

"Floyd is mentoring me, And I love and respect him, he is so authentic so stop judging him," Garcia said to the haters.

"Judging a book by its cover will stop you from reading but Derrick James is my coach, and I love him too."

Some boxing fans have been confused by the relationship ... as Ryan is still in business with Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions. ODLH is a rival of TBE.

For what it's worth, not even De La Hoya seems too bothered. He told FightHype he was okay with Ryan and Floyd linkin' up, though he did add the situation would've been seen as a "conflict of interest" back in the day.

Other people have complained that Garcia lost at the hands of Gervonta Davis, whom Floyd is close with. Mayweather even celebrated with Tank in the ring after he beat Garcia.

But, Ryan doesn't want to hear it.

"You guys don’t know him and most of you will never. But he is authentic has a good heart and extremely generous," Ryan said.

"HES 50-0 and he’s almost half a 100 lmao but Love him and I respect him so put respect on his name. He may be Money Mayweather but he really tries to be as authentic as possible."

Devin Haney also came for Garcia ... sending him this Instagram DM: Floyd can't save or help u..

LeBron James says he's got next after a mysterious Fortnite session popped up on the Fenway Park scoreboard this week ... calling on his fellow Boston Red Sox owners to let him use the big screen to get in some Madden action of his own!!

A clip from outside the historic stadium made rounds on social media on Thursday ... showing an unidentified enthusiast playing the popular video game on the massive outfield display.

King James -- who owns an undisclosed amount of Fenway Sports Group, which includes the Sox -- got wind of the epic moment ... and he wants to flex his skills on the jumbotron, too!!

"Ayyyyeee!! Let me get some Madden games going on there! @FenwaySportsMgt @RedSox 🤣🤣👑," the Los Angeles Lakers superstar said on X.

Of course, James has a history of using scoreboards for his gaming hobby -- as we previously reported, he got in a Madden sesh on SoFi Stadium's scoreboard during an early birthday celebration in 2022.

Shohei Ohtani is already putting some of his new Dodgers contract to good use ... revealing Thursday he and his team are donating at least $1 million to victims of this week's devastating earthquake in Japan.

The Dodgers announced they and Guggenheim Baseball are putting up $1 million on their own ... while the designated hitter -- who just inked a $700 million pact with LA -- is forking over "his own personal contribution."

All of it is being given with the wish that it will help cities in Ohtani's home country rebuild after a 7.6 magnitude quake leveled homes on Monday, killing dozens.

"My hope is that we continue to come together to support those whose lives have been upended," the two-way superstar said. "I hope for the rapid rescue of missing persons and the reconstruction of the disaster-stricken areas."

The natural disaster struck around 4 PM on New Year's Day ... and as of Friday morning, hundreds of people still remain missing in the rubble.

Ohtani is clearly hurting for those who are struggling to survive ... as are the Dodgers, who said in a statement Thursday, "Our thoughts are with all of Japan in wake of this tragedy."

Oscar Pistorius just caught a break, getting paroled from a South African lockup after serving more than half of his 13-year sentence for murdering his girlfriend.

The former Olympian -- who competed with his lower legs amputated -- returned home Friday after being whisked out of Atteridgeville Prison in the South African capital of Pretoria, according to a statement by the country's Department of Correctional Services.

Following his 9 years of incarceration, Pistorius will now be on parole for 5 years, staying most likely at his uncle's mansion with armed security and guard dogs. The conditions of his parole were not disclosed, except he is not allowed to speak with the media.

As you may recall, Pistorius fatally shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in his Pretoria home on February 14, 2013, pumping four bullets into her through a locked bathroom door.

Pistorius claimed self-defense, believing she was a burglar who broke into his house.

Prosecutors didn't buy it, accusing Pistorius of killing Steenkamp in anger during a Valentine's Day fight and charging him with murder and a firearms offense.

At his 2014 trial, a judge convicted Pistorius of the lesser charge of manslaughter, sentencing him to 5 years in prison.

But, prosecutors won their appeal to a higher court, which tossed Pistorius' original conviction, upgrading the charge to murder with a six-year prison term.

Even that was not enough for prosecutors, who appealed again, arguing the sentence was too lenient. South Africa's Court of Appeal agreed, handing Pistorius a 13-year sentence.

In March 2023, Pistorius became eligible for parole under a South African law that affords prisoners the opportunity to serve half their sentences if they have shown good behavior and fulfilled other requirements behind bars.

Aaron Rodgers has received a huge honor from the Jets -- he was just named the team's Most Inspirational Player ... this despite only playing a few seconds for NY in the 2023 season.

The Jets revealed the award for their signal-caller on Friday morning ... announcing the injured quarterback got the trophy over stars like Garrett Wilson, Sauce Gardner, Quinnen Williams and others.

Head coach Robert Saleh explained at a meeting with reporters just minutes ago that players themselves made the choice ... saying that it shows just how valuable Rodgers was to the team this season -- even though he couldn't actually get off the sidelines.

"I've said it a million times," Saleh said, "he loves his teammates and his teammates love him."

"He's a tremendous human and well-deserving of the award."

Rodgers, of course, arrived in New York with Super Bowl expectations, but he tore his Achilles just four snaps into the season-opener against the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 11 ... and never returned to the field.

He did work like a mad man to get back -- and he actually ended up returning to Jets practices late in the year, albeit in a limited capacity. And, clearly, his teammates appreciated the effort.

Warren Moon says if he were coaching the Ravens, he wouldn't sit Lamar Jackson, Odell Beckham Jr. or any other starter this week -- telling TMZ Sports he believes the moves could seriously ruin their chances at a Super Bowl.

Of course, with the No. 1 seed in the AFC already locked up, John Harbaugh revealed earlier this week Jackson and several others will take a seat on the bench against the Steelers on Saturday in order to stay healthy for the postseason.

Moon, though, doesn't think that idea's so great ... explaining that because Baltimore has a bye in the first round of the playoffs, there's now a far greater chance the squad will be rusty when it finally kicks off its divisional round game in more than two weeks.

"As a football player," the Hall of Famer said, "you want to stay within that routine and that habit of what you've been going through the whole season to make you successful."

Moon said he's by no means advocating playing Jackson and co. the full game against Pittsburgh -- he just thinks a few series could mitigate any potential problems down the road.

"That's the only thing that concerns about this team and some of the guys that they're sitting down," the ex-quarterback said. "How sharp are they going to be in three weeks after going through a season where they're used to playing week after week after week?"

In addition to Jackson ... three other starters -- Beckham, Marlon Humphrey and Kevin Zeitler -- have already been ruled out. Star rookie Zay Flowers and star defensive back Kyle Hamilton appear poised to miss the game too.

Nonetheless, Moon still believes the Ravens have done enough to show him they're the NFL's best heading into 2024.

Hip hop radio legend Big Boy is revisiting a time being overweight came in real handy -- he says all that extra cushion helped him duck gun charges that might've ended his career before it got started!!!

BB made the eye-popping revelation on "All the Smoke" after Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson asked him about the urban legend that he hid a gun from the police in his body fat.

BB once weighed over 500 lbs -- back before Will Smith convinced him to get surgery -- and he confirmed the legend as fact, but explained there was a perfectly good reason for his actions.

Before earning his stripes on radio, BB bodyguarded for The Pharcyde. and recalled the day of June 17, 1994 -- the same day O.J. Simpson famously led LAPD on the low-speed chase.

The iconic moment caused BB to be separated from the group as they stayed in the Bay Area and he flew back to L.A. -- but left them his gun to drive back to the city.

After BB retrieved his gun the next day, he got pulled over while he also had another gun on him ... so, really bad timing.

Luckily, the officer failed to pat him down properly, and he was able to skate any charges. God knows a strip search at county jail would've gotten interesting!!!

As fate would have it, he got a call from Power 106 the very next day, starting his on-air gig ... and eventually got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame presented to him by Dr. Dre!!!

Shaquille O'Neal hung up his Dunkman's more than a decade ago, but the NBA legend is still making history ... the Orlando Magic just announced they're retiring the Big Fella's 32 jersey, the first time they've ever raised a number to the rafters!

51-year-old O'Neal received word of the honor while he was on the air with buds Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson ... when the Hall of Famer got a "phone call" from Magic CEO Alex Martins.

"On behalf of the DeVos family and myself and all of us here at the Orlando Magic, we want to congratulate you as we make you the first jersey number retired in the history of the Orlando Magic. You had a great career here at the beginning of your career and we had some great times!" Martins said to Shaq.

Of course, the Magic picked O'Neal with their first pick in the 1992 NBA Draft ... and Shaquille didn't disappoint in his short stint with the team, making them relevant, and even leading them to the NBA Finals in 1995, where they lost to the Houston Rockets.

He averaged over 27 points, and nearly 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks a game in Orlando.

Shaq ultimately decided to leave Florida for a big payday in Los Angeles ... where he won 3 NBA championships alongside Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.

Team Chairman Dave DeVos also spoke about Shaq's influence on the organization, on and off the hardwood, as well as the local community.

“Through his dominating play, larger-than-life personality, and generous contributions to The City Beautiful, Shaquille O’Neal had a transformational impact on this team and this town. Our family and the entire franchise couldn’t be more pleased for Shaquille to receive this well-deserved honor, further cementing his enduring legacy here in Orlando as we collectively look back on his tremendous accomplishments in a Magic uniform.”

Perhaps the most meaningful congratulations came from O'Neal's "number one fan," his mom, Dr. Lucille O'Neal, who sent her son a heartfelt message.

The jersey retirement goes down on February 13.

1/5 8:26AM PST -- Jenn just addressed the video, laughing it off and blaming the pandemic for her state of mind back then ... she says while she may not have liked "Tenet" she definitely loved Nolan's "Oppenheimer" -- watching it twice -- and invites Nolan to one of her in-studio classes.

Christopher Nolan says a Peloton workout turned into a scathing, live movie review ... as the instructor -- who probably didn't know he was watching -- unloaded on his film during class!!!

The "Oppenheimer" director won a New York Film Critics Circle award Thursday for best director, and during his acceptance speech he recalled the time a Peloton instructor took a shot at his work.

Christopher says he was in a virtual Peloton class when the woman leading the workout, Jenn Sherman, started talking trash about "Tenet" ... asking if anyone else saw or understood the 2020 movie. As Jenn put it, "I'm not kidding. What the f*** was going on in that movie?" She also groused she'd wasted hours of her life that she'd never get back.

BTW, he didn't call out Jenn by name, but internet sleuths quickly found the clip.

CN says he was also getting his butt kicked in the workout when she piled on, but it sounds like she had no idea Christopher was in the class.

The funny anecdote was part of Christopher's broader point -- that everyone's a critic these days.