Incredible gesture by Houston Rockets superstar Russell Westbrook ... who showed his thanks to the NBA bubble housekeepers by leaving a fat, $8,000 tip!!!
Remember, most players were stuck in the same hotel room on the Disney World campus for MONTHS ... which means a LOT of stinky socks, clothes and shoes.
The 31-year-old gave mad respect to those doing the dirty work before the Rockets left the bubble ... gifting them the massive tip and leaving his room "virtually spotless," according to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News.
Brodie confirmed the act to Taylor Rooks, saying, "They took great care of us. Took the time & energy to do their job at a high level. That was the right thing."
The NBA players and coaches have reportedly been extremely kind to all Disney staffers with tips and other kind gestures throughout their time in the NBA bubble ... and this is just one of many instances.
9:07 AM PT -- Facebook has now taken down the prez's post in which he falsely claimed COVID-19 is less deadly than the flu. Twitter didn't go to those great lengths ... instead, it slapped a warning on 45's tweet saying it violated its rules about spreading false information.
UPDATE
Donald Trump's takeaway from COVID ... hey, the flu kills people and we learned to live with it, so why not do the same with coronavirus?
It's unbelievable, but maybe not. Trump grossly exaggerated the number of flu-related deaths ... he says annually it's 100,000, but it's WAY less than that.
And, the most fundamental point ... do people with the flu go to Walter Reed and have more than a dozen doctors try to keep them alive by pumping them with experimental drugs and oxygen?
If it's just like the flu, why did Trump gasp for air after climbing a single flight of stairs when he returned to The White House?
It's clear ... Trump is actually doubling down with his head-in-the-sand approach to COVID. What's worse ... he's needlessly exposing White House staff to the virus. The idea that he took his mask off the second he arrived is just beyond any sense of compassion or basic human responsibility.
By the way ... in case you didn't hear, The White House is not doing any contact tracing for the Amy Coney Barrett event at which nearly a dozen people ended up with COVID.
It's cleanup on EVERY aisle inside the White House press room these days with staffers in full HAZMAT gear to deal with the coronavirus hot spot.
Workers armed with sanitizing guns sprayed the bejeezus out of the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room Monday ... as President Trumpwas returning home ... to defiantly take his mask off right away, despite still being contagious.
Anyway, the press room ... talk about the hot zone! As you know, the President, his Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, 2 of her aides and 3 members of the press corps have recently tested positive for COVID-19.
The outbreak follows the Supreme Court nomination event for Amy Coney Barrett in the Rose Garden. Nearly a dozen people there ended up with COVID, like Trump ... who was hospitalized at Walter Reed.
Still, POTUS continues to downplay the gravity of the pandemic and suggest Americans live with it like it's the flu ... despite the fact it's resulted in tens of thousands more deaths, and Trump still appears to be having trouble breathing after 3 full days of the best medical care in the country.
Even though the President continues to be reckless, the good news is the WH staff seems to be taking the situation much more seriously now ... just look at how workers were sanitizing back in March!!!
Bill Belichick removed BOTH of his masks from his face Monday to scream at officials after a bad call ... and it seems obvious a huge fine is coming his way.
The New England Patriots head coach arrived at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City wearing TWO masks ... seemingly trying to send a message that he's taking the NFL's COVID rules seriously.
But, when the Patriots appeared to force a HUGE turnover late in the 2nd quarter -- only to have the play waved off by officials -- Belichick lost his damn mind.
Bill Belichick loses his mind, also ditches the double mask after the refs rule that Patrick Mahomes didn't fumble. pic.twitter.com/6w5P75g75x
Long story short ... Pats defensive end Chase Winovich appeared to strip Mahomes of the ball during a big 3rd down play -- with another Pats player catching the ball before it hit the ground.
It seemed like a solid turnover that would give the Pats the ball deep in Chiefs territory ... a potential game-changer!
But, the refs ruled that Mahomes was "in the grasp" and blew the whistle dead BEFORE the turnover -- meaning Chiefs kept possession.
Belichick went NUCLEAR -- ripping down his two masks and unloading at the refs ... breaking COVID protocol.
The NFL has been fining coaches for removing masks to yell -- Raiders coach Jon Gruden was hit with a $100,000 fine for similar antics during Week 2.
Belichick is rich and can afford it -- but the NFL is trying to send a message ... STOP TEARING OFF YOUR MASKS!!!!
The Pats -- who were forced to play without Cam Newton after he tested positive for COVID over the weekend -- ultimately lost to the Chiefs in a 26 to 10 beatdown.
Connor McDavid -- arguably the best player in the NHL -- has tested positive for COVID-19, his team announced.
The Edmonton Oilers issued a statement Thursday evening confirming the 23-year-old tested positive on Monday.
"Since that time, he has been in voluntary self-quarantine at his home," the Oilers said. McDavid is quarantining in the Toronto area, where he lives in the offseason.
"He will continue to be monitored and will follow all associated health protocols."
The good news ... McDavid is currently "feeling well" -- though he is experiencing mild symptoms.
The NHL season just wrapped up last week -- with the Tampa Bay Lightning winning the Stanley Cup after the league played the remainder of the season in "hub cities" to reduce COVID exposure.
The league had zero positive COVID tests while doing the “hub city” thing. Though McDavid wasn’t in the NHL bubble very long since Edmonton lost in the qualifying round of the playoffs.
McDavid -- the #1 overall pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft -- has led the league in scoring twice and was named the league's most outstanding player in 2017.
This past season, McDavid racked up 97 total points -- with 34 goals and 63 assists in 64 games ... and finished 5th in MVP voting.
Brody Jenner gave MTV his filming preference -- he'd only resume filming "The Hills: New Beginnings" if it's shot in L.A. and nowhere else, and guess what? The network said okay.
Production sources tell TMZ ... other cast members were willing to leave LaLa land and film in a bubble at a house that would house the full cast, similar to what they do in "Big Brother" and "Jersey Shore: Family Vacation." Some of the locations being considered ... Colorado and Montana. But, Brody was NOT having it.
We're told in early August, Brody's team started conversations with the network and insisted he'd only film the show in L.A. We're told he explained the show's supposed to be about cast members and their lives revolving around the things they do in L.A., not some random location outside of SoCal.
Brody also told the network he'd be willing to wait and resume production of season 2 until there was a vaccine for COVID-19. The pandemic shut down the season 3 episodes in.
We're told MTV continued pressuring Brody into relenting ... but Brody put his foot down.
Finally, MTV came back to him one last time and when Brody AGAIN said no to filming outside of L.A., MTV gave in, realizing it couldn't do the show without him. We're told season 2 will resume production in L.A. in the next 2 to 4 weeks.
It's clear Brody had leverage and came out on top. It should be noted ... Brody and the network are in deep conversations to have him back on the network because he's now happy the show is taking on its original form. That being said, Brody has yet to sign on as of Monday afternoon ... but all signs point to it's only a matter of time.
President Trump is having trouble breathing ... and he's trying like hell not to show it.
Check out this video of Trump climbing a set of stairs at the White House after being discharged from Walter Reed Medical Center. Look closely -- Trump appears to be gasping for air after reaching the top and shedding his face mask.
While Trump says he's feeling better than he has in 20 years after getting pumped full of drugs at Walter Reed to combat COVID-19, the video tells an entirely different story.
Remember ... we now know Trump received supplemental oxygen at least twice over the past 3 days, and Dr. Sean Conley refused to answer questions about lung damage and other potential complications, strangely invoking HIPAA.
Trump's wondering if he's already immune from the virus too ... but it seems he's not out of the woods yet.
5:30 PM PT -- Trump is feeling pretty confident after his hospital stay, wondering if he's already immune from coronavirus.
UPDATE
A maskless Trump just filmed a video at the White House, saying ... "maybe I'm immune, I don't know."
UPDATE
The Prez, who was pumped full of drugs at Walter Reed, says he's feeling better than he has in 20 years and is again telling Americans to not let the virus "dominate you."
UPDATE
4:08 PM PT -- POTUS is back at The White House, and made sure to let the cameras see him take off his mask as he arrived ... and stuff it in his pocket.
UPDATE
It's a questionable move for sure, as it appears several photographers and staffers are standing near him on the WH balcony ... and he's still contagious. Fact is ... The White House is riddled with COVID, and Trump seems unconcerned about further spreading it.
UPDATE
UPDATE
Trump just walked out of the front doors of Walter Reed, tapping the handrails as he made his way to a vehicle to take him to board Marine One ... and continue on back home to The White House.
UPDATE
The President gave a thumbs up and said "thank you" as he left the hospital, but ignored one reporter's question about if he thinks he's a coronavirus super-spreader.
President Trump says he's getting ready to leave the hospital, and is even telling Americans there's no reason to be afraid of COVID-19 ... despite the fact he wasn't treated like a typical patient.
POTUS says he'll be out of Walter Reed Medical Center at 6:30 PM ET. While at the hospital, he's been getting round-the-clock treatment while a team of a dozen doctors help him combat COVID-19.
The odd part of the President's tweet was his suggestion there's nothing to fear from the coronavirus ... which has killed more than 200,000 Americans.
Trump said, "Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life." He says his administration has developed great "drugs and knowledge" about combatting the virus, adding ... "I feel better than I did 20 years ago!"
If the President's condition has improved that much, that's great for him -- however, his statement ignores the fact he's gotten, and will continue to get, treatment far beyond what the average American would get if they needed to be hospitalized with COVID-19. Remember, the Prez even got an experimental cocktail of antibodies not even available to the general public.
Not a great message from the President ... who just yesterday claimed to have finally learned so much about the disease which has been a deadly plague on Americans for more than 6 months now. His own physician, Dr. Sean Conley, declined to comment on Trump's tweet.
We now know Trump received supplemental oxygen over the past three days at least twice -- and that he's been placed on a number of medications, including Remdesivir and dexamethasone ... among others.
Here's the big problem and the most suspicious thing about these press briefings. Dr. Sean Conley mentioned certain meds and therapies the President was getting, but when it came to talking about lung damage and other potential complications, the doctor invoked HIPAA. Why is the doctor so willing to talk about treatment when the President is responding well, but when asked about possible serious problems, he invokes HIPAA ... something frankly we've never heard invoked by a President before.
It's unclear what exactly will be done at the White House to protect staffers from a potentially contagious COVID-19 patient. Doctors say they won't approve his return to the campaign trail until there is no trace of live virus in his system.
They also say he will get the same round-the-clock, top-notch medical treatment he's been receiving. Let's hope the same is true for the growing number of people around the President who've been exposed to the virus.
Derek Carr and several Raiders teammates were just hit with hefty fines for going maskless at Darren Waller's charity event ... with the QB reportedly getting hit to the tune of $15k.
The Raiders tight end hosted a fundraiser in Henderson, LV last week -- which included an auction to help those fighting drug and alcohol addiction.
Several guys like Carr, Nathan Peterman, Jason Witten and more attended to show support ... and the event was a huge success, raising more than $300k!!
Only one issue -- several players and guests were pictured without any sort of face protection, which violates the NFL's strict COVID-19 protocol.
The league handed down the punishments on Monday ... with Waller receiving a $30k fine and his teammates reportedly getting $15k fines.
Carr recently spoke on the event, saying, "We should have kept the masks on, even if we are coming in and they're introducing us."
It's not the first COVID fine for the Raiders -- head coach Jon Gruden was slapped with a $100k punishment after Week 2 for improperly wearing his mask on the sidelines.
Silver lining?? NFL fine money goes to charity ... so maybe send it to Waller's??
Dan Emmett, a retired Secret Service agent who worked with 3 former Presidents, isn't slamming President Trump for his hospital stunt ... saying danger is routine for agents' -- coronavirus or not.
Emmett -- who spent 21 years in the Secret Service during the terms of George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush -- was on "TMZ Live" Monday talking about the controversy Trump created by taking an SUV ride, while having COVID-19, just to wave to his supporters.
Dan downplays the outrage and provides some insider perspective, telling us any time the President is outside of The White House there's serious risk to the agents on his detail ... and Trump's not the first to add to it, strictly for PR purposes.
According to Emmett ... this is what signing up for the Secret Service entails -- POTUS can do what he wants, and it's up to the agents to protect him. Dan even offers a famous example from the Clinton era ... and it's a fair point.
Still, a pandemic's a different situation, but Dan suggests proper medical precautions were taken to be as safe as possible for Trump's brief hospital respite.
He also says with the mitigating circumstances, the agents who escorted Trump could have opted out if they felt uncomfortable with the COVID exposure and it would have been no biggie ... but that's not how Secret Service agents tend to roll.
For what it's worth, the 2 agents who did drive Trump around reportedly volunteered for the gig, which hammers home Dan's point.
Several others working under Kayleigh McEnany have reportedly tested positive for coronavirus -- including two key aides -- Chad Gilmartin and Karoline Leavitt -- as well as other mid-level staffers in the White House press shop.
Another White House staffer has tested positive for coronavirus -- this time, it's the Press Secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, who says she's asymptomatic ... and eager to keep working.
McEnany shared the news Monday, saying she'd contracted COVID-19 after days of testing negative since Trump's positive diagnosis announcement Thursday. She says she's experiencing no symptoms, adding no members of the press are reported as close contacts by the White House Medical Unit -- so presumably, they should be alright.
She also claims she had no knowledge of Hope Hicks' positive status prior to holding her last press briefing last week, explaining she's been doing her public service for the American people as diligently as possible.
Now that she's positive, however, McEnany says she'll begin to quarantine right away -- but goes on to say she'll continue to work remotely. She's the latest person in Trump's orbit who's been infected over the past week -- at least 5 others have also tested positive.
Unclear who might've started the super-spreading going on at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., but what seems clear is that the virus was front and center at the Amy Coney Barrett nomination ceremony. Among those present who now have COVID ... Donald and Melania Trump, Kellyanne Conway,Rev. John Jenkins, Chris Christie,Senators Mike Lee and Thom Tillis as well as Hope Hicks.
Scary news ... 90-year-old college football coaching legend Bobby Bowden has tested positive for COVID-19.
Fortunately, the former Florida State head man -- who coached the Seminoles for 34 years and won two national championships -- told the Tallahassee Democraton Monday he's experiencing no symptoms as of now.
Bowden said he had been in the hospital recently because of a skin infection ... and took a coronavirus test while he was there. The results came back positive Saturday.
Bowden, though, says there's no fever, cough or illness yet ... adding, "I don’t feel bad, yet."
In fact, Bobby was in such good spirits after the diagnosis ... he joked, "I guess I can loaf around the rest of the week."
Bowden says his plan to handle the virus is to quarantine at his home and keep a close eye on any potential symptoms.
In the meantime, Bowden says family members that had been staying with him hadn't tested positive for the virus yet ... but will get further testing done Monday.
Bobby earned more than 350 wins in his time as FSU coach ... and was so good, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006 while he was still an active coach.
Covington -- who's become close with Trump over the past few years -- was invited to the debate in Cleveland on Sept. 29 as a special guest of POTUS.
Now, after Trump and several people close to him have tested positive for coronavirus ... many people were wondering about Colby's health.
Covington responded over the weekend saying he's healthy -- and used the announcement to take a few shots at Trump's critics.
"For the people who constantly slander my name, but are all of a sudden concerned with my health and well being: I’m COVID free," Covington said.
"I’ve been tested 7 times in the past 3 weeks, including prior to and after meeting with the POTUS. I was also tested during fight week, as well as before and after the debate. ALL NEGATIVE."
"Speaking of ALL NEGATIVE," Colby said, "How about all the slime in Hollywood and woke sports wishing harm on a 74 year old grandfather!?! How tolerant! Unfortunately for them and fortunately for America, @realdonaldtrump is a fighter!!! "
"He KO’s the fake news media daily. He KO’d Slow Joe and Chris Wallace at the same time on Tuesday! Now it’s time for a casual weekend KO of COVID! Here’s to a speedy recovery and 4 MORE YEARS!!!"
As for Trump, he's expected to be released from Walter Reed on Monday.
President Trump was up and at 'em this morning with one message on his mind that he felt the need to repeat over and over and over AND OVER again -- America, vote ... MAGA.
DT sent out a barrage of tweets early Monday, and they were all different versions of the same sentiment -- here's why folks oughta punch their ballots in for him ... with his signature all caps font, of course. In all, he had about 15 or so bullet point reasons to vote Trump.
Just to name a few of the most amusing ... 401(k), LAW & ORDER, STOCK MARKET HIGHS, STRONGEST MILITARY EVER, PRO LIFE, FIGHT THE CORRUPT FAKE NEWS MEDIA ... and, of course, SPACE FORCE!!!! There's more, but you get it, we're sure.
He also had a friendly reminder for residents in key swing states he needs to win to defeat Biden (who's ahead in the polls in a lot of these places). He told people in Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Arizona and Texas Monday was the last day to register and offered a link so they could sign up ... a link that leads to a site that literally pushes you to vote for Trump.
TODAY is the LAST day to register to VOTE in ARIZONA, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, OHIO, AND TEXAS! Click below for more information, and let’s #MAGA! https://t.co/gsFSghkmdM
We'd give him credit for promoting the democratic process, but since he's leading would-be voters right to his own punch card ... we'll hold off on the kudos for now. One last note we'll make about Trump's back-to-business mentality on Twitter ... some are calling it "roid rage."
As you mighta heard, Trump's now on a steroid called dexamethasone, which helps fight off inflammation in the body caused by disease and/or viruses. While there are different reports on the potential side effects, one that keeps getting brought up is the possibility of "delusions of grandeur" and general outbursts or acts of anger -- y'know, 'cause of the 'roids and all.
IF YOU WANT A MASSIVE TAX INCREASE, THE BIGGEST IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY (AND ONE THAT WILL SHUT OUR ECONOMY AND JOBS DOWN), VOTE DEMOCRAT!!!
The New England Patriots are en route to Kansas City to play the Chiefs on Monday night ... after new rounds of testing showed no new COVID cases.
Remember, it was Friday night that Patriots QB Cam Newton tested positive for COVID-19 ... raising serious concerns about an outbreak within the organization, just like the Tennessee Titans.
As a result of Cam's test, the Pats vs. Chiefs game -- initially scheduled for Sunday in KC -- was postponed to Monday to allow for more testing.
But, according to multiple reports, ZERO players and staffers outside of Cam have tested positive since Friday ... so the team will go ahead and travel Monday morning, in order to play Monday night.
As for the Chiefs, backup QB Jordan Ta'amu had tested positive over the weekend -- but no other Chiefs players or staffers have tested positive either.
Both Newton and Ta'amu are in quarantine and will not attend the game.
After the game, the Patriots will get right back on the team, plane and fly back to New England, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
And, some more good news in the league ... the Tennessee Titans did not have one new player or staffer test positive for COVID during Monday's testing, the first time that's happened in 7 days.
2:45 PM PT -- President Trump said he was going to pay a little surprise to his supporters outside the Walter Reed Medical Center, then moments later ... a motorcade went by, and he was waving with a mask on from inside an SUV.
UPDATE
Trump shared a video on Twitter saying his reports about his COVID battle were good and he's been learning a lot about the virus, but he also teased making an appearance for his supporters.
UPDATE
UPDATE
It's odd, but it seems POTUS simply left the hospital to do a lap in an SUV and wave to everyone as a gesture of appreciation for being there for him.
Donald Trump is doing well enough that he can be discharged as early as Monday, but the latest update from doctors raises new concerns about Trump's health and whether his doctors are being straight with the American public.
Trump's personal physician, Dr. Sean Conley, fessed up that he was evasive Saturday when he wouldn't say if Trump received supplemental oxygen at The White House before being transferred to Walter Reed. This time, Dr. Conley said Trump not only received oxygen Friday at The White House but a second round Saturday. In both instances, Trump's oxygen level dropped below 94%.
And, there's this ... Dr. Conley confessed he wasn't forthcoming Saturday because he wanted to reflect Trump's "upbeat mood." As for whether he hid information, Dr. Conley said that "isn't necessarily true."
Dr. Conley actually said Trump's Chief of Staff "misconstrued" Trump's condition when he said Trump's condition was deteriorating Friday at The White House. Yet, Dr. Conley concedes Trump was tired with a fever, a cough and low oxygen levels.
A reporter asked Dr. Conley if Trump's lungs were damaged and he would not answer directly. Nor would Dr. Conley say if there was evidence of pneumonia.
Trump's being pumped full of drugs and doctors say he's responding well.
