TMZ Sports - Page 50

Shawn Oakman is hoping NFL teams were paying attention when he was found NOT GUILTY in his rape case ... because the ex-college football star hopes to get a real shot to play pro football.

Oakman was a projected 1st-round draft pick while playing at Baylor -- where he set the school record for career sacks. But, no team wanted to touch him in the 2016 NFL Draft after he was arrested and charged with raping a woman at his apartment.

The 6'9", 265-pounder has been keeping himself in shape and playing semi-pro ball while his case was active ... but now that he was found not guilty last week, he's hoping he can make the jump to the NFL.

"I want to play football at the highest level and just really finally get my chance,” Oakman told KWTX.

"I think God will set the right path for me but I don't feel like I have to beg for anything, it's not a begging matter. I don't want anybody to hand me anything. I want to earn it and everything I get."

Oakman says he's grateful for the support he's received since the trial ... and plans to return to his old stomping grounds.

GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY ... Jim Ross is leaving WWE.

The 67-year-old legend made the announcement on "The Jim Ross Report" podcast on Thursday -- explaining he'll be leaving the company later this month when his contract expires.

"My WWE contract after 26 years will expire on Friday, March 29," Ross said.

"And, after talking a couple of weeks ago with Vince McMahon, we have mutually agreed I need to move on."

While noting the move is on good terms, Ross suggested powerful people in the organization clearly wanted him out.

"I still think I can do play-by-play even though others that may surround Vince think I can't."

Ross says he's leaving the company "with great thoughts, very positive."

"I've made a lot of money, Vince is amazing to Jan and myself. He set us up for life financially, of which I can never repay him."

"I'm 67, I still feel I can get the job done doing wrestling play-by-play, and I want to explore that opportunity and possibility," Ross said.

So, what's next for Ross? There are rumblings he will sign with the new AEW wrestling organization -- but nothing is official at this point.

Ross has been calling matches for WWE since the early '90s and has been part of the company's biggest moments.

After calling The Undertaker's match at WrestleMania 33 in 2017, he signed a 2-year contract to call special events for WWE. The last time he was on-air was back in April to work the Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia.

Dak Prescott's pit bull is possibly facing the death penalty after attacking a neighbor in Frisco, Texas last week ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Prescott's dog, Icon, was quarantined last Monday after it escaped from the Dallas Cowboys QB's home and attacked a woman who was transported to a nearby hospital to be treated for her injuries.

Icon was supposed to be held in quarantine for 10 days -- which means it was scheduled to be released today -- but there's been a change of plans due to the seriousness of the incident.

Law enforcement tells us ... the case has been referred to the City of Frisco Municipal Court for a hearing to determine if the dog will be, or should be classified as a "dangerous dog."

If found to be dangerous, we're told there are multiple options on how to deal with it -- one of the options is euthanasia.

One official tells us the goal is to work with all parties for an amicable resolution -- but putting the dog to sleep is a real possibility. Another option could be removing the dog from city limits.

Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone is sick of waiting for Conor McGregor to ink a fight contract so they can brawl once and for all ... telling the Irishman, "Sack up, bitch. Sign the f*cking paper."

Cowboy pulled no punches during an interview with ESPN's Brett Okamoto ... saying he's "annoyed" that Conor teased the fight on social media, but now he won't make a deal.

Cerrone says he's been in talks with UFC about fighting McGregor since January as a co-main event in either April or July ... but Conor REFUSES to share the main event spotlight.

"Conor won't fight unless it's a main event," Cerrone said. "I don't know if it's an ego thing or a status thing for him. I don't give a sh*t. I'll fight anyone, anywhere, and I stand by that all the time. I guess he's a prima donna and only takes main event spots, I don't know."

Of course, McGregor was the one who really breathed life into a potential fight with Cowboy after he watched Cerrone beat up Alexander Hernandez at 'UFC Fight Night' in January ... tweeting to Cowboy:

"For a fight like that Donald, I’ll fight you. Congratulations."

So, what happened? Cowboy says Conor stopped negotiating and now it seems like the chances of the fight actually happening are getting worse by the day.

Cowboys star David Irving -- who was just hit with ANOTHER suspension for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy -- says it's "bullsh*t" the NFL won't let him smoke weed.

25-year-old Irving was a stud for Dallas the last four seasons when he was actually on the field ... logging 12.5 sacks in just 10 starts -- but, the dude just couldn't stay out of trouble.

He was suspended for 4 games to start BOTH the 2017 and 2018 seasons ... and just last week, the league announced he's been banned once again.

Now, the guy is speaking out on social media ... saying the NFL is a bunch of hypocrites -- and seems to be threatening to sit out of the league until it makes weed legal.

"Once they do that, give me a call," Irving said ... "Cuz it's bullshit how I have Xanax bars n hydros right next to me to take, given to me by the NFL of course. However, we can't smoke the same weed the staff itself smokes."

This ain't the first time the embattled pass rusher has been vocal about the NFL's drug policy ... he's been in the comments of social media blasting trolls over his suspensions for years.

In fact, in one rant just a few months ago ... Irving claimed, "every game you've seen me play in, I was medicated."

David is still technically a Cowboy ... but his contract with the team expires at the beginning of the NFL's free agency next week.

The GOAT has spoken ... Michael Jordan is giving props to LeBron James after passing him on the NBA's all-time scoring list ... calling it "another great milestone."

King James jumped over the Jumpman with an easy bucket midway through the 2nd quarter of Wednesday night's Lakers vs. Nuggets game ... and it was an emotional moment.

James only needed 13 points to pass MJ's 32,292 ... but once it finally happened, the Lakers played a tribute video to LBJ ... and then came the waterworks.

MJ gave his own tribute to James after the game ... saying "I want to congratulate LeBron on achieving another great milestone during his amazing career."

The love was mutual ... as LeBron honored the 6-time champ with a pair of custom LeBron 16s made to look like the Jordan 3s.

Even 2 Chainz -- Bron's new music partner -- got in on the fun by gifting him one of his chains from his courtside seat after the game.

Despite the celebration, Bron was brought back down to earth quick ... with the Lakers losing the game 115-99 in a blowout loss.

LeBron commented on the milestone after the game, saying he idolized Michael growing up ... "To be linked with the greatest I ever seen play the game, it's crazy to me."

"I wouldn't be here without him."

Tristan Thompson isn't moving on from Khloe Kardashian just yet, because he's NOT dating the hot chick he's been hanging with in NYC, but they are getting to know each other through a mutual friend ... one of his NBA teammates.

We've learned Tristan's new friend is Karizma Ramirez ... and sources close to her tell us they met last week through Jordan Clarkson.

As you know, Tristan and Karizma were photographed inside Nobu in NYC Tuesday night ... after being spotted together last week at another dinner in the Big Apple. That sparked dating rumors, obvi, since it came directly on the heels of Khloe kicking Tristan to the curb.

But, the sources close to her say Karizma and TT are insisting there's nothing romantic going on between them.

We're told they've only hung out at the 2 dinners, which were both group situations -- where Tristan was flying solo, and Karizma was Jordan's guest.

We got Tristan out in New York last week, but he was silent on Khloe and his cheating scandal with Jordyn Woods.

As for Karizma, we're told she's NOT dating Jordan either, they've known each other forever through his family. BTW, she used to kick it with Chris Brown, but nothing serious.

Floyd Mayweather says his fans "shouldn't worry" about guys like Conor McGregor and Canelo Alvarez angling for a rematch ... telling TMZ Sports he's already proved he can beat ANYONE.

"Nobody can beat me! Y'all already know that," the boxing legend told us Wednesday night on his way out of TAO in Los Angeles.

"Everybody wants a rematch with me."

He's right ... earlier this week, Conor was breaking down his 2017 fight with Floyd and suggested the two will run it back in the near future saying, "A rematch will be interesting no doubt."

So, we asked Floyd how he felt about Conor's prediction -- and it wasn't exactly met with the same enthusiasm.

"Don't worry about that," Floyd told us ... while directing us to point the camera on his $18 MILLION diamond watch.

So, we switched the topic to Oscar De La Hoya -- who says a rematch with Canelo would be a $1.5 BILLION fight ... and again, Floyd didn't really seem to be interested.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah ... everybody's saying something. I don't worry about that. I already made over a billion! You already know that!"

He added, "I'm not worried about all that my man. Floyd is undefeated. Nobody can beat me. You already know that, man!"

Of course, Canelo and Floyd initially fought in 2013 -- with Floyd dominating the then-23-year-old rising star. Floyd got a $41 million guarantee for that fight, which was a record payday at the time.

Both Oscar and Canelo are now making a renewed push for a rematch ... for obvious reasons.

As for Floyd's $18 MILLION timepiece, he calls it "the one and only" ... and he bought it in 2018.

Want details? It was made by Jacob & Co. back in 2015, it features 239 emerald-cut baguette diamond stones, each weighing up to 3 carats.

Good times!

Big Boi is following suit with Travis Scott and Maroon 5 by partnering up with the NFL to donate a bundle of cash, but he's keeping his charitable efforts close to home.

The Outkast rapper -- who performed with Adam Levine and co. during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show -- will announce Thursday a joint donation of $100k from himself and the NFL. We're told the money will be going to the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Big Boi's hometown of Atlanta.

Sources familiar with the deal tell TMZ ... the joint donation is similar to the ones the league made with the other halftime performers in Atlanta. Maroon 5's went to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, and Travis' went to Van Jones' Dream Corps.

Their donations were announced before the big game, but we're told Big Boi always intended to make one too. He just took longer to announce it because he needed time to decide where the money would be put to the best use -- and The King Center won out.

TMZ Sports has obtained police footage of Cameron Maybin's DUI arrest -- which shows the Giants outfielder getting extremely emotional once he realizes he's being arrested.

The San Francisco Giants player was pulled over around 2:25 AM on Friday morning in Scottsdale, Arizona after officers saw him speeding and swerving.

Maybin couldn't have been nicer and more cooperative during the stop -- admitting he had 5 glasses of wine earlier in the evening but went to a friend's house in an effort to "sleep it off" before getting on the road.

When pressed, Maybin said he only napped for about an hour -- which upset the officer who informed Maybin that's not NEARLY enough time to get sober enough to drive.

Maybin agreed to field sobriety tests -- and then a breathalyzer. Once he blew, the officer asked Maybin to guess the results ... almost turning it into a game.

Maybin said he hoped the result was under .08 -- and was disappointed when he learned the device showed his B.A.C. was .14.

When the officer informed Maybin he was being arrested, the 31-year-old began to cry ... telling the cop, "I'm really sorry."

Maybin seems to take full responsibility and apologizes to the officer for breaking the law.

No matter how much of a train wreck this Lakers season has been, resting LeBron James just simply ain't an option ... so says Caron Butler, who tells TMZ Sports "that's a sucker way out."

The debate kicked off when Jay Williams went on ESPN's "Get Up!" to say Magic Johnson needs to wave the white flag with the Lakers so far out of the playoff race -- starting with benching the King.

FYI -- making the playoffs would pretty much be a miracle at this point. The Lakers are 30-34 and have little momentum leading into the final handful of games.

Butler says it doesn't matter if the Lakers are 5 games out of the playoff or 50 games -- the Lakers CANNOT rest Bron.

"Absolutely not, no. He's still gon' play," Tuff Juice says, "Think about the years with Kobe Bryant and those guys weren't playing well. Kobe still was out there he still was hoopin', he was balling."

It's true ... Kobe didn't make the playoffs for the final 4 years of his career and everyone survived. Caron says he's got an alternative that could satisfy both sides.

"(You'd be) cheating the fans, maybe give him limited minutes ... but you can't just say I'm shutting him down because we didn't exceed expectations."

Butler goes as far as to say trading ANYONE -- including LEBRON JAMES -- is on the table when the team's losing.

And since LBJ has said there's no way he will sit out games (unless he's injured) ... chances are he'll pass Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list if he scores 13 points tonight.

We asked Caron -- who just so happens to be calling the game -- about the milestone ... and whether it'll finally put him above the G.O.A.T.

Cool moment at the Paris Saint-Germain game Wednesday ... when Neymar went into the stands to personally greet one of his favorite celebs, Ninja!!!

Of course, Neymar didn't play for PSG because he's still recovering from a foot injury -- but he made it back to Paris after raging at Carnival in Brazil with enough time to make kickoff.

The bad news for Neymar, his PSG squad got beat up by Romelu Lukaku's Manchester United squad in a 3-1 thrashing ... bouncing @PSG from the UEFA Champions League.

The good news, Neymar was healthy enough to make the walk into the VIP area at Parc des Princes stadium to give the Fortnite legend a hug.

You can see @ninja is stoked to see @neymarjr -- and introduces the soccer star to his wife, Jessica Goch.

So, how do they know each other? Besides being one of the greatest athletes on the planet, Neymar is also a massive gamer -- and the two hooked up for a Fortnite gaming event in December.

Seems things are ALL GOOD between Tom Brady and Aston Martin -- with the QB praising the hell out of the insane new whip they just debuted ... without one single mention of Rolls-Royce!

Remember, TB12 was spotted behind the wheel of a RR just a few days ago -- despite the fact he's got a big endorsement deal with rival luxury car brand Aston Martin. Oops.

But, it seems Tom's over Rolls ... and back on his Aston kick -- especially after seeing the new concept car the brand just rolled out at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland.

"Team @AstonMartinLagonda stole the show in Geneva," Brady wrote ... "I’m gonna need a bigger garage..."

We're pretty sure this was an olive branch ... but it's clear it was an easy one for Brady to throw out.

The concept car -- dubbed the AM-RB 003 -- is insane ... reportedly it's a carbon fiber beast BUILT for speed.

We know what you're thinkin' ... but you can't have one -- they're reportedly being produced in VERY limited quantity -- and almost certainly reserved for ultra-rich and famous people ... like Tom Brady.

Mike Trout has officially reached legendary status ... 'cause after just 8 seasons in the MLB -- his rookie card just sold for an INSANE $186,000!!!

Okay ... it ain't just your average rookie card -- it's signed AND numbered to only 25 ... but that price puts the Trout RC in ultra-rare air.

Consider this ... a Michael Jordan autographed JERSEY card only sold for $95,000 last year -- while a WILT CHAMBERLAIN rookie card fetched just $60,000.

And, if you really want perspective on how insane that price is for Trout's card ... a similar Tom Brady autographed RC famously just sold for $400,000 -- AND HE'S THE G.O.A.T.!!!

So, what makes this card so special? Well, Trout has been absurd through 8 MLB seasons so far ... batting .307 with 240 home runs and 189 steals.

But, the card is graded out at a 9.5 (out of 10) with a perfect 10 surface and perfect 10 corners ... according to Goldin Auctions.

The craziest part of the auction? We're told the same Trout card sold for just $50,000 a little over a year ago ... and just $13,000 back in April 2016!!!

Luke Perry's son just broke his silence on his father's recent passing, reflecting on their time together and promising to carry on his legacy ... while understandably admitting his heart's broken.

Jack Perry just shared a photo from one of his wrestling matches on Instagram Wednesday, in which his dad's proudly watching in the background.

Jack, who wrestles under the name "Jungle Boy," thanked his father for supporting him and inspiring him ... in a heartfelt tribute to his father.

Jack says, "I've learned so much from you, and my heart is broken thinking about everything you won't be here for. I'll miss you every day that I walk this earth."

TMZ broke the story ... Luke died Monday after suffering a massive stroke at his Los Angeles home last week. His reps says Jack was among the family, friends and loved ones at his side when he passed.

Jack adds he's going to do everything he can to make his father proud and carry on his legacy.

Kyrie Irving is the most miserable superstar athlete EVER ... so says Charles Barkley, who CAN'T BELIEVE how big of a baby the Celtics PG has been this season.

Kyrie's been super moody the last few weeks as Boston's season has slowly crumbled away from the NBA Championship dreams it had in the preseason.

In fact, while he was walking into TD Garden last week and photogs were snappin' pics of him, he said loudly, "I’m not gonna miss any of this sh*t when I am done playing."

NBA commish Adam Silver was asked about the star's sensitive feelings -- and others in the NBA who have seemed less than thrilled with this season -- and he stuck up for his guys.

"Part of it is a direct product of social media," Silver said ... "I think those players we're talking about, when I meet with them, what strikes me is that they are truly unhappy."

Enter Barkley ... who not only went scorched earth on Silver's take -- he went off on Kyrie too!!!

"I think that's probably the stupidest thing I've ever heard Adam say," Barkley said on ESPN's "Get Up!"

"That's the stupidest thing I ever heard any commissioner say. Listen ... these guys are making $20, $30, $40 million a year. They work 6, 7 months a year. We stay at the best hotels in the world. They ain't got no problems. That's total bogus."

Barkley added, "Let me tell you something else, Kyrie Irving ... I've never seen a person so miserable."

Charles says K.I. has absolutely ZERO right to be upset with his life ... saying he's a millionaire, he's famous, he's a superstar, he's got a ring AND he's in movies.

"He's got to be one of the most miserable people I've ever seen."

Barkley's advice for Kyrie was simple ... DEAL WITH IT!!! -- 'cause as an NBA superstar, that's just the way life goes.