TMZ Sports - Page 50

New Orleans Saints long snapper and star magician Jon Dorenbos is "resting comfortably" after open-heart surgery on Tuesday -- this according to Dorenbos' former NFL coach.

Dorenbos -- who crushed it on "America's Got Talent" -- was diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm during his physical for the Saints last week ... which prompted the emergency surgery.

Eagles head coach Doug Pederson gave an update on his ex-player's condition, saying, "Everything went well yesterday with surgery and he's resting comfortably."

"Just wish him and his family well, our prayers are with him and hope for a speedy recovery."

The NFL vet shared a video of his friends and family before going under the knife, saying, "Thank you to my beautiful amazing wife, my family, my friends and videos like this. This brought out some tears. I feel the love and support."

Get well soon, Jon!

LeBron James surprised the basketball team at Notre Dame High School in L.A. on Tuesday -- hitting the gym for a training session while his wife checked out the campus ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We're told Bron and Savannah James rolled up to the school in a chauffeured car around 6 PM and walked around campus before a workout on the court.

LeBron owns a home in Brentwood and there's talk he could be checking out various private schools to send his kids -- including 12-year-old Bronny, one of the best hoop prospects in the country.

Notre Dame is one of the top private schools in the area -- with an alumni list that includes Giancarlo Stanton, Rachel Bilson, Dave Navarro, Katharine McPhee and Jerry Mathers.

Any school would kill for Bron's kids -- but it's unclear if ND is seriously in the running.

It's a Catholic school ... so ... pray?

10:55 PM PT -- LeBron has posted a video thanking the school for opening the gym so he could work out after a long day of shooting commercials.

LeBron insists the kids had no idea he was coming and emphasizes that he was there to get his own workout in.

LBJ makes no mention of the school being a candidate for his own kids. Sorry, Knights.

Two former NFL stars are hoping their former teammate, Andre Johnson, can help spearhead a J.J. Watt-style recovery effort in Miami.

Bryant McKinnie and Phillip Buchanon both joined the "TMZ Sports" TV show this week -- after leaving Miami right before Hurricane Irma struck.

The guys said the city is in desperate need of help and they're hoping to launch a fundraising initiative like Watt.

Both Bryant and Philip went to the University of Miami, where AJ went to school -- and since Andre knows J.J. Watt (from the Houston Texans), they're hoping he can be the piece that brings everyone together.

Lance Armstrong just SNAPPED on USC, saying the school is full of crap for trying to rewrite history -- AND he's publicly torching the Trojans for the treatment of Reggie Bush.

This all started with USC officially listing it's all-time record against Texas (Lance's team) as 4-0 ... seemingly ignoring Vince Young's soul-crushing 2006 Rose Bowl game victory.

USC claims the record is accurate since the school was ordered to vacate ALL games from the 2005-06 season (including the Bowl game) stemming from NCAA violations involving Bush.

And since that season included the Rose Bowl loss, SC says it's 4-0 against Texas instead of 4-1.

Guess who ain't having that? Lance, who took to Twitter not only to punish SC for omitting the L, but also for what he believes is the utter mistreatment of Bush, one of the school's biggest stars.

"Negative @USC, we were there. You lost the game fair and square. Btw, @ReggieBush is a f*cking legend that you sh*t all over."

SC cut off all contact with Bush after they were hit with sanctions as part of an NCAA order to "permanently disassociate" from the sort-of Heisman winner. He's not even allowed on campus.

A lot of people -- including USC legend William McGinest -- have called for an end to the cold shoulder, but none as colorfully as Armstrong has.

BTW -- USC plays Texas THIS WEEK. Should be good.

When it comes to retiring jerseys, the Lakers are taking two steps forward with Kobe Bryant -- and two steps WAY BACK with Paula Abdul!!

Here's the deal ... did you know the Lakers retired Paula's legendary Laker Girl uniform back in the day?

Of course you don't because for some reason, it's not hanging in the rafters at Staples Center next to the other greats like Magic, Shaq, Kareem and Jerry West.

When we saw Paula at LAX on Tuesday, she told us the Lakers had initially hung it up next to Kareem back when the team played at The Forum ... but when they moved, Paula's old outfit was relocated to a wall somewhere in the arena instead of up with the rest of the legends.

C'MON LAKERS!!!! PUT PAULA BACK IN THE RAFTERS!!!!

Paula became the HEAD of the Laker Girls when she was only 19 years old and led them to become the greatest cheerleading squad in pro sports during an epic 6-year run!

Plus, if Taylor Swift has a banner up at Staples Center, Paula should too.

Here she is ... the first kid to ever win a major tennis tournament from inside the womb!!!!

Serena Williams and baby daddy Alexis Ohanian just revealed the first pic of their brand new daughter -- Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr.

That's right ... she's got the same name as her daddy -- and she's a junior!

Serena says Alexis Jr. weighed 6 lbs 14 ounces when she was born on Sept. 1.

And she's already crediting the kid with winning a Grand Slam title, since Serena won the Australian Open while she was pregnant with A2.

But the delivery wasn't exactly smooth sailing -- 35-year-old Serena says there were "a lot of complications" at the hospital that required them to stay there for 6 or 7 days.

The good news ... everything seems fine now and Serena says, "Look what we got! A baby girl!"

Congrats!

Michael Bennett and his lawyer are making it very clear -- their plan is to sue the Las Vegas Metro Police Department over that August 27 incident where he was detained at gunpoint.

The NFL superstar and his lawyer, John Burris, sat down with ABC News where they doubled down on claims he was racially profiled when 2 officers ordered him to the ground during an investigation into a possible active shooter at a Vegas hotel.

The Seattle Seahawks star is still adamant he was detained because he's a black man who was in the wrong place at the wrong time -- and says he was physically and verbally abused until cops realized he was an NFL player.

In fact, Bennett says it was only when cops Googled him, the abuse stopped.

"I went from being a black man to a football player."

Burris has laid down the gauntlet with the LVMPD -- saying, "Unless something changes drastically that we don't know of, we're gonna file a lawsuit."

O.J. Simpson will be playing a cat-and-mouse game with the media when he's released, and it involves his safety.

We've learned the media has a 1 in 18 chance of spotting the famous convict when he's released from Lovelock Correctional Center in Nevada. That's because there are 18 release points and our prison sources say they are keeping the actual release site and date on the DL.

As for why the clandestine release ... we're told it's because prison officials are concerned for Simpson's safety. You'll recall, just after Simpson was granted parole, he was moved to a protective wing of the prison.

Prison sources tell us they're not just concerned about Simpson's safety. They worry a chase could ensue and prison staff, bystanders and Simpson himself could be injured or even worse. As one prison official told us, "We don't want another chase on our hands."

And, we're told, Simpson himself has made it clear to prison officials, he wants nothing to do with the media when the prison doors open. We're guessing it's part of a bigger plan for him to cash in with a splashy interview. The more he's seen, the more the value goes down.

Our prison sources wanted to make it clear ... the secrecy and conditions of Simpson's release will be made by the prison ... not O.J.

Stephon Marbury's better off in the BIG3 ... but is in such crazy-good shape, he could hoop in the NBA too -- so says Al Harrington, one of Starbury's BFFs.

Al knows what he's talking about ... dude's a 16-year NBA vet and reigning BIG3 champ -- and, most importantly, chats with Marbury all the time.

Harrington was literally seconds away from hitting up Stephon when TMZ Sports found him in L.A. -- and asked if he seriously thought the 40-year-old could still ball with the best.

"Vince Carter doin’ it, so why not?" BUT ... "I think he’d be better served in the BIG3."

Al told us he's actually been recruiting Starbury for Ice Cube's league ... but it's up to his boy to choose -- or just DO BOTH!

If not ... there's always China.

Sept. 13 5:52 AM PT -- The "Hand in Hand" telethon reportedly raised over $44 million in relief funds for the victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma in one night of fundraising.

The telethon to benefit victims of Hurricanes Irma and Harvey just wrapped with fundraising efforts totaling over $14 million and counting in just an hour.

As we reported ... celebs like Al Pacino, Justin Timberlake, Jon Stewart, Chris Paul, Demi Lovato, Diddy, Leo DiCaprio, Justin Bieber, Sofia Vergara, Reese Witherspoon, Drake and many more pitched in for the one-hour long show.

Several of them answered phones to take donations, and others performed as the telethon -- the brain child of Scooter Braun and Bun B -- went live from L.A., NYC, Nashville and San Antonio. And with Michael Dell and Verizon footing the bill for production ... 100% of proceeds will benefit hurricane victims.

Obviously, a great cause ... and a great event too.

Kobe Bryant says he's always dreamed of having his Lakers jersey retired -- but "I certainly never imagined having two!"

The Lakers legend is speaking out after the team formally announced that his #8 and #24 jerseys will be retired in a ceremony at Staples Center on Dec. 18th.

"The Lakers have bestowed a huge honor on me and I'm grateful for the fans' enthusiasm around this game.”

"As a kid growing up in Italy, I always dreamed of my jersey hanging in the Lakers rafters, but I certainly never imagined two of them"

Lakers owner Jeanie Buss added, "Kobe’s jerseys are taking their rightful home next to the greatest Lakers of all time."

Adrien Broner is ruining his life right now, and it ain't gonna end well unless he gets it together FAST -- so says legendary boxer Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini.

We got the Hall of Famer outside Friars Club in NYC ... and he didn't sugarcoat what's gonna happen to A.B. if the boxing star keeps becoming unhinged.

"That's how you get whacked," Mancini told TMZ Sports. "People take you out for a lot less."

Ray, of course, is referring to Broner's violent Vegas rampage ... where he pushed a woman and KO'd a dude on the strip.

Mancini says Broner's boy, Floyd Mayweather, will try to help him anyway -- if he hasn't already -- but told us Broner's "a grown a** man" that needs to account for his own actions.

LaVar Ball's company's so hot right now ... he's got famous rapper's kids wanting to work for him.

Snoop's son, Cordell Broadus, tells TMZ Sports ... he's totally down with the Big Baller Brand, and thinks he could be a valuable addition to their team. It's another ringing endorsement for LaVar and his boys ... on the heels of Jay-Z throwing his support behind BBB.

You remember ... Cordell was one of the top high school WRs in the country, committed to UCLA football but then quit to pursue other interests -- which include modeling.

He just made his NY Fashion Week debut at the Philipp Plein show, and it's clear Cordell has some design ideas for LaVar and his Big Baller $1,500 shoes.

1:15 PM PT -- TMZ Sports just obtained Browner's mug shot

Ex-Seattle Seahawks star Brandon Browner was arrested in Los Angeles on Monday night, TMZ Sports has learned.

The former Pro Bowl cornerback -- part of the original Legion of Boom -- was booked for allegedly making criminal threats, a felony. Sources tell us the alleged victim is a woman.

Browner was taken into custody and his bail was set at $50,000. He posted bail and was released just after 11 PM.

According to his booking sheet, 33-year-old Browner is listed as 6'3", 215 lbs.

Kobe Bryant will be the first Laker in team history to have TWO jersey numbers retired ... when they put #8 and #24 in the Staples Center rafters in December.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the Lake Show will have a ceremony to retire Kobe's jersey on Dec. 18 before the Lakers play the Golden State Warriors.

The big question was which # would get the VIP treatment.

The answer? Both ... according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

Of course, Bryant dominated in both numbers ... winning 3 NBA championships in #8 (2000, 2001, 2002) and 2 in #24 (2009, 2010).

BTW, Rick Fox kinda called this ... predicting a double number retirement way back in 2015.

Don't call it a comeback -- cause it's a looongshot -- but Stephon Marbury says he's gunnin' for an NBA return!

The 40-year-old announced the news on social media, adding that -- "I still have a lot of go in me as a player and at 40 being able to play at a high level is a gift."

Remember ... Starbury left the league 8 YEARS ago after a string of sketchy off-court incidents -- highlighted by him eating Vaseline straight out of a jar.

He famously packed his bags for China ... and became the most legendary player in Chinese Basketball Association history (for real, dude's already got his own statue).

Now, Marbury says he's ready to "turn towards the last page of my basketball diary that I've been writing since 95 when I left Lincoln High."

Will a team take a chance on him? We'll see ...