TMZ Sports - Page 50

The Dawg Pound is rallying behind Joe Flacco with their wallets amid the Browns' surprising winning streak ... with fans rushing to buy the backup-backup-backup QB's jersey!!!

The former Super Bowl winner's journey back to the gridiron has been one of the biggest storylines of the season -- he went from sitting on the couch on Sundays to leading the Browns to a 4-1 record after Cleveland lost Deshaun Watson and rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson to injuries.

TMZ Sports has learned ... No. 15 threads have been a hot commodity since Flacco took over under center in December.

Fanatics -- the league's official e-commerce partner -- tells us Flacco is among the top 20 most popular jerseys in the NFL ... and is currently the top-selling Browns player.

In fact, we're told the sales spiked more than 400% during the span of his first victory on Dec. 10 to his playoff berth-clinching performance on Thursday Night Football against his former New York Jets team on Dec. 28.

FYI, Flacco has led the Browns with 1,616 yards and 13 touchdowns in just five games ... which is more than he had when he played for the Jets in TWO seasons.

It's been quite the feel-good story after Flacco tried to find a new home for the past five seasons. Remember, Joe signed with the Denver Broncos, Jets and Philadelphia Eagles after spending 11 years with the Baltimore Ravens.

He won Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens in 2013, their second in franchise history.

Lamar Odom says ketamine has been a successful tool to help him combat his addiction problems ... this after it was revealed it was in Matthew Perry's system when he died.

We got Lamar outside Oxy Dental, which Lamar owns, in Lomita, CA on Thursday, and talked about the controversy surrounding ketamine treatment therapy following the coroner's report on Matthew's death.

Lamar says Matthew's therapy was similar to his ... and according to him, it works -- but there are serious strings attached. For starters, users should not drive cars.

Ketamine has been used for depression and anxiety but is more commonly used as an anesthetic in operating rooms.

As we reported, Matthew was found in his jacuzzi in October and was declared dead. The L.A. County Medical Examiner claimed he had high levels of ketamine in his system, rendering him unconscious.

Dr. Zaid Fadul, who has prescribed ketamine to his patients, joined us on "TMZ Live," last month ... telling us why the coroner pointing fingers at the drug was misleading.

If Jim Harbaugh does indeed leave Michigan following this week's national championship game ... Tyrone Wheatley is making it clear he'd love to be considered for the gig, telling TMZ Sports the role is his "dream job."

Of course, rumors have swirled for weeks that Harbaugh might be looking to make a jump back to the NFL after finding so much success with the Wolverines since 2015.

It's unclear if there's any validity to the chatter -- though if it does ultimately end up being true, Wheatley said he sure wouldn't mind filling in.

"To play there, to come back now to be the head coach, goodness gracious," the ex-Wolverines running back said, "to check that off the bucket list, that'd be awesome."

Wheatley certainly has the résumé to be a candidate for the opening if Harbaugh bolts ... he's had a ton of coaching experience since he wrapped up his 10-year NFL career in 2004.

The 51-year-old has had stops as an assistant with the Buffalo Bills, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Denver Broncos ... and he was even an RBs coach for Harbaugh a few years back. He's now working as the head coach of Wayne State.

While Wheatley is adamant he's focused on his current role -- it's obvious, there will always be a piece of his heart in Ann Arbor.

"It would be crazy for me not to say that's my dream job, right?" he said.

Wheatley told us coaching for his other former team -- the Raiders -- would also be considered a "dream" gig for him.

As for if he has any insider information on whether Harbaugh is staying or going -- he doesn't, telling us, "I'm not sure at this point he knows."

How's this for a sports lover's dream ... the vacation home custom-built by the late Lakers owner Jerry Buss, and visited by some of the greatest hoopers to ever grace a basketball court, is now on the market, and could be yours if you've got $12 million!

TMZ Sports has learned the 9,792-square-foot property, located on a 3.18-acre lot in Rancho Santa Fe (about 100 miles outside L.A.), recently hit the open market for $11.85 million. The land was purchased by Dr. Buss in 1994 for less than $300k, and the house, known as the "Dream Ranch," was built to his exact specifications to resemble the Rosewood Miramar Beach Resort in Montecito.

We're told Jerry wanted a place outside of Los Angeles that felt far enough away from the hustle and bustle of the city ... all while being close enough to the arena where his team played.

Buss often had company ... and they were some of the most famous athletes in the world like Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, and Shaquille O'Neal.

In fact, Jerry installed an extra-long driveway (it fits 25 cars!) to accommodate the stars' stretch limos.

The mansion features eight bedrooms and 10 bathrooms (8 full, 2 half) -- five in the main house and three in the guest house -- with the master suite, clad in marble, overlooking a rose garden.

There's also a 3-stall barn, two putting greens, a swimming pool with a pool house, a basketball court (of course), and a tennis court where none other than Andre Agassi once played.

Buss passed away in 2013 ... and the home was ultimately sold years later in 2022. The new buyers renovated the home, transforming it into a modern mansion.

Britney Spears decided she'd give Sin City another shot ... celebrating the holidays there 5 months after enduring a slap from Victor Wembanyama's security in a bizarre exchange.

Sources tell TMZ, the singer returned to Vegas over the holidays ... staying for a few days, though it's unclear if she spent Christmas Day among all the lights and excitement.

We're told Britney had a room at Resorts World and another at Aria. Video emerged on social media of Britney walking around the casino floor at The Wynn holding a beer and flanked by a few security guards.

The source tells us she was at The Wynn to watch the show "Awakening" and dined at their swanky seafood restaurant, Lakeside.

Her Vegas schedule was jam-packed -- she also took a tour of the brand-new Fontainebleau property, briefly checked out LIV, and spent time inside their members-only club, Poodle Room.

Basically, we're told her time in Vegas was super chill and inconspicuous -- nothing like last time when she was slapped by basketball player Victor's security when she beelined behind him after running into him in a hallway.

Video of the moment went viral ... and upon watching it, Britney said her reaction to the slap was "priceless."

Ice Cube has entered the Katt Williams chat days after the comedian shook up showbiz with his "Club Shay Shay" interview ... and, he's looking to clarify the allegation he tried to make light of a rape scene.

Katt accused Rickey Smiley of lying about being the OG pick for his "Money Mike" role in "Friday After Next" -- and also claimed he saved the character from a bathroom rape scene involving Terry Crews' ex-con character, "Damon."

Cube agreed that Rickey lost the part after Katt embodied the pimp schtick to make "Money Mike" an unforgettable character, but denies he ever wrote a rape scene for the film -- he says that's just not his style.

Cube says the main goal of the scene was to cancel out Katt and Terry's characters, as the film had 3 main villains, including the "Santa Claus" role Rickey ended up filling.

The hip hop legend also took some time out to address the ingrates who've groused over the years about their salaries in the 'Friday' franchise.

Cube explained actors aren't the only ones who need to get paid for movies -- producers, stagehands, even the coffee runners have to get paid every day, while most of the actors he employed were done with their scenes after a couple of days.

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."