TMZ Sports - Page 50

L.A. Clippers star Matt Barnes is apologizing for calling the cop who arrested him a fa**ot and a pu**y. In case you're really bad at "Wheel of Fortune," one word is derogatory toward gays ... the other toward women.

Barnes tells TMZ, "I would like to apologize for the unfortunate language I used. I know that certain words are extremely hurtful."

Barnes goes on: "I meant absolutely no disrespect to anyone. This comment, spoken in the heat of a difficult moment, does not accurately reflect my actual point of view."

As we first reported, Barnes and the cop clearly had beef. The same officer stopped Barnes twice before and waited nearly 2 hours in a Manhattan Beach, CA parking lot last July for Barnes to leave a restaurant -- then arresting him for driving on a suspended license and resisting arrest (see dash cam video below).

Barnes eventually pled no contest to misdemeanor interfering with a cop and driving while not in possession of a license. He got off with a fine and informal probation.

Barnes tells TMZ, "I hope that any and all offended parties can accept my sincerest apologies."

Mike Tyson tells TMZ he "feels great" following a recent neck surgery ... and despite the gnarly scar on his neck, Mike says he should be back to normal in just 3 weeks.

Tyson turned heads (not his own) when he showed up to a media event in Vegas this weekend sporting a neck brace. The former champ reportedly had titanium pins put in his neck to add support to a degenerative disk.

Tyson's rep tells us, "Its a very common surgery, especially for athletes."

The rep adds, "He feels great ... just has to wear the neck brace to keep everything stable for the next 3 weeks.”

TMZ has obtained video of cops arresting L.A. Clippers star Matt Barnes in Manhattan Beach, CA ... and it's clear Barnes and the cop have beef with each other ... and at one point a very angry Barnes shouts a gay slur: "You're the f**king fa**ot who followed me."

The incident occurred July 30, outside a restaurant where Barnes and his wife, "Basketball Wives"star Gloria Govan just had dinner. Officer David Gibbons was waiting for 2 hours for Barnes to exit the restaurant.

When Barnes emerged, Gibbons told him he was under arrest for an outstanding warrant -- driving on a suspended license. Barnes asked to see the warrant and Gibbons said he'll see it when he gets to jail. Barnes said if Gibbons didn't produce the warrant he was leaving.

Barnes started to walk and Gibbons ordered him to stop. Apparently Gibbons then grabbed Barnes, who said, "Touch me and see what happens."

Barnes called Gibbons a bitch, Gibbons cuffed Barnes and in the process Barnes tried to give his wife the keys. Gibbons grabbed Barnes' arm and Barnes pulled away. That's when Gibbons placed Barnes under felony arrest for resisting an officer.

The two have a history. We've learned Gibbons stopped Barnes twice before -- on May 19 Gibbons impounded Barnes' car because he was driving on a suspended license. Barnes, whose ankle was injured, asked for a ride and Gibbons refused. Barnes angrily describes the incident on the tape of the July arrest.

The Baltimore Ravens are a team divided ... at least when it comes to the topic of gay marriage ... but one of the players tells TMZ he's adamant the war behind the scenes will NOT affect the team on the field.

The gay marriage debate was kicked in to high gear this week when center Matt Birk published an article defending "traditional marriage" ... in response to the pro-gay marriage letter punter Chris Kluwe had written to an anti-gay marriage politician in Maryland.

Now, linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo -- a longtime, outspoken defender of gay marriage -- tells TMZ ... the topic is SHELVED when the guys put on the pads.

“On the field, we’re on the same accord ... When we come to work, we’re on the same page. One goal and that’s to win a championship.”

Ayanbadejo tells us ... many of his teammates have discussed the issue with him ... but Birk wasn't one of those guys.

However, Ayanbadejo says Birk did give him a heads up about the anti-gay marriage letter before it was published.

“We had a conversation about other things, about him and our relationship, not about us being on different sides,” Ayanbadejo told TMZ.

Brendon says his family and Matt’s family spend time together socially, and their kids like to play together. That won’t change. But Brendon says he hopes to have a deeper discussion about the issue with Birk sometime in the future.

“Of course I disagree with his stance, but I’m not gonna tell someone how to raise their kids,” Ayanbadejo tells us. “He wants the world to be a better place for his kids."

The New York Jets are NEVER going to win with Mark Sanchez ... and should unleash Tim Tebow on the NFL as soon as possible ... this according to "Football Night in America" analyst Rodney Harrison.

Harrison says if the Jets don't make the switch, they're doomed to a 4-12 season.

Michael Vick has blown through nearly $30 million since filing for bankruptcy in 2008 -- nearly 95% of his total income -- TMZ has learned.

According to legal docs filed in his bankruptcy case, Vick made $31 million since he went belly up -- that includes his Eagles salary and various endorsements and other business ventures.

The math is pretty simple -- Vick had to pay a total of $29.6 mil -- of that, $10.9 went to taxes, $9.2 mil went to creditors, $2.7 went to lawyers and accountants, and the rest is for various things, including child support and living expenses.

All tolled, Vick is now left with around $1.5 mil. That's nothing to sneeze at, but considering what he made it's pretty shocking.

Things are looking up for the NFLer. Vick signed a 6 year, $100 million contract in 2011 ... with almost $40 mil in guaranteed money, so he won't be poor -- in rich terms -- for much longer.

Former WWE Star Shawn Daivari says he used a REAR NAKED CHOKE HOLD to save a train full of people last week ... after an unruly passenger allegedly threatened to kill them.

TMZ spoke to Daivari ... who says the incident went down last Thursday on an airport bound train from Minneapolis. The WWE star says an uncontrollable passenger in his car became violent ... shouted racial slurs and threatened to kill his fellow passengers.

Daivari says multiple people pressed the emergency button to call for help -- but NOTHING happened.

The pro-wrestler then took matters into his own hands telling TMZ, "I wasn't going to wait any longer to see if a cop showed up." Daivari says he threw the guy down, slapped on a rear naked choke hold on him and then threw his ass out at the next stop.

One witness, who was on the train when it all went down, tells us Daivari choked out the passenger so hard ... he peed his pants.

Bautista's very first professional MMA fight was nearly scrapped this week when his opponent was arrested for a probation violation ... but TMZ has learned organizers have dug up a replacement fighter just in the nick of time.

The fight has been in the works for months ... the ex-WWE champ was slated to get in the ring with Rashid Evans (not the one from the UFC) at a CES MMA event in Providence, Rhode Island.

But a rep for the event tells us ... Evans was scratched from the fight card when he was arrested for violating his probation some time last week ... and once again, it seemed like fate was going to prevent Bautista's MMA career from ever getting started.

Event organizers scrambled to find a replacement fighter -- a guy named Vince Lucero stepped up ... which could be a HUUUUGE problem for Bautista because Lucero has been in more than 40 pro fights.

In fact, Lucero has gone toe-to-toe with a bunch of legitimate MMA studs ... including former UFC Heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia (Sylvia won that fight).

The fight is still scheduled to go down Saturday at 8pm ET.

Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano has been diagnosed with a treatable form of leukemia, the team announced today, and will miss several games to receive treatment.

Colts owner Jim Irsay made the announcement at a news conference today, saying, "He is ready to take this fight on and he is a fighter."

Pagano, 51, had been experiencing what he believed to be fatigue, but a blood test revealed he was suffering from leukemia. He has been receiving treatment in the intensive care unit at an Indianapolis-area hospital since Wednesday.

Bruce Arians, the team's offensive coordinator, will serve as the interim coach in Pagano's absence.

Brooklyn Nets guard Joe Johnson insists ... he's no jewel thief -- and now, he's lashing back against a lawsuit that says he stole $125,000 worth of bling from an Atlanta diamond dealer.

Aydin & Company filed a lawsuit against Johnson earlier this month, claiming the NBA star entered into a purchase agreement back in October 2010 for $125,500 worth of jewelry.

The items in question -- a white gold watch with diamonds, diamond beaded bracelet, black diamond stud earrings and a white gold bezel set rosary.

According to the suit, Johnson took the swag, but never foot the bill -- so Aydin's suing for the price of the jewelry PLUS legal fees, PLUS interest (which grows at a monthly rate of 2%) ... for a grand total of $266,333.05.

But sources close to Johnson tell TMZ ... the lawsuit is total B.S -- explaining, the owner of the store asked Johnson to wear the items on loan and allowed him to return them when he was done.

But when Johnson tried to give the items back, we're told the jeweler refused and slapped him with the bill instead.

Sources tell us, Johnson NEVER agreed to purchase the items and has since tried to return them on numerous occasions -- but no cigar.

Scottie Pippen is not bankrupt -- but according to a federal judge, he cannot sue anyone that said he was.

As TMZ first reported, Pippen sued a TON of media outlets for defamation back in 2011 after they published articles claiming he was broke. As proof he'd never gone belly up, Pippen said he has never worth less than $40 million at any point in the last 10 years.

Pippen wanted $1 million from every media outlet that said his finances were in the toilet.

But a federal judge in Illinois dismissed the case this week, claiming the comments about Pippen's personal finances DO NOT count as defamation. As a result, Pippen was awarded nothing.

After chalking up another loss, Harvey Levin (1-2) is emerging a LEADING below-average NFL analyst ... and now he's sinking his teeth into our Week 4 matchup -- Raiders vs. Broncos.

Here's how Harv's callin' it:

"I don't like people who abandon L.A. ... so, I'm going for Denver."

"I feel like anyone whose home base is at sea level is at a definite disadvantage in the Rockies."

"I'm glad the Broncos replaced Tebow ... I think the team is better of secular."

"I like the Broncos logo better than the Raiders logo because it reminds me of the '57 Thunderbird."

When asked how he feels about his unimpressive record at picking winners:

"1 and 2 isn't horrible. I'm pacing myself."

So, we gotta ask ...

The NFL's regular referees returned to the gridiron tonight to a thundering applause from the crowd -- and even got a personal welcome-back hug from the scariest man in football ... Ray Lewis.

As you know by now ... the NFL reached a deal yesterday with the real refs -- ending the Reign of Error ... courtesy of the infamous replacement refs.

As the entered the field for tonight's Ravens-Browns match up, the refs each tipped their caps in a show of appreciation for fans' support.

Lance Easley -- the NFL replacement ref who made the TD call in Monday night's Packers vs. Seahawks game tells TMZ ... he stands by his decision, adamantly saying, "It was the correct call."

Easley told us he can't believe he's being vilified ... "I didn't do anything wrong."

He says strongly ... the Packers player who allegedly intercepted the ball never had singular possession because, "You have to not only have the ball but have either 2 feet or a body part on the ground, and that never happened."

Easley says this was clearly a case of simultaneous possession -- meaning the catch goes to the offensive player -- adding, "Put any other official who knows the rules and they would make the same call."

Easley told us, no one has ever seen a play like this before, so there's no point of reference to judge the call. He says, "I don't appreciate the negative stuff."

Easley -- who refs at El Camino and Pierce Junior Colleges as well as Occidental, all in Southern California -- says the replacement refs did what they were expected to do.

L.A. Lakers star Jordan Hill will not go to jail for allegedly choking his ex-GF during a nuclear argument in Houston back in February after striking a sweet plea deal with prosecutors ... TMZ has learned.

According to a clerk at Harris County Criminal Court in Houston, TX ... Hill plead no contest to the charge this morning and in exchange was given a 1-year deferred sentence and a $500 fine. In other words, if Hill stays out of trouble for the next year and pays the fine, the whole case will be wiped from his record.

We broke the story ... Hill was charged with felony domestic violence after his ex filed a police report, in which she accused the NBA player of assaulting her, leaving bruises on her legs, and then trying to choke her.

The fight allegedly took place on February 29th. Hill's ex filed the police report on March 29th.

The REAL NFL refs will return to the field for tonight's Ravens vs. Browns match-up in Baltimore ... but some of the players are still concerned ... telling TMZ, "They’re comin' off cold turkey, so it’s going to be very interesting."

TMZ spoke with a member of the Cleveland Browns who reminded us, "The refs usually have a pre-season."

Overall, the players are fired up about the end of the replacement ref era.

We spoke with Ravens player Bryant McKinnie who says he's "very glad" they're back ... adding, "The real refs have better control of the games."

A member of the Browns, who wished to remain anonymous, tells us, "People will be so happy to see the refs. They will be the highlight of the game … at least for the first quarter."