TMZ Sports - Page 50

Harvey Levin is back ... and even though he didn't deserve to make the post-season, we're gonna let him take on the NFL Playoffs anyway ( ... because we don't wanna get fired).

This week's matchup is the Green Bay Packers vs. the San Francisco 49ers.

Heeeeeeeeere we go!!!

Harvey Levin: "I have several connections to Green Bay. First, I did graduate work at the University of Wisconsin, where the waterskiing was awesome."

"On the other hand, I have another connection ... because Evan's brother Alex went to the University of Nevada and played football on the same team as Colin Kaepernick.

"But here's the thing ... I'm just so-so on Alex ... so I'm going with Green Bay.

Kobe Bryant is NOT getting divorced.

TMZ broke the story ... Vanessa -- through her lawyer, disso-queen Laura Wasser -- filed to end her marriage in December, 2011. Several months later ... Kobe -- in an attempt to win her back -- deeded over his interest in their 3 Newport Beach mansions.

Since she filed, Vanessa and Kobe were on-again, off-again like high school students.

But in the last month ... they got very tight. A turning point seemed to be the 12-12-12 Hurricane Sandy relief concert at Madison Square Garden in NYC, when the two left arm-in-arm. They spent New Year's Eve together, were spotted at lunch and have pretty much been inseparable.

There have been reports that Kobe is getting back with Vanessa because it's cheaper to keep her ... but that's just not true. Fact is ... we've checked property records and Vanessa still owns 2 of the Newport Beach mansions -- she just sold the third for $3.2 mil. We don't know for sure, but it seems like Kobe may have signed a post-nup, giving Vanessa more financial leverage in the relationship.

It's barely been a month since she broke up with her NFL player ex, but Hayden Panettiere's already got her hands on another man's kielbasa ... ex-BF Wladimir Klitschko ... at least that's the way it seemed at the airport today ... with her adorably girly giggle fit.

Fact: the 6'6" Ukrainian World Boxing Organization champ dropped 5'2" Hayden off at the airport today in Florida, where he lives.

Fact: When Hayden landed in L.A. she giggled like a schoolgirl when we asked her about Wlad -- insisting she and Wlad are "just good buddies."

Fact: THEY'RE OBVIOUSLY BONING AGAIN ... probably.

You'll recall, Hayden and her ex-BF Scotty McKnight -- who played for the Jets before he was cut last summer -- called it quits back in December.

Newly single Olympic legend Michael Phelps -- and his '70s porn stache -- showed off a different kind of pool skill at his hotel in the Bahamas on Thursday ... by poppin' bottles and throwing back dranks like a champ.

The world's best swimmer can't live on chlorinated water alone.

Former Los Angeles Dodger Milton Bradley was charged today with 13 counts related to several alleged attacks on his estranged wife, and could get up to 13 years behind bars ... TMZ has learned.

The City Attorney’s Office has filed charges against Bradley stemming from 5 different incidents. The charges break down like this: 4 counts of spousal battery, 4 counts of criminal threats, 2 counts of assault with a deadly weapon, 2 counts of vandalism and 1 count of dissuading a witness from making a report.

As TMZ first reported, Milton's wife Monique filed a domestic violence report with the LAPD back in November 2012 ... claiming he tried to choke her, with 2 hands, when she asked him to stop smoking marijuana in front of their kids.

Bradley was arrested in August 2011 for allegedly attacking Monique with a bat, and in March 2012 he allegedly threatened her with a knife and said, "You’ll be dead bitch before you divorce me."

Both Monique and Milton have filed for divorce.

NBA player Ronny Turiaf has his birthday in the bag ... a fancy schmancy women's Louis Vuitton bag.

The L.A. Clipper celebrated his 30th birthday with a bash at a ritzy Beverly Hills home last night ... and a cake made to look like one of Paris Hilton's expensive leather purses.

Jamie McCourt has filed a new lawsuit against her ex-hubby former L.A. Dodgers owner Frank McCourt ... claiming he grossly shortchanged her in the property settlement by fraudulently undervaluing their assets -- in particular the Dodgers.

In the lawsuit ... obtained by TMZ ... Jamie says based on the valuation of assets Frank's team provided ... she agreed to accept a $131 million settlement plus a few other things.

Jamie now says Frank cooked the books by undervaluing the Dodgers assets at less than 1/10 their actual value. Jamie says their total assets were more than $1.7 BILLION.

Jamie says based on the real numbers, she should have received more than $900 million.

The Redskins is a racist team name ... so says Katt Williams who tells TMZ he's SHOCKED that Americans have tolerated such an offensive moniker for so many years.

Katt -- who wasn't arrested or accused of any wrongdoing last night -- was in Malibu when we asked about the renewed effort to get the team to change its name.

"Do you know how racist that is?" Katt said ... explaining, "That would be like saying the Chinese Yellowskins or the Compton Blackskins."

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Chris Rainey has just been fired from the team for allegedly attacking his girlfriend this morning in Florida, TMZ has learned.

Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert tells us, "Chris Rainey’s actions this morning were extremely disappointing. Under the circumstances and due to this conduct, Chris will no longer be a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers."

As we reported. Chris allegedly flew off the handle this morning in Gainesville when his girlfriend swiped his phone -- and slapped her in the face.

Chris has been charged with battery stemming from the incident. He's currently still in custody.

He's not some no-name bench warmer either -- Rainey scored two touchdowns this season for the Black and Gold.

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Chris Rainey was arrested this morning in Florida -- after allegedly slapping his GF in the face during an argument over a cell phone.

According to the Gainesville Police, officers responded to a 911 call from witnesses who claimed they saw Rainey attack his girlfriend after she took his cell phone ... and tried to lock herself in Rainey's roommate's car.

According to the police report, witnesses said Rainey dragged his girlfriend out of the passenger seat and slapped her in the face in the process, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

Witnesses said Rainey's GF then took off again with the cell phone in her purse ... and Rainey continued the chase, eventually grabbing her purse ... causing them both to fall again.

Police say neither Rainey nor his GF appeared visibly injured after the fight.

Junior Seau was living with a degenerative brain disease caused by the brutal shots to the head he took during his NFL career, this according to a new study ... and Seau's family believes the condition drove him to suicide.

The National Institutes of Health released the findings of the study scientists did on Seau's brain after he shot himself in the chest last year ... and concluded Junior suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative disease typically caused by multiple hits to the head.

Dr. Russell Lonser -- who led the study of Seau's brain -- told ABC News patients with CTE display symptoms "such as impulsivity, forgetfulness, depression, [and] sometimes suicidal ideation."

Several Seau family members are speaking out about the findings of the study -- Junior's ex-wife told ABC News, "He was a warrior and he loved the game ... but I know that he didn't love the end of his life."

When Junior's 23-year-old son Tyler was asked if his father's career was "worth it" -- he replied, "It's not worth it for me to not have a dad ... so to me, it's not worth it."

FYI -- Junior played 20 years in the NFL.

Kevin Garnett would've laid the smack down on Carmelo Anthony if things came to blows during their post-game standoff this week ... all because of KG's cartoonishly long arms ... so says Marlon Wayans.

Marlon was out in NYC yesterday when we asked about the Melo vs. KG beef -- and his answer ... is ... hilarious.

Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte's upcoming reality show sounded a little flat -- until we thought of a way to make it twice as funny! Not smarter ... but funnier.

Knicks star Carmelo Anthony has just been suspended for one game -- WITHOUT PAY -- for confronting Celtics player Kevin Garnett Monday night ... in an epic expletive-filled standoff.

TMZ posted the video ... showing 'Melo waiting for KG in the arena tunnel at Madison Square Garden ... after the two had been going at each other during the game.

'Melo had said KG insulted him on the court and said things that "crossed the line." There are reports that KG said Anthony's wife "tastes like Honey Nut Cheerios" ... but neither player has confirmed exactly what words were exchanged.

According to the NBA, Carmelo will serve his suspension on January 10th when the Knicks face the Pacers.

A rep for the league released a statement, saying, "There are no circumstances in which it is acceptable to confront an opponent after a game."

Kobe Bryant's wife just lost one-third of her real estate portfolio ... unloading one of the three Newport Beach mansions Kobe gave her right after they split back in 2011 ... TMZ has learned.

We broke the story ... Vanessa Bryant listed the 6,000 sq. ft. Newport Beach property back in September for $3.75 million -- and she finally closed the deal this month for $3.22 million.

Kobe and Vanessa purchased the place back in 2003 for $2.65 million. Vanessa's mother Sofia was living in the home prior to the sale.

The house is one of three massive Newport Beach mansions Kobe gave Vanessa last year ... one month after she filed for divorce.

As for the status of Kobe and Vanessa's divorce -- the papers have not been withdrawn ... and one source tells us they're on and off so much it's hard to get a read.

Still, the two were acting pretty coupley in public as recently as New Year's -- maybe 2013 is the year of the comeback.

2:07 PM PT -- Katherine has released a statement to TMZ confirming she cancelled 8 interviews scheduled for today ... but says, "My decision to cancel the interviews was not made at A.J.'s request."

Katherine says she decided to pull out because she feared her relationship with A.J. will be viewed as a "celebrity status" thing ... instead of a real, legitimate connection ... and worries that the misconception could spell doom for the couple.

"I want it to be about me and him," Webb says ... adding, "He's a guy I can see myself having a real future with."

Katherine Webb has gone off the grid ... banning herself from speaking to ANY media outlets ... partly because her superstar QB boyfriend A.J. McCarron is upset that he's been overshadowed by Webb's hotness.

Of course, Webb -- Miss Alabama USA 2012 -- shot to instant fame Monday night, when ESPN announcer Brent Musburger pointed her out in the crowd and RAVED about how insanely attractive she is.

Since the game, Webb's gained more than 100k Twitter followers and has been getting hit up by media outlets from around the country -- including the "Today" show and various entertainment news shows.

But sources close to Webb tell us ... McCarron made it clear to her -- he's not happy that the media is ignoring his accomplishments on the field. We're told Webb is taking her relationship seriously and thinks the publicity could torpedo things with A.J.

In fact, we're told one major media outlet showed up to Webb's front door this morning looking to speak with Katherine ... but she turned them down. We're told she also backed out of several interviews that were already scheduled.

Sources connected to the situation tell TMZ ... Donald Trump -- who owns the Miss USA competition -- got word of Webb's self-imposed media blackout ... and decided to get involved.

We're told Trump talked her into appearing on the "Today" show -- but she won't budge when it comes to doing any other PR.

Sources close to A.J. tell us ... the QB has made it clear to friends he wants to keep his private life private. One source tells us A.J. isn't jealous of Katherine, but wants to keep the spotlight on his team and their accomplishments.