TMZ Sports - Page 50

Jaleel White thinks Nike just blew it with Steph Curry ... saying mispronouncing the MVP's name -- calling him someone from White's hit show "Family Matters"-- was a $14 BILLION MISTAKE.

We got White leaving Craig's in L.A. and asked him about the reports that Curry soured on the honchos at the swoosh when a Nike rep called him "Steph-on" instead of Stephen.

Jaleel knows the name ... it was the same moniker he used playing the "cool" version of Steve Urkel back in the '90s and while it worked getting Laura's attention ... it was a DISASTER for Nike.

Check out the clip ... and witness the pure swag of Stefan Urquelle below.

Erin Andrews got her guard up at LAX when a taxi driver started recording video of her.

It all went down Friday afternoon after Erin landed in L.A. -- and you'll see in this clip ... she was fine talking to our camera guy and with a nearby still photographer.

But the "Dancing with the Stars" and FOX Sports host is clearly still on edge about video cameras she's not expecting -- after her whole hotel room peephole ordeal.

Ronda Rousey is in a "great place mentally, physically and emotionally" ... and most importantly "she's ready to fight" -- so says UFC honcho Dana White.

Lamar Odom hitting the bottle again is taking such a toll on Khloe Kardashian, she pulled the plug on taping "Kocktails with Khloe" this week ... TMZ has learned.

We're told Khloe told production she was too sick to shoot Thursday, but it's not because of the flu. Sources close to production tell us she's stressed out worrying about Lamar Odom's drinking. We're told she's been an emotional wreck.

TMZ broke the story ... LO is refusing to get treatment for addiction as Khloe insists he try something, even an outpatient program. We're told they've been fighting about it all week.

Anyone with dreams of watching 38-year-old Chad Ochocinco try his hand at the OTHER football is in for a rude awakening ... 'cause the ex-NFLer says there is NO WAY he'd ever try his hand on the pitch.

We got Chad leaving a restaurant in L.A. when we asked the soccer addict if he had any plans to take his athleticism to the MLS now that it looks like he's done in the NFL.

Not a crazy question ... Ocho plays a lot of pick up soccer in his off time ... and looks pretty good out there when he's doing it ... not to mention the whole "being a world class athlete thing."

Check out the clip ... Chad says it's never going to happen ... but does give us a hint at what his celebration dance would look like if he ever scored a professional goal.

Good news for the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers ... legendary UConn coach Jim Calhoun thinks there are teams you can actually DOMINATE ... college teams.

We got Calhoun out in NYC and we had to ask the 3-time National Champion if he thought any of the best teams in the Final Four would have a shot against the NBA's worst.

Bottom line ... Calhoun says don't let the madness of March fool you ... reminding us all that it'd be men against boys and the college kids would "lose by 30."

Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier WILL NOT meet in the octagon later this month at UFC 197 ... 'cause the fight's off after DC injured his leg ... forcing him to withdraw from the event.

The Jones-Cormier grudge match -- scheduled to go down April 23rd in Vegas -- momentarily seemed in jeopardy earlier in the week after Jones spent 2 nights in jail for a probation violation.

However, UFC honcho Dana White gave JJ the green light, and the fight was still on ... that is, 'til Cormier hurt his leg ... putting the highly anticipated rematch on ice.

The severity -- and how the injury was sustained -- is unclear.

No word yet from the UFC on whether Jones will remain on the card ... or if the JJ-DC fight will be rescheduled.

Iggy Azalea spent some quality time with the one friend she knows she can trust to make her smile ... her trusty steed.

In the middle of all the Nick Young drama ... the rap star once again saddled up at an equestrian center in Calabasas to blow off some steam.

There are two very SHOCKING revelations we learned when we got Compton rapper Problem out in L.A. earlier this week.

1. Kevin Costner is from Compton.

2. Somebody in the world (Problem) thinks "Draft Day" is better than "Bull Durham," "Field of Dreams" and "Tin Cup."

We got Problem leaving House of Macau in Hollywood and asked who he thought was the most famous person in the history of C-O-M-P-T-O-N is.

He answered Dr. Dre and Easy E -- to which we informed him that Costner is from Compton, to which he informed us that he has some questionable film taste.

BTW -- Problem's homeboy answered "Waterworld" so ... it could be worse.

Josh Duhamel says he knows exactly what celebrity he'd save if he magically had the power to jump back in time ... former LSU and NBA star Pistol Pete Maravich.

Josh is currently staring in the Hulu show "11.22.63" about a man going back in time to stop the assassination of JFK. So when we got him at LAX we had to ask ...

Which dead celebrity would he save?

Check out the clip -- MLK? Nope. RFK? Nope. Lincoln, Gandhi, John Lennon? None of the above. Josh says he wants to save the guy he calls "maybe the best basketball player behind Steph Curry."

Mike Tyson has a strong message for Manny Pacquiao -- YOU "SHOULD BE F**KING BARRED FROM THE GROVE!!!"

Tyson blasted Pacquiao at LAX friday ... telling TMZ Sports the comments Manny made about gay people was "totally disrespectful of other people's feelings."

As we previously reported, Manny said gay people were worse than animals and later quoted a bible verse that suggested gay people should be put to death.

Tyson explained that a lot of people share Manny's religious views about homosexuality -- but you have to RESPECT the feelings of other people ... and Manny didn't do that.

BTW, we also asked Tyson if he had any advice for Jon Jones -- and he weighed in on that too.

Check out the clip.

Candace Parker just issued a statement on the whole "should the WNBA lower the rims" controversy ... and it goes a little something like, "BOOOOM!"

The WNBA star just posted a video of her dunking on a regulation size rim ... and then tells the camera, "8 feet, 10 feet ... it don't matter."

This comes on the heels of WNBA star Elena Delle Donne suggesting the league lower the rims to make the game more exciting ... you know, with crazier dunks and alley-oops.

But Parker ain't buyin' it ... adding a caption to the video that included some strong hashtags:

"People WANA know how I feel about the "rim discussion" .... Here's my ANSWER. #Dunk #WhyIsntThereABallDiscussion #SinceWeMakingThingsTheSameWhyCantWeMakeMenPlayWitCramps #BarefootAndPreggoInTheKitchen #Equality #10Feet8FeetDontMatter #Controversy #SpartanWoman #BEASTMom #Mama."

NFL superstar Terrell Suggs just pled not guilty to all charges in his Arizona car crash case ... formally denying he left the scene of an accident last month.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the Baltimore Ravens star was arrested on March 4th and later charged with 2 misdemeanors -- driving with a suspended license and failure to notify after striking a fixture.

Suggs admitted to striking a wall while driving in a shopping center late at night. He claims he did NOT flee the scene but rather went to a nearby Mexican restaurant to call someone to pick him up.

If convicted of the suspended license charge, Suggs could face up to 6 months in jail. The failure to notify charge carries a lighter sentence ... up to 30 days in jail.

He's due back in court in May.

The NCAA is adding a twist to its annual "One Shining Moment" montage at the end of the Final Four tourney ... Ne-Yo will be doing a version this year -- but he's NOT bumping Luther.

Luther Vandross' version of the song has been mostly used since 2003 ... with 1 exception, in 2010 he was replaced for Jennifer Hudson. But people got pissed so they brought back Luther's version the next year.

Now, the NCAA has announced a new singer will be taking on the song ... Ne-Yo -- but warn he will NOT replace Luther on the main broadcast.

Instead, Ne-Yo's version will reportedly be featured on TNT and truTV -- while Luther's version will air on the main broadcast on TBS.

Su'a Cravens is about to be a wealthy man ... he's expected to be a top pick at the NFL Draft ... and he's already planned on how he'll spend his first paycheck -- on his mom.

Some draft analysts say the former USC linebacker could be a 1st round pick on April 28th ... but Cravens didn't seem to be letting the pressure get to him during a shopping trip in L.A. Thursday.

In fact, the guy told us he's already thinking about how to make money outside of football by using his (gasp) college education! Pretty cool, right?

So, what's Su'a gonna get his mom with all that cash he'll bring in??

The war between Odell Beckham Jr. and Josh Norman will NOT spiral out of control on the field again this season, or else ... so says Odell's boss, NY Giants co-owner Steve Tisch.

Both Beckham and Norman were punished by the league last year for going ballistic on each other during the heated Week 15 matchup between the Giants and the Panthers.

So, when we asked Tisch if tensions have cooled -- he told us, "I hope it's over. I hope when the season starts it's in Josh and Odell's past."

He then declared, "What happened on the field is NOT going to happen again this season ... I hope to any player in the league. "