TMZ Sports - Page 50

Johnny Manziel's crazy Vegas party weekend was "well-deserved" ... because he's been "kicking ass" during practices with the Cleveland Browns ... this according to Browns WR Nate Burleson.

Nate tells TMZ Sports the team is well aware of Johnny's 3-day bender in Sin City ... and says as far as he knows, the team is still staunchly behind him ... saying, "He worked his ass off to party that weekend."

As we previously reported, Manziel hit up clubs, party pools and hung out with stars like Pauly D and Gronk during the Memorial Day break -- and his critics blasted him for it.

But Nate says, "Everybody should mind their own business when it comes to how [Johnny] enjoys his free time."

Burleson -- a 10-year vet -- says despite his party reputation, Johnny's been all-business on the field.

"He's got moxy. He's whippin' the ball around. He's not cocky. He's locked in -- you can tell he wants it."

Another Clippers player is signing off on the Steve Ballmer deal -- with Matt Barnes telling TMZ Sports he's excited to turn the page on the Donald Sterling era so the team can finally focus on basketball again.

With the NBA signing off on the $2 billion deal ... and team owners likely to grant final approval ... Barnes told us he and his teammates are really happy to "put that situation behind us."

As we previously reported, Matt's teammate Chris Paul was seen giving a bro hug to Ballmer at a Kings game over the weekend ... and they chatted it up like two old friends.

Floyd Mayweather is going to bat for his friend Justin Bieber -- saying he still SUPPORTS the pop star despite footage that surfaced this weekend showing a 15-year-old Bieber saying the N-word while telling a racist joke.

Floyd -- who's been friends with JB for years -- posted a recent photo where he's posing with Justin and wrote a pretty strong statement explaining why he's got Justin's back:

"Justin has been nothing but kind to me, my daughters and sons over the years," Floyd said ... adding, "We all make mistakes when we are young, it’s part of growing up"

"I am proud of what he’s doing as a 20 year old musician and business man. #TMT"

Donald Sterling sat in a Black church for 2 hours Sunday in South L.A. and pissed off some members of the congregation ... while others seemed willing to at least forgive, if not forget.

Sterling, surrounded by bodyguards (just in case), hit up Praises of Zion Baptist Church -- and sources in the church tell us he sat through the entire service ... though it's unclear if he addressed church members publicly.

Seems strange that Sterling made what amounts to a mea culpa appearance at the predominantly Black church ... since he no longer owns the Clippers (pending NBA approval). Sources connected to Donald tells us the church visit was planned several days before the sale talks began ... so it's even more interesting he went though with it.

We're told about 30 people were in attendance today -- and at least one regular member left with his children as soon as Sterling walked in with his entourage.

Talk about a bad choice of words ... 'cause after he allegedly murdered two people, Aaron Hernandez encouraged a pro golfer to "kill it" on multiple occasions.

We were scrolling through AH's time-capsule of a Twitter account when we noticed a few messages he posted to Ricky Fowler right before the 2013 Masters tournament.

The first tweet was sent on April 10th and read ... "Thanks @RickiFowlerPGA! U gotta help my golf game after u kill it @the_masters."

The next day, Hernandez followed up ... "Great start for my guy @RickyFowlerPGA! Keep killin it."

Fowler may not have continued to "kill it," but Hernandez may have ... allegedly murdering a 3rd person two months later.

Man goes to Yemen.

Man discovers 6'9" basketball prodigy in Yemen.

Man signs prodigy to contract promising to develop him into an NBA caliber-player in exchange for 10% lifetime earnings ... and also helps him leave Yemen.

Prodigy becomes 7th overall pick in 2011 NBA Draft ... becoming overnight millionaire.

Man sues when player blows off the deal.

... these are the allegations Charlotte Hornets player Bismack Biyombo is facing in a brand new lawsuit obtained by TMZ Sports.

Long story short ... a guy named Igor Crespo says Biyombo owes him more than $2 MILLION in unpaid commission for his help in "developing" him into an NBA talent.

In the suit, Crespo says he met Biyombo in Yemen back in 2009 ... and he signed a contract promising him 10% of all pro basketball earnings for the rest of his life in exchange for Crespo's help. The contract was allegedly signed in Spain, where Crespo says he helped Bismack get a job with a pro team in Madrid.

He later got drafted into the NBA and allegedly stopped paying.

It's always fun to watch baseball players run into each other while trying to catch a fly ball.

So ... this.

Of course, Manziel took all sorts of heat for raging in Vegas last weekend -- clearly, he's not bothered by the criticism.

Bonus -- on his way out of the club, Johnny gets into the same van as a BUNCH of hot chicks ... because THAT'S HOW JOHNNY FOOTBALL ROLLS, SON!!!

How's this for irony ... V. Stiviano said a bunch of racist stuff about black people -- and TMZ Sports has the footage.

Among the lowlights ...

-- "I don't understand black people. You give them a little bit of money, they don't know what to do with it."

-- "[Black people] just act crazy ... they're like, 'Yo, I wanna put extra rims on top of my rims. And my rims are gonna turn around. I'm gonna call them spinners.'"

The footage was shot back in 2011 as part of a reality show pilot about gold diggers -- V. Stiviano was one of the girls selected to appear ... and in the clip, she rambles on and on about finding a mega-rich guy to settle down with.

John Daly tells TMZ Sports ... he was able to calculate his gambling losses during a 15-year casino binge thanks to tax returns that showed $90 MILLION in losses and only $35 million in wins.

You can't hide raw emotion -- especially when you're a giant professional basketball player!!!

So, check out these pics of some of the NBA's biggest stars pullin' their "HELL YEAH!!!" faces on the court.

Some are scary ... some will just make you laugh ... and some are just bizarre.

New L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer isn't wasting any time bonding with his team's biggest star -- hanging out with Chris Paul at the L.A. Kings playoff game Friday night and TMZ Sports has the pics.

Less than 24 hours after purchasing the team from Shelly Sterling for $2 billion ... IN CASH ... the former Microsoft CEO hung out at his team's home court -- Staples Center -- to take in the hockey game.

Ballmer and Paul appeared to be getting along well -- sources at the game tell us the two chatted for a few minutes and hugged it out before Ballmer went back to his super special rich guy owner section.

We're guessing paul is pretty pumped about the new guy in charge ... seems like a huge step up from the last racist ahole he worked for.

Golf superstar Phil Mickelson says he's NOT the target of an FBI investigation into allegations of insider trading ... despite reports to the contrary.

After reports surfaced that federal investigators are looking into his trading history to see if he was involved in any Martha Stewart-esque style illegal activity over the past 3 years, Mickelson's lawyer issued a statement saying Phil is not n the FBI's crosshairs.

"Phil is not the target of any investigation, "Mickelson's attorney Glenn Cohen said.

But something doesn't add up ... according to the Wall Street Journal, two FBI agents approached Phil after a round of golf in Dublin, Ohio on Thursday ... and FBI agents don't just track you down for no reason.

The WSJ reports the feds believe Phil -- along with investor Carl Icahn and famous Vegas gambler Billy Walters -- may have "traded illicitly on non-public information from Mr. Ichan about his investments in public companies."

Donald Sterling has filed a lawsuit against the NBA for more than $1 BILLION, claiming he was unconstitutionally bullied out of the league.

Sterling filed a federal lawsuit Friday afternoon ... claiming the NBA booted him from the league based on what he called an illegal recording that was widely publicized ... painting him as a racist.

As you know ... TMZ obtained the recording and posted it on the website.

Sterling also claims the $2.5 million fine was baseless and a violation of antitrust laws.

Shelly Sterling sold the team late Thursday to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion. The deal will almost certainly be ratified by the NBA.

The Colin Kaepernick sexual assault investigation is NOT over yet ... despite comments to the contrary from the 49ers QB and the Miami Chief of Police ... multiple law enforcement officials tell TMZ Sports.

File Under: "You Know You're Rich When" ... YOU CAN MAKE A $2 BILLION CASH OFFER TO BUY AN NBA TEAM ... like Steve Ballmer just did with the Clippers.