TMZ Sports - Page 50

It's being hailed as one of the biggest implosions in the history of the NBA playoffs ... but Allen Iverson says the Clippers did NOT choke Thursday night ... they just lost.

The Clips were up 19 points on the Houston Rockets in Game 6 ... only to blow the lead and lose the game by 12 ... a 31 point swing. It was bad.

But when we saw A.I. in NYC a few minutes ago and asked if he's ever seen a worse choke job, he told us the Clips don't need the Heimlich ... 'cause it wasn't a choke job. Sometimes you just lose.

We also joked with A.I. about his legendary "practice" rant ... he laughed. It's funny.

Talkin' 'bout practice.

Aaron Hernandez claims he should NOT have been convicted of 1st degree murder in the death of Odin Lloyd -- claiming the killing was not "cruel" enough to warrant such a harsh charge.

Hernandez's lawyers filed new court docs challenging the verdict in the Lloyd case ... in which they spell out why Aaron should have, at most, been convicted of 2ND degree murder instead.

Here's why ...

Team Hernandez says 1st degree murder requires either premeditation or extreme cruelty. Aaron's lawyers say the ex-NFL star was NOT convicted on premeditation so they're attacking the "cruelty" angle.

In the docs, AH's lawyers state ... since Lloyd was shot 6 times and died "rapidly," there's no evidence of suffering. Furthermore, they say no witnesses heard Lloyd yell or scream.

There's more ... AH's lawyers say to prove cruelty, you must also show the killer "took pleasure" or was indifferent about killing. Team Hernandez says there was no evidence to show Hernandez "took pleasure in any suffering experienced by Lloyd."

Long story short ... AH's team believes Lloyd's murder was a run of the mill gun death -- nothing more or less cruel than any other.

Brittney Griner and Glory Johnson just got their wedding gift from the WNBA -- 7 game suspensions without pay for their domestic violence arrests last month.

Griner plays for the Phoenix Mercury, and Johnson for the Tulsa Shock -- and each will begin their suspensions when the WNBA season begins in June. The season is only 34 games long ... so 7 games is roughly 20% of the season.

You'll recall ... the couple got arrested after brawling with each other in their Phoenix area home. They were engaged at the time, but went through with their wedding 2 weeks later.

The WNBA President Laurel Richie says she consulted with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver -- as well as several abuse counselors and domestic violence groups -- before reaching her decision.

In addition to the suspensions ... Brittney and Glory will have to attend individual counseling sessions.

The WNBA also released more details about the fight ... saying Glory was diagnosed with a concussion following the brawl.

Without Tom Brokaw, Allen Iverson would NOT have become the NBA superstar he turned out to be ... and A.I. knows it.

Iverson appeared on "CBS This Morning" and gave credit to the legendary newsman for helping him out ... when he was facing 15 years in prison for allegedly hitting a white woman at a bowling alley during a brawl.

It all went down in 1993 when Iverson was 18-years-old ... he was actually convicted and served 4 months in prison.

Brokaw featured Iverson's story on the news and pointed out the injustice ... that a teen with no prior criminal record had been hit with SUCH a harsh punishment.

Cristiano Ronaldo's 4-year-old son is already taking after his father ... working on his abs during a father/son training session ... and it's friggin' adorable.

The kid -- Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. -- started off by holding his dad's feet while the soccer star ripped off a set of crunches.

Then the tables turned ... with dad pushing his kid to knock out a solid 10 sit-ups ... which he does without a problem!

Did you know ... "Blackish" star Anthony Anderson is friends with NFL legend Marcus Allen?

It's true ... and yesterday at LAX, the guys had a pretty hilarious explanation for the whole Deflategate situation -- it all comes down to pee!

The whole video is pretty hilarious ... with Anderson crackin' jokes just to get Marcus to laugh.

Larry Bird wasn't just talented when it came to talking crap ... HE'S THE BEST EVER ... so claims Kenny "The Jet" Smith ... who says Bird's trash talk game was even better than Michael Jordan's.

Bird's verbal skills on the court are legendary -- 'cause he wouldn't just insult you, he'd get inside your head and DESTROY YOU.

Smith says the best part was that Bird ALWAYS backed up his smack talk.

But Smith's best single crap talk story doesn't involve Bird ... it came from a fan ... and Thursday in L.A. he recounted the whole thing -- and it's hilarious!!!

The judge in the Aaron Hernandez murder case ... the first one ... has officially thrown out the perjury charge against Aaron's fiancee Shayanna Jenkins after she provided testimony that led to the conviction of the ex-NFL star.

Jenkins had struck a deal with prosecutors before she got on the stand -- she would talk and in exchange they would toss out a previous perjury charge.

The perjury charge stemmed from comments Jenkins made to the grand jury in 2013 regarding a gun in her home ... that may have been the weapon used to murder Odin Lloyd. If convicted, she faced up to 20 years behind bars.

Prosecutors say Jenkins' testimony at the trial -- that she helped Aaron dispose of a mystery box after Odin's death -- helped them win the case.

The operating theory is that the box contained the murder weapon.

**Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking ... we've now reached 10,000 feet ... you're now free to PARTY YOUR FACES OFF!!!!**

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers wasted no time throwing a dance party on the team's private jet Thursday night ... celebrating their blowout win over the Bulls and moving on to the Eastern Conference Finals.

J.R. Smith shot footage of Bron gettin' down to The Dream's "That's My S**t" ... while teammates slugged beers and basked in the win.

Would YOU forgive a teammate who CHEATED and costed you an Olympic medal???

Well, U.S. sprinter Justin Gatlin says he's ready to do just that when it comes to Tyson Gay -- who admitted he doped during the 2012 Olympics ... which resulted in the IOC stripping them over their silver medals in the 4x100.

Gay has admitted to taking banned substances -- but says it wasn't intentional. "I basically put my trust in someone and I was let down."

Now, with the IOC taking the medals back, Gatlin tells TMZ Sports he won't fight the decision.

"The rules are the rules ... and if the committee says we have to return it -- I’m going to follow the rules. I honestly don’t mind giving it back if it wasn't won fairly."

As for his feelings about Gay, Gatlin says ... "He has apologized for his actions and asked for public forgiveness. So now it’s time to move on from that."

Gatlin says he now has his eyes focused on another prize -- GOLD at the 2016 Games.

"I know we have another chance coming up in Rio – and we just started off the season beating the Jamaicans at the world championships."

The wife of former UFC fighter Corey Hill tells TMZ Sports ... her husband is still alive and fighting for his life ... despite statements from family, friends and the UFC saying he passed away this morning.

Hill's close friends and family members had told the media earlier today that Hill died after a bout with pneumonia.

But Lauran Hill says Corey is "resting and still alive" and they're praying he makes a full recovery.

"My husband is a strong fighter. Please everyone pray for him."

Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the (gigantic) tree ... cause Shaquille O'Neal's 15-year-old son, Shareef, is going to be the family's next HUGE NBA star ... so says his AAU coach.

TMZ Sports spoke with Mike Law, who coached Shareef on the California Supreme AAU squad, and he tells us he expects the little O'Neal to be every bit as good as his legendary father.

"One day people will be talking about Shareef the same way they talk about his dad ... he's that gifted."

Shareef has been getting MAJOR buzz since a new mixtape of the 6'8" phenom dominating some Cali competition was released earlier this week ... getting 2 million YouTube views in just three days.

In fact ... Shareef has already garnered some interest from major colleges like USC, which offered him a scholarship earlier today. Law says it's the work ethic and guidance he got from his famous dad that puts him over the top.

"Most kids of superstars just think it's handed to them, but Shareef worked to get better. Shaq doesn't want us to show him any favoritism ... even though he's good enough to play up a level."

4 NBA Championships, 3 Finals MVP's and 15 All-Star games is a lot to live up to ... but if he can just stay on his feet, he's beating his old man right now.

Wrestling might be fake, but John Cena is 100% BEAST ...

Here's video of the WWE star proving it by squatting what our TMZ Sports math geniuses calculated is over SIX HUNDRED POUNDS of weight.

John posted the short vid to his Twitter with a caption that read ... "The speed of life gives us chances to make excuses. Define goals, take a pause, and realize you can move mountains."

You're about to feel very sorry for a pair of mitts ... 'cause here's freakish video of middleweight boxing champ Gennady "GGG" Golovkin absolutely DESTROYING two inanimate objects in a single training session.

GGG (32-0, 29 KO's) is preparing for a huge fight against Willie Monroe Jr. in L.A. this weekend, and decided to scare the living crap out of Willie's family by stepping into the ring Wednesday with his trainer Abel Sanchez for a mitt session.

Golovkin -- who's basically the anti-Floyd, having KO'd 19 dudes in a row -- is throwing absolute FREAKIN' BOMBS in there ... at times looking like he's breaking the will of the veteran trainer.

Hannah Davis better watch her perfectly sculpted ass ... 'cause Jose Canseco's hot model daughter is gunning for her spot in the 2016 SI Swimsuit Edition.

Turns out, Josie Canseco is an aspiring model ... who's making a serious run to get into the most famous bikini mag in the country.

In fact, she shot a video for SI's Swim Daily to better her chances, here are the highlights ...

-- She thinks lingerie is sexy
-- She doesn't like dudes with crazy chest hair
-- And thinks most women want to date a version of their father

So, pay attention you smooth-chested, athletic roid-heads ... you may have a shot.

A male member of Floyd Mayweather's entourage was involved in an altercation with a woman at the Golden State Warriors playoff game last night ... after the woman allegedly struck him with a "Thunder Stick" ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Sources connected to the Golden State Warriors confirm there was a "mini-altercation" that took place between the two involving one of those inflatable noisemakers that fans bang together during a game.

Before the incident, Mayweather had been booed loudly at the stadium when they showed him on the jumbotron ... and we're told at least one person continued to jeer even after Floyd was off the screen.

Multiple witnesses who were at the Oracle Arena tell us the woman was heckling Floyd and his crew -- but things escalated when she used one of her "Thunder Sticks" on a member of The Money Team.

People in Floyd's camp insist the entourage member did NOT react physically to the incident ... and never hit the woman -- but he was VERY upset.

We spoke with a rep for the Oakland Police Department who tells us, "We do have record of an incident that occurred at about 9:45 PM at the Oracle Arena regarding a mutual combat battery which occurred between a man and a woman."

"Neither party wished to press charges against the other, nobody was arrested and no injuries were sustained."