TMZ Sports - Page 50

This is a pretty great story ...

A real-life pro boxer earned himself a role in Sylvester Stallone's upcoming "Creed" movie ... all because producers were super impressed with the way he fought during a FEROCIOUS 2014 bout.

The guy who battled his way on to the big screen is Hammerin' Hank Lundy -- who happened to be fighting on the undercard of a Gabe Rosado fight back in December.

Turns out, Rosado had already been cast for a role in the film -- and producers decided to check out the fight in person in December to see their new star in action.

Lundy was taking on a guy named Thomas Dulorme that day ... and their fight was EPIC -- with the two men slugging it out for all 10 rounds.

Lundy lost the fight -- but producers LOVED the way he fought ... and hooked him up with a role in the flick.

When we saw Lundy in L.A. yesterday, he recapped the story ... and couldn't be happier about the way things turned out.

Pretty cool, right?!

Boxer Jermain Taylor is adamant he's NOT a criminal -- and blames his recent string of bizarre and troubling behavior on mental illness.

Taylor appeared in an Arkansas courtroom moments ago in connection with an incident at an MLK Day parade earlier this year in which he allegedly pulled a gun on a family and fired multiple shots.

The former IBF middleweight champ pled not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect ... and his attorney requested that the boxer undergo another mental evaluation.

But instead of returning to his rehab facility -- where he allegedly assaulted another man this month -- the judge ordered Taylor to go to jail because he violated his conditions of release.

Taylor's attorney tells TMZ Sports, "He’s in good spirits. I don’t think he’s upset about it. He wants to be out. He has kids."

Here's Shaquille O'Neal taking his monster foot to the beauty shop yesterday for some heavy duty nail work ... hope you're not eating while watching this.

As Shaq sat down to get nailed, he Instagrammed -- "My toes bout to be on FLEEK."

The pedicurist's face kinda says it all.

Still, Shaq added another caption ... "She was like dam you got some pretty feet."

Maybe some moisturizer next time?

Paulina Gretzky isn't just another pretty face ... she was a MONSTER on the hockey rink -- until she unexpectedly quit ... so says her legendary father Wayne Gretzky.

Wayne was leaving Craig's in West Hollywood last night ... when we asked which of his 5 children had the most talent on the ice.

FYI -- Wayne's kids are insane athletes ... with Trevor playing pro baseball and Ty being a scratch golfer.

But when it comes to the puck -- Wayne says it was all Paulina -- that is, until her sudden retirement.

Don't worry. She found other hobbies ...

TMZ Sports has obtained photos of the man who claims he was brutally attacked by ex-boxing champ Jermain Taylor in a rehab facility earlier this month ... and it's clear, dude got pummeled.

As we previously reported, officials in Arkansas issued a warrant for Taylor's arrest after the May 13th incident ... in which the alleged victim was sent to the ICU of a nearby hospital for treatment.

Sources close to the alleged victim tell us ... the man claims he was leaving dinner at the rehab center and was walking back to his sleeping area, when he encountered Taylor.

The man claims he extended his hand to greet Taylor -- but the boxer slapped his hand away and proceeded to beat the crap out of him.

The alleged victim underwent surgery to treat his injuries and is currently on the mend.

Taylor's attorney says the allegations are completely frivolous.

So far, we're told the victim doesn't plan to sue -- but is cooperating with police in the criminal investigation.

Mark Cuban and Warren Buffett are more than just billionaire "Entourage" co-stars ... they're also friends in real life who get ICE CREAM together.

Cuban just appeared on "TMZ Hollywood Sports" to talk about his cameo in the upcoming flick -- we asked if he and Buffett got along on the set since they have so much in common.

That's when Cuban told us ... he flew out to Buffett's hood just yesterday for a business lunch that was capped off with dessert at Dairy Queen ... which is owned by Buffett.

Question is ... who pays when two billionaires get dessert??? Check out the clip.

Check out "TMZ Hollywood Sports" weeknights on Reelz.

Hip-hop superstar Wale just revealed a super awesome branch of his family tree ... telling TMZ Sports Washington Nationals slugger Bryce Harper ... is his actual cousin.

Wale was out in L.A. when we decided to do a little D.C. sports rundown with the DMV representer, asking about the Wizards and then about Harper ... who's currently tearing up the Major Leagues.

That's when Wale dropped the bombshell that's sure to make Donald Sterling's skin crawl ... telling our camera guy that he loves Harper ... mainly because Bryce is actually his cousin!!!

Ok ... so maybe he was joking ... but maybe he's not ... why can't they be related?

Allen Iverson's endorsement drought is finally over -- the ex-NBA superstar just landed a brand new deal with a sock company ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Iverson was one of the most marketable guys on the planet during his heyday -- but lost a bunch of his deals during his infamous fall from grace.

But A.I. has been on a serious rebuilding campaign recently -- appearing on morning shows and promoting a new documentary -- and now, he's got a new endorsement campaign to boot.

The deal is with Stance -- which signed the 39-year-old to a multi-year contract to be a spokesperson alongside NBA stars Dwyane Wade, Klay Thompson, Chandler Parsons and Andre Drummond.

NBA superstar John Wall was kicked off an American Airlines flight in Las Vegas this week ... after someone in his crew allegedly threatened another passenger ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the Washington Wizards star had boarded a flight headed to D.C. on May 26th -- but before the plane took off, his crew got into a verbal argument with someone else on the plane and a threat was allegedly made from someone in Wall's group.

We're told someone from the flight crew called the Las Vegas Metro Police Department for help -- and cops boarded the plane to deal with the situation.

The alleged victim told cops he did not want to press charges -- but the pilot of the plane decided he did NOT want Wall and his crew to remain on the flight ... so they were escorted off.

We're told Wall and his party left without further incident.

Calls to Wall's rep have not been returned.

John had posted a photo of his crew on the way to Vegas on May 22nd ... though it's unclear if the same guys were involved in the incident on the flight home.

President Obama just took a stand on the NBA Finals ... saying there's no way J.R. Smith has a chance to outshoot Steph Curry ... despite the fact Smith has been ON FIRE in the playoffs.

Obama went to Twitter to answer some questions ... when someone wrote:

"Can JR Smith out shoot Steph Curry and lead the Cavs to a championship?"

Obama's response -- "jr smith having a great season but the heart of the Cavs is Lebron. And no one can outshoot Curry - maybe Korver if wide open."

So far, no response from Smith ... but we're guessing it's coming.

Verne Troyer let his ass do the talking for him during an argument with Hines Ward's wife -- ripping a fart on the NFL star's spouse in protest ... and it was all caught on video.

It all went down on Wednesday night's episode of "Celebrity Wife Swap" -- when Hines' wife Lindsey Georgalas moved in with the "Austin Powers" star and tried to redecorate his game room.

But Troyer HATED the feminine touches Lindsey was trying to put in the room -- and to show his discontent ... the little guy let out a big one.

Former boxing champ Jermain Taylor is a wanted man -- TMZ Sports has learned an arrest warrant has been issued after JT allegedly attacked a man at a rehab center.

The Pulaski County Sheriff's Department in Arkansas tells us the warrant was issued this morning. Taylor is suspected of 2nd degree battery. So far, he is NOT in police custody.

As for the backstory ... law enforcement sources tell us Taylor allegedly attacked another patient at a rehab facility in Little Rock on May 13th ... knocking the man to the floor.

We're told the alleged victim was transported to a nearby hospital -- and was treated in the intensive care unit.

Taylor has been in rehab on a court order since March following a string of disturbing incidents -- including an altercation at a parade where Taylor allegedly pulled a gun on a family and another incident where he shot his cousin.

Taylor's attorney Christian Alexander says he believes the complaint is "frivolous" -- and says he's already spoken with witnesses who believe the whole thing is a shameless attempt to shake down a famous athlete.

Brittney Griner is getting SCREWED by the WNBA -- so says the WNBA Players Association, which claims Griner's 7 game suspension for domestic violence is "excessive and inappropriate."

We broke the story ... Griner and her wife Glory Johnson were each hit with 7 game suspensions after they were both arrested for attacking each other at their AZ home on April 22nd.

So far, neither woman has appealed the punishment -- but the WNBA strongly believes they should.

"There is a significant segment of the WNBA players who feel that, while a suspension may have been warranted, a suspension of seven games (20% of the season) is excessive and inappropriate," a WNBA P.A. rep tells TMZ Sports.

The P.A. says it's concerned that the punishment would set an unfair precedent for the league -- considering both women were first time offenders.

The P.A. also says a 7 game suspension would have a "significant economic impact" on the WNBA as a league.

But the biggest problem, according to the P.A., the organization says it can't formally fight the league without Griner and Johnson giving their blessing -- and so far, they've been mum.

Best video of the day.

Steph Curry's adorable daughter, Riley, stole the show at the Warriors post-game press conference -- AGAIN -- and this time, she capped off her performance by singing some Big Sean into the mic.

Watch the video ... just when you think it can't get any better, Riley kicks it up a notch.

Remember when those reporters complained that she was detrimental to the press conference process?

Dwyane Wade is more polished than we thought -- and the proof is in his toes.

Wade has been documenting his weight loss in a 30 Day Transformation challenge by posting pics on social media of his weight on the scale in his home.

We learned 2 things:

1) He's lost about 12 pounds ... so congrats!
2) He still paints his toenails.

The NBA star first started polishing his piggies back in 2008 ... simply because he thought it would look cool.

In fact, in 2011 he talked to GQ about the first time he showed his colorful toes to his pal LeBron James:

"I was on vacation in the Bahamas with LeBron and when he saw my toes he was like, 'Something is seriously wrong with you.' But eventually Bron was like, 'You know what? You're crazy, but that's just you.' When I first got into the league, I tried to fit in. Now I don't care."

We already know he doesn't like Tom Brady ... and Tom Brady's hair -- but now it seems NFL superstar Terrell Suggs doesn't like TB's Deflategate punishment either.

The Baltimore Ravens stud was leaving Mastro's Steakhouse in Bev Hills last night when we asked if the Pats got what they deserved -- $1 million fine, loss of draft picks and the 4-game suspension for Brady.

Sugg's response -- "I don't know. That's not my job. I'm glad I don't got it ... but the last coach that got caught cheating got suspended for a whole year. So ..."

Seems he's strongly suggesting Brady and the gang got off SUPER EASY compared to New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton who was banned from the league for the entire 2013 season for allegedly covering up Bountygate, where players targeted opponents for cash bonuses.