TMZ Sports - Page 50

The fans might be super pissed about load management ... but Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas says Kawhi Leonard taking days off has been PERFECT for the NBA superstar.

It's been one of the biggest debates of the season -- with the Klaw electing to sit out several big-time matchups to nurse a nagging knee injury, despite looking pretty much 100% when he DOES take the court.

TMZ Sports spoke with the Pistons legend about the issue ... and he totally understands why Kawhi wants to take a break to make sure he stays healthy, even if fans get upset.

"I do understand it, and you have to say it's been extremely successful for Kawhi," IT said outside Capitale in NYC ... pointing out Leonard has done this for most of his career.

"So for Kawhi, it's been perfect for him and it has worked out well for him."

But, of course, the big issue is Kawhi is one of the top 2 hottest players in the league ... and people wanna see him play. So, when folks drop up to thousands of dollars in hopes of seeing the Klaw play, just to have him ride the bench ... it doesn't sit well with the fans.

IT understands where the spectators are coming from ... and thinks there will have to be some sort of compromise before the NBA loses support.

"For the fans, I can see how some might be disappointed. At some point in time, the NBA, the players all of them gotta figure out how everyone can be satisfied because we do need the fans and we need the fan support to keep the machine going."

Penn State villain Jerry Sandusky arrived to a Pennsylvania courtroom Friday to beg for a reduced sentence in his child molestation case ... and he was all smiles.

The 75-year-old disgraced football coach is currently serving 30-60 years in prison after he was found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual abuse back in 2012.

Remember, Sandusky was convicted of using his youth charity, The Second Mile, to sexually assault 10 boys ... some of whom were raped at the Penn State campus.

But in February, a state court of appeals ruled that mandatory minimum prison sentencing were incorrectly applied in Sandusky's case ... which opens the door for a lighter sentence.

Sandusky will obviously beg for a significant reduction -- though it's unlikely he'll get a substantial decrease.

In other words, it's still more than likely he'll die in prison.

For his part, Sandusky has always maintained his innocence and has accused everyone from the victims to the media to the University of conspiring against him.

Proud Dad moment for Dwyane Wade on Thursday night ... the NBA legend got to watch his son play in his HS season opener -- and the kid threw down a sick alley-oop!!

The show all went down in front of a sold-out crowd in San Diego ... where Zaire Wade's Sierra Canyon squad beat the hell out of Montgomery HS, 91-44, in its 2019 debut.

Zaire only scored 6 points ... but he made two of them REALLY count -- catching a lob and putting it home, all while Dwyane watched from his courtside seat!!

Of course, Wade was also there to support his best buddy LeBron James' son, Bronny, who was playing in his first-ever HS game.

And, Wade got to see the young James ball out too ... 'cause the kid scored 10 points off the bench and knocked down some DEEP triples!!!

Poppa James couldn't make the trip -- the Lakers are on the road to play Oklahoma City on Friday night -- but something tells us Dwyane's already given him the full report.

"I think we would have had these answers a couple days ago."

Jay Glazer believes he would've gotten a REAL explanation from Myles Garrett about the alleged racial slurs from Mason Rudolph that led to the helmet attack ... if the Browns hadn't shut down his interview with the embattled NFL star.

"I had an interview set up with him for Sunday for Fox NFL Sunday so he could talk about this earlier," Glazer said.

"The Browns didn't think he should do it and very, very strongly told him he should not do the interview."

"People were saying, well, they wish he spoke earlier, right? Well, he was willing to speak earlier. They shut it down."

Glazer didn't hold back at the L.A. premiere of DAZN's "One Night: Joshua vs. Ruiz" documentary.

"About an hour before myself and the guys from Fox -- I was going down with producers, going to the airport is when we got word, they had called him to the facility and told him, 'Pull the plug on this.' And, it's unfortunate."

Kate Upton and Justin Verlander had the best seats in the house at the Houston Texans game on Thursday -- getting the ultimate VIP treatment ... plus hugs from J.J. Watt!

The Houston Astros pitcher was being honored at NRG Stadium in Houston for winning the 2019 AL Cy Young Award ... his 2nd Cy Young ... and they picked the right game to attend!

Deshaun Watson threw for nearly 300 yards and 2 TDs as the Texans escaped with a 20-to-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts.

Kate and Justin not only got field access before the game to rub shoulders with stars like Watt, Watson and others ... but they later got to chill in a VIP suite!

There was even a moment where the Texans put Kate and Justin on the Jumbotron -- and Kate shot herself being shot ... and put it on IG!

After the game, the couple got to go back in the locker room where Watson hooked 'em up with a signed jersey (it looks game worn, but we're told it's not. Still cool though!).

Nick Cannon is siding with Terrell Owens -- saying the NFL legend was RIGHT when he said ESPN's Max Kellerman is blacker than Stephen A. Smith.

He was laughing when he said it ... but it's clear Nick agrees with Owens when it comes to the larger topic, Colin Kaepernick.

FYI, Cannon is close friends with Kap -- which was the topic of discussion that set things off on ESPN's "First Take" between T.O. and Stephen A. on Thursday.

Owens has been unhappy with Stephen A's negative criticism of Kap for the way the QB handled the NFL workout -- so he went on the show to hash things out and told SAS his white cohost Max Kellerman "almost seems blacker than you."

Stephen A. was PISSED and told Owens that he "done crossed the line.":

So, when we saw Cannon out in L.A. on Thursday night, he made it clear he's on Team T.O.

"At the end of the day, you always have to stand for your culture. We always gotta have a united front as a people."

Cannon added, "I support Kaepernick 100%. I've always been with him 'cause that's one of my close friends."

Floyd Mayweather says he's COMING BACK -- insisting he'll fight once again in 2020 ... and working with UFC's Dana White to make it happen.

"Coming out of retirement in 2020," 42-year-old Mayweather posted on social media late Thursday night.

Floyd also posted a pic with Dana White and said the two are "working together again to bring the world another spectacular event in 2020. #boxing #UFC #mma #mayweatherpromotions."

Of course, Floyd and Dana sat next to each other at the Clippers vs. Celtics game in L.A. on Nov. 20 and were seen chatting it up.

So, will it be a boxing match or an MMA fight? We're working on the details.

Floyd has floated a bunch of possibilities over the years -- saying he'll fight everyone from Khabib Nurmagomedov to a rematch with Conor McGregor.

Back in 2018, Floyd said he was definitely fighting Khabib and told TMZ Sports he'd made 9 figures for the fight.

Since then, Khabib's manager Ali Abdelaziz has told us Floyd's camp has been hounding him with calls trying to get the deal done.

There have also been rumblings that Floyd is trying to set up a rematch with Manny Pacquiao, who's looked AWESOME in his last few fights ... even beating Keith Thurman.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft called out Donald Trump as "divisive and horrible" when talking about NFL kneelers at the '17 NFL summit ... and TMZ Sports has the audio.

It all went down in October 2017 -- roughly 1 month after President Trump called for NFL teams to fire any "son of a bitch" who doesn't stand for the national anthem.

The owners felt the league was taking a serious PR hit and called for owners, players and league execs to come together to talk about possible solutions.

That's when Kraft addressed the room ... and explained how POTUS would twist whatever plan they came up with to advance his own agenda.

"I must tell you, I think these dialogues are great," Kraft said. "But, the elephant in the room now in my opinion, is this kneeling, which every player has a right to do if they feel it's right."

"The problem we have is, we have a President that will use that as fodder to do his mission that I don’t feel is in the best interest of the matter. It's divisive and it's horrible. And, it’s actually the opposite of what you all are trying to do."

Kraft explains there is 40% of the country that will crap all over any possible plan just because they'll side with Trump no matter what.

"I just hope one of the things that can come out of here is that we find a way to be unified. And, be able to carry through and follow through."

Remember, Kraft and Trump -- once close friends -- had a rift in their relationship over the kneeling situation ... but seem to have patched things up.

Myles Garrett told NFL officials Steelers QB Mason Rudolph hurled a racial slur at him before the infamous helmet attack ... though Rudolph is calling BS.

As we previously reported, the Cleveland Browns star met with NFL officials to appeal the length of his suspension from the Nov. 14 incident.

During the meeting, Garrett told his side of the story ... and claimed it was a racial slur from Rudolph that got him so pissed off, he ripped off the QB's helmet and attacked him with it, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

But, Rudolph is VEHEMENTLY denying the claim -- his lawyer has already issued a statement calling the allegation a flat-out lie.

"This false allegation was never asserted by Garrett in the aftermath of the game, never suggested prior to the hearing, and conspicuously absent in the apology published by the Browns and adopted by Garrett."

"The malicious use of this wild and unfounded allegation is an assault on Mason's integrity which is far worse than the physical assault witnessed on Thursday."

"This is reckless and shameful."

Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens just addressed the situation at Browns practice on Thursday, saying, "I stand by Myles and that's not going to waver. I'll support Myles in every way possible."

Kitchens refused to disclose what he and Myles talked about following the incident.

Story developing ...

WWE legend Mark Henry says he was CRUSHED by Jim Cornette's racist comments -- and he wants the announcer to either apologize ... or just fess up to hating black people.

"It just hurts, man," Henry tells TMZ Sports ... "As much as I can say, I’m disappointed and I hope that he can try to fix this. But, some people just don’t like people of color."

Of course, Cornette pissed off a LOT of people Tuesday during an episode of "NWA Power" -- he used offensive language to describe a wrestler's toughness.

"He’s the only man I’ve ever known that can strap a bucket of fried chicken on his back and ride a motor scooter across Ethiopia," Cornette said. Yeesh.

Enter Mark Henry ... who's known Cornette for decades and tells TMZ Sports he really hopes Jim will step up and do the right thing.

"I would say, 'Jim ... please apologize, and mean it. And if you don’t mean it, then go all the way Darth Vader and tell I just don’t like black people.'"

"At least I know who you are. And, then I can get rid of this feeling that I have in my heart. It’s like having your mother or father disown you. I feel like a sense of mourning."

The hardest part for Henry ... he claims Cornette played an integral role in his wrestling carer and he REALLY hopes Jim isn't a racist.

"Prior to all of this, the relationship that I had with Jim Cornette has been really, really good. He taught me a lot about pro wrestling. He allowed me into his home to look at his archive. He helped me to be the wrestler that I became. And, I probably wouldn’t have been the guy without him."

Jay Williams means well, BUT those GoFundMe donations to cover James Wiseman's NCAA "fine" won't do JACK for the Memphis superstar ... 'cause the org. won't allow it.

TMZ Sports has learned ... the NCAA is aware of Jay's fundraising efforts to help satisfy Wiseman's $11,500 mandatory donation -- but our sources say Wiseman is NOT allowed to accept the money.

Of course, Wiseman was suspended 12 games and forced to donate $11,500 to charity after his family accepted a loan from Penny Hardaway to help cover moving expenses in 2017.

Crowdfunding campaigns have popped on the internet to help Wiseman pay the monetary punishment ... with Williams and the Game Seven organization raising nearly $5k so far.

But, our sources tell us the GoFundMe cash won't fly with the NCAA.

As one well-placed source put it ... "Generally speaking, a GoFundMe would not satisfy a repayment requirement. The student-athlete and his or her family are responsible for making the donation, and that donation must also be in line with NCAA rules."

In other words, taking the GoFundMe money could lead to more problems for Wiseman.

Liam Hemsworth is boo-less in Malibu ... but he's still having a helluva time being single, ripping waves on his surfboard with older brother Luke.

Liam and Luke took full advantage of a nice swell Thursday in the 'Bu, paddling out to catch some waves and get away from all the drama back on dry land.

The youngest Hemsworth bro looked happy and at ease in the water, hanging ten before showing off his toned bod as he got out of his wetsuit.

As you know ... Liam's single for the first time in over a decade after filing for divorce from Miley Cyrus. She's already moved on to Kaitlynn Carter and now Cody Simpson.

Aside from an outing with Australian actress Maddison Brown last month in NYC, Liam's pretty much been flying solo.

Liam's sister-in-law, Elsa Pataky, made headlines Thursday when she said Liam "deserves much better" than Miley. Chris Hemsworth's wife also said her brother-in-law is a little bit down and coping well with the split.

It's the right idea here for Liam ... surfing's good for the mind, body and soul.

"Man, it's been rough, to say the least."

That's an emotional Montae Nicholson -- still clearly distraught -- talking about how he's been handling the death of a 21-year-old woman while cooperating with police.

"I'd like to make it known that this week has been extremely hard on not only myself but Julia's friends and family as well," the Washington Redskins safety said.

We broke the story ... cops say Nicholson and another man dropped Julia Crabbe off at a Virginia-area hospital last Wednesday night, where she died from a suspected drug overdose.

Montae played for the Redskins vs. the Jets just 3 days later -- and on Thursday, Nicholson was asked point-blank if the team pressured him to take the field.

"End of the day, it was my decision. I wasn't forced into anything."

In fact, Nicholson says the Redskins organization has been extremely supportive while he deals with the tragedy and police investigation.

"My teammates and fans ... the head office, they made it very well known that they have my back ... they could have shut the door on me and turned their backs, but they didn't."

As we previously reported, investigators believe Crabbe had been at Montae's house before the OD ... and a search of Nicholson's home turned up marijuana, pills and "foil with residue."

Nicholson has NOT been accused of any criminal wrongdoing -- and says he's cooperating with police.

Meanwhile, the Redskins are set to play the Detroit Lions this week and Montae says he plans on taking the field again.

Myles Garrett is officially done for the season ... and perhaps even longer.

The Cleveland Browns superstar was banned indefinitely by the NFL after he attacked Mason Rudolph with the Steelers QB's helmet at the end of "Thursday Night Football" last week.

But, the 23-year-old met with league officials Wednesday (in his swaggiest blue outfit) with the hopes of getting the suspension reduced.

Turns out, the NFL wasn't buying what Garrett was selling ... and upheld the ban -- saying Garrett is still barred from the league for all of this season and maybe some of next.

"[Appeals officer James Thrash] has upheld all discipline issued to Myles Garrett," the league said in a statement.

It's a huge loss for the Browns ... Garrett was considered a Defensive Player of the Year candidate with 10 sacks in 10 games.

It's also a big financial bummer for Myles ... the former No. 1 overall pick was slated to make $4.6 MILLION this season, but because of the suspension, he'll lose over $1 MILLION of that.

For his part, Garrett did apologize for the Rudolph altercation ... but ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Thursday that Myles claimed the whole thing started because Rudolph hurled a racial slur at him.

Rudolph, through his attorney, has ADAMANTLY denied that accusation.

Terrell Owens just ripped Stephen A. Smith for his Colin Kaepernick criticism ... and straight-up told the ESPN star his white cohost, Max Kellerman, "almost seems blacker than you."

SAS has been one of Kap's biggest detractors since his NFL workout over the weekend ... essentially blasting the QB for not publicly explaining his situation further.

TO has taken major issue with the TV talent's takes, and even sent Stephen A. a private text message about it -- so Smith invited Owens on "First Take" to air it out.

The two were arguing alongside cohost Max Kellerman over the issue ... when Owens interrupted the discussion to say, "Max almost seems blacker than you, Stephen A."

SAS was FURIOUS about the comment -- calling a "timeout" and telling Owens he "crossed the line."

"Imma check you right now," Smith said. "You done crossed the line."

Eventually, Owens explained his comment by telling Smith, "You're taking it as disrespect. There's no disrespect ... it's tongue-in-cheek."

Doesn't seem Smith saw it that way ... 'cause he went on his ESPN Radio show later Thursday and said he wished he were on another network so he could curse about the whole incident.

Owens hasn't talked about the drama on social media yet ... but we're sure a tweet or IG post will be coming soon.

Jake Burton Carpenter -- the founder of Burton Snowboards and a pioneer of the sport -- has died after another bout with cancer, the company announced. He was 65.

Carpenter built his very first snowboard in a barn in Vermont in 1977 ... and things exploded from there. The sport became massive and now you can't go to a mountain anywhere in the world without seeing people shredding on a Burton board.

The news of Carpernter's death was revealed to Burton employees in an email on Thursday ... with co-CEO John Lacy saying, "It is with a very heavy heart that I share the news that Jake passed away peacefully last night surrounded by his family and loved ones as a result of complications from recurring cancer."

"He was our founder, the soul of snowboarding, the one who gave us the sport we all love so much."

Lacy added, "This all happened very sudden, and it’s a tremendous loss for his family, his friends and all of you. We will share more details about plans to celebrate Jake’s life soon."

Carpenter had battled testicular cancer in 2011 -- but on Nov. 9 he told the company the cancer had come back.

"It’s the same tumor as the first time around," Carpenter said at the time ... "We just never got rid of it all. A bit of it hung out in my lymph nodes and got back into business."

Carpenter added, "As much as I dread what is facing me, it’s easier to deal with when you know that you have a family that will carry on. I feel the same way about my company, my friends and our sport."

He noted the company was in "good hands, which is an amazing feeling when entering this zone of uncertainty."

Carpenter is survived by his wife and 3 sons.