ESPN’s Outside the Lines is reporting that NBA bound superstar O.J. Mayo received cash and gifts during his one year playing college basketball at USC.

Louis Johnson, formerly of Mayo’s close posse, says that O.J. received cash all the way back in high school and even received a flat screen TV among many other gifts while playing for the Trojans.

Louis Johnson, who was a part of Mayo’s inner circle until recently, said Mayo accepted around $30,000 in cash and gifts during the past four years from Rodney Guillory, a 43-year-old Los Angeles event promoter. In addition to cash, the gifts included a flat-screen television for Mayo’s dorm room, cell phone service, a hotel room, clothes, meals and airline tickets for Mayo’s friends and a relative, according to Johnson, others with knowledge of the gifts and store receipts.

When Mayo was in high school in Ohio and West Virginia, Guillory was receiving monthly payments from the Northern California sports agency Bill Duffy Associates. Johnson said BDA provided Guillory with around $200,000 before Mayo arrived at USC, and that Guillory used most of the money to support his own lifestyle but also gave a portion of it to Mayo.

Mayo failed to live up to lofty expectations placed upon himself coming out of high school. He is still projected to be a top 5 lottery pick in June’s NBA Draft. Many projections show either the Memphis Grizzlies or New York Knicks taking O.J.

At least USC won’t have to worry about forfeiting any championships from their mediocre season last year with Mayo. They could possibly be in big trouble with the NCAA. The NCAA is already investigating cash and gifts former star USC running back Reggie Bush received during his three years in Los Angeles.

For the most obnoxious moment in O.J.’s short basketball career check out the video below from his final high school game. He gets the ball on the fastbreak, throws himself a pass off the backboard, dunks it hard, then picks up the ball and hurls it high into the stands……and the worst part is that the game is not even over.
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The New York Knicks outbid the Chicago Bulls for the coaching services of head coach Mike D’Antoni.  The Phoenix Suns had put him on notice to pack his bags after the Suns were eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs by the San Antonio Spurs.

D’Antoni is set to make $24 million dollars over the next four-years from the Knicks.

The former Phoenix Suns coach, who was also sought by the Chicago Bulls, has accepted a four-year, $24 million deal to take over the Knicks, according to reports by Sports Illustrated and The Boston Globe, both citing a league source.

The Knicks did not immediately confirm that D’Antoni is New York-bound.

The Suns are going to miss D’Antoni.  The Bulls are going to regret not doing enough to land him as well.  D’Antoni might regret not going to the Bulls as well.  The Bulls are very close to becoming a pretty good team.  The Knicks are still many years and several bad contracts away from competing.

With the hirings of D’Antoni and Donnie Walsh as the new team president, the Knicks could be out of the cellar before too long.

Female Indy car driver Danica Patrick ran over her pitman Charles Buckman earlier today during practice for this Sunday’s Indy race.

According to Dr. Mike Ollinger, the director of Medical Affairs for the Indy Racing League, Buckman suffered a concussion along with scalp and facial lacerations. He was transported to Methodist Hospital for treatment where he is being held overnight.

“I really don’t remember how it happened,” Buckman said. “All I remember is I was talking with someone on Marco Andretti’s team and then everything is blank from that point.

“I will be OK and hopefully back to work in a day or two.”

No word if Danica was on her cell phone or doing her nails at the time of the accident. Let the female driver jokes commence!

Hopefully Mr. Buckman will make a quick and speedy recovery.

photo: Yahoo! Sports

Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and the crew at TNT’s Inside the NBA pull a very funny joke on Sir Charles Barkley. If you are familiar with movie anchorman Ron Burgundy then it will be even all the more hilarious.

If you ever wanted to hear Barkley admit he is a “dumbass” then this is the clip for you.

Watch and enjoy!

LeBron James might be the ‘King of Akron’ but he is not going to have too many waiters lining up to serve him and his posse in Cleveland if he continues to tip 1.25% on $800 tabs.

Here is how it all went down:

It went down like this: LeBron pulls up in his Mercedes outside XO. People stop and try not to stare, but c’mon, it’s LeBron James. He enters the restaurant with a group of friends. On this special occasion, the King decides to dine late. He keeps his group there until around 3:45 a.m. During this time the waiter obsequiously pours drinks and fetches anything else His Greatness needs.

The final bill comes to $800. By the feudal laws of decorum, which stipulate that the affluent should administer a 20 percent gratuity, staffers figured they’d be pocketing an extra $160. But when they fetched the autographed bill after His Heinousness bolted back to Akron, their expectation turned to disbelief, then anger.

LeBron stiffed them with a meager $10 tip.

LeBron is making over $13 million dollars in salary alone this year. He is making another $20 million plus in endorsements. So LBJ is making around $33 million bucks and he is still tipping like he is out in middle school with his girl at Denny’s.

Come on King that is just bad form and only adds to certain stereotypes. The BumpWife has been out with Michael Jordan when he was throwing down several Franklin’s on a much smaller tab. If you want to be great then be great off the court to those staying open hours after closing time who are making min. wage or less + tips.

Mindy, Angela & Paulette

Roger Clemens has a healthy appetite for women as was well reported last week. The ‘Rocket’ has been romantically linked to country music star Mindy McCready (story and photos), realtor Angela Moyer (story and photos), and John Daly’s ex-wife Paulette Dean Daly (story and photos).

Let me set up the poll question. You are at your local bar with several of your friends. They have already either retired for the night or gone home for late night activities. You are at the bar with the Roger’s version of the ‘Banger Sisters’. You have had three beers too many, are lonely, yet realize that one of these women would be eager to come home with you.

So who do you pick? Who wins the ‘Roger of Love’?

New York Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce is working as an intern on Howard Stern’s radio show.  Pierce is wanting to go into broadcasting after his career is over.

The Giants linebacker said he was serving as the show’s “intern” because he was interested in a role in broadcasting after his days in the NFL are done.

The Super Bowl champion was subjected to Stern hijinks, answering questions about his sex life and the NFL lifestyle.

Pierce believes teammate Michael Strahan is retiring.  Pierce’s woman, Jocelyn Maldonado Pierce, is the host of ‘Mets Weekly’.

Cynthia Rodriguez says that her slugging baseball husband Alex Rodriguez is a big wimp when it comes to doctors and the birth of their first daughter.

“The one nurse had a cold cloth on his head. The other nurse had the blood pressure on his arm. And my mother was like rubbing his back. And he is passed out on a couch. And I am there, in the middle of labor,” Cynthia Rodriguez, wife of the New York Yankees star, said on an episode of the YES Network’s “YESterdays” that is scheduled to be broadcast Wednesday night.

“And really, I am not being paid much attention to besides the doctor and a couple of nurses,” she said. “And he is there moaning. In between pushing, I am going, `Honey, are you OK?’ and `Are you breathing? Are you OK?’ “

Are any of us really surprised about A-Rod being a bit wimpy?

Soccer streaker Tiffany May has turned her Patriotic streak into a photo layout in Playboy magazine. May streaked at the USA-Honduras qualifying Olympic match back in March and two months later she is in America’s finest gentleman magazine.

It doesn’t take much to be famous in the 21st century. All you have to do is take off most of your clothes, tie on an American flag and run into the middle of a soccer game that most sports fans wouldn’t care about otherwise.

At least, that was the plan for Tiffany May, who went pitch invading during the USA v. Honduras Olympic qualifying match and became an Internet sensation. Now after taking off most of her clothes for the game, she’s cashing in on her 15 minutes of fame by taking off all her clothes — for Playboy.

As boxing promoter Don King would say, “Only in America!”

See the Streaker Video Below

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Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Tim Tebow spent his spring break in the Philippines on a mission trip spreading the ‘Good Word’ of Jesus Christ.  Tim helped on the medical mission trip even assisting in several circumcisions before the week was done.

During spring break, Tebow added a new facet to his fame. In an impoverished village outside General Santos City in the Philippines, Tebow helped circumcise impoverished children.

On the Friday of a weeklong trip to the orphanage his father’s ministry runs in Southeast Asia, Tebow assisted with the care of locals who had walked miles to the temporary clinic that the ministry helped organize. More than 250 people underwent medical and dental procedures, some of them from “Dr. Tebow,” who has no formal surgical training.

“The first time, it was nerve-racking,” he said. “Hands were shaking a little bit. I mean, I’m cutting somebody. You can’t do those kinds of things in the United States. But those people really needed the surgeries. We needed to help them.”

The legend of Saint Tebow continues to grow and grow.  It is hard not to be a fan of this guy regardless of your college team affiliation.  The Florida Gators are extremely lucky to have such a stand up guy on their college campus.

Roger with wife Debbie Clemens

After an extremely rough week of alleged affairs with multiple women, Roger Clemens apologized publicly to his many fans.  He said he had already apologized to his wife and family.

“I need to say that I have made mistakes in my personal life for which I am sorry,” Clemens said in a statement handed to the Houston Chronicle, a favorite outlet for Clemens and his lawyer Rusty Hardin.

“I have apologized to my family and apologize to my fans,” Clemens said. “Like everyone, I have flaws. I have sometimes made choices which have not been right.”

Clemens made it clear he is not admitting to using performance-enhancing drugs.

The apology follows a week where Clemens was outed for affairs with country star Mindy McCready, Pennsylvania realtor Angela Moyer, and John Daly’s ex-wife Paulette Dean Daly.

Is Roger the modern day Wilt Chamberlain of the sporting world?

The 134th running of the Kentucky Derby is stained by tragedy on Saturday when runner-up Eight Belles is euthanized on the track after breaking both front ankles. Pictured above, track personnel try to hold down the suffering filly following the race.

Eight Belles was examined on the track after the Derby, but Dr. Larry Bramlage, the Derby’s on-call veterinarian, said her injuries were too severe to even attempt to move her off the track. “There was no possible way to save her,” he said.

In the end, this year’s Run for the Roses may be remembered more for the catastrophe of Eight Belles than the championship sprint of Big Brown. “I’m deeply sympathetic to that team for their loss,” mourned Big Brown jockey Desormeaux.

Seriously, they should have euthanized these two and saved the horse, no?

source: [heidi montag online]

Round by Round coverage of Oscar De La Hoya vs. Steve Forbes live from Carson, California.

Round 1: A good opening round as both fighters came out and got in a few body blowers to each other. Forbes finally looked like he felt comfortable towards the end of the round. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 2: Oscar again comes out to start the round as the aggressor. Forbes lands some nice combos shortly after the one minute mark. Oscar responds in the last minute with some strong blows to Forbes head. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 3: This round was rather boring as Forbes stayed on the defensive for most of the round. Forbes didn’t land many this round but he did cut De La Hoya’s nose. The round still goes to Oscar. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 4: Steve comes out with a flurry and seems to have Oscar on his heels. Oscar landed a really strong hook and upper cut about half way through the round. Forbes responded and is hanging tough. This was Steve’s best round but it was still very close. I will give it to Forbes. Forbes 10-9

Round 5: A very impressive round from De La Hoya as he continues to pound Forbes head. Forbes’ left eye has taken a serious beating. Oscar seems very much in control and easily landed the most impressive punches in this round. Forbes had to tie Oscar up at the end of the round before the ref broke them up. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 6: Oscar probably isn’t landing half of his punches but that’s ok because he is out punching Forbes by a land slide and has done more damage to his face. This fight might not go much longer. The round easily belongs to Oscar. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 7: Forbes spent most of this round against the ropes as Oscar continued to be the aggressor and very much in control of this fight. Forbes has to be thrilled he has lasted this long. His face is getting worse as Oscar continues to land some great punches. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 8: Forbes finally shows a bit of life landing two to the head of Oscar after he was lazy after throwing a couple of haymakers. The pace of the fight has slowed down as both men seem to be dancing around….Forbes for survival and Oscar because he knows this fight is his unless he does something stupid. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 9: De La Hoya seems a bit pissed this round, perhaps because Forbes is still standing and in the ring. Oscar is more aggressive than he was in round 8 when he was kind of just dancing around. He starts the round with a flurry of punches and ends it very much the same way. Forbes has to be thrilled so far that he has lasted 9 rounds with the champ. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 10: Oscar landed several punches that had Forbes doubled over as the crowd rose to their feet anticipating a knock out. Forbes regrouped, found strength, and landed some of his best punches of the night. Oscar withstood them pretty well and still won the round. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 11: This fight continues to go on as Forbes has won a good part of the crowd over by lasting this long. De La Hoya lands a good amount of punches. Forbes finishes the round strong as he tries to take it from Oscar. Oscar can’t finish this cat off and he is now looking very tired. Oscar finishes the round with a strong four-punch combo but Steve’s strong chin withstands it. De La Hoya 10-9

Round 12: Crowd chanting for Oscar to knock out Forbes as he has him against the rope but his punches are extremely soft at this point. Oscar is out of juice and can’t knock him out. Forbes showboats a bit, pleased that he went the distance with Oscar. Forbes was no where close to winning this round or the fight though. De La Hoya 10-9

WINNER: Oscar De La Hoya (119-109)

Here is a look at the latest odds for today’s 134th running of the Kentucky Derby which can be viewed on NBC. Race (Post) time is at 5pm EST/3pm PST.

#1 Cool Coal Man, 36 to 1

#2. Tale of Ekati, 45 to 1

#3. Anak Nakal, 57 to 1

#4. Court Vision, 14 to 1

#5. Eight Belles, 8 to 1

#6. Z Fortune, 17 to 1

#7. Big Truck, 20 to 1

#8. Visionaire, 22 to 1

#9. Pyro, 5 to 1

#10. Colonel John, 4 to 1

#11. Z Humor, 67 to 1

#12 Smooth Air, 40 to 1

#13 Bob Black Jack, 26 to 1

#14 Monba, 30 to 1

#15, Adriano, 24 to 1

#16 Denis of Cork, 27 to 1

#17 Cowboy Cal, 42 to 1

#18 Recapturetheglory, 47 to 1

#19 Gayego, 21 to 1

#20 Big Brown, 7 to 2

Prediction: Eight Belles - The only Philly in the Derby. I figure she will be very fast thinking that 19 studs are on her tail trying to catch her. My wife is not known for her speed but I know she would be Seabiscuit quick if 19 athletic men were chasing her down from behind.

The L.A. Times is reporting that Lakers guard Kobe Bryant will win his first MVP Award when the NBA announces the winner next week in Los Angeles

Sources familiar with the outcome who were not authorized to speak publicly about the award until the official announcement from the league said Commissioner David Stern will be in Los Angeles next week to present the trophy to Bryant.

The award, selected by NBA writers and broadcasters, figured to go to either Bryant or New Orleans guard Chris Paul, who guided the Hornets to second place in the Western Conference in the regular season.

Kobe wins the award in his 12th NBA season.  He averaged 28.3 points 6.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists.

Personally I believe Chris Paul was the MVP and I named him Bumpshack’s MVP in my 2007-2008 NBA Awards.  I can’t find much argument with Kobe winning it though.  The NBA usually awards its veterans with the MVP Award and Kobe had never won the award before this year.  Paul is likely to win several MVP’s in due time.

Indianapolis Colts All-Pro wide receiver Marvin Harrison is being investigated about a shooting that took place outside of his bar Playmakers.  No charges have yet been filed against Harrison or anybody else.

The source said the alleged victim came into the bar, Playmakers, about 5 p.m. and engaged in an argument with Harrison, who was at the bar. The victim then left the bar, heading to his car, with Harrison following. Gunfire broke out, the victim was hit in the hand, and a young girl was slightly injured by flying glass from a car that apparently was hit by a bullet.

Police came to scene, but the victim did not identify a shooter. On Wednesday, according to the source, ballistic tests showed that the gun that had fired the shots was a custom-made Belgian weapon, and police determined that Harrison owned such a gun. A source told ESPN.com’s John Clayton that the gun is registered.

Marvin is one of the last people in the NFL I would suspect to be involved in something like this.  It is not looking too good for Harrison in the limited details that have surfaced so far.

LSU Tigers quarterback Ryan Perrilloux, who was heavily expected to be the starting quarterback this fall, has been booted off the team by head coach Les Miles.

LSU coach Les Miles did not offer details, but sources within the program told ESPN.com’s Mark Schlabach and ESPN’s Joe Schad that Perrilloux failed a drug test.

Perrilloux, who had been suspended three times in his college career, “didn’t fulfill his obligation as an LSU student-athlete,” Miles said in a statement. The school said Friday that Perrilloux is expected to finish out the spring semester.

It was time to boot Ryan off the team and start preparing for the upcoming season with guys you can depend upon to be there for the team.  If Ryan could ever keep his head straight and stay on the field he would be a very good college quarterback.  However, he seems to have decided to be the next Lawrence Phillips.

Geaux Tigers!

Roger Clemens has been accused this week of having affairs with an under aged Mindy McCready (read story), Angela Moyer (read story), and now John Daly’s ex-wife Paulette Dean Daly according to the NY Daily News.

The sources said Clemens, a married father of four, arranged trips to Anaheim Stadium for Daly - the latest woman to emerge as an alleged Rocket flame - to watch him pitch forthe Yankees against the Angels. Sources also said he spent time with her in Palm Springs, Calif.

The pair met at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, a Palm Springs golf tournament that Paulette Dean Daly has been involved with for many years - including stints as a “Classic Girl,” one of the beautiful women who help in ceremonial duties at the event, sources said.

“Yeah, I’ve known Roger quite a while and we are friends,” Daly said yesterday.

But was it romantic between Roger and Paulette?

She declined to elaborate on the nature of her relationship with the pitcher, but did not deny allegations from several sources that it was romantic and included financial support.

The NY Daily News has hit three homers off of Clemens this week. Will his attorney Rusty Hardin come out to the mound and pull Roger’s defamation suit against former trainer Brian McNamee to get Roger back into the safety of the club house?

President Bush while welcoming the New York Giants to the White House to congratulate them on their Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots cracked a pretty funny joke at the expense of Jessica Simpson.

“We are going to send Jessica Simpson to the Democratic National Convention,” Bush said as the Giants players laughed behind him.

Many blame the Dallas Cowboys and their post season collapse on quarterback Tony Romo who started dating Simpson during the middle of last season.  Romo had his worst game ever when Jessica came to see him play for the first time.

Dallas Mavericks basketball coach Avery Johnson was fired by boss Mark Cuban after the Mavs were rocked in the first round of the 2008 NBA Playoffs by the New Orleans Hornets.

The Mavericks, despite great regular seasons, were eliminated from the Playoffs in the first round each of the past two years.  Avery had the team in the NBA Finals just three years ago.  They had a 2-0 game lead on Miami before the Heat came back to win it all.  The franchise has not been the same since then.

Don’t worry about Avery.  He will land on his feet with another NBA team before long.  I just have no clue how professional players could tolerate hearing his voice for 82+ games a season.

Cuban should take a lot of the blame for trading for a very over-the-hill Jason Kidd that totally threw a kink in any chemistry the team had before his arrival.

No word yet if Avery plans to file a discrimination suit for being fired for being too short.

Avery’s Career Coaching Mark with the Mavs

• Regular Season 194-70
• Post Season 23-24

Avery wasn’t the only coach fired today.  The Phoenix Suns split ways with their head coach Mike D’Antoni as well.  D’Antoni was the victim of a bad trade as well…for .