Ezekiel Elliott was involved in an altercation with a HUGE celebrity DJ in Vegas early Monday morning -- with the DJ going off about the incident on video after the fact ... and it's intense.
But, sources connected to Zeke tell us ... the Cowboys star is adamant he wasn't the one in the wrong.
Here's what we know for sure ... Zeke and Dak Prescott were partying at Drai's After Hours at The Cromwell Hotel and Casino where DJ Franzen was hanging out.
DJ Franzen is a huge force in hip-hop -- he's tight with guys like Jay-Z, T.I. and Big Sean ... and Drake even gave him TWO shout-outs in TWO different songs ("The Motto" and "Elevate").
Sources connected to Franzen tell us ... he walked over to say hi and that's when Elliott and some of his crew got aggressive and things started to pop off.
One Franzen source tells us ... Dak walked over to the DJ and attempted to smooth things over -- but it was already too late ... Franzen felt disrespected and decided to go off on social media.
"Can you believe Ezekiel Elliott tried to pick a fight with me?!" Franzen said in an IG video first spotted by SportsGossip.com ... "Man, F*CK THE COWBOYS!!!"
"Get the f*ck up out of Vegas man," he added ... "You are never allowed in my section again, you little bitch."
He finished with this message -- "If y'all know Ezekiel Elliott, you tell em DJ Franzen said 'F*ck you ... you little bitch ass motherf*cker.'"
Our Zeke sources tell a different story ... claiming Franzen came over in an aggressive manner and was talking trash about the Cowboys.
One source put it this way, "He was trying to provoke Zeke."
Whoever was at fault, one thing's for sure -- don't expect these guys to be hanging out in Vegas together any time soon.