Basketball

PSA for all the Internet trolls out there -- if you come at Drake, he WILL DM your significant other ... and the 6 God proved it during a heated debate over NBA star Ja Morant's dad.

Here's the deal -- Drizzy hit the Instagram comments to defend Tee Morant over a meme criticizing his support for the Grizzlies guard throughout the playoffs, which some have deemed "annoying."

Drake was having none of it -- saying, "Imagine your son makes the league and he’s Ja Or Melo (Ball) or Lonzo (Ball) all you can do is be elated and competitive and over supportive and it’s a right of passage to that the OG’s talk s*** 😂😂😂😂."

"I know I’mma be this way even if my son is in a rubix cube competition 😎."

One troll thought it would be wise to crack back at Drake by referencing the rumor he doesn't write his own songs ... saying, "ya son prolly play with ghost writers."

Big mistake -- 'cause Drake fired right back in the most ruthless way possible.

"I just followed your girl cause she prob miserable and needs some excitement in her life."

Sheesh.

And, get this -- Drake wasn't kidding ... because the troll later posted a screenshot of his wife getting a DM from Champagne Papi himself, which read, "I'm here for u ma."

Chalk this one up as a win for Drake ... and a teachable moment for anyone else looking to go after him.

G-Eazy suffered a sneaker catastrophe at the Celtics game on Tuesday -- when his expensive and rare pair of Air Yeezys CRACKED on him ... but luckily, he had a backup pair of Jordans ready to sub in.

The Bay Area rapper was showing off his Kanye West x Nike kicks in several IG photos before the Celtics tipped off against the Bucks in Boston ... when a sneakerhead's worst nightmare happened.

As it turns out, the kicks completely gave out on the "Provide" rapper during the game ... showing off a crack in the rubber outsole.

"One of the last wears I might get out of these babys," Gerald said on social media ... clearly heartbroken over the situation.

And, these aren't just any Yeezys -- these are one of three colorways of the Air Yeezy "Zen" release -- Ye's first sneaker he made with the Swoosh in 2009, before he eventually switched over to Adidas.

Of course, not everyone wants to give up on the sneaks just yet -- one fan responded, "Last wears? Boy give me that s***. I'll fix em."

But, Mr. Eazy didn't have to go home barefoot -- it appears his buddy, Walid Samaha, was able to secure some Union LA x Air Jordan 2 "Rattan" kicks and have them delivered right to him at his courtside seat!!

"In game substitution," G-Eazy said, "Bye Yeezys!"

FYI -- the Zens cost up to $10k on popular sneaker app GOAT and up to $50k on StockX (in a size 14) ... but we're pretty sure the award-winning rapper will cop another pair.

Kevin Durant now has as many soccer teams as he does championship rings -- the NBA superstar just invested in Gotham FC!!

The new NWSL club announced KD and his business partner, Rich Kleiman, just made a "significant" investment in the franchise ... joining U.S. women's team legend Carli Lloyd in the ownership group.

Of course, KD's Thirty Five Ventures first dipped its toe into soccer back in 2020 ... when it bought a minority stake in the MLS' Philadelphia Union.

No word on how much KD and Kleiman shelled out for their piece of Gotham FC, but the team hints it was substantial.

KD shares his excitement on Wednesday ... tweeting out, "Let’s get it @GothamFC."

Kleiman commented on the business move ... saying, "As a New York-based company, the opportunity for us to partner with a forward-thinking team like Gotham FC was a no brainer,"

"There’s been so much growth in the NWSL in recent years, and the chance to be a part of that growth and work directly with the Gotham FC executive team and players is really exciting."

KD's company is slated to be hands-on -- helping out with player relations, community outreach, producing content and building a social media presence.

The WNBA will be honoring Brittney Griner -- one of the league's biggest stars -- with "BG42" court decals this upcoming season ... while she still remains in custody in Russia.

WNBA commish, Cathy Engelbert, made the announcement on Tuesday ... revealing the Griner logo and promising to keep "Brittney at the forefront of what we do through the game of basketball and in the community."

"We continue to work on bringing Brittney home," Englebert added, "and are appreciative of the support the community has shown BG and her family during this extraordinarily challenging time."

The logo features Griner's initials and her #42 jersey number. The league says it will have a prominent place on the sidelines of all 12 WNBA courts.

Englebert and the league also announced Griner -- who's been detained by Russian officials since February after she allegedly had hashish oil in her luggage at an airport -- will receive her full salary this season. They also announced they've granted her Phoenix Mercury team roster and salary cap relief for a replacement.

The 31-year-old hooper, meanwhile, is still in custody in Russia ... and, according to a new ESPN report, the U.S. government says Griner is now being classified as "wrongfully detained" and is attempting to negotiate her release instead of letting her case move forward.

"Brittney has been detained for 75 days," Griner's agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, said to ESPN on Tuesday, "and our expectation is that the White House do whatever is necessary to bring her home."

Floyd Mayweather helped a guy turn in his back into the biggest yearbook signature page ever -- etching his name right into his skin ... just one more out of hundreds already there.

The boxing great was on hand Saturday for The Parlor Games Celebrity Basketball Classic (presented by Celebrity Sports Entertainment), where he was one of many celebs in Vegas for star-studded game on the court.

At one point, though, it appears he was approached by social media influencer Funky Matas -- who's kinda famous for all the writing on his body ... specifically, his entire back.

Stars like Will Smith, Gerard Butler, Steve-O, Michael J. Fox, Elijah Wood, Christopher Lloyd, Chris Rock, Usain Bolt, Tara Reid, Mike Tyson, Tony Hawk, Rob Schneider, Travis Barker and even the guy who voiced SpongeBob SquarePants ... just to name a few.

All in all, he's got upwards of 300 signatures -- yes, he's world record holder -- and now ... Floyd's in the pantheon too. Dude did seem a little hesitant though, and we can't blame him.

LeBron James is getting a ton of blame for the Lakers' failures this season, but Kent Bazemore is coming to his teammate's defense ... telling TMZ Sports the King did everything he could to help L.A. win.

A quick Google search of "LeBron Lakers" will show experts and analysts pointing the finger at the 4-time champ over the team's inability to make the playoffs ... especially after his reported influence on acquiring Russell Westbrook, an experiment that crashed and burned.

But, Bazemore wants to hear none of that talk -- sticking up for what James has done on-and-off the court.

"The dude was third in the league in scoring," Baze said at LAX this week. "What else do you want him to do? He put his body through a lot this year to be there for us."

37-year-old James finished with 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists a game this season ... bringing him 1,325 points away from passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time list.

"He's chasing Kareem," Kent added. "He's done a lot for the game. He's given a platform to a lot of people. He's changing the world."

When asked if LeBron deserves more respect for what he's done over the years, Bazemore replied, "100%."

Chris Paul went absolutely nutty yesterday ... breaking an NBA Playoff record while leading the Phoenix Suns to victory over Curren$y's New Orleans Pelicans, but Spitta Andretti is taking it in stride.

The NOLA rap legend was courtside Thursday night in his hometown to witness CP3 shoot a perfect 33-point game. Following the 115-109 victory, Chris still had enough energy to talk smack to Spitta and his manager Mousa in a viral moment on the sidelines.

The footage is hilarious … CP3 was still in go mode as Curren$y eventually playfully pushed him off.

Curren$y tells TMZ Hip Hop of the heartfelt moment "Chris was just talking s***," as they've been pals for a long time. Remember, CP3 started his future Hall of Fame career with the then-New Orleans Hornets.

Despite the loss, Curren$y says the playoff experience unified the city -- "The Pelicans put it all on the court for us and we filled the arena for them," Spitta continued. I feel like this turnaround season is definitely gonna be a booster shot to the season ticket sales."

Spitta's having a personal come-up in 2022, having dropped off 2 projects this year alone ("Land Air Sea" Chopped + Slopped reissue w/ Cash Fargo and "Continuance" w/ Grammy-Nominated producer The Alchemist) -- and recently blazed his way through a heralded Tiny Desk Concert ... dropped, appropriately, on 4/20.

Maybe LeBron James is cool with the Lakers missing the playoffs after all -- the King just took his closest friends on a jaw-dropping getaway to the Maldives ... and the vacation looked insane.

Okay, let's be real -- the 4-time champ definitely wishes he was making another run at an NBA title right now ... but hitting up a private island instead definitely doesn't suck.

Bron posted a ton of footage from the trip ... which included bike rides, soaking in the beach waters, riding on boats and enjoying all the food and drink the group could handle.

The group included James' wife, Savannah, longtime trusted friend Ernie Ramos and his wife, Klutch Sports COO Fara Leff, DJ Bamboozle and more.

It was a trip that most people can only dream of ... and we're assuming the whole thing cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

You're not going to BEE-lieve this!!

Rudy Gobert's nose is all messed up after getting stung by a bee this week ... and his face is still pretty swollen just hours before the Jazz's must-win playoff game against the Mavs!!

The 7'1" center showed off the damage via Instagram minutes ago ... and you could tell by his face -- the bee got 'em really good.

As it turns out, the All-Star owns a hive at his house ... and joked about how one of the insects attacked him.

"It bee your own bees sometimes," Rudy captioned a pic of his swollen face. Gobert also joked when he showed up to media availability -- "It was seven guys. But I'm the only one who came out the room."

Rudy told reporters the sting happened two days ago while he was changing the Queen out.

Gobert says he's basically used to getting stung at this point -- this is the third time it's happened.

The Salt Lake Bees -- a Minor League Baseball Triple-A affiliate for the Angels -- decided to poke fun at the 3-time Defensive Player of the Year over the incident ... saying, "The Salt Lake Bees deny any involvement in this terrible act and wish @rudygobert27 a speedy recovery and a wonderful game 6 #gojazz."

As of right now, Gobert hasn't been ruled out of Thursday's pivotal Game 6 against Luka Doncic and the Mavs ... which is a promising sign for Jazz fans.

It's apparently like mother, like daughter in the Curry household ... because 9-year-old Riley Curry showed she's got mad skills in the kitchen just like momma Ayesha!!

And, now we officially feel super old.

Steph's wife posted video of her daughter killin' it with the utensils on Tuesday night ... revealing the chef blood apparently runs strong in the Currys.

Little Riley -- who's all grown up since she famously went viral at Steph's playoff games years ago -- whipped up chicken piccata with mashed potatoes and veggies ... and it all looked amazing.

Riley dusted the chicken with flour all on her own and fried it up herself -- with Ayesha saying on the video, "I'm so dang proud! I literally did nothing!"

The meal also included halibut ... and Riley shouted out her mom -- who, if you weren't aware, is a wizard in the kitchen -- for the lessons that led up to the finished product.

"I learned from the best," Riley said on camera as her mom gushed.

Riley topped off the meal with some sparkling grape juice -- and judging by the plates set up on the dinner table, it appears Steph was able to indulge in his daughter's dishes as well.

Twinning!!!

Music superstar Usher chopped it up with his perfect doppelganger at the Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves game on Tuesday ... hanging out courtside with Ja Morant's dad -- and it was hilarious!!

Of course, fans have been commenting about how the Memphis superstar's pops looks strikingly similar to the "Yeah!" singer throughout the playoffs ... and finally, the two men met face-to-face.

Usher pulled up to Game 5 of the Grizzlies' home game against the Wolves ... and of course, Tee Morant was in the building to support his son Ja, who just won the Most Improved Player Award for this season.

Tee has been making headlines all series -- early on in the playoffs, he enjoyed some friendly back-and-forth with Karl-Anthony Towns' dad, Karl-Anthony Towns Sr. ... and fans couldn't help but notice how much he looked like Usher.

While people swear Tee is Usher's doppelganger, it reached new heights on Tuesday ... when the two wore matching black outfits to the matchup!!

Both twins got to see an incredible game -- with about 6 seconds left on the game clock, Minnesota rising star Anthony Edwards hit a clutch 3-pointer to tie the game at 109-109.

But, Ja would not be denied ... as he beat Edwards to his spot and finished at the rim with a nifty layup over Jarred Vanderbilt ... propelling the Grizzlies to a 111-109 victory.

Jerry West might not want to hold his breath waiting on an apology from HBO ... 'cause the network is defending the controversial 'Winning Time' show and standing firmly with its "talented creators."

The show has been under serious scrutiny since it debuted in March -- with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and, most recently, Jerry West, completely trashing the validity of what happens in each episode ... claiming a lot of it is straight-up not true.

But, HBO -- which had previously stayed silent on the public outcry -- released a statement to The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday ... and the network didn't hold back.

"HBO has a long history of producing compelling content drawn from actual facts and events that are fictionalized in part for dramatic purposes," the network said in the statement.

"'Winning Time' is not a documentary and has not been presented as such. However, the series and its depictions are based on extensive factual research and reliable sourcing, and HBO stands resolutely behind our talented creators and cast who have brought a dramatization of this epic chapter in basketball history to the screen."

Of course, Quincy Isaiah -- who plays Magic -- pointed out to TMZ Sports earlier this month that the show clearly says that events in the show might have been dramatized ... and he meant no malice while doing his job.

Kyrie Irving is admitting it ... his COVID vaccine drama did become a "distraction" for him and his teammates this season.

Irving -- who was forced to sit out a large portion of the year after refusing to get the shots -- said following the Brooklyn Nets' 4-0 series sweep to the Boston Celtics on Monday night that his unvaccinated status did have a big effect on his team this year.

"It was just really heavy emotionally this season," Irving told reporters after the Nets' 116-112 Game 4 loss. "We all felt it. I felt like I was letting the team down at a point where I wasn't able to play."

"We were trying to exercise every option for me to play, but I never wanted it to just be about me. And, I think it became a distraction at times."

You'll recall, Irving was initially barred from Nets games and practices over his vaccine choice. He was later allowed to play in road games for the team, but not home ones due to New York mandates.

And, by the time Irving was fully allowed to suit up for Brooklyn ... the team had developed just too many issues on top of the whole ordeal to gel in time for a deep playoff run.

Head coach Steve Nash said following the loss Tuesday night it all certainly weighed on the team.

"I think that's a big reason why we were in that position," Nash said, "a lack of continuity."

South Carolina Gamecocks superfan Darius Rucker gave "Wagon Wheel" an R-rated upgrade during a concert this week ... getting the whole crowd to chant "f*** Tennessee" in the middle of it -- and it's incredible.

The Hootie and the Blowfish frontman was part of the South Carolina women's basketball championship party on Sunday night ... and naturally, he had to put his passion for the 'Cocks on full display.

In fact, when it came time to do his hit song, Rucker switched up the lyrics that go "But he's a-headin' west from the Cumberland Gap To Johnson City, Tennessee" ... and instead, had the whole arena scream "f*** Tennessee at the top of their lungs to show hate for the Volunteers.

The moment is awesome ... and is quite the proper way to celebrate South Carolina's epic win over UConn earlier this month.

Nelly was also present for the free concert ... so the night was truly one to remember.

Of course, we've seen stuff like this happen in the past ... with Justin Bieber trolling fans in Montreal over his allegiance to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Pelicans fans were all over Suns' forward Jae Crowder last night ... starting an impromptu (and pretty damn loud) "F*** Jae Crowder" chant during the game.

The chant came in the second quarter of Game 4 between the Suns and Pelicans ... Crowder was called for a foul on Brandon Ingram, sending BI to the charity stripe for two free throws.

And, it was clear as day on the game broadcast ... "F*** Jae Crowder!" But, why the animosity?

Pels fans probably still have the visual of Crowder going after New Orleans' big man Jaxson Hayes on Friday after refs hit Hayes with a flagrant 2 foul and ejected him.

Hayes barreled into Crowder as if he were a linebacker blowing up a running back ... though, a WWE Superstar would've approved of how Crowder sold the hit.

Jae got off the floor and made a beeline in Hayes' direction before he was stopped by teammate Mikal Bridges.

Hayes was ultimately ejected after refs deemed the play was "unnecessary and excessive."

Amazing news from Aaliyah Gayles' father ... the USC hoops recruit's dad tells TMZ Sports she will return to the basketball court and play for the Trojans -- despite being shot multiple times last weekend.

As we previously reported, four people -- including 18-year-old Gayles -- were shot when someone opened fire at a North Las Vegas house party on April 16.

Gayles' dad, Dwight, tells us his daughter went to the party to accompany a friend and stayed for only 30 minutes or so before she decided to leave -- and that's when the shooting happened.

Dwight says the 5-foot-9 guard was hit a total of 10 times in "both arms and both legs" and had her third surgery this week.

Thankfully, Dwight says Aaliyah is expected to make a full recovery -- and is still planning to play for the USC women's basketball team.

"She will be able to play ball again," Dwight tells us. "It's God's plan."

"She is still a USC Trojan."

Trojans head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said in a statement shortly after the shooting that Gayles is "one of the strongest, most resilient young people I have ever known" and she will continue to support her and her family.

Gayles is a 5-star recruit and the #8 overall ranked player in ESPN's 2022 class. At Spring Valley High School last season, she averaged 13.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 3.3 assists per game.

She led the Grizzlies to the Class 5A state tournament and was named a McDonald's All-American -- the first Las Vegas player to earn the honor since 2010.