Basketball

Jeremy Roach isn't planning on letting a dislocated finger get in the way of him putting on a show in the Sweet Sixteen on Friday ... the Duke hoops star tells TMZ Sports he'll be good to go against Houston!

ICYMI, the senior guard injured his pinky during the Blue Devils' NCAA tournament win over James Madison on Sunday.

Even though it looked painful as hell, it thankfully wasn't broken ... and according to Roach, he won't be limited much by the dinged digit when Duke faces off with the Cougars.

Teyana Taylor is convinced Iman Shumpert's relationship with a woman is negatively impacting their children -- so much so, she wants an expert to get involved in their divorce ... TMZ has learned.

In new court documents, obtained by TMZ, Teyana's attorney asks the court to let her call on a child psychologist to testify about something she says went down a couple weeks ago, when their daughters were staying with their father.

According to the docs, the ex-NBA star had a female friend and her daughter staying at his home during his parenting weekend with the daughters. Teyana's attorney says they know this because Teyana saw the woman's daughter and heard the woman during a FaceTime check-in with their daughters.

Michigan politician Matt Maddock is adamant that several buses filled with the Gonzaga men's basketball team were actually packed with "illegal invaders" -- and despite being proven wrong ... he's still insisting it's true.

Maddock posted the nonsense on his X page on Wednesday night ... after seeing three large buses get a police escort away from the Detroit Metropolitan Airport.

The MI House of Representatives member -- a Republican -- said to his nearly 2,000 followers, "Happening right now. Three buses just loaded up with illegal invaders at Detroit Metro."

NBA center Isaiah Hartenstein is opening up on how people react when they find out he's actually Black ... saying the experience is like something straight out of a "Key and Peele" sketch.

The 25-year-old hooper's teammates, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, got right to the point when they invited him on their "Roommates" podcast this week ... when the former asked Hartenstein straight-up, "Are you Black?"

The six-year vet broke it all down ... explaining his dad, Florian, is Black.

"You know how it's like lightskin? I'm brightskin," Hartenstein said. "I'm above lightskin."

The 7'0" big man went on to point out there's one big difference he notices after folks learn he's Black ... and he compared it to the famous skit from the Comedy Central show, when Jordan Peele's Barack Obama character bases his handshake approach on race.

"When they find out I'm Black, it changes," Hartenstein added. "The whole vibe changes -- it goes from, 'Hey Zay, how are you doing?' to 'Yo, Zay, what up, man? You good?'"

A hefty fine is surely coming Kelly Oubre Jr.'s way -- the Philadelphia 76ers hooper absolutely unloaded on referees over a blown call at the end of Wednesday's game ... appearing to call them a bunch of bitches.

The Sixers' 108-107 loss to the LA Clippers ended in controversy ... when KO drove the lane in hopes of getting the lead in the final seconds of the contest, but made contact with Paul George instead.

Oubre and Sixers coach Nick Nurse were both LIVID over the non-call after the buzzer ... yelling at officials and needing to be restrained.

The internet lipreaders seemed to figure out what Oubre said in the confrontation ... claiming Oubre pointed at Kevin Scott, Brandon Adair and JB DeRosa individually and said, "you're a bitch, you're a bitch, you're a bitch."

It didn't stop there -- some believe Oubre even started talking about their relatives ... also referring to them as bitches.

Some on the internet have felt the 28-year-old's frustration was perhaps warranted ... as Scott admitted after the game a foul should've been called on the play.

Despite being technically right, Oubre expressed remorse for his actions in the locker rooms ... saying, "I want to apologize for just losing my cool, because that's something I try to work on each and every day, and try to represent God in the best way I possibly can, and that wasn't it."

"So I just ask for forgiveness."

10:00 AM PT -- Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore are adamant they were not the reason for the failed deal, releasing a statement through their spokesperson on Thursday afternoon that read, "We have fulfilled our obligations, have all necessary funding and are fully committed to closing our purchase of the team as soon as the NBA completes its process."

"Glen Taylor's statement," the two continued, "is an unfortunate case of seller's remorse that is short sighted and disruptive to the team and the fans during a historic winning season."

Alex Rodriguez won't be the majority owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx after all ... the orgs' owner just announced the former MLB star's bid to buy the teams has fallen through.

Glen Taylor, the current honcho of the NBA and WNBA squads, announced the news in a statement on Thursday morning ... explaining Rodriguez and former Walmart CEO Marc Lore's effort to become new majority owners collapsed after the two missed a key deadline this week.

"Under terms of the purchase agreement," Taylor said in the statement, "the closing was required to occur within 90 days following the exercise notice issued by Lore and Rodriguez. That 90-day period expired on March 27, 2024."

"Under certain circumstances, the buyer could have been entitled to a limited extension. However, those circumstances did not occur."

Rodriguez and Lore had previously bought 40 percent of the teams in prior sales. The most recent agreement between the two and Taylor was set to give them an additional 40 percent of the franchises.

Taylor said despite the failed pact, he'll still work with Lore and Rodriguez to "ensure our teams have the necessary resources to compete at the highest levels on and off the court."

As for going forward, Taylor doesn't appear to have plans of re-entering into talks with the two about a purchase ... saying, "The Timberwolves and Lynx are no longer for sale."

The Wolves currently have one of the best teams in the NBA, holding a 50-22 record. The Lynx -- who've won four WNBA titles -- are slated to begin their season this summer.

Vanessa Bryant surprised the UConn men's basketball team with some Kobe kicks ahead of its Sweet 16 matchup with SDSU ... gifting the unreleased "Italian Camo" Protros to the squad -- and the players loved them!!

The Huskies got the amazing gifts on Wednesday, some 24 hours before they take on the No. 5 Aztecs in Boston as part of the NCAA tournament's next round.

In video posted by the team, you can see the Big East champs had no idea they were going to get the presents from Vanessa ... and the players went nuts when they officially got to unwrap the Nike sneakers -- which won't be available to the public 'til April.

"I just wanna say thank you to Vanessa Bryant and the Bryant family. We appreciate you," senior guard Hassan Diarra said after getting his pair. "We're gonna show out in the NCAA tournament!"

The shoes have been dubbed the "Italian Camos" ... and they were created to pay tribute to Kobe Bryant's Italian background.

This, of course, is not the first time UConn's gotten some custom Bryant footwear ... during last year's tourney, the team -- which is part of the Nike Mamba Program -- was gifted custom Huskies Kobe 8 Protros.

Remember, Kobe always had a soft spot for UConn ... he was famously a big fan of the school's men's and women's basketball teams when he was alive -- as was his daughter, Gianna, who went to several games with Dad during her life.

Draymond Green issued a mea culpa for his actions on his "The Draymond Green Show" Thursday morning ... admitting, "I said what I said. I deserved to get kicked out at that point."

"It just can't happen," he added.

Draymond Green was ejected from yet another NBA game Wednesday night -- this time for screaming at a ref -- and Steph Curry was so upset that it happened again, he got visibly emotional on the floor.

The latest DG meltdown happened early in the first quarter of the Warriors' matchup with the Magic in Orlando ... after Green was furious with official Ray Acosta over some foul calls.

Green went up to the ref and began screaming in his face ... and, initially, Acosta appeared to be set to let it all slide with a technical call.

Ice Cube clearly thinks Caitlin Clark can succeed in the Big3 ... but one man who's convinced she can't is ex-NBA star Kenyon Martin, who said Wednesday she wouldn't be able to score a single point in the 3-on-3 league.

The Iowa Hawkeyes star received a $5 million offer to join Cube's hoops org. on Wednesday ... but when Martin was asked how he thinks she'd fare if she accepted the deal -- he made it clear, he thinks it'd be a mess.

"It's a step under prison ball," the former NBA player said of the Big3's action on Gilbert Arenas' "Gil's Arena Show." "Could you imagine her getting stuck down on Reggie Evans?"

Shaquille O'Neal might think Ice Spice is "so dam fine," but he swears he wasn't trying to rizz up the rapper with his Instagram caption after the Super Bowl .... claiming he was just trying to be nice!!

The 52-year-old Hall of Famer explained what happened on his "Big Podcast With Shaq" this week ... saying he ran into IS when he hopped over to Taylor Swift's Allegiant Stadium suite during halftime of the big game.

Shaq shared a pic of his meet-up with Swift, Spice and others ... and he raised a ton of eyebrows when his caption praised the "Think U The S*** (Fart)" MC's beauty.

Caitlin Clark's team hasn't pounced on the Big3's $5 million offer just yet ... with Ice Cube revealing his basketball league doesn't know whether she'll take the massive payday.

The 3-on-3 organization cofounder joined the "Pat McAfee Show" on Wednesday to discuss the historic proposal ... and despite the radio silence on Clark's end so far, he's holding out hope until he gets a definitive "yes" or "no."

"They have it and if they wanna sign it, we'll be happy to have her play in the Big3," Cube said.

Draymond Green has found himself at the center of more criticism over his on-court antics ... this time, the Golden State Warriors star is getting backlash after wrapping his arm around Patty Mills' neck and forcing him to the ground.

The incident went down during the first quarter of the Dubs' road matchup against the Miami Heat on Tuesday ... when Green got tied up with Mills as he moved through the paint to try to defend Bam Adebayo's shot.

A nearby official immediately blew his whistle ... and the play was reviewed to see if Adebayo's attempt happened prior to the the common foul.

7:30 AM -- Ice Cube is now speaking out on the offer ... saying it was a no-brainer to pitch Caitlin Clark to his organization.

"Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3," he said minutes ago on X ... while also pointing out the league has a track record of breaking barriers with female coaches like Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie.

"With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes," Cube added.

The BIG3 founder also thinks his org. will be a better alternative for WNBA athletes to make money during the offseason ... so they don't have to take their talents to "often dismal and dubious foreign countries" to earn a living.

"And they should have more than just one professional option in the US at a time when American pro sports leagues are being infiltrated by autocratic, anti-women regimes such as Qatar," he said. "Our pathbreaking offer to Caitlin Clark demonstrates that BIG3 now offers another choice for athletes."

Caitlin Clark is in line to make more history -- the NCAA phenom could become basketball's first-ever $5 million woman, if she accepts a massive deal from Ice Cube's Big3 league ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Dan Dakich is offering up some free advice to any player in this weekend's Sweet 16 looking for tips on how to prepare for the big games ... saying simply, "Don't start thinking you're a star!"

The former Indiana Hoosiers guard said in a talk with TMZ Sports this week it's easy for players who've made it this far in the NCAA tournament to start losing focus.

He said as teams return to campus and feel all the love -- it's common for players to get a big head ... and then falter when the lights come back on for the tourney's next round.

Brendan Paul -- Sean "Diddy" Combs' alleged "mule" who was arrested on Monday while the rap mogul and his crew were stopped by federal law enforcement agents -- previously had a career as a college basketball player.

Paul suited up for the Syracuse Orange from 2018-2020 ... and while he wasn't exactly a star there -- he did log minutes in 17 games during his two seasons.

Paul went on to transfer to Fairmont State University in West Virginia after his time in New York ... and he fared much better on the court in his two years there -- recording 51 points, 23 rebounds, 19 assists and 11 steals.

Ex-NBA tough guy Matt Barnes met his match this week ... coming face-to-face with a pesky opossum that entered his home -- and the video of the standoff is riveting.

The 44-year-old hooper documented the whole thing on his Instagram page ... showing his elaborate plan to get the creature out of his kitchen.

Barnes -- who's in the process of moving -- had a bunch of boxes set up in hopes of leading the opossum toward the door.

The guy even tried throwing various fruits at it ... but the intruder refused to budge.

Barnes then grabbed a golf club ... with the intent to "put a pitching wedge up his ass."

The 6'7" champ did everything he could to keep a distance ... hopping around on the countertops and spraying the rodent with water, which only made it more of a challenge as it scurried further into the home.

At one point, MB even pondered lighting a joint to get the critter high ... but elected against it.

Eventually, Barnes' nemesis decided it was time to go back outside ... bolting for the door and off the property.

"I'll fight anybody, but I don't f*** with animals," Barnes said. "That's for g**damn sure."

The interaction received a ton of responses from Barnes' followers ... including Deion Sanders, Jon Jones, Gilbert Arenas, Terrell Owens and more.