Basketball

LeBron James' heart was broken after a last-second loss Monday night, but his mouth sure worked fine -- as he spent part of his postgame meeting with media members railing on NBA officiating.

Shortly after LBJ's Lakers blew a huge lead and lost to the Nuggets, 101-99, in Denver ... James fielded questions about the playoff L for several minutes.

Eventually, he was asked about how tough it will be to bounce back from the buzzer-beater defeat -- but instead of answering the inquiry, he decided to go off on some of the calls that were made during the game.

Some NBA hoopers think Rudy Gobert is the most overrated player in the league ... but his partner, Julia Bonilla, says those guys are dead wrong -- passionately defending the Minnesota Timberwolves star on social media.

The Athletic dropped the results of its anonymous player survey on Monday ... and as it turns out, 11 out of 81 of the participants claimed the three-time Defensive Player of the Year ain't all that.

Bonilla -- who is expecting a child with Gobert -- got wind of the big man's new title ... and it's safe to say she's pissed, 'cause she fired back at the criticism with an Instagram post.

"My partner is the most dedicated, focused, hard-working person I have ever met," Bonilla said. "He hasn't stolen anything from anyone and deserves all the respect for his determination and commitment to his career."

"It's hard for me to stay quiet in front of so much stupidity, disrespect and nonsense," she added. "I am so proud of the person he is -- fair, a great teammate, with a good heart and a strong mind."

Of course, the Wolves are in the middle of a first-round playoff matchup with the Phoenix Suns ... and Bonilla said she's pulling for her man's team throughout the run.

"I am proud of you, and our son is proud of you."

As we previously reported, Gobert and Bonilla went public with the pregnancy back in February ... and a few weeks later, he told TMZ Sports it was a "blessing" to start a family.

Dwyane Wade's annual "High Dining" dinner, in honor of 420, went down with several of the NBA great's famous pals rolling up to join the festivities -- including a few surprises.

TMZ got vid of D. Wade and the founders of Jeeter -- the cannabis co. behind the event -- connecting Saturday night. Dwyane is a board member for the brand, so they've made a habit of blowing out 420 every year with a celeb-packed evening.

Organizers connected to the event tell us the high-grade guest list included Zachary Levi, Jay Ellis, Jeff Ross, Seth Green, Karrueche Tran, Nazanin Mandi, Jozzy, Armani White and Freddie Prinze Jr. ... who all partook in the 3-course meal along with other festivities.

His wife Gabrielle Union stood in as magician Kevin Li's assistant -- thankfully everyone kept their hands to themselves, and no one was sliced and diced on the table. 👀

The event also debuted Jeeter and the Bob Marley estate's master collaboration -- a 4.2-gram pre-roll packaged in a guitar case ... in other words, a Jah-endorsed rollout!

Bob's grandson, Grammy-nominated singer Skip Marley also performed "Jamming" and "One Love" -- and the significance of having the latest generation of Marley hitmakers present needed no explanation.

GloRilla's not letting Damian Lillard's estranged wife get her down ... turning a roast on its head by embracing a new nickname she gave her.

The rapper posted a video to her IG story showing off her fresh new jersey ... a yellow crop top-esque fit with red lettering on the back reading "GloLillard" with Dame's number "0" below it.

It's a pretty friendly shot clap back at Lillard's estranged wife Kay'La who the Milwaukee Bucks star filed for divorce from back in October.

Ex-NBA hooper and current weed entrepreneur Al Harrington has some solid advice for any newbies looking to celebrate the 4/20 holiday this year ... telling TMZ Sports it's pretty simple -- "get high as f***!!!"

Harrington knows his stuff -- the guy built an entire company around his love for Mary Jane ... serving as the CEO of the Viola brand.

He's doing pretty well for himself, too ... with the company valued at over $100 million.

Philadelphia 76ers hooper Kelly Oubre Jr. just gave the New York Knicks some bulletin board material ahead of their playoff matchup ... claiming the famous fans at Madison Square Garden couldn't give two craps about the games.

KO fired off the hot take at Sixers practice on Friday ... initially praising the diehard supporters and the basketball atmosphere in the Big Apple -- before turning heel REAL quick.

"The fans are pretty crazy," Oubre told reporters. "They have a really good culture of being wild and loving basketball to the root and the core of it. It's definitely called the 'Mecca of Basketball' for a reason. The lights are super bright."

Seems LeBron James does indeed think he's passed Michael Jordan as the NBA's best ever ... 'cause during a backyard hoops session with his son on Thursday night, he bragged repeatedly that he's the "G.O.A.T.!!!"

LBJ and his 16-year-old boy, Bryce, were getting some late-night shots up at their ritzy mansion in Los Angeles ... when for some reason, the young James started chirpin' at Dad.

The teen called the Lakers superstar "trash" ... and said over and over again he would miss his next shot.

We're coming to the end of another jam-packed week full of stories for Swifties, sports fans and more. Here are some of our best from the Thursday that was!

On "TMZ Live" Harvey and Charles address the purported Taylor Swift album leak ... including the lyrics aimed at one of her famous exes!

Caitlin Clark has clearly had enough of Antonio Brown's social media antics ... she just blocked the ex-NFL player after he posted inappropriate things about her on his X page.

AB took to the app not once but thrice on Wednesday to say crass things about the WNBA's newest star following her Indiana Fever introductory press conference ... in an apparent attempt to be funny.

But, most rolled their eyes at the posts -- including Clark ... who straight up blocked the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wideout for the behavior.

Don't stick a fork in Larcus after all ... Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan look like a couple once more -- as they were seen getting close Wednesday on a beach day date in Miami.

The on-again, off-again pair were spotted enjoying each other's company under the South Florida sun ... holding hands, snuggling on lounge chairs, and sharing beverages out of a coconut.

Marcus was also seen chattin' it up with a few other hotties in the area before Larsa arrived -- looking somewhat flirty -- but, take a peek at how he interacted with Pippen once she got to the sand ... it sure seems the spark between the duo has been ignited yet again.

Angel Reese is no longer the "Bayou Barbie!"

Nope ... the new WNBA rookie says she wants to be called the "Chi Barbie" now instead.

The former LSU hoops star made the announcement Thursday ... just a couple days after the Chicago Sky selected her with the 7th overall pick in the draft.

Larsa Pippen y Marcus Jordan están juntos una vez más, y fueron vistos el miércoles en una cita de playa en Miami.

La pareja fue vista disfrutando de la compañía del otro bajo el sol del sur de Florida, tomados de la mano, acurrucados y compartiendo bebidas de un coco.

Caitlin Clark ya ha tenido suficiente de las payasadas de Antonio Brown en redes sociales, pues acaba de bloquear al ex jugador de la NFL después de que publicara cosas inapropiadas sobre ella en su cuenta de X.

Antonio Brown usó la plataforma no una, sino tres veces el miércoles para decir cosas groseras sobre la nueva estrella de la WNBA después de su conferencia de prensa de presentación en Indiana Fever, en un aparente intento por ser gracioso.

Pero la mayoría de las personas puso sus ojos en blanco, incluyendo Clark, quien directamente bloqueó al ex jugador del Tampa Bay Buccaneers por su comportamiento.

The Indiana Fever reporter who was dragged for a bizarre conversation with Caitlin Clark on Wednesday is now apologizing for his actions ... admitting he crossed a line with his behavior.

Gregg Doyel, a journalist for the Indianapolis Star, issued the mea culpa just a few hours after he went viral for shooting a heart-hand gesture at Clark and following it up with some cringeworthy commentary during her introductory press conference.

Doyel first said in a post on his X page he was "sincerely" sorry for the "oafish" encounter. He then posted a column on the Star's website where he tried to explain his conduct.

An Indiana Fever reporter is being dragged for how he interacted with Caitlin Clark on Wednesday ... with many fans blasting the journalist for the way he shot a cringeworthy comment at the WNBA's newest star.

The encounter happened just minutes after Clark was introduced to Indiana media members for the first time since she was drafted by the Fever ... when Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel stepped up to the microphone to ask her a question about her new hometown.

At first, things seemed innocuous -- he politely introduced himself -- but then he paused, and sent a heart-hand gesture to the 22-year-old.

Beyoncé has now joined the long list of people giving Dawn Staley her flowers for her latest NCAA championship win -- sending a literal bouquet to the South Carolina head coach this week!

Staley showed off the gift from Queen B in an adorable Instagram video Wednesday ... beaming from ear-to-ear as she revealed in addition to the roses -- the "Irreplaceable" crooner also sent an "Always Been Country" tee too!

"This deserves a video thank you!" she said as she blared Bey's "Texas Hold 'Em" tune in the background. "Look at the flowers. Look at the merchandise! If you know, you know!"