Basketball

Darvin Ham is out of the job -- the Los Angeles Lakers just fired their head coach after two seasons on Friday ... days after the Purple and Gold were booted from the playoffs in the first round.

Rumors of a change on the bench started right after LeBron James and Co. lost to the Denver Nuggets ... with many pointing the finger at Ham's lack of leadership or ability to make adjustments.

It wasn't all bad for Ham -- the team did make a solid run in the playoffs last year ... and won the inaugural In-Season Tournament back in December.

Saquon Barkley's goin' in on New York fans who were irked at his presence at the 76ers vs. Knicks game in Philadelphia Thursday night, with the NFL star telling the supporters of his former team to get over him jumping ship!

"It’s been two months… lol no way ya can still be this mad! Mf can’t even go to a basketball game 😂😂😂," 27-year-old Barkley tweeted on X after he was heckled for attending the game at the Wells Fargo Center in the City of Brotherly Love, where he sat courtside with Eagles WR A.J. Brown.

Of course, Barkley -- drafted by the G-Men in 2018 -- signed with the Eagles ... the Giants hated rivals, this offseason.

8:33 AM PT -- Malinda Adams, the reporter who Patrick Beverley bullied on Thursday, said on her X page the Bucks guard reached out Friday morning to apologize.

"I appreciate it," she said, "and accept it."

She also revealed the Bucks' org. reached out to say it was sorry as well.

Kendrick Lamar's Drake diss track, "Euphoria," is popping up everywhere ... even in the middle of the NBA Playoffs, but it's making some NBA legends uncomfortable.

The song opened up TNT's "Inside the NBA" halftime broadcast of the Clippers vs. Mavericks Game 5 showdown, and Kenny Smith and Shaq couldn't believe their ears!!!

Ernie Johnson attempted to unfold the first 2 quarters of play, but the pair of NBA champs were too distracted by Kendrick's onslaught blasting in the studio.

Charles Barkley's feud with Galveston, Texas is far from over -- the NBA legend was just targeted with a bunch of billboards throughout the city after dissing it on national television!!

As we previously reported, Chuck ruffled some feathers in the Queen City of the Gulf after claiming it had "dirty ass water" on TNT's "Inside the NBA" ... which prompted a response from the Visit Galveston tourism organization.

The back-and-forth didn't stop there ... 'cause now, a bunch of shots directed at the Round Mound of Rebound have started popping up all around the area -- and they ain't too nice.

Charles Barkley went scorched earth on the people throwing coaches Darvin Ham and Frank Vogel under the bus for the Lakers and Suns' early exit from the NBA playoffs ... saying the real blame for their woes should go on the folks putting together these "trash-ass" teams.

Ham and Vogel have been at the center of criticism following the first round of the postseason ... with many claiming their two squads would be better off with someone else at the helm.

Chuck's clearly heard enough ... 'cause the Hall of Famer unloaded on the notion during TNT's "Inside the NBA" on Wednesday -- calling out other outlets for pushing the narrative.

Brittney Griner says while she was locked away in a prison cell in Russia, she contemplated dying by suicide several times.

The WNBA superstar told ABC News' Robin Roberts in a lengthy interview that aired Wednesday night the thoughts crept into her mind just after Russian authorities threw her behind bars for packing vape cartridges in her luggage at a Moscow airport in February 2022.

"I wanted to take my life more than once in the first weeks," Griner said. "I felt like leaving here so badly."

As if things couldn't get any worse for Michael Porter Jr.'s family -- the Denver Nuggets star's brother, Jevon, was arrested on suspicion of DWI late Friday night ... just days after his sibling, Coban, was sentenced to six years in prison in his fatal DUI case.

TMZ Sports has confirmed .... Jevon -- who recently transferred to LMU after previously playing at Pepperdine -- was initially pulled over around 1:30 AM in Missouri for speeding prior to getting busted for DWI.

Officials are still investigating the incident ... so further information has not been made available at this time.

LMU acknowledged Jevon's situation in a statement ... saying the school is working on getting more details.

Coban learned his fate on April 19 ... after officials said he had a BAC of 0.19 (nearly 2.5x over the legal limit) after running a red light and hitting another car, killing a woman and injuring a passenger in Colorado back in January 2023.

It's been non-stop drama for Porter Jr.'s family recently -- not only did Coban get sentenced to more than half a decade behind bars for his drunk-driving accident, but Jontay was banned from the NBA just weeks ago after an investigation determined he was involved in a major betting scandal.

Charles Barkley says there are only "losers" in the Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan relationship ... with the Hall of Famer revealing he feels bad for Michael and Scottie amid the "messy" coupling.

Chuck -- who used to be best friends with MJ -- weighed in on the Larcus fiasco on Shannon Sharpe's "Club Shay Shay" podcast this week ... and it's safe to say he doesn't approve of Jordan's son and Pippen's ex-wife getting romantic following the infamous fallout between the former Bulls superstars.

"I feel bad for Michael, I feel bad for Scottie," Chuck said on Wednesday. "That is so messy. I don't like messy because when it's messy, everybody has an opinion on it. And you know, the internet is not a place for messy."

La hija de Kobe Bryant, Gigi, habría cumplido 18 años este miércoles y la esposa de la leyenda del baloncesto, Vanessa, está recordando a su difunta hija con un emotivo homenaje, diciendo que ella sigue inspirando a innumerables personas todos los días.

"¡Feliz cumpleaños a mi preciosa niña, Gigi!", escribió Vanessa en su Instagram. "Te quiero. Te extraño. Estoy tan orgullosa de ti".

El post es realmente triste, y en él Vanessa lamenta todo lo que Gigi estaría experimentando en este momento de su vida, su graduación de la escuela y las decisiones de la universidad.

Kobe Bryant's daughter, Gigi, would have turned 18 years old on Wednesday ... and the basketball legend's wife, Vanessa, is remembering her late child with an emotional tribute -- saying she continues to inspire countless people every day.

"Happy birthday to my gorgeous girl, Gigi!" Vanessa said on Instagram. "I love you. I miss you. I'm so proud of you."

The post is truly heartbreaking ... with Vanessa lamenting over what Gigi would be experiencing at this point in her life -- high school graduation and college decisions.

LaMelo Ball is vying to be the NBA's most tatted hooper ... the Charlotte Hornets star just got his entire back tattooed, and the space-themed ink is awesome!

TMZ Sports has learned the All-Star guard went to his go-to guy, Herchell L. Carrasco -- AKA RockRollG -- at Pachuco Tattoo in Orange, California ... after months and months planning the huge tattoo.

Ball wanted to keep with the space-themed tats ... so RockRollG had friends Niz Carrillo, Jorge Garibay, Juan Nambo, Jonas Aguilar, and Elvis Ramos help him bring the concept together.

The birds were flyin' at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday ... all thanks to diehard Knicks fan Tracy Morgan, who couldn't help but share his frustrations with Sixers star Tyrese Maxey by giving him the finger!!

The hilarious (not so much for New York fans) moment went down in the closing seconds of the Knicks' Game 5 matchup against Philadelphia ... when the former Kentucky Wildcat pulled up from behind the arc to tie things up at 97.

The shot completed the Sixers' late-game push ... coming back from down six in the last 30 seconds to force overtime.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will have a bit of extra motivation through the rest of the playoffs -- the Oklahoma City Thunder star is a new dad!!

The MVP candidate and his longtime girlfriend, former college soccer player Hailey Summer, revealed they were expecting last December ... and on Tuesday, SGA announced to his 3.2 million fans on Instagram their son has arrived.

"Ares Alexander 🤍," SGA said in the caption.

Ares was born on April 25, 2024 ... which was right in the middle of the Thunder's first-round series against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Luckily, SGA was off that day ... as the Thunder were fresh off a Game 2 win the night prior.

SGA's fans think this will be like a superpower for the Canadian baller ... with many flooding the comment section to give their two cents on the impact the family milestone might have on his game for the rest of the postseason.

"Shai is about to get a fatherhood attribute boost," one follower said.

Shai averaged 30.1 points and 6.2 assists per game this season ... so it would be great news for OKC fans, who are celebrating their first playoff series win since the 2015-16 season.

The Thunder are now waiting for the Clippers and Mavericks series to end ... and the winner will meet them in the conference semifinals.

Magic Johnson is painting a dire picture for the Los Angeles Lakers ... saying if the team doesn't completely revamp its roster this offseason, they're in serious risk of getting left in the dust.

Fresh off L.A.'s elimination from the playoffs at the hands of the Denver Nuggets, the Lakers legend gave his two cents on the disappointing season on Tuesday ... and he's not sugar-coating anything.

"Laker Nation, we have a problem," the five-time champion said on X. "All the good teams in the West are young and talented: the Nuggets, the Timberwolves, the Thunder, the Clippers, and the Mavs."

Diana Taurasi is standing by her comments on Caitlin Clark and the learning curve she'll inevitably face as a pro, despite a wave of backlash, with the former MVP describing fans of the rookie hooper as "really sensitive!"

In case you missed the OG comments ... the WNBA legend was recently on TV following 22-year-old Clark's selection as the number one overall pick, where Taurasi cautioned Caitlin would face her fair share of struggles.

"Reality is coming," Taurasi said earlier this month. "There's levels to this thing. That's just life. We all went through it."

"You look superhuman playing against some 18-year-olds, but you're gonna come play with some grown women that have been playing professional basketball for a long time -- not saying that's not gonna translate."

Taurasi added, "There's gonna be a transition period where you're gonna have to give yourself some grace as a rookie."

Clark fans didn't appreciate the take -- unloading on the Phoenix Mercury star -- though Taurasi isn't taking a single syllable back, despite the hate.

"The new fans are really sensitive these days," Taurasi told reporters, adding, "You can’t say anything."

"It’s kind of like when you go to kindergarten to first grade, there’s a learning adjustment. When you go from high school to college, there’s a learning adjustment."

"I don’t think I said anything that’s factually incorrect. Like anything, greatness is going to translate. And she’s proven that at every level. I don’t see why that’s going to be any different in the WNBA."

Of course, it'd probably behoove Clark to listen to 41-year-old Taurasi -- who was given the "White Mamba" nickname by Kobe Bryant -- is one of the greatest female hoopers ever ... with 3 WNBA Championships, 2 Finals MVPs, 10 All-Star nods, 10 All WNBA First team bids, and a league MVP, amongst many other accolades.

The UConn legend also knows a thing or two about coming in and being an immediate difference-maker. The number one overall pick went on to win Rookie of the Year in 2004.