Basketball

Bill Maher believes Caitlin Clark is being targeted by some of her WNBA peers because she's straight and white.

The TV host discussed the Indiana Fever star and her recent in-game altercation with Chennedy Carter on last week's episode of "Real Time with Bill Maher" ... and he made it clear, he thinks CC's sexuality and race did have roles in the incident.

Maher said WNBA players "f***ing hate" the rookie ... and when he later expounded on why -- he said, "it's everything," including her skin color and her sexual preferences.

The Caitlin Clark racism narrative is largely fake news ... so says Dan Dakich who tells us the hate towards the number one overall pick is pure jealousy!

Clark's been gettin' beat up since her WNBA debut last month -- we all saw what Chennedy Carter did to the Fever superstar last weekend -- so we asked Dakich, a former Indiana Hoosier player and coach, if it's just basketball ... or something else.

"Of course, she's being targeted," Dakich, host of Outkick's "Don't @ Me" told Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (prior to the Olympic team snub).

Caitlin Clark's addressing the snub heard round the world ... getting candid about missing out on the Olympics after she was shockingly left off the roster.

The first-round pick addressed all the hubbub Sunday ... and, she says she's totally cool with the choice -- expressing her excitement for the players who did make the team.

Clark said, in part, "I know it’s the most competitive team in the world and I know it could’ve gone either way, me being on the team or me not being on the team. I’m excited for them, gonna be rooting them on to win gold."

Magic Johnson tells TMZ Sports he's loving what he's seeing from Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese so far in the WNBA ... praising the rookies for how they're transitioning to the pros.

We spoke briefly with the NBA legend out in L.A. this week as he was getting hounded by autograph seekers ... and he made it clear, he's a big fan of the W's newest stars.

He said emphatically they're "doing great things" -- helping their league explode in popularity.

Gilbert Arenas and Laura Govan's son, Alijah, is one of the top young hoopers in the country ... and his mama tells TMZ Sports he's so good for his age, he's already beating his ex-NBA star dad in one-on-one!!

We caught up with Govan at LAX to talk all about her talented kid ... and she couldn't say enough good things about the Class of 2026 guard -- both on and off the court.

In reality, she says no amount of basketball highlights compare to the kind of person Alijah is ... and she doesn't shy away from patting herself on the back for doing a great job raising him.

Caitlin Clark will not be a part of the Team USA squad that goes for a record 8th-straight gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Paris, and basketball fans are puzzled by the move!

According to multiple reports, 22-year-old Clark, the most famous female hooper in the world, was not named to the 12-player squad ... which will represent America in France next month.

An official announcement has not yet been made, but the team is made up of a mix of veterans and first-time Olympians. But, no Clark.

The 2024 NBA Finals are underway ... which means it's time to showcase the lovely ladies supporting the men on the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks!!

Over in Beantown, Al Horford's former Miss Universe wife, Amelia, has been holdin' it down on and off the court ... and has been prominently featured at games with the kids -- all decked out in No. 42 jerseys.

Xavier Tillman's wife, Tamia, will be experiencing her first NBA Finals with her hubby ... and it's been quite the turnaround after he was acquired in a trade with Memphis earlier this year.

The guy behind the viral 'Crazy' trend on TikTok is reaping a ton of benefits after setting the internet on fire with the latest frenzy -- and he's already got a gig out of it ... with the WNBA.

We talked to Stephen Glickman -- who's already famous from the "Big Time Rush" show -- on "The TMZ Podcast," where he discussed his now-viral TikTok sound ... in which he does a slow, dramatic rendition of Gnarls Barkley's 2006 hit, "Crazy." Tons of stars have hopped on the trend -- lip-syncing to his track and sharing something cringe-worthy from their past.

There's nothing cringey about Stephen's success, however ... 'cause he says he's set to perform a WNBA halftime show soon. SG tells us he and his band are gonna fly out to Las Vegas ... where he will perform for the sold-out crowd at the Aces vs. Minnesota Lynx game.

Celtics fans did the most to show Kyrie Irving he's not welcome in Boston, bringing a blow-up doll with the NBA star's face on it to Game 1 of the NBA Finals ... and stomped it out after they won.

The blowup doll was spotted on the Beantown streets on Thursday ahead of the first game of the NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics.

The doll's dressed in KI's number 11 Celtics jersey (his old threads) ... with a cut out of Ky's face. At one point, fans chanted "F*** Kyrie!" using a loudspeaker.

Denver Nuggets star Aaron Gordon's latest addition to his body art collection is a truly special piece -- dedicating part of his chest to his late brother, Drew, who tragically died in a car accident last week.

Gordon debuted the ink in an Instagram post on Thursday ... his first public appearance since it was announced Drew passed away at just 33 years old.

The new tat is a screaming gorilla on his pec ... with Drew's initials featured in the lower left corner.

If Alex Rodriguez needed cash -- he's now got it in spades -- 'cause the baseball legend struck a deal with Michael Bloomberg, one of the richest people in the world, who has now joined A-Rod's Timberwolves ownership group ... as the men intend to buy an 80% stake in the team.

The Athletic broke the news on Thursday (and TMZ Sports has since confirmed), revealing the 82-year-old billionaire and former NYC mayor has agreed to link up with Rodriguez and his business partner, Marc Lore, in their quest to acquire majority control of the T-Wolves organization.

FYI, Alex and Marc bought a 40% stake in 2021, and ultimately planned to buy nearly the whole team (and the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx, too) ... until 83-year-old majority owner Glen Taylor accused the men of missing a payment and called off the deal.

9:21 AM PT -- The Fairfax County Police Department tells TMZ Sports ... Delonte West suffered a medical emergency as cops were attempting to arrest him Thursday morning.

Police say officers had been trying to serve a warrant on the former NBA star for violating the conditions of his release ... when he took off.

According to the FCPD, during an ensuing foot pursuit, they lost sight of West briefly, before they ultimately discovered him "unresponsive."

Angel Reese and her Chicago Sky teammates claim a relentless camera guy harassed Chennedy Carter outside their Washington, D.C. hotel on Wednesday ... praising their security staffers for stepping in and de-escalating the situation.

A number of Sky hoopers went to X to share their side of the interaction ahead of Thursday's contest against the Mystics ... with several saying the photog crossed the line when trying to speak with Carter about her recent flagrant foul on Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark over the weekend.

A clip of the alleged moment was briefly posted to the photog's social media account ... but was later deleted.

Move over JJ Redick ... the Lakers reportedly have their eyes on a new man for their vacant head coach role -- Dan Hurley!!

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Thursday morning Los Angeles is so enamored with the idea of making the UConn honcho their next bench boss ... it's preparing to send "a massive, long-term contract offer" his way.

According to Woj, the two sides have already engaged in preliminary talks ... but they're expected to ramp up those conversations in earnest in the coming days.

The WNBA is the talk of the town right now, but that doesn't stop its star players from getting their cars towed ... just ask Phoenix Mercury guard Sophie Cunningham, who had to find that out the hard way.

The six-year vet documented the whole thing on Instagram on Wednesday ... saying she had to go all the way to "bum f*** nowhere" in the middle of Arizona in order to get her whip back.

She explained she got home around 2 AM and must've planted her car somewhere unauthorized ... 'cause when she woke up, it was gone.

WNBA star Cameron Brink couldn't contain her emotions when she found out she's representing the United States at the 2024 Olympics ... breaking down in tears during the big reveal.

USA 3x3 basketball announced the four women who would compete for a gold medal this summer in Paris ... with Brink, Cierra Burdick, Hailey Van Lith and Rhyne Howard getting the nod.

The organization shared a special video of the moment the Los Angeles Sparks hooper found out she made the team ... and grab a box of tissues, 'cause it'll have you in your feels.