Boston Celtics

Cam'ron slid into Nia Long's DMs over a year ago trying to holler, and it looks like he finally got his shot this weekend -- 'cause they linked up at a big shindig ... and took pics!

The rapper-turned-podcaster/TV host has been documenting this saga for a while -- way back in October 2022, he posted screenshots of some messages he sent Nia on IG ... this not too long after her messy split with Ime Udoka and that whole Celtics drama.

Anyway, it was a lengthy shot across the bow, where he's singing her praises ... and eventually just comes out with it and says he thinks they'd make a great couple together.

Apparently, NL never responded to that DM -- something Cam'ron made sure to tell his followers a couple weeks ago -- but now, some 14 months after the fact ... they finally got a chance to meet at Rich Paul's birthday party in L.A., where they hugged, talked and posed.

Here's the thing ... Nia actually posted this photo of the two of them cheesing first, but then took it down from her page -- but Cam'ron most certainly kept his version up, and added some extra ones to boot ... probably just to prove to everyone he had, in fact, seen her.

No word on whether this might lead to anything romantic, or if it's just a friendly hi-bye.

We actually got Nia out somewhat recently and asked her about this whole thing, and all she had to say to us (and to Cam, we suppose) was ... oh, hi there! Sounds like he got his in-person hello too.

Lord knows she's one of the most eligible bachelorettes in town these days -- aging like fine wine -- and has been one of Hollywood's most-coveted dames for a good long while.

Jeezy seemed to have his moment a month ago ... maybe now it's Cam's time to shine.

Glen "Big Baby" Davis was just found guilty of swindling the NBA out of a ton of cash through the league's healthcare plan ... after authorities claim he accepted reimbursement for medical treatments he never received.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York announced the update in the case on Wednesday ... saying a jury determined the former Boston Celtics champion -- as well as fellow ex-NBAer Will Bynum -- were involved in a criminal scheme to defraud the NBA's Players' Health and Benefit Welfare Plan.

As we previously reported, a number of NBA alums -- including Darius Miles, Shannon Brown, Tony Allen, Jamario Moon, Tony Wroten, Melvin Ely and Ruben Patterson -- were accused of lining their pockets through the scheme by filing bogus claims for reimbursement with the league's healthcare plan.

Prosecutors previously claimed Terrence Williams, a 2009 NBA Draft first-round pick, was the mastermind behind it all.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams released a statement ... saying, "While many of the more than 20 defendants convicted in this case were well-known NBA stars, their conduct was otherwise a typical fraudulent scheme designed to defraud the NBA’s health care plan and net the defendants over $5 million in illicit profits."

Worth noting -- Davis reportedly made more than $33.1 million over the course of his career.

It seems Ali Krieger is doin' just fine after her highly publicized split with Ashyln Harris ... 'cause the soccer star was spotted smiling ear to ear at the Knicks game Wednesday.

The Gotham FC defender was sitting courtside at Madison Square Garden to watch NY's season opener against the Celtics ... and despite everything that's going on with her, Harris, and Harris' new lover, Sophia Bush, Krieger appeared to be happy as a clam.

She had seats next to celeb makeup artist Alexandria Gilleo, and at one point, the ladies filmed themselves having an absolute blast.

Of course, things were obviously not always this way for Krieger ... especially in the last few weeks.

As we reported, Krieger was hit with divorce papers from Harris last month ... before Harris quickly jumped into a relationship with Bush.

Krieger looked to be quite bitter over it all, using a Beyoncé "Lemonade" Instagram post to imply that she had been cheated on.

The 39-year-old, though, is showing signs of moving on -- with her mind clearly now more focused on rubbin' elbows with Whoopi Goldberg than on Harris' new 'ship.

Several other stars, meanwhile, were out courtside for the game as well ... Chris Rock and Michael J. Fox sat just feet away from Krieger at MSG.

Carmelo Anthony and his son, high school hoops star, Kiyan, made an appearance too ... as did Latrell Sprewell, who played for New York from 1999 to 2003.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Yankees star Aaron Judge, Fat Joe, Lindsey Vonn and Skylar Astin also showed up for the big rivalry game.

The split between Nia Long and Ime Udoka is getting nastier ... the actress is now asking for primary custody of the couple's child -- after she claims the NBA head coach has been failing to support the kid.

Long made the allegation in a court filing in Los Angeles last week ... while requesting a judge give her primary legal and physical custody of their 11-year-old son, Kez.

According to the docs, however, she did ask the judge to allow Udoka a reasonable opportunity to visit their kid to the extent "consistent with the child's best interest."

A ruling on the petition has not yet been handed down. Udoka has yet to respond.

As we reported, the couple broke up in late 2022 after 13 years together ... following allegations that Udoka had an affair with a team staffer while he was the Boston Celtics' coach.

Long had said at the time that the scandal was revealed that she was heartbroken ... adding that it was all "devastating" to her and her family.

"Blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-alcohol" -- Jamie Foxx, T-Pain, and now, Paul Pierce ... 'cause the Celtics legend is opening up on his infamous stripper video that led to his ESPN firing -- saying he was boozin' hard the night he accidentally streamed his scandalous party on Instagram.

Pierce gave Lance Armstrong the lowdown on the whole controversy in the latest episode of the hit Fox celebrity competition show, "Stars on Mars" ... and he downplayed the whole incident -- even though he lost his TV gig over it.

The Truth explained he was playing poker at his friend's birthday party ... and there was "a lot of alcohol" involved.

"It was a big whole controversy," the Hall of Famer told Lance. "I mean it wasn't nothing illegal, but it was just girls ... girls shaking their ass."

Lance somehow knew nothing about the controversy ... so when he asked how the video even saw the light of day, Paul had to admit it was all his doing.

"I accidentally did, my dumb ass."

Lance hilariously scolded the hooper ... saying, "Bitch, how old are you?!"

Pierce enlisted fellow contestant Tinashe to vouch for the harmfulness of the clip ... and she said it wasn't all that bad on its own, but context had her understanding why it was such a big deal.

Of course, ESPN quickly parted ways with Pierce after the video went viral ... but he's seeing the silver lining in getting the boot, saying, "Maybe I wouldn't be on Mars if that didn't happen. See? Everything happens for a reason."

Jayson Tatum's appearance at Drake's concert on Wednesday night turned out to be a very painful experience for one fan ... 'cause during her freak-out over the Celtics star's cameo -- she wiped out down six rows of stairs.

The wild incident happened in the nosebleeds at TD Garden arena during the It's All A Blur Tour's stop in Boston ... after the rapper introduced the NBA star to the sold-out crowd.

The woman started to jump up and down when Tatum got on stage -- and she screamed at the top of her lungs, "Jayson Tatum!!"

But, somehow during the meltdown, she lost her balance ... tripped over a chair -- and then face-planted all the way down several steps.

Check out the footage of the fall ... she hit the pavement HARD.

No word on if she suffered any significant injuries ... but the TikTok user who posted the clip humorously captioned it, "big tatum fan!" -- so we get the vibe she's doing all right.

The night otherwise went off without a hitch ... and Drake seemed to be very pleased with his work inside the Celtics' home -- saying on his IG after the show, "Who else can get the Garden b(l)ooming like this?"

Doc Rivers says he has no idea if he'll ever return to an NBA sideline ... the coaching great tells TMZ Sports his future in the sport is completely up in the air.

We spoke with Rivers -- who was recently let go from his gig with the Philadelphia 76ers -- outside Jon & Vinny's in LA this week ... and he made it clear his main focus is enjoying his recently-cleared schedule.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do," Rivers told us. "I'm just gonna enjoy life."

The championship-winning coach was fired back in May after going 154-82 through three seasons in the City of Brotherly Love ... and if a coaching job isn't in the cards, there are rumblings he could put on the headset for a broadcasting role with ESPN.

Rivers didn't tip his hand on what's next for him ... but certainly seemed to be in great spirits as he deflected questions about whether teams were calling his line.

"I just enjoy life," he told us ... adding he was having a "phenomenal" summer.

The 61-year-old former NBA star is one of the most successful coaches in league history ... leading the sideline for the Magic, Celtics, Clippers and Sixers through the years.

Magic Johnson may hate the show, but Larry Bird is gonna be THRILLED with the next season of "Winning Time" ... so says actor Newton Mayenge, who tells TMZ Sports he thinks the Celtics legend will love his portrayal in the project.

It's no secret -- some ex-Lakers superstars aren't too pleased with HBO's hit series that documents the Showtime era ... with Magic and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar publicly ripping it to shreds.

We spoke with Mayenge -- who plays former NBAer Jim Chones on the show -- about the backlash from the OGs ... and while he says the WT actors would love their support and approval, they still have a job to do.

"It was a love story for them," Mayenge tells us. "If they don't necessarily see it that way, it's unfortunate, but we gotta continue to move forward."

Season 2 will focus on the Lakers' rivalry with the Boston Celtics, which means Larry Legend will play a huge part ... and Mayenge had nothing but praise for the guy tasked with the role.

"My castmate who plays him, Sean Patrick Small, he was born to play Larry Bird, first and foremost," Mayenge says.

"He freaking killed it. My personal opinion is Larry's gonna love it because once again, it's a love letter to him as well."

In fact, Mayenge even praises Small's hoop skills ... saying the guy "embodies" the Hall of Famer on and off the court.

Marcus Smart is proving goodbyes aren't easy ... the newly traded NBA star just penned an emotional letter to Boston fans after the organization traded him to the Memphis Grizzlies.

"Where do I even begin...as I start to think about the last 9 years I have a lot of emotions running thru me," the 29-year-old wrote Friday on Instagram. "Boston, you are a very special place to me."

The 2021-2022 Defensive Player of the Year was part of a three-team blockbuster trade on Wednesday, involving the Celtics, Grizzlies, and Wizards ... and Smart, who spent his entire 9-year career in Beantown, was sent to Memphis.

Kristaps Porzingis was shipped to the Celtics and Tyus Jones is headed to Washington.

"I grew up here and met some of my best friends here," Smart said. "I'll never forget my time here."

"Ultimately we didn't get that 18th banner but I'm VERY VERY proud of the success we had."

It wasn't just an emotional send-off for Smart ... as many Celtics fans were dismayed over the trade, and expressed their frustrations on social media.

"Marcus Smart has been my favorite player since he was drafted in 2014, and Boston made the playoffs every year since," a fan said on Twitter after the trade. "Regardless of return, I’m very disappointed."

Another fan tweeted, "I am literally dead inside. Not Marcus Smart. There’s no way we traded Marcus Smart. I refuse to believe it."

Unfortunately for Celtics fans, the trade's real ... and now Smart gets a fresh start in Bluff City.

Boston Celtics fans were partying like they won the championship Saturday night ... celebrating in the streets of Beantown after the team's miraculous buzzer-beater win against the Miami Heat.

Local Boston reporters captured video of fans honking their horns, dancing, and even climbing street poles moments after the Celtics big win.

If you think the celebration is over the top ... then you probably weren't watching the game. Trailing by one with less than a second left on the game clock, Derrick White tipped in the go-ahead shot to save the Celtics season.

The Celtics are now on the brink of making NBA history ... becoming the first team to overcome a 3-0 deficit in a playoff series, and the city is feeling it!

No question the Celtics will be feeding off fan energy ... star forward Jayson Tatum told the press, "I've never been so excited to go back to Boston in my life."

Glen "Big Baby" Davis isn't ready to give up on first-year head coach Joe Mazzulla just yet ... telling TMZ Sports if the Celtics are able to come back and beat the Heat and advance to the NBA Finals, he deserves to keep his job.

We got Davis out at LAX just hours before Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals tips off at the TD Garden in Boston ... and the NBA champ said Mazzulla's future with the team is contingent upon whether or not he can rally Boston from down 3-1 to beat Miami in the ECF.

"If you pull this off, you get to stay," Davis said. "If you don't, you're outta there buddy."

FYI -- no team has EVER been able to come back from trailing three games in NBA playoff history ... but after winning Game 4 on Tuesday, the Celtics are hanging on by a thread.

Davis also weighed in on why the Celtics have been inconsistent this season ... and he's pointing the finger at former head coach Ime Udoka, who was suspended by the team following an infidelity scandal last year.

"It f***ed the whole team up," Glen said. "They just had to go get another coach. It kind of f***ed 'em up a little bit."

Udoka, who was engaged to Nia Long, was suspended by the Celtics for the entire 2022-23 season ... even after the first-year head coach led the Cs to the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

Although Udoka is no longer with the team, Davis still views the 2-seeded Cs as a good team ... but said Boston's dynamic duo of Jayston Tatum and Jaylen Brown needs to play better.

"Jayson Tatum. Jaylen Brown. They better get that s*** in order, got dammit -- at least a good fight," Davis said. "We can come back. I truly believe. Miami hasn't been good all year. They haven't been consistent. They're playing well right now. We just gotta get on the same level."

Derek Jeter's on full-time daddy duty, but that didn't stop him from catching some playoff basketball, pulling up to Game 4 of the Heat vs. Celtics series in Miami with his wife Hannah ... just 18 days after their son was born!

And, HJ looks amazing!

Cameras captured The Captain throughout the evening ... as he chatted with his wife as the Celtics looked to avoid the sweep at the hands of Jimmy Butler's Heat squad.

Of course, DJ and Hannah -- who got married in 2016 -- have been on cloud nine since announcing their son, Kaius Green Jeter, was born on May 5.

The couple now has 4 kids.

Derek and Hannah weren't the only celeb in the building ... PGA Champion Brooks Koepka, actor Jeremy Piven, and Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards were there, too.

Derek's former Yankees teammate, Alex Rodriguez, a minority owner with the T-Wolves, was also at the game.

What's interesting ... no NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit, but it has happened in baseball.

Ear muffs, Yankees fans.

Jeter and A-Rod starred on the infamous 2004 NYY team that blew a 3-0 lead to the Boston Red Sox, the first time in MLB history.

Joel Embiid's first Most Valuable Player selection just got a lot sweeter ... 'cause his Sixers teammate, James Harden, gifted him a Rolex in honor of the award!!

The Philadelphia center beat out former MVP winners Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo for the nod Tuesday night ... and when the man of the hour showed up at the arena to take on the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Beard came bearing gifts.

Embiid was clearly thrilled over the gesture ... thanking Harden and hugging it out in the tunnel after receiving the expensive watch.

What's funny -- the timepiece didn't fit the 7'0" giant's hand ... but Uno assured the MVP he'll hook him up with some more links soon.

The watch also has a special message engraved on the back ... which reads "'23 MVP."

Embiid -- who said it is his first Rolex -- couldn't help but show off his gift with reporters earlier Wednesday ... smiling as he put it in front of the cameras.

If Embiid suits up for Philly in a few hours (he's been out with a knee sprain), and the watch gives him a bit more motivation, it could be bad news for the Cs -- 'cause the Sixers are currently leading the series, 1-0.

The Met Gala isn't the only spot with questionable fashion statements on Monday .... 'cause James Harden was turning heads with his unique pregame 'fit all the way in Boston.

The Philly star pulled up in the tunnel at the TD Garden for Game 1 of the Sixers-Celtics semifinals matchup in an oversized sweat suit that had some type of blue fur all over it.

The pregame drip looks pretty comfortable, but it didn't stop fans from roasting the 10-time All-Star ... with one of 'em tweeting, "dude looking like he skinned the cookie monster."

Another person added ... "The Celtics are advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals."

But, there are some who actually like the 'fit and believe it means Harden's gonna go off ... 'cause one fan said, "The Cookie Monster is going to cook the Celtics tonight".

Another added ... "garbage fit = 30 piece."

The Sixers will need those points in Game 1 as superstar and MVP candidate Joel Embiid is out with a knee injury.

Even though the 2023 Met Gala is goin' on in NYC at the same time, Harden still found a way to get people talking about his style.

Mission accomplished.

The Celtics' closeout win over the Hawks on Thursday was apparently bittersweet for Jayson Tatum ... who admitted after the game he was kinda pissed it ultimately forced Janet Jackson to postpone one of her concerts.

Just after Boston took down Trae Young's squad in Game 6 of the Celts' playoff series with Atlanta, Tatum got on the courtside microphone ... and said he was sorry to Jackson.

If you're unfamiliar, because Boston didn't beat the Hawks in Game 5 ... the two teams had to return to State Farm Arena on the same night Jackson was supposed to perform as part of her "Together Again" tour. The decision was made to move her show to Friday night so the NBA playoff game could be played.

Tatum was clearly bothered by it all ... because after he helped the C's to a 128-120 win -- he told NBA on TNT, "I want to say an apology to the legend Janet Jackson."

"We were supposed to close out in Boston and she had to postpone her show. I hope she sees this. I apologize for that."

No word yet from Jackson on the matter ... but we're sure she appreciates the shoutout nonetheless.

As for where Tatum goes from here ... Boston's next series against the Sixers will begin on Monday -- leaving him plenty of time to potentially catch one of Jackson's three shows this weekend.

Boston Celtics exec Heather Walker -- who had worked for the NBA org. for nearly two decades -- has tragically died after a battle with brain cancer, her friends and family announced Wednesday.

She was 52 years old.

In a statement that Walker's loved ones posted on her Move 4 Heather Facebook page, they wrote that Walker "isn't fighting anymore and can finally rest."

"She is with so many who have gone before her that I'm sure she was welcomed with open arms," they added.

Heather, who joined the Celtics org. in 2006 and later became the team's vice president of public relations, was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer called glioblastoma in 2021.

While she continued to work for the Celtics, she was a huge advocate for brain cancer research, and eventually started the Heather Walker Fund for Glioblastoma Research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where she had been receiving treatment.

The Celtics called the news of her passing Wednesday devastating.

"We will miss her for her energy, the joy, and laughter that followed her everywhere she went," the team said in a statement, "and we are grateful for everything she provided her Celtics family and the countless people that she positively impacted along the way."

They added, "She will remain part of our fabric for as long as the Celtics go on."