Los Angeles Lakers

Magic Johnson claims he has no idea who the Lakers' next head coach will be ... but he definitely knows who it WON'T be -- Magic Johnson -- 'cause the Hall of Famer tells TMZ Sports those days are long gone.

The Purple and Gold are currently coach-less after parting ways with Darvin Ham following his second season at the helm ... and when we caught up with the legend last week, he didn't want to speculate on who could fill the seat he briefly held three decades back.

"I couldn't tell ya," Magic said when asked about the vacancy in Beverly Hills. "It's up to the Lakers and Jeanie [Buss] and Rob Pelinka. I hope they get a good one, though."

A huge step in the right direction for Bronny James' professional basketball ambitions -- the Los Angeles Lakers superstar's son has been medically cleared for the NBA following his July 2023 cardiac arrest.

The 19-year-old guard was recently checked out by the league's Fitness to Play Panel (which consists of three physicians) leading up to this week's pre-draft combine in Chicago, according to ESPN ... and was given the green light to be a full participant in workouts.

The outlet says Bronny will participate in the 5-on-5 scrimmages starting Tuesday ... which will give him the opportunity to show what he can do against fellow draft hopefuls.

Matt Barnes says the Los Angeles Lakers' coaching vacancy is a tough gig, but thinks JJ Redick would be able to handle the pressure ... telling TMZ Sports the former sharp-shooter has a "great basketball mind."

The Purple and Gold are looking for their next head coach now that Darvin Ham is out after two years ... and they're in desperate search of someone who can get them back in perennial title contention.

Barnes told us at LAX this week he doesn't have a clear favorite to take over the clipboard in L.A. ... but when we asked about Redick's name being thrown around as a potential candidate, he was all about it.

How do you top the 'Greatest Roast of All-Time??' How about going at another GOAT -- 'cause comedian Chris D'Elia tells TMZ Sports a roast of LeBron James would be a worthy follow-up to Tom Brady's night of hell.

But, don't get your hopes up, folks ... 'cause he doubts that'll ever happen.

We talked to D'Elia all about the successful Netflix special at LAX this week ... and picked his brain about the rules of roasting -- after all, he DID crack jokes at a guy named Justin Bieber's expense back in 2015.

A racist posterboard featuring images of LeBron James and monkeys was somehow put on display at a school art exhibition over the weekend ... and officials are now investigating how in the world the offensive piece was allowed to make it there.

The project -- a parody of a cereal advertisement called "Monkey Premium" -- was done by a New Hartford Central School District student in New York ... and then showed off in a school gymnasium at the New Hartford Festival of the Arts event on Saturday.

It had a headline of "Eat Monkeys, Jump Like Monkeys!" ... with a picture of James mid-flight in his Lakers uniform next to a bowl of cereal.

Bad news for the rest of the NBA -- LeBron James still has half a decade left in the tank "body-wise" ... so says the Lakers superstar's agent, Rich Paul, who believes he can physically keep going for several years before retiring.

The Klutch Sports founder weighed in on his top client's future on the "All the Smoke" podcast with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes this week ... and he said there are a number of factors that will play into when Bron decides to call it a career.

But when it comes to the 39-year-old keeping up with the younger guys in the league, Paul feels James isn't anywhere near slowing down.

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.

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.

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.

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."

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass tried to to find the silver lining after the Lakers' early exit from the playoffs ... congratulating the Purple & Gold on winning the In-Season Tournament a few months ago -- but it was met with so much backlash, she ended up scrubbing the post from her page.

LeBron James and Co. got booted from the postseason on Monday ... falling to the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of their first-round matchup.

Bass attempted to share some positivity shortly after the final buzzer ... pointing out the Lake Show had a bit of success earlier in the 2023-24 campaign when L.A. won the meaningless mid-season competition in December.

LeBron James says he's yet to make a decision about his NBA future following L.A.'s playoff exit Monday night ... telling media members he's not sure if he'll return to the Lakers in 2024.

LBJ played coy when he was asked multiple times about his plans for next season ... even at one point ducking a question from a reporter who wanted to know if he considered the possibility of the Game 5 loss to the Nuggets being his last in the Purple and Gold.

"I'm not going to answer that," he said.

La cantante Olivia O'Brien está capitalizando su fama viral después de asistir al partido de los Lakers este fin de semana, diciéndole a todos los que comenzaron a seguirla por su delantera, que comiencen a reproducir su música.

La artista "Josslyn" estuvo presente para el partido de playoffs en casa de L.A. contra los Denver Nuggets el sábado, y en el momento de la contienda, fue vista en el fondo de la transmisión.

Capturas de pantalla aparecieron rápidamente en redes sociales, y finalmente O'Brien fue identificado como el fan de la NBA que mostró su emoción en Tuiter y X.

Singer Olivia O'Brien is capitalizing off her viral fame after attending the Lakers game this weekend ... telling all the horn dogs following her for her boobs to stream her music.

The "Josslyn" artist was present for L.A.'s home playoff game against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday ... and at one point in the contest, she was spotted in the background of the broadcast.

Screenshots quickly made rounds on social media ... and eventually, O'Brien was ID'd as the fan that got NBA Twitter/X all excited.

Cops are continuing to make headway in their investigation into Nikola Jokic's brother ... telling TMZ Sports they've located the man who Strahinja Jokic punched in the face earlier this week.

A spokesperson for the Denver Police Dept. said on Thursday morning they've "been in communication" with the fan who Strahinja socked after Game 2 of the Lakers vs. Nuggets game at Ball Arena on Monday night.

The rep did not reveal, however, if the man is seeking to press charges -- or if he's formally filed a police report.