Money

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.

5:26 PM PT -- A rep for Netflix tells TMZ ... "We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd's right to tell his story."

The woman believed to be the real-life inspiration behind the villain in "Baby Reindeer" is now taking Netflix to court -- claiming they defamed her ... and she's gunning for millions.

Fiona Harvey just filed a suit against the streaming giant -- and she's flat-out denying many of the actions Martha allegedly did in the limited series ... in which she's painted as an overly-obsessed stalker constantly hounding the main character, played by Richard Gadd.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Harvey alleges that Netflix created an easily accessible road map to allow viewers to track her down in real life and connect the dots to her identity.

Kim Kardashian's been rubbing shoulders with A-listers for ages ... but now, 2 new familiar faces have risen through the ranks into her inner circle of pals.

None other than Ivanka Trump and Lauren Sanchez scored invites to Kim's 43rd birthday bash at the Beverly Hills hot spot, Funke, the party last October that this week's 'Kardashians' episode gave a glimpse into.

The two were among the first guests to roll up the extravaganza organized by the star's sister Khloe Kardashian. Ivanka had the prime spot right next to Kim, while Bezos' wife snagged a seat just 2 spots down.

Chris Brown fans packed the house for his "11:11" tour opener in Detroit this week ... validating the R&B star's longtime claims that it's only the music industry that's against him.

Breezy took a moment to address the sold-out crowd inside the Little Caesar's Arena on Wednesday night -- with him musing ... "For a n**** they say is blackballed, this don't look blackballed to me!!!"

The show didn't spare any theatrics either -- a Michael Jackson voiceover opened the main event right before CB soared over the crowd on wires. It was certainly high production value.

Kristin Cavallari is looking for a fresh start -- 'cause she's trying to get rid of her Nashville home, and make a pretty penny in the process ... TMZ has learned.

The reality star listed her 4-bedroom, 5-bathroom farmhouse house in Franklin, Tennessee -- which she scooped up for over $3 million following her 2020 split from ex-husband Jay Cutler.

"The Hills" alum may make a solid profit off the property if she can get the price she's looking for ... as it's for sale for a cool $11 million -- an almost $8 million uptick.

Drake might've lost the Kendrick Lamar beef, but the 6 God is looking to get back in the win column with his latest bets ... putting a combined $1 MILLION on the Dallas Mavericks and Edmonton Oilers to win it all this season!!

The musician took to Instagram early Thursday morning to show off his jaw-dropping receipts -- he unloaded 500k to win $1.375 million if Luka Dončić and Co. handle the Boston Celtics ... and another 500 stacks to earn $1.025 milli if the Oilers defeat the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.

Drizzy explained his reasoning behind the bets ... saying, "Dallas cause I'm a Texan, Oilers are self explanatory."

Amy Robach's tapping into the feminine side of herself ... saying she's always had "boss-lady" energy -- but now, she's finally with the right person to explore womanhood in full.

The fired 'GMA3' anchor opened up about this on the "Amy & T.J." podcast she hosts with T.J. Holmes ... telling him and matchmaker Thalia Ouimet she's used to projecting an intensity -- before asking Holmes how she came off to him when they worked at ABC together.

After cracking some jokes about how he always feels the need to save Amy, T.J. admits he wishes people knew just how sweet AR was ... 'cause he says it's a side of herself she doesn't let other people see.

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.

Sean Kingston is leaning on family and friends after being released from jail in his fraud case ... 'cause his ma paid him a visit at his Florida home, and she brought Safaree along.

The "Beautiful Girls" singer couldn't be bothered to put on pants to welcome his guests Wednesday ... greeting them outside his Weston estate in nothing but a white tee and some black biker shorts. Indeed ... the dude looks totally relaxed, despite what's going on.

Sean's had a pretty busy day ... before the in-home visit, he got out of jail, which included conditions. He was released on a $100k bond after surrendering his passport and any firearms.

YK Osiris says he's eager to get in the boxing ring with DDG and show him the 'Golden Child' golden gloves ... but only after he's reassured he's getting paid!!!

The "Worth It" singer chopped it up with TMZ Hip Hop Tuesday at LAX. He and DDG have both been grandstanding in the gym with their dukes up, and have agreed to fight.

DDG is willing to piece up YK for peanut shillings, but YK told us he's gonna need compensation to have his knuckles scraped. That being said, he kinda hinted they're close to finalizing a deal.

Sean Kingston is finally out of police custody after being arrested and extradited in his fraud case ... 'cause he was able to post bond, but had to jump through a couple hoops first.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, SK was released on a $100K bond Wednesday in Broward County with special conditions ... Sean had to surrender his passport and any firearms to officials.

Not just this ... but his mortgage collateral will also be filed in public records within 10 days -- so he's got his house on the line here.

Lauren Sanchez has the whole blended family gathering down to a science ... celebrating her son Nikko's graduation with her soon-to-be-husband, her ex and his wife!

The TV personality shared a series of photos from Nikko's college grad party, featuring Jeff Bezos, Nikko's dad -- NFL Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez -- and Tony's wife, October. The adult squad seemed even to enjoy each other's company, posing for multiple pics together.

Mama Bear posted a tear-jerking video in honor of her boy, who's 23 now ... comprised of pics of Nikko before cutting to an emotional speech Sanchez gave during the festivities -- and, ya gotta watch it for yourself because it's LS at her most raw.

Sydney Sweeney will soon have the keys to a new estate in South Florida ... a lavish, oceanfront mansion, and we've got pics of her already hanging out in her new 'hood.

TMZ obtained these photos of Sydney down in the Sunshine State -- we're told she was grabbing a cup of java at a local coffee shop over Memorial Day weekend, and word in the area is she was in town for a housewarming party.

Sydney stands out anywhere she goes ... and her custom blue Fiat 500 makes it even easier to spot her. She's big into cars, of course, and she's posted some social media videos showing her tooling around the new property.

6/5 -- 10:50 AM PT -- As promised, 50 Cent and Ben Crump staged an audience on Wednesday in Washington D.C. for Black entrepreneur empowerment ... where they were confronted by a reporter inquiring about 50's voting pick for the upcoming election.

True to the meet-up, the reporter suggests President Joe Biden is pro-Black business but asks 50 if his past support of Donald Trump still holds up, to which 50 says tell them, "I don't know how to answer that question!!!"

50 Cent and Ben Crump are on a mission to increase minority representation in America’s booming booze industry … 'cause they say Black people are missing out on billions!!!

A new Netflix doc has made people believe that TikTok star Miranda Derrick is in a cult -- but she's calling BS ... and putting out a totally different narrative, suggesting she's just fine.

Miranda hopped online Tuesday to clap back at claims made in 'Dancing for the Devil' -- which characterizes her and others involved with 7M Films as brainwashed sheep that are beholden to an alleged cult leader ... but Miranda says that's simply not the case.

In a short clip on her IG Story Tuesday, Miranda first thanked everyone for their support since the 3-part doc dropped last week ... and then teased a lengthy written statement in the following slides, saying she couldn't spill all the tea due to legal reasons.

Sean Kingston was shipped out from California to Florida in his $1 million fraud case, and now a Sunshine State sheriff's office wants to send the singer a bill for the transport costs.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the Broward County Sheriff's Office is asking the court to have Sean pay back the taxpayers of Broward County for the cost of his extradition.

BCSO says taxpayers shelled out $5,268.53 for Sean's extradition from Cali ... with transport costs going towards commercial airline tickets, hotels, car rental and travel allowances for the U.S. Marshalls and Broward County sheriffs deputies tasked with bringing Sean back to Florida.