NBA

Jason "White Chocolate" Williams felt the heat for saying Kobe Bryant is not a top-five all-time Laker -- and, now, he's retracting his statement, officially deeming the Black Mamba L.A.'s G.O.A.T.

The former point guard says he misunderstood the question on the "Players Choice" podcast last week when he said he was "not sure" if Bryant was a top-five Laker.

"In the conversation you all heard," Williams said in a lengthy post on his social media page Sunday, "my thinking was that we were talking about ALL the greatest NBA players EVER who wore the Laker purple and gold jersey for at least ONE season."

"I wasn’t talking about the greatest LAKER ever… because of course that’s Kobe!!! Kobe IS the Lakers!!! 💛💜"

In other words ... Williams says he thought the question was strictly from a basketball standpoint -- NOT what each player actually meant to the franchise.

In his IG statement, Williams explained he believes Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James are better hoopers than Bryant, but they don't mean nearly as much to L.A. as Kobe.

"My bad if I've hurt any of y’all feelings, it’s just my opinion!!!" Williams said. "I love this game and I respect this game!! It has nothing to do with Kobe bustin my team’s ass just about every time we played them either."

Kyrie Irving is throwing NYC's vaccine mandate policy right back in its face on primetime TV -- taking in a home game, maskless, from the stands ... but not able to step onto the court.

The awkward scene played out live Sunday during the Nets' home game against Knicks ... which was being carried by ESPN. During the 2nd quarter, the camera panned to KI, who was shaking hands with people down near the bottom of the stands, and then going up to his seat a few rows up.

In this capacity -- as a spectator -- he's totally okay to not wear a mask and move about ... as that is now NYC's policy on events like this, regardless of vaccine status. However, their rule pertaining to private employees hasn't changed -- namely, those folks have to be vaccinated, and Kyrie isn't.

Still ... the irony of the sitch reeks of hypocrisy, but more importantly ... it reeks of a lack of common sense, something that Doris Burke and other announcers broached with trepidation ... because, if we're being honest, the regulations here just don't make sense anymore.

Kyrie's former teammate, LeBron James, was not as shy about expressing his indignation over NYC's backwards thinking. In response to someone pointing out what a joke this is, he wrote ... "FACTS FACTS FACTS!! It literally makes ABSOLUTELY ZERO SENSE!!! They say if common sense was common then we’d all have it. Ain’t that the truth."

LBJ has been outspoken on the pandemic, especially the further into it we've gotten. Remember, it was just in December that he suggested the latest strains were more like the flu or the cold than anything else ... something he was slammed for at the time, as some felt he was downplaying the seriousness of the virus.

Rich Paul is giving actor Damson Idris -- who's playing the NBA super-agent in a biopic about his life -- a big stamp of approval ... telling TMZ Sports he's a huge fan (and friend) of the "Snowfall" star.

We talked to the 40-year-old agent as he left LAX Thursday night ... and we asked Rich about the upcoming film about his life, and the actor who will portray him.

"I like Damson a lot. He's a great friend of mine," Paul said, adding, "Damson's great man, he's doing a great job. That's my brother."

Not much, if anything, was known about the project or its cast until Idris recently broke the news during an appearance on "The Breakfast Club."

"I am about to play Rich Paul," Idris announced on the show.

"It is time we start cherishing black moguls and Rich is someone that people need to know. This guy has completely changed the game, and I'm happy and fortunate to call him a big brother, and I can't wait to honor his story."

Paul, LeBron James' longtime agent, has a fascinating story. He met LBJ at an airport in Akron, Ohio when he was in his early 20s, and James was 18.

The story goes ... Rich approached Lebron and tried to sell him some throwback jerseys. The guys obviously hit it off, and fast forward almost 20 years, Paul has become one of the most respected and powerful agents in the entire sports world.

And, Paul -- who also reps the likes of Anthony Davis, John Wall, Ben Simmons and other stars -- isn't just a superagent ... he's a celebrity in his own right.

Case and point ... Rich dates Adele.

Delonte West is attempting a hoops comeback ... the former NBA player who's battled addiction and legal issues over the years tried out for the Big 3 today -- and it's pretty great to see.

38-year-old West was in Washington D.C. at the Athletic Republic for tryouts for the 3-on-3 league that mostly features retired NBA stars.

Guys like Joe Johnson, Reggie Evans, and Leandro Barbosa played in the Big 3 last season.

No word yet on how Delonte performed at the tryout (West looked good knocking down a couple 3s) ... but just the fact he's out there is encouraging.

West -- who last played in the NBA for the Dallas Mavericks during the 2011-2012 season -- has had several run-ins with the cops over the years since leaving basketball.

Just a few months back, in October, Delonte was arrested outside a police station in Palm Beach County, FL for allegedly banging on the door of the station, before cursing out cops.

But, Delonte -- who has battled addiction -- worked very hard to get himself back on track (with the help of supporters like Mark Cuban).

We broke the story a few weeks back that West was busting his ass in the gym in an effort to prepare for today's tryout.

During his time in the NBA, West -- the 24th overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft -- was no scrub. DW played 8 seasons for the Celtics, SuperSonics and Cavs ... in addition to the Mavs. He averaged 10 points, 3 rebounds and nearly 4 assists a game for his career.

It's not yet known if Delonte will make a team ... but just the fact he's out there is the real win here.

Jason "White Chocolate" Williams is wrong ... Kobe Bryant's not only in the top five greatest Lakers of all time -- he's number one!

... that's according to former Los Angeles Lakers center (and former Kobe teammate) John Salley, who tells TMZ Sports there is no better Laker ever than the Black Mamba.

"Kobe is the greatest Laker of all time," Salley said outside of LAX this week.

Of course, Williams is clearly not in agreement with Salley -- because he said on the popular basketball podcast "Players Choice" earlier this month that he wasn't sure if Kobe belonged even in the top-five Laker conversation.

Williams didn't elaborate on why ... but he said he knew the opinion would ruffle feathers.

Salley wasn't pissed about the former NBA point guard's hot take -- but he made it clear to us, Kobe is his No. 1 all-time.

"When you say greatest Laker, I'm just going to go with Jerry West, then it was Magic Johnson," the four-time champion said. "And then, 20 years of Kobe changed the whole attitude."

Ex-NBA star Jason "White Chocolate" Williams just pissed off a whole lot of Kobe Bryant fans ... saying he's "not even sure" the Black Mamba is a top-five Laker of all-time.

The former point guard made the shocking claim on the popular hoops podcast "Players Choice" this week ... while discussing where the NBA's greatest should land on an all-time rankings list.

"I haven't really thought about where I got Kobe," Williams said. "But, Kobe's not as high on my list as people would really think he should be."

"I'm not even sure he's on the top five of the all-time greatest Lakers."

One co-host kind of agreed with Williams ... but several others on the show thought the dude was crazy.

Of course, Laker Nation is surely clenching its fists over Williams' comments ... because nearly everyone who's rooted for the Purple and Gold has him pinned somewhere definitively in their top three.

Williams -- who spent 12 seasons in the NBA with the Kings, Grizzlies, Heat and Magic -- went head-to-head with Bryant throughout his career, so it's plausible his opinion was formed as a result of firsthand experience.

Williams didn't mention who he'd possibly have above Kobe ... but the Lakers do have a rich history of ballers (Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Shaquille O' Neal and LeBron James, to name a few).

Kobe's place amongst the Laker icons, though, is cemented in the eyes of many L.A. fans ... as he won five titles, two finals MVPs, and one regular-season MVP in his 20-year career.

Steph Curry is back in the good graces of 10-year-old Warriors fan PJ O'Byrne -- who was crushed when the 3x champ didn't play in the game she recently attended -- hooking up the young girl with some free courtside tix to see him hoop!

PJ originally received tickets to see Golden State play the Denver Nuggets back in December for her birthday, but a COVID-19 outbreak forced the game to be postponed.

It was rescheduled for Monday in Denver, but Steph didn't travel with the team and ultimately missed the game ... leaving one of his biggest fans, PJ, visibly devastated.

O'Bryne -- who was holding a "Go Warriors! MVP Steph Curry" sign in anticipation of seeing her favorite player hit the court -- was in tears when she received the news that #30 wasn't playing.

Well, Steph and the Warriors org. made things right ... providing the girl and her family tickets to Thursday's game against the Nuggets, giving Steph an opportunity to apologize in person.

Before tipoff, Curry made his way over to O'Bryne and her family (they had great seats) ... and briefly chatted with PJ, who was crying ... only this time, tears of joy.

The Nuggets also provided her with MVP jerseys.

PJ got to see a heckuva performance too. Steph didn't just drop 34 points ... he also surpassed 20,000 total career points, and led the Warriors to a thrilling comeback victory over the Nuggets, 113-102.

76ers fans greeted Ben Simmons with boos and trash talk as he took the court before Thursday's game ... marking his first return to Philadelphia since his trade to the Brooklyn Nets.

Remember, the 25-year-old guard made it clear he wanted out of Philly ... and was willing to lose out on millions of dollars as he refused to suit up for the Sixers this season.

Simmons finally got what he wanted last month ... after the Sixers traded BS, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for James Harden.

Simmons returned to Wells Fargo Center -- this time as a visitor -- in black and white gear for Thursday's matchup against the Sixers ... and despite being out with an injury, the fans let him hear it during pre-game shootaround.

In fact, the 3-time All-Star was heckled way before getting to the arena -- he was surrounded by an angry crowd while getting onto the team bus ... with one fan saying, "Ben Simmons, you stink!"

Fans were also booing Simmons outside the Four Season in downtown Philadelphia ... with one fan actually thanking him for the Nets trade.

"Thanks for James, man" one fan yelled.

The Utah Jazz organization is stepping up to help the Ukrainian people amid the Russian invasion ... by providing more than 32,200 nights of housing for refugees fleeing the country.

The team made the announcement on Wednesday ... saying it teamed up with Airbnb.org -- a nonprofit devoted to providing housing to those in need -- to make the gesture happen.

Jazz Executive chairman and co-owner Ryan Smith spoke about the decision to help out ... saying, "Connection and community have never been more important than it is today."

"Millions of people have been forced to leave behind their entire lives in Ukraine. Airbnb.org is connecting host families with refugees in need, creating safe havens when so many communities are being torn apart."

He added ... "And we can’t stop there. I encourage every organization to support Airbnb.org’s important initiative, to magnify their impact and house enough refugees to fill their arenas or workplaces.”

The incredibly kind gesture comes at a time when Ukraine is being ravaged every day by violence at the hands of Vladimir Putin and Russian troops -- forcing many of its citizens to flee out of safety concerns.

In fact, more than 2.1 million people have evacuated since February 24.

Airbnb co-founder and chairman of Airbnb.org, Joe Gebbia, was extremely thankful for the commitment from the team ... saying, "I cannot begin to express my thanks to the Utah Jazz Foundation for their support of Airbnb.org’s work."

The Sacramento Kings will be without Domantas Sabonis for one game ... 'cause their newly acquired center has been suspended for making contact with a referee during Monday's game against the Knicks.

The NBA's President of League Operations, Byron Spruell, announced the punishment on Wednesday ... saying Sabonis was suspended "for aggressively confronting and making contact with a game official."

During the tilt against New York, Domantas was hit with a technical foul for unsportsmanlike conduct after he disagreed with a foul called by one of the refs.

That's when Sabonis became irate, and according to the NBA's official statement, "reacted demonstratively again in the vicinity of the game official, and approached and bumped the official in a hostile manner."

In the video, you can see Domantas clearly lose his cool ... and does seem to make contact with the official, albeit minimal.

Sabonis received a second technical foul and was ultimately ejected from the game ... so he was unable to see the Kings squander their double-digit lead to the Knicks.

In the latest edition of NBA Players vs. Fans -- JaVale McGee got in a heated back-and-forth with a spectator in Orlando on Tuesday night ... after the guy unleashed a series of F-bombs and called him a "bitch."

The man -- we're assuming he's not a Suns fan -- was sitting close to the Phoenix bench as he started jawing at McGee.

In the clip, you can see Suns center Bismack Biyombo motioning to have the guy thrown out of the arena ... and it's because he seemingly continuously yelled "f*** you" at McGee during a timeout.

If you listen closely, it appears another fan says, "Way to go, JaVale, you f***ing bitch," in the background of the video.

Building staff eventually made its way over to the guy who got into it with McGee ... and let him know he had to leave the game -- which pissed him off even more.

"F*** you, bitch," the guy said to McGee, who could clearly hear him.

Another fan appears to ask, "Aye, JaVale, you called me a p***y?" in the video as well ... although it's unclear if the two men were together or if it was a completely different interaction.

Russell Westbrook says he's done with fans calling him "Westbrick" ... telling reporters Monday night the taunt is now deeply affecting him, his kids and everyone else he closely associates with.

"A lot of times, I let it slide," the L.A. Lakers superstar said following his team's loss to the Spurs in San Antonio. "But now it's time to put a stop to that and put it on notice."

Westbrook has heard the heckle repeatedly this year -- both at home and on the road -- after he's struggled to put up good performances for L.A. on a consistent basis.

Now, though, he said it's gotten so bad ... he's worried about the potential impact it's having on him and his family -- and he says he's going to do everything in his power to stop it.

"Me and my wife were at teacher-parent conferences for my son," said Westbrook, following a a game in which he had 17 points and five turnovers. "And, the teacher told me, '[My son] Noah, he's so proud of his last name. He writes it everywhere. He writes it on everything. He tells everybody and walks around and says, 'I'm Westbrook.''"

"And, I kind of sat there in shock," Westbrook added. "And, it hit me, like, 'Damn. I can no longer allow people [to call me Westbrick].'"

Russ was seen Monday night in San Antonio appearing to shut down the taunt from a courtside fan, yelling at the person from the baseline, "Don't disrespect my name!"

"Every time I do hear it now," Russ said of the taunting, "I will make sure that I address it and make sure I nip that in the bud."

Westbrook's wife, meanwhile, has also urged fans to stop with the jeers ... urging people in a series of tweets this week to cool it -- claiming their family has even gotten death threats over the course of the season.

Ja Morant should be the next hooper-turned-Hollywood actor ... so says Kenny "The Jet" Smith, who tells TMZ Sports the Grizzlies star would be perfect alongside Jack Harlow in the "White Men Can't Jump" reboot.

As we previously reported, the "Nail Tech" rapper was announced as the lead actor in the new project ... taking on Woody Harrelson's role of Billy Hoyle.

While Harlow's costar has not yet been announced, we asked Kenny who should be the modern-day Sidney Deane ... and he's got a great idea.

"They should get a current young player," Smith tells us. "They should get Ja Morant."

"They get Ja Morant to do that. No question. Hey, production credit!!"

Not only does Smith praise Morant as his pick for Sidney Deane, he also gives him credit for his success on the court this season ... and thinks he deserves to be in the race for MVP.

"He's in the conversation, but I think Joel [Embiid] is still gonna win it. But, he is right behind him. They are a contender."

Morant is balling out this season -- averaging 27.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 6.6 assists a game -- and if his success spills over to the silver screen with "WMCJ," Smith says he needs a shoutout.

How's this for a birthday gift? Deandre Ayton celebrated his son's first birthday by dropping 30 points ... and he did it rockin' custom Elmo kicks!

TMZ Sports has learned Ayton's team reached out to Cleveland artist Van Monroe requesting Elmo artwork for his sneakers to celebrate Deandre Jr.'s first birthday on March 6.

Monroe brought Ayton's vision to life -- delivering a dope design featuring the Sesame Street Muppet.

Aside from a painted photo of Elmo ... the Puma's also have Ayton's son's name and birthday, March 6, 2021, painted on them.

Monroe -- who tells us he was honored Deandre chose him for such a special occasion -- says it only took him 15 hours from sketch to finished product on the size 18 shoes.

Besides the birthday sneaker tribute, Ayton went off against the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday, dropping 30 points for the Suns -- a season-high for the 6-foot-11 center.

Despite the great performance, the Suns lost, 132-122 ... but that didn't stop Ayton from dedicating his best performance of the year to Jr.

"Happy birthday to my son," Ayton said post-game, "That game is dedicated to him."

Kobe Bryant's shooting shirt from his iconic 81-point game just sold for a massive $277,000 at auction -- and the lucky buyer also got a one-of-one NFT that came with it.

The shirt is a one-of-a-kind piece ... not only was it worn by the Mamba before he scored the 2nd-most points ever in an NBA game (back in 2006), experts at Sotheby's tell TMZ Sports it's the ONLY worn piece from that game on the market.

We're told it was worn six other times by Kobe, too -- including in the 2006 playoffs.

We're also told the shoes from that historic game were sent to the Basketball Hall of Fame and the uniform is owned by Bryant's family -- so this might be the only Bryant-donned item from the game that ever becomes available.

The auction for the shooting shirt closed last week -- and after a bunch of bidding, the rare piece sold for a total of $277,200.

The lucky buyer is David Kohler, President of SCP Auctions and owner of one of the largest private Lakers memorabilia collections in the world, and he said after the sale he's pumped to now own the item.

"After collecting Kobe Bryant memorabilia throughout many years, I am thrilled and honored to add this very special artifact from one of the most significant games in NBA history to my collection," Kohler said.

Shaquille O'Neal's turning 50 this weekend, but he ain't slowing down ... in fact, the NBA legend's literally getting faster after getting a brand new, customized Dodge Charger Hellcat for his big day.

The NBA Hall of Famer -- who's turning the big 50 on March 6 -- showed off his new whip on Friday ... saying it's the "best birthday ever!"

The car looks awesome ... with it's custom silver and red paint job and scissor doors (like on a Lamborghini). It also has the words "Diesel Dog Mafia" painted on the hood.

And, it's not just any old Charger ... it's a Hellcat, with about 800 horsepower.

Shaq was extremely hyped and thanked Swaggpack Shaq, Atlanta Street Xecs and Padgett Motor Sports for getting him the bday ride.

"Best car club ever," Shaq said, "love you guys thanks."

Shaq (of course) also had to take a shot at his buddy Chuck.

"I feel like Charles Barkley eating a piece of chocolate cake."