NBA

Damian Lillard's new team isn't the only major change in his life -- the Milwaukee Bucks superstar just filed for divorce from his longtime partner, Kay'La.

TMZ Sports has confirmed ... the 7-time All-Star officially filed docs in Oregon earlier this week.

Dame and Kay'La go way back -- they first started dating as students at Weber State and were together ever since. They officially got married back in September 2021 and have three children.

According to Willamette Week, Dame's filing cited irreconcilable differences that "caused the irremediable breakdown of their marriage."

The report also points out the two appear to have been living separately for the past 10 months ... with Kay'La moving into a $2.7 million home in West Linn, while Dame remained at their $7.7 million pad in the same city.

There has been speculation for weeks ... with some internet sleuths noticing Kay'La had been absent from Damian's social media posts.

It's a tough time to be a Blazers fan, but NBA champ Byron Scott thinks Portland should be HAPPY after Damian Lillard got traded to the Bucks ... 'cause he's finally got a chance to win!!

TMZ Sports caught up with the former Laker out at KiKi Shepard's "Celebrity Golf Classic" this week ... and chopped it up about the blockbuster deal that sent Dame Time over to Giannis Antetokounmpo's squad.

Of course, it's a huge bummer for Portland fans to see their franchise player leave after 11 seasons ... but instead of taking the torches to their No. 0 jerseys, Byron believes it would be best to look at the silver lining by rooting for Lillard to get a championship with his new team.

"I think, obviously, Damian joining the Bucks -- a team that won a championship a couple years ago, and they got one of the best players, if not the best player in the league, in the Greek Freak, as I call him ... and adding Damian, who is motivated, who wants to win a championship, who has given his heart and soul to the Portland area -- I think they should be not so much upset that he's left, but they should be happy for him to get a chance to win."

Scott points out a major loss for the Bucks in the trade -- elite perimeter defender Jrue Holiday -- but he's predicting Milwaukee still makes it out of the East in his absence.

If Travis Kelce starts going off in the next couple weeks, John Salley says Chiefs fans can thank Taylor Swift for it ... telling TMZ Sports he believes a committed relationship with the pop star will help the tight end's game tremendously.

As for why ... the four-time NBA champion says it's simple -- Kelce spending his time with just one woman going forward this year will free him up to focus way more on ball.

"He now doesn't have to worry about 100 DMs," Salley told us out in Los Angeles this week, "or making sure certain girls got tickets. He can be focused, right?"

"So, he has practice, go to sleep, talk to his girl. That's easier than when you get to be the playboy that he used to be."

And, if for some reason Kelce even thinks about straying from a relationship with the "Love Story" crooner ... Salley made it clear he believes there's just no way her fanbase will let it happen.

"You can't do that," the former Lakers center said with a smile. "Those Swifties got cameras!"

Of course, it's unclear if Kelce and Swift are even looking for something serious ... while the two obviously have some sort of romance brewing -- there's no indication yet whether boyfriend/girlfriend labels are on the horizon.

Ja Morant got back to business on Tuesday -- the NBA superstar participated in practice with the Memphis Grizzlies ... one day after it was announced he would be allowed to be with the team as he serves out his suspension.

Despite being hit with a 25-game ban for his second gun-related social media video in June, the NBA is allowing Morant to travel and work out with the Grizz as he prepares for his return.

Ja was out on the court with his teammates earlier in the day ... and media members got footage of him putting up shots.

"It’s great to have him here," Grizzlies president and general manager Zach Kleiman said.

"I think he’s put himself in a position where there’s no reason why he can’t keep following through on this. So we’re glad he’s here and can’t wait to have him back."

His teammates are happy as well ... including Derrick Rose, who told reporters he connected with Morant in the offseason.

"Talked to him a little bit," Rose said. "Just told him I'm not here to babysit you. I'm not here to follow you around, I'm not here to cheerlead. I'm here to push you."

Michael Jordan is now so rich, he's considered one of the wealthiest 400 people in America!!!

Forbes just bestowed the honor on the NBA legend ... after it said the sale of his stake in the Charlotte Hornets earlier this summer pushed his net worth to $3 BILLION.

Jordan, according to the outlet, now comes in at No. 379 among the country's wealthiest 400 ... just a few slots below WWE honcho Vince McMahon.

He's become the first professional athlete to ever make the list.

His Airness, of course, gained a ton his of fortune through NBA contracts and his huge endorsement deals with companies like Nike and Gatorade ... but it was the Hornets sale that pushed him into the rarified air.

As we reported, Jordan sold the team to Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall in June for $3 billion ... this after he initially bought the majority stake of the organization in 2010 for a mere $175 million.

Kevin Porter Jr. has been instructed to stay away from the Houston Rockets following his recent domestic violence arrest ... and his future with the team appears to be in jeopardy.

Rockets GM Rafael Stone shared an update on the 23-year-old's status during Houston's media day on Monday ... calling the allegations made against the hooper "deeply troubling."

"Going back a few weeks, as soon as I heard the allegations, I informed his representatives that he could not be part of the Houston Rockets," Stone continued. "They understood and he has not been with the team or around the team or had any interaction with the team since that time and will not be at media day today or in training camp."

As we previously reported, KPJ is accused of attacking his girlfriend at an NYC hotel on September 11, leaving her bloodied and with a laceration above her eye.

Initial reports also stated Porter Jr. left the woman with a cracked neck vertebra... but sources later refuted the NBAer was responsible for the injury.

Stone wouldn't comment on whether KPJ would ever suit up for the Rockets again ... citing the league's collective bargaining agreement and domestic violence policy.

Porter Jr. signed a four-year, $85 million deal with Houston prior to last season ... averaging 19 points, 5 rebounds and nearly 6 assists for the Rockets in 2022-23.

Now, the Rockets will gear up for the 2023-24 campaign without one of its key players.

LeBron James says Bronny is recovering so well from recent heart surgery that he's now hoping to suit up for USC this season.

The Lakers superstar revealed the plans for his 18-year-old son while meeting with reporters at L.A.'s Media Day on Monday.

Bron said his boy is "doing extremely well," and has already begun rehabbing to "get back on the floor this season with his teammates at USC."

"He's on the up-and-up," LeBron added.

As we previously reported, Bronny suffered cardiac arrest back on July 24 ... and was later diagnosed with a congenital heart defect that required a procedure to fix.

While docs believed the issue wouldn't derail his basketball career -- a timetable for a return to the Trojans' floor was not known. Clearly, however, LeBron thinks his son can get back within a matter of a couple months.

LeBron also called the summer "a whirlwind" that featured "a lot of emotions for our family" -- but he said the James Gang all leaned on each other to get through it.

Jimmy Butler looked like he was about to ask if "people ever heard of closing the goddamn door" at Miami Heat media day ... going full emo with a haircut and piercings!!

The NBA superstar was back at it with his preseason antics on Monday ... showing up to the team facility rocking a look that would fit right in at the When We Were Young festival.

Of course, the 34-year-old All-Star has made it his thing to debut a shocking appearance for his official team photos prior to the season -- last year, he wore dreads for the occasion.

This time around, he went with the straightened hairdo ... even rocking lip and eyebrow piercings to complete the style.

"This is my emotional state," Butler told reporters. "I'm one with my emotions. So, this is what you get."

To really lean into it, The Used's "The Taste of Ink" played over the speakers as Butler posed next to teammates Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo for some snaps.

Last season, Butler explained he was trying out new looks to piss off the internet ... but this one seems to be getting a lot of approval from the emo hoops fans.

Yeah, Damian Lillard and Antonio Brown might have some dope music, but Shaq tells TMZ Sports he's the G.O.A.T when it comes to athletes who rap ... and he's been that guy since the 1990s!

For those who don't remember, Shaq made four rap albums during his Hall of Fame NBA career, with the first one, "Shaq Diesel," coming out in 1993.

He hasn't stopped making music in retirement either ... the 51-year-old actually just jumped on a track with L.A.-based group Coyote -- and he tells us he's got much more on the way too.

"I got a couple of freestyles," O'Neal said. "It's all competition for me, so when I hear other people that say, 'I'm a better athlete-rapper than Shaq,' I gotta step up."

"Nothing personal. I just have to let these people know who paved the way."

Some of the athletes makin' waves in the rap game include Lillard, who's been considered by fans to be one of the best, lyrically, in any sport.

There's also Brown, who's made catchy tracks like "Put That Sh** On" ... as well as former NBA star Iman Shumpert.

But, while O'Neal (who we recently talked to about his huge upcoming charity event) was very complimentary of the guys' talents on the mic, he says he's still the greatest of all time.

"I put stuff out, they put stuff out and we let the people decide who the number one is," O'Neal said.

"I know who the number one is. I'ma always say myself is number one, but they got a lot of the guys out there that are coming."

Grizzlies legend Zach Randolph is confident Ja Morant will bounce back from his off-court issues ... telling TMZ Sports he's been sharing advice with the young NBA star following his 25-game suspension.

Memphis will be without its face of the franchise for the first chunk of the upcoming season as a result of his second gun-related social media post that surfaced back in May ... but Z-Bo says it's just a bump in the road for the two-time All-Star -- revealing what he's been telling Morant in their conversations.

"Man, I just tell him, Ja, you're lil bro," Randolph said at LAX. "We all been through some stuff. If it was social media like it was when I was playing, I'd be in some stuff, too."

"You gon' be all right," he added. "You just go through growing pains, and you be resilient and you bounce back."

"That's what he is. He'll bounce back."

24-year-old Ja initially faced criticism for flashing a gun at a strip club back in March ... resulting in an 8-game ban.

Despite his claims -- and alleged video proof -- that the weapon shown in the second video was actually a lighter, the league elected to hand down his current lengthy punishment.

Isaiah Thomas is hell-bent on continuing his career in the NBA ... telling TMZ Sports his No. 1 -- and only -- plan right now is getting back into the Association.

"My only option is the league," Thomas said while out at LAX this month. "For sure."

The former Boston Celtics star, though, said right now there hasn't been much movement on his quest to land on a team. But, he told us he is staying patient.

"Just waiting it out," said the 34-year-old, who last played for the Charlotte Hornets in the 2021-22 season. "Staying ready to be on an NBA roster."

Of course, there are other pro leagues outside the NBA that Thomas could thrive in -- including the EuroLeague, the Australian National Basketball League and the Chinese Basketball Association ... but the two-time All-Star made it clear he wants to see NBA hardwoods only.

We also talked to Thomas about his former teammate, LeBron James, recruiting players for the 2024 Olympics following the country's loss in this year's FIBA World Cup semifinals ... and he told us if LBJ gets the guys he wants, it should be an easy win for Team USA.

"If LeBron wanted to fight with me, it wouldn't be close!"

That's UFC fighter Bobby Green aka "King" saying he'd wash Bron in a purely hypothetical fight for the royal nickname.

See, TMZ Sports was talking to the 37-year-old lightweight before his Fight Night main event scrap against 29-year-old Grant Dawson, the 10th ranked 155 pounder.

Dawson's nickname is "KGD" ... said to stand for "King Grant Dawson"

When we asked Green if he had a message for Grant, he told us ... "There can only be one King. I just found out that Grant Dawson's fight name is KGD. There can only be one king. Let's go find out. The other one's gonna get his head cut off!"

Okay, okay. Obviously, the most famous "King" going right now this side of Charles is LeBron ... and given the age-old debate about skill vs. size, we asked BG if he could beat the 6'8" hoops legend.

"It wouldn't be close!" Bobby said.

We mentioned the size discrepancy ... Bobby's 5'10" and fights at 155 lbs. (we'll assume he walks around in the neighborhood of 185). James is 10 inches taller, and weighs 250 lbs., according to the Lakers website.

Irrelevant, according to Bobby.

"He's a big dude but he doesn't have the skills I'm sorry. Skills pay the bills, sir."

But, would Green actually fight King James?

"In a drop of a dime. In a heartbeat, without even thinking about it. Hell yeah. I'll wax his ass!"

Damian Lillard's trade to the Milwaukee Bucks is bittersweet for Giannis Antetokounmpo -- the Greek Freak finally opened up about the deal that sent his "brother" Jrue Holiday to the Trail Blazers ... saying he's both excited and crushed.

"Jrue is my f***ing brother for life," Antetokounmpo told Bleacher Report. "I love his family. I love him. I appreciate him. I wish him nothing but the best."

Giannis' reaction comes days after the Blazers-Bucks-Sun blockbuster trade, where the Bucks gave Portland their 2029 unprotected first-round pick and several players -- including Holiday -- for Lillard.

It's understandable why Antetokounmpo is sad -- he's been teammates with Holiday since 2020, and they won the NBA Finals a year later.

"He blessed me with a f***ing championship," Antetokounmpo said.

"He’s the one who made that huge steal in Game 5 of the Finals. I went to battle with him multiple times. F*** basketball. F*** the media s***."

On the flip side, Giannis said he's stoked to play with Lillard ... explaining the 7-time All-Star gives them a legit shot at another NBA title.

"I’m excited to play with the caliber of player that he is," Antetokounmpo said. "He can score the ball in his sleep and shoot the lights out."

Lillard -- who requested the trade out of Portland in July -- is hyped to play with Giannis and the Bucks as well ... but admits he will miss his teammates, fans, and Portland dearly.

"I do believe a day will come where I put a Blazers uniform on again," the 33-year-old said in a farewell letter on Thursday.

"Hopefully by then, I'll be forgiven for breaking your hearts along with my own."

Rick Ross and Meek Mill are solidifying their union as a dynamic duo with a joint album that'll be here right around the time you're handing out candy to costumed kids.

The Maybach Music rappers dropped their new track "Shaq & Kobe" on Friday, the first sounds from their upcoming project entitled, "Too Good to Be True. " A source close to the album's production tells TMZ Hip Hop it'll drop at the end of October.

On the lead track, Meek sets up the alley-oop to Rozay as they flex jewelry and cars inside an airplane hangar near the Boss' private jet -- the references to winning big like the Lakers legends make perfect sense here.

The album will drop on the MMG imprint and the duo's chemistry in the clip surprised many fans who thought they were beefing after Rozay was absent from Meek's last album.

Our source tells us contrary to public opinion, Rozay and Meek have always remained cool ... Meek's rants in the past year were directed at outside parties as the two never had a dispute over money.

They'll have the opportunity to make even more when the project drops.

The NBA has suspended former San Antonio Spurs guard Joshua Primo for four games ... after it says it found he exposed his private parts to multiple women.

The league announced the ban on Friday morning ... saying an investigation into the free agent revealed he had "engaged in inappropriate and offensive behavior."

NBA officials called his actions "conduct detrimental to the league." They did, however, note that they "did not find evidence that he engaged in any sexual or other misconduct apart from these brief exposures."

"Primo maintains that his conduct was not intentional," the league said.

Dr. Hillary Cauthen, Primo's former therapist, was the first to bring the allegations against Primo to light after she claimed last fall that he exposed himself to her on nine separate occasions.

Dr. Cauthen's attorney, Tony Buzbee, alleged the Spurs were aware of Primo's actions, but didn't take action.

Cauthen went on to file a lawsuit against Primo and the Spurs ... though Primo's attorney at the time was adamant that the allegations were "a complete fabrication, a gross embellishment or utter fantasy."

2:10 PM PT -- Travis Kelce got wind of Mark Cuban's plea to Taylor Swift ... and fired back at the Mavs owner with a playful post on X.

"Just sign me to a ten day [contract!] 😎"

Mark Cuban has seen what Taylor Swift's relationship with Travis Kelce has done for the NFL, and he's hoping her influence can transition over to the NBA ... telling TMZ Sports he wants to hook her up with a Mavericks player!!

T. Swift's appearance at the Chiefs game on Sunday had a massive positive impact on Kansas City and the league as a whole ... resulting in massive television ratings and Kelce jersey sales.

The billionaire businessman and Mavs owner is now giving his two cents on the Swift/Kelce sitch ... and he tells us he's not only witnessing a budding romance -- he's also seeing dollar signs.

"Taylor Swift impacts the economy," the Shark Tank star said out in NYC on Thursday. "She adds value everywhere she goes."

"Literally every city she brings her tours to, you can see the economy get a bump out of it. The NFL's gotta be loving this."

Cuban sends a personal message to Swift ... saying he'd love to introduce her to a hooper so the Association can get in on the big biz, too -- that is if things with the Chiefs tight end fall flat.

"The Mavs -- we got a lot of really good-looking, young single guys. Come on!"