Basketball

More trouble for ex-NBA player Sebastian Telfair -- this time, it's money problems ... 'cause the 2004 1st-round NBA Draft pick is now in the hole for more than $40k to American Express.

It's all in a new lawsuit obtained by TMZ Sports ... which shows the 33-year-old former high school phenom never paid his $43,051.69 bill to the credit card company -- and now they're trying to collect.

Shocking considering Telfair -- a once promising player -- reportedly made more than $19 million during his 10-year career in the NBA.

It's just the latest in a string of problems for Telfair who was arrested in June 2017 after cops say he was illegally in possession of a bunch of guns, bullets and weed.

Telfair's case went in front of a judge this week -- and his attorney argued to have the charges dropped. But, the judge denied Telfair's request and the case will move forward.

He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

Kawhi Leonard doesn't talk much, let alone sing -- but Tory Lanez doesn't seem to give a crap ... he wants the Raptors superstar on a track ASAP!!!!

Lanez is from Toronto -- and he's got so much love for what Kawhi's been able to do in his first few games in The 6 ... he's ready for a collab.

"That'd be great," Lanez tells TMZ Sports ... "We should do it. Just 'cause we both in Toronto and we both ballin', right?!?!"

Of course ... nobody knows if Leonard even has the capability to sing or rap (remember when he could barely laugh???) -- but Lanez appears to see that as a minor issue.

BTW ... for as much as Tory loves Kawhi these days -- he tells us the forward will NEVER be as good as Vince Carter ... and ya gotta hear why the rapper is convinced that's a fact.

And, if you want more from Tory, he was recently a guest on Van Lathan's 'The Red Pill' podcast where he talked about another hotly debated basketball topic ... his jump shot.

Steph Curry has teamed up with Viola Davis to make a documentary about the 2015 church shooting in Charleston in which 9 African Americans were killed.

The movie is called "Emanuel" -- named after the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in South Carolina.

The victims had been participating in a bible study session when then 21-year-old white supremacist Dylann Roof walked in and opened fire.

According to Curry's production company, Unanimous Media, the documentary "features intimate interviews with survivors and family members who were left to grapple with this senseless act of terror."

The movie is being promoted as a "poignant story of justice and faith, love and hate, and the healing power of forgiveness."

Roof was captured and later pled guilty to state murder charges. A federal court sentenced him to death by lethal injection.

Remember, one of the most powerful moments from the whole ordeal was at Roof's first court appearance when family members of one of the victims told Roof they forgive him.

They're rivals on the court now ... but LeBron James HAD to take a second to congratulate Derrick Rose on his huge game Wednesday, saying, "So extremely HAPPY AND PROUD of you bro!!!"

D. Rose turned back the clock on Halloween ... droppin' a career-high 50 points in Minnesota's win over the Jazz -- and LBJ couldn't have been happier when he saw the news after his Lakers game.

"I seen it first hand how much you worked and dedicated on your body, craft, mind, etc etc just to play 1 game at a time!" LBJ wrote.

"Perseverance is a mutha and this is the ABSOLUTE perfect definition of it!! Salute Bro! #DRoseforPresident"

Of course ... Rose -- who was a role player on LeBron's Cavs squad last season -- was the league's MVP back in 2011, but injuries and inconsistent play led many to call his career dead years ago.

That's why NBA stars ... from Dwyane Wade to Stephen Curry to Vince Carter ... all took to social media to congratulate D. Rose on the epic night.

Even Baron Davis glowed about the 30-year-old when we got him out in L.A., saying, "He's been humbly doing it for a while so it's good to see him have that game that put him back in everybody's conversation."

Josh Hart has ZERO CHILL ... 'cause when the Lakers stud found Moritz Wagner's 2018 Michigan runner-up ring -- HE CLOWNED THE HELL OUTTA HIS L.A. TEAMMATE!!

It's actually pretty hilarious ... the ring does look like something outta a gumball machine rather than a celebration of nearly winning the NCAA Tournament -- and Hart couldn't believe it.

"This weak-ass ring!" he yelled at Mo ... "Thing weak as hell!!"

Hart continued ... noting the lack of shine in the diamonds, saying, "They fake as hell! This is what happens when you a runner-up. This what you get!"

To his credit ... Wagner took it pretty well -- though he did beg pretty hard for Hart to stop the initial clown down from happening.

The Lakers are about to hit the reset button and blow up the entire roster -- and it'll be LeBron James who decides which players get to stay in L.A. ... so says Jalen Rose.

Sure, Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka technically make the roster moves, but it's obvious keeping James happy is the #1 priority ... and probably the road to a winning team.

Rose says the guys on the current roster are basically auditioning to stay in Purple & Gold -- and right now it looks like Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart are the only ones who appear safe.

So, where does that leave Lonzo Ball?

"I love Lonzo. He got game. But, they're taking the ball out of his hands," Rose explained ... "I'm rooting for him."

Translation -- Lonzo needs to get used to playing a style of basketball that he's never played before ... one where he doesn't have the basketball.

For the rest of the roster, Rose gives this advice:

Shareef O'Neal's heading to the operating table to fix his heart issue in December -- and his mom tells TMZ Sports she couldn't be more nervous for the UCLA superstar.

"I've been an emotional wreck, really. To be honest," Shaunie O'Neal says ... "I just really have. I still am. I'm just trying to push through."

We broke the story ... Shaq and Shaunie's son was diagnosed with an issue that will temporarily halt his hoops career -- and now that a date has been set for the open-heart surgery ... Mom says she's havin' a tough time.

"It's scary. It's scary no matter what. There's nothing anybody can say, do, tell me -- it's scary. And, I'm going to be feeling that way until this is over."

The good news ... Shareef doesn't seem too worried about the procedure -- telling us just a few weeks ago he's already planning for his life after the operation.

In fact, today he was goofing around on the basketball court in his Halloween costume.

As for Dad ... Shaunie says Shaq's been helping out families who have been put in similar situations as the O'Neals -- giving out iPads and even cash at the hospital.

1:00 PM PT -- A source close to Caroline tells us there's nothing romantic between the two ... in fact, Caroline's already in a relationship with model Heath Hutchins. We're told G-Eazy and Caroline connected after the game because they have mutual friends.

G-Eazy did what the Lakers couldn't do in Minnesota -- score a win ... with a hot blonde, or so it seems.

The rapper hit up the Lakers-T'Wolves game Monday night in the Gopher State. His presence there wasn't unusual ... he's boys with T'Wolves star Karl-Anthony Towns. But, all the action definitely went down after the game when Eazy shot baskets with model Caroline Lowe.

As you can see from the vid ... Eazy got a bit handsy. Some might even say flirty. We're told, after the mini shootaround, Eazy and Caroline had dinner with a group of friends. They later hopped on the same private jet together bound for NYC.

It's unclear if they're dating or just friends ... but you can smell the pheromones. Eazy's encounter came just days after his ex, Halsey, was enjoying the single life at her Halloween bash.

Clearly, no one's moping around.

Kobe Bryant's just been made an ambassador for the new 2019 hoops World Cup ... and he's got a message for his home country heading into the big tourney.

"DON'T F*** THIS UP!"

No pressure ...

The FIBA World Cup is a brand new, 32-team tournament set to go down next August and September in China ... and Kobe's new role is to help promote the event globally.

Bryant kicked that off with a video Tuesday ... callin' out Brazil, Spain, Australia, France and China to show him what they got.

But, the Lakers legend made sure to let the Stars and Stripes know they better win the damn thing (Team USA's roster has yet to be picked ... but they've been warned.)

FYI ... Yao Ming was the first ambassador for the event -- and he'll help with the draw for the tournament on March 16 in Shenzhen.

Ty Lue getting fired is actually a GOOD THING ... so says NBA champ Dahntay Jones, who tells TMZ Sports the coach is better off with a new team, hopefully a legit contender.

Lue is currently unemployed after the Cavs started the season 0-6 ... and, while some say the team did him dirty after 3 straight NBA Finals appearances, Jones sees it differently.

"I think it could be a positive thing for him," Jones says. "He knows how to lead stars, lead veterans and lead a team that's trying to go towards a championship that has a chance to win a championship."

Currently, with Kevin Love out for about a month ... the team has turned to rookie Collin Sexton and 2nd-year pro Cedi Osman. Jones thinks it's just not the right roster for Ty's skill set.

"He's best with teams that are already built and ready to win a championship."

The L.A. County D.A. has rejected criminal charges against Gloria Govan ... this after she was arrested for felony child endangerment in a super bitter custody war with ex-husband Matt Barnes.

Gloria was arrested the Friday before Labor Day after Matt claimed she put the lives of their twin boys at risk by allegedly flying into a rage in her car, blocking Matt and the kids from driving away from their school.

Sources connected with Gloria called BS on Matt's claim he had custody of the kids that weekend. Gloria says she even asked her lawyer well in advance to notify Matt's attorney Labor Day weekend was hers.

On the day in question ... her rep told the D.A. Gloria went to the school to pick up the boys, but Matt was already there. She says the kids were in her car when Matt ordered the boys to get in his car ... she believed in violation of the custody order. Gloria says she blocked his car, called 911 and "calmly" waited for cops.

Gloria denied she drove crazy to get at Matt's car and ultimately the D.A. said there was insufficient evidence to move forward.

Matt subsequently got a restraining order, keeping Gloria 100 yards from the kids. She's only allowed to see the boys once a week with a monitor present.

Ty Lue is getting some love from the Rivers family -- Doc and Austin -- with Doc even saying he'd be down to hire the fired Cavs coach if he doesn't land on his feet.

Lue got his walking papers from Cleveland this weekend after a 0-6 start -- but a lot of people around the league think he got done dirty.

So, when we saw Doc and Austin at Craig's Sunday night, we asked how they felt about Lue.

Austin's never played for Ty but says he's got a ton of respect for him -- based on what he's seen and heard from other big stars in the league.

"Ty's a great dude. He's a good coach," Austin said ... "Whoever gets him will be lucky."

He added, "Heard a lot of great things about him so I think he'll be fine."

By the way, Austin and the Washington Wizards were in town to play the Clippers, coached by his father, Doc.

Paul Pierce is glad Villanova is refusing to visit Trump's White House to celebrate their NCAA basketball title ... saying the tradition is dumb and overrated.

Nova's coach Jay Wright, announced Thursday the team would not visit 1600 Pennsylvania this year -- as NCAA winning teams have traditionally done for years.

In fact, Villanova visited Obama's White House after winning the title 2016 -- but Wright explained, "Two years ago it was the experience of a lifetime for all of us. It’s just a different time."

Fast forward to Thursday night outside Mastro's Steakhouse in Bev Hills -- where we asked Pierce (who visited George W. Bush's White House with the Celtics in '08) if Nova was making a mistake.

"I think that's overrated," Pierce explained ... "Why you gotta visit the White House? You got your trophy, you won your championship."

Paul tells us it's a digital time -- so a simple congratulatory tweet should more than do the job.

Then, he started questioning why the tradition even started in the first place -- strongly implying the tradition is just dumb and unnecessary.

"I don't know why we go to the White House," Pierce said ... "Why did people even start going there?"

BTW ... when Pierce went to the White House a decade ago -- he called it "truly an honor" and even brought gifts for No. 43.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are bad without LeBron James -- like, 0-wins bad -- but that's not such a terrible thing if you're a fan looking to score a REALLY cheap ticket last minute.

The Cavs squared off with the Brooklyn Nets in Cleveland Wednesday. Neither franchise has high hopes for the season, but it's still early, and the contest was only Cleveland's second at home.

However, in looking at Flash Seats -- the ticket sale and resale service launched by Cavs' owner Dan Gilbert -- you'd think the team was 0-60.

Nosebleed seats were reselling for as little as $2 an hour and a half before tip-off.

Granted, the seats suck ... but when a ticket goes for less than a bottle of water in your arena, there are some major issues.

Michael Jordan has teamed up with Magic Johnson -- buying an ownership stake in aXiomatic ... the company that operates the prestigious eSports franchise, Team Liquid.

Jordan was part of a new $26 million funding round -- joining other prestigious co-owners including Golden State Warriors co-owner Peter Gruber, Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik, and Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis.

Team Liquid is a FORCE in eSports -- with teams competing in games like League of Legends, Dota 2, Fortnite, CS:GO, Street Fighter, PUBG, FIFA and more.

In fact, the Team Liquid Dota 2 squad won the 2017 World Championship -- an $11 million grand prize!

Magic Johnson was an early investor in aXiomatic -- and Leonsis is stoked to reunite the 1992 Dream Team stars.

"Probably no other franchise has the championship pedigree as we do with now Michael and with Magic."

Team Liquid will be in direct competition in some games with 100 Thieves -- the eSports team founded by Nadeshot and now co-owned by stars like Drake and Scooter Braun.

Remember that kid who went viral for having NOBODY show up to his pizza party?? Joke's on his friends now ... 'cause the kid got the ultimate hookup at the Phoenix Suns game on Wednesday!!

6-year-old Teddy Bollinger's story *was* really sad -- he invited 32 of his closest friends to a pizza party on Sunday, just to have ZERO show up.

The picture of the bummed out kid made its way around the Internet like wildfire. The Suns got wind of the tragedy and quickly swooped in to give Teddy an awesome VIP invite to their game against the Lakers.

Not only did Teddy get to go to the game ... the dude got HOOKED UP -- from his own custom jersey, to meeting stars Josh Jackson and Trevor Ariza, to courtside seats to watch LeBron James play.