Basketball

Drake's courtside antics during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals has Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer in his feelings.

Sorry, we had to.

The 6 God did all but actually suit up for the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday ... yelling during free throws, laughing when Giannis Antetokounmpo missed said free throws, and even giving Toronto coach Nick Nurse a back rub.

Budenholzer weighed in on the Raps' ambassador Wednesday ... and he ain't happy with Drizzy seemingly getting special access to the hardwood.

"I see it in some timeouts, but I don't know of any person that's attending the game that isn't a participant in the game a coach -- I'm sorry, a player or a coach that has access to the court," Budenholzer says.

"There's certainly no place for fans and, you know, whatever it is exactly that Drake is for the Toronto Raptors.

"You know, to be on the court, there's boundaries and lines for a reason, and like I said, the league is usually pretty good at being on top of stuff like that."

Coach Bud ain't the only 1 pissed off ... Giannis' rep, Georgios Dimitropoulos, blasted Drizzy earlier today.

"Imagine a gig & an athlete on VIP seats, right next to the band, stands up on the stage just to show off during the entire game, knowing cameras are on him, occasionally even massaging the singer. Security&him both allow it. Never seen anything as disrespectful as this before..."

We've reached out to the NBA for comment ... so far, no word back.

As for Drake ... Game 5 is on Thursday in Milwaukee. Maybe he'll get some court-side seats??

How does Dwyane Wade REALLY feel about Paul Pierce saying his career was better?

"I'm a high road kind of person ... I won't put another black man down."

Wade couldn't have been more respectful to the longtime Celtics star when we spotted him and Gabrielle Union leaving Blue Dog Beer Tavern in L.A.

"He's an amazing player. I have a lot of respect for him," D-Wade added -- "I'm gonna clap when he goes in the Hall of Fame."

Of course, the Paul Pierce vs. D-Wade debate began back in April when Pierce appeared on ESPN and was asked if he thought he had the better career.

"That’s easy, I can say that off the bat, that’s me,” Pierce said. "I’m 24 or 25 and you give me [LeBron James] and [Chris Bosh], I’d be sitting on five or six championships easy."

Heat fans didn't like Paul's comments -- and busted out a "Paul Pierce sucks" chant at Wade's final home game in Miami.

There's more ... we also asked Wade what his plans are after basketball -- and he told us he's gonna be a "kept man" for a while Union brings home the bacon!

"She got it," Wade said with a smile.

LeBron James clearly needs a little TLC after his Lakers continue to implode around him ... and seems he's gettin' it from an old buddy -- Tristan Thompson!!!

LBJ was out in L.A. on Tuesday night celebrating his John Elliott x LeBron James clothing launch ... and Tristan was there to back his friend -- in more ways than one.

LeBron's Lakers have been a disaster the past few weeks -- they botched their coaching search and Magic Johnson quit -- so TT stopped by and helped comfort The King.

The two shared a big embrace inside of the store ... and seems it helped cheer up LeBron -- who was caught dancing at the DJ booth moments later!!!

Of course, all the bro hugs in the world ain't exactly going to fix the Lakers' issues -- they still need a superstar to join up with Bron this summer and they've gotta make sure their new coaching staff works.

But hey, in the meantime, at least LBJ's new kicks (releasing to the public this week) are fire!!!!

Colin Kaepernick wasn't just courtside to watch the Golden State Warriors beat the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday ... he celebrated the win ON the court after the game!

Colin -- sporting a shirt featuring Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali -- sat right behind Steve Kerr at Moda Center for Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.

But Kap -- who spent 6 seasons in the Bay Area with the 49ers -- was treated like a VIP before, during and after the game.

In fact, when Golden State closed out their 119 to 117 victory ... players like Draymond Green and Steph Curry couldn't wait to walk over and chat him up.

There's footage of Steph telling his son, Canon, to say "What's up" to Colin -- while the QB smiles back at the little boy ... it's a sweet moment.

After the celebration, Colin was spotted outside the Warriors locker room.

Of course, the Warriors players and coach have publicly supported Kap for years -- and they've all pushed back against President Trump.

The Warriors famously skipped their White House visit in favor of visiting former President Barack Obama because they're not fans of Donald.

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka is adamant he did NOT betray Magic Johnson and trash the NBA legend behind his back ... saying allegations are "simply not true."

Pelinka was asked about the situation moments ago while introducing new Lakers head coach Frank Vogel ... just hours after Magic put Pelinka on blast during an ESPN interview.

Johnson said he was upset at Pelinka because he found out Rob had been bashing him in and out of NBA circles ... saying Magic's work ethic sucked and he was barely in the Lakers office.

So, what's Rob's response? He took a cue from Shaggy ... IT WASN'T ME!

"Surprising to hear and disheartening," Pelinka said ... "Simply not true."

Pelinka says he stands with Magic as a colleague and a partner and wants to speak with Magic in person to clear everything up.

Pelinka says he was surprised to see Magic make the allegations on TV because they have spoken several times since Magic left the Lakers and Rob thought they were on good terms.

Sebastian Telfair's sister has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly making violent threats to the ex-NBA star's estranged wife ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We broke the story ... Samantha Telfair had gone to police in late April claiming she was getting frightening phone calls from Octavia Telfair, who threatened to "kill my kids and cut my face" all because she testified in Sebastian's NYC gun case.

During Sebastian's trial, Samantha told prosecutors she had personally witnessed the former basketball star in possession of multiple weapons, including the gas-operated submachine gun he was allegedly carrying when he was arrested in June 2017.

Apparently, Sebastian's sister, Octavia, felt Samantha's testimony was treacherous -- so she allegedly called Samantha more than 50 times on the phone to express her discontent.

The LAPD and NYPD were investigating -- since Samantha lives in L.A. and Octavia lives in New York -- but the case was kicked to the FBI, which ultimately decided to arrest Octavia.

As we previously reported, Telfair -- a 33-year-old former high school phenom who spent 12 seasons in the NBA -- was arrested in June 2017 in Brooklyn when cops found several weapons during a traffic stop.

Magic Johnson is calling out Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka -- fingering Pelinka as the backstabber who trashed him inside and outside of NBA circles ... and Magic is pissed.

Magic went on "First Take" early Monday when he was asked about the drama inside the Lakers organization that pushed him to quit before the end of the 2018-19 season.

Johnson essentially says he started hearing bad rumors about himself which he was able to trace back to Rob.

"I started hearing, 'Magic, you're not working hard enough. Magic's not in the office' ... So, people around the Lakers office was telling me Rob was saying things."

Magic added, "And, I didn't like those things being said behind my back."

Johnson said he also started getting calls "from my friends outside of basketball saying those things now were said to them outside of basketball."

Johnson resigned on April 9 -- telling the media before looping in Lakers owner Jeanie Buss ... shocking the basketball world.

Kobe Bryant clearly doesn't need a son to carry on his hoops legacy -- his daughter's got this ... and her insane highlight video proves that!!!

13-year-old Gianna Bryant -- one of Kobe's 3 daughters -- put on a clinic in an AAU game this past weekend ... flashing all the moves Kobe made famous in his 20-year NBA career.

Spin move in the lane? Check. Step-back 3-pointer? Check. Killer crossover? That's there too!!

Kobe's talked a lot about Gianna carrying the basketball torch for the fam in the future ... saying recently she's "hellbent" on playing ball for Geno Auriemma at UConn.

And, Dad's been super proud of her throughout this whole process ... tweeting out Sunday, "She’s working and getting better everyday."

Matt Barnes says there's no way in hell Zion Williamson's gonna pass up on NBA money just 'cause NOLA ain't New York ... telling TMZ Sports going back to Duke would be too much of a risk.

Earlier this week, there were rumblings Z-Dub could go back to Durham after the Pelicans won the NBA Draft lottery because he was hoping to go to the Knicks.

But, Barnes says all that talk is a bunch of hogwash ... 'cause the future #1 overall pick is expected to land a contract up to $45 million.

... Oh yeah, he's also probably gonna get a $100 MILLION shoe deal ... Soooo, maybe New Orleans won't be so bad!!!

"Money is different these days. I think he'd be passing up on 100-plus million to go back and possibly get hurt again in college, I don't think it's gonna happen," Barnes said.

Master P says if Zion Willamson decides to play for the New Orleans Pelicans he could be BIGGER THAN MICHAEL JORDAN because of the sheer love he'd get from the community.

The Pelicans got the first pick of the draft (hi, New York!) and almost immediately people started to speculate that Zion wouldn't want to hoop there, preferring a bigger market to shine his star.

Zion's stepdad recently squashed all that, saying they'd love to play in New Orleans, and when we talked to P -- who's from the Big Easy -- he said if Zion embraces the city, it'll make him a HUGE STAR.

"He'll be bigger than Michael Jordan, I'm just telling y'all. Think about it, when Jordan first came out of college everyone had to have his jersey. Everyone wanted to be like Mike. Come to New Orleans they gonna wanna be like you Z."

Listen, he's got a point ... Drew Brees became a near deity in New Orleans, and the love from the city definitely helped push his career to new levels.

Lamar Odom says he went to great lengths to take the court for USA Basketball at the Olympics ... using a prosthetic penis to help him pass a drug test!!!

Lamar comes clean about how he was able to pass the test despite smoking weed on the daily in the summer of '04 in his soon to be released book, "Darkness to Light" -- where he says, "We started googling 'fake penises' and studied different ways to beat a drug test."

"After an exhaustive search we ordered a giant, rubber, black c*** to arrive the next day," Odom writes in an expert first provided to People ... "I unzipped my pants and carefully slid the fake penis through the zipper hole. To get the pee to come out of the tip, I had to squeeze the shaft repeatedly."

Lamar admits he was "paranoid" the fake penis ruse wouldn't work once the official tester took the sample at Odom's home ... but he passed with flying colors and was soon heading to Greece with the rest of Team USA.

Unfortunately, Lamar couldn't help the Americans win the gold medal ... in one of our nation's most embarrassing Olympic moments, a team full of NBA superstars came home with the bronze.

Tyreke Evans is getting the O.J. Mayo treatment ... 'cause the NBA vet has been BANNED from the league for violating the NBA's anti-drug program.

The details about Evans' violation is unclear -- we don't know what specific substance he's accused of using. The 29-year-old will be able to file for reinstatement in 2 years.

The bizarre part of the story is that Evans had ZERO previous public drug violations in his 10-year NBA career, before this situation.

Evans was the 4th overall pick to the Sacramento Kings in 2009 and was named NBA Rookie of the Year in 2010.

The Indiana Pacers -- Evans' former team -- released a statement on Friday, saying, "We take these matters seriously and will reach out to Tyreke to offer our support."

How do you one-up LeBron's famous Banana Boat pic? Ya can't ... but this is close!

Manu Ginobili and a bunch of his old Spurs teammates hopped on a giant inflatable hot dog Friday to pay tribute (?) to the most famous flotation device pic ever taken!!

Here's the order from front to back ... Boris Diaw, Tiago Splitter, Patty Mills and Manu pulling up the rear.

They've even nicknamed themselves the "WienerBoatBoys" ... a nod to Bron's "Banana Boat Crew."

Remember, Bron -- along with Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul and Gabrielle Union -- hopped on that big yellow floatie back in 2015 in a pic that IMMEDIATELY went viral.

The funny thing about the new pic ... is Manu and his wiener-mates were all part of that San Antonio Spurs team that beat LeBron and D-Wade's Miami Heat team in the NBA Finals back in 2014!

By the way, the Spurs squad posted about the hot dog ride ...

Teyana Taylor definitely saved a horse, and instead opted to ride and grind Iman Shumpert -- and this video might make her the G.O.A.T. of lap dancing!

Teyana performed at the Red Bull Music Festival at NYC's Manhattan Center, and brought her NBA player hubby onstage as a prop. We guarantee he had zero complaints about getting strapped into an inversion table.

Teyana quickly flipped him over and kicked off some steamy action -- with an assist from one of her backup dancers -- which the crowd ate up.

The Wednesday night performance was reportedly dubbed, Teyana Taylor: House of Petunia. In somewhat of an awkward moment ... Teyana performed the provocative dance with their 3-year-old daughter, Junie, sitting in the front row.

Anyway ... Teyana and Iman love their strippers. Seriously, they really do. So, Teyana's lap dance skills shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone.

BTW ... Method Man and Fabolous also made it onstage ... but no lap dances for them.

To Protect and ... SWISH!!!

Check out this real LAPD officer showing off his real basketball skills the other day ... hitting a no-look, backwards trick shot LIKE A BOSS!!!

The kids went absolutely CRAZY -- cheering and screaming like they just watched Kawhi Leonard's buzzer beater in person.

The officer's name is Arius George -- aka Trick Shot Cop -- and his hoop skills are so impressive, he caught the eye of the Harlem Globetrotters and they did an event together back in February.

Zion Williamson's stepdad says the 18-year-old superstar is "excited" to play in New Orleans -- despite reports to the contrary ... noting Zion has learned to "accept the things you can't change."

The Pelicans scored the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft Lottery earlier this week -- and most believe the plan is to take Zion.

But, there are rumblings Zion is unhappy with the situation -- that he doesn't want to play in NOLA and would rather go back to Duke and play another year of college ball ... since he still has eligibility.

But, Zion's stepdad, Lee Anderson, shot down all that speculation on ESPN's Baton Rouge radio show, 'Off the Bench' -- saying Williamson is pumped to get going in New Orleans.

"We're excited. We're excited about that," Anderson said.

"One thing that Zion has always been taught is to accept the things you can't change, and change the things that you can change. And, this is one of the things that he has nothing to do with."

"It's the process of the NBA, and certainly we're excited about the Crescent City down there in New Orleans."

When asked specifically about the possibility of Zion going back to Duke, Anderson told the media to pump the brakes on that theory too.

"There has been a lot of speculation. But, that is nothing that we have even considered."

Zion has until May 29 to make an official decision about returning to Duke or entering the NBA Draft.