Basketball

Shaquille O'Neal says he's still so emotional about the death of Kobe Bryant, he will NOT watch the 2020 Hall of Fame ceremony because it will simply make him too sad.

Kobe is set to be formally inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in August -- the ultimate honor for one of the greatest players of all time.

But, Shaq admits he can't muster up the strength to watch -- mostly because he can't handle another bout of soul-crushing sadness after Kobe passed away in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26.

"Still miss him. Still think about him every day," O'Neal said on "The Big Podcast with Shaq."

Shaq says on the "scale of sadness" with 10 being the worst, he's finally at a "2" right now ... and watching the HOF ceremony "would bring me back to a 7, 8, 9 and I can't right now."

O'Neal continued, "It would be great if his wife gave a speech or his mom or dad give a speech but I'll see that afterwards. I'm not gonna watch the ceremony."

He also floated the idea of having a Kobe hologram at the ceremony -- saying it would be "nice" to have a Kobe-gram "sitting next to everyone else."

Kobe's Hall of Fame class is pretty stacked -- he'll be inducted along with Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan.

Scottie Pippen says he got FIRED from his role with the Chicago Bulls ... but don't feel bad for the guy, 'cause he's pretty glad to be away from that mess!!

The 6-time champ revealed the move on the Thuzio Live & Unfiltered podcast (which was recorded during All-Star Weekend but released Wednesday) ... explaining he couldn't come to an agreement with the Bulls front office prior to the 2019 season, so they canned him.

"I got fired this year. I didn't really want it to be in the public, but I'm no longer employed by the Bulls," Pippen said in the interview.

Here's what went down ... the Bulls reportedly met with Pippen before the season and asked him to make several commitments that would mess up his gig with ESPN's "The Jump" ... but wouldn't budge on compensation, so they let him go.

So ... how is Pippen taking it?? Let's say pretty well.

"It's probably a good thing, right? ... I like to associate myself with winning."

Ouch.

Of course, the Bulls are not great right now -- they're 22-43 and don't really have any star players outside of Zach LaVine.

Chicago DID, however, just hire ex-Nuggets GM Arturas Karnisovas to replace John Paxson ... so at least they're heading in the right direction.

"He was the basketball version of me, and I was the rap version of him, and that’s facts!"

That's Kanye West ... explaining why he and Kobe Bryant were one and the same -- LEGENDARY -- and in typical Kanye style, he's not holding back.

It's spelled out in a candid (just released) interview with GQ that went down back in February, less than a month after his good pal Kobe died in a helicopter crash very close to Kanye's Calabasas-area home.

As part of the interview, Kanye agreed to take photos on a basketball court -- and admitted, it was therapeutic.

"One thing I thought was really amazing is that we were able to find a groove with the photographs today even as out of it as I was with the loss of Kobe," Kanye said.

"We were able to just go to the court and play ball."

Kanye says he often drives on a street near the spot of the helicopter crash ... and it makes him motivated to dominate in life like his friend Kobe did.

"There’s no way for me not to be as determined as Kobe every time I drive down that street. It’s game time. There’s no move that we can’t make, or that we’ll wait to make."

Of course, Kanye and Kobe were close friends for years -- they trained together, starred in Nike commercials together ... and Kanye was even courtside for Kobe's last game.

Now, Kanye says he continues to draw motivation from Kobe -- attacking challenges in life and business with that trademark Mamba Mentality.

"Everyone in our life is now a member of the Lakers on one of Kobe’s championship teams. The way that Kobe would say that we all have to come together and win this championship is the way I look at life now."

Vanessa Bryant is reflecting on one of the most special days of Kobe's career ... wishing she had more time with the NBA legend on the 4-year anniversary of his retirement.

After 20 seasons in the NBA, Kobe finally hung it up on April 13, 2016 -- Mamba Day -- and went out in true Bryant fashion by dropping 60 points on the Utah Jazz.

Vanessa went to social media Monday to explain why the special day was more about family than basketball.

"My husband worked his ass off for 20 years," Bryant said on Instagram. "Gave it his all. All he wanted was to spend time with our girls and me to make up for lost time."

"He wanted to be there for every single milestone and special moment in our girls lives."

Vanessa goes on to list how many accomplishments Kobe had in the 3 years and 9 months they shared of his time away from basketball.

"We had 2 more daughters, he won an Oscar, he opened Granity studios, he became a 5x best selling author and coached Gianna’s basketball team in that time."

Kobe and Gianna -- along with 7 others -- were killed in a helicopter accident back in January ... and Vanessa wishes she could change what happened that fateful day.

"I wish I could back to that morning, every day. I wish they had a normal local game on 1/26. Life truly isn’t fair. This is just senseless."

Since his passing, Kobe has been voted into the Basketball Hall of Fame and will be formally inducted later this year.

LaVar Ball says he wants both NBA AND NFL players under the BBB umbrella going forward ... and he says he's got a plan that could make them $40 MILLION on their 1st contract with the company!

The Big Baller tells TMZ Sports he wants to sign big-name football and basketball draft prospects starting next year ... and he says his deals with them will be VERY different than what Nike and Adidas are offering.

LaVar tells us his vision for BBB athletes is to have an ownership stake in their products ... and rather than getting fixed money upfront -- they'll get a percentage of ALL their sales going forward!!

"The guys that I want to be involved with, I want them to believe in themselves," LaVar says. "So, I would give them 40 percent of the profit of what they make."

Ball continued, "I'm not going to give them the 5-year, $10 million deal. Because everybody's like, 'Oh, he's passing up $10 million!' Like, nah, if you really believe in yourself and you're going to be the head of a franchise, you'd rather have ownership."

LaVar says the math is pretty simple ... if a guy sells a million shirts worldwide at $100 apiece, and gets 40 percent of the profit, he can make $40 MIL on his first deal no problem!!

All you basketball know-it-alls got it wrong ... Michael Jordan is NOT the G.O.A.T of college hoops -- so says Bill Walton, who tells TMZ Sports that honor belongs to Kareem!

We got the basketball legend just days after MJ was crowned king of ESPN's "College Basketball's Greatest of All Time Bracket" ... and he says the voters got it flat-out wrong.

Don't get it twisted -- Bill LOVES Jordan, saying he's "one of the greatest players, phenomenal" ... but he tells us he believes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was just better.

"He has the records," Walton says of the former UCLA center. "He has the three championships."

Kareem -- a 1-seed to begin the event -- was shockingly upset in the bracket early on by nine-seeded Shaquille O'Neal.

MJ, meanwhile, ran the table as a 2-seed ... eventually beating Larry Bird in the bracket's championship.

As for how Kareem's college career at UCLA stacks up with Jordan's at UNC ... it seems Walton's got a point when you pull up those numbers.

Kareem -- who went by Lew Alcindor back then -- won three titles and averaged 26.4 points and 15.5 rebounds per game in his three-year career.

Jordan, meanwhile, won one championship while averaging 17.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in his three-year career.

Walton tells us he ain't too worried about the results, though ... and rightfully so, 'cause the guy's got an awesome virtual charity bike ride coming up this month -- where all the money raised is going toward COVID-19 relief efforts!!

Riff Raff says his cousin, star Georgetown Univ. hooper Mac McClung is a future NBA All-Star who reminds him of Dwyane Wade ... and he should be a lottery pick in the 2020 draft.

McClung -- a 20-year-old sophomore who averaged 16 points, 3 boards, and 2 assists on Patrick Ewing's GU squad this season -- recently declared for the NBA Draft.

Mac still has the option to return to school, but that's something his hip-hop star cuz tells TMZ Sports should NOT happen ... if NBA teams have a brain.

We asked the Neon Icon how good McClung could be. His answer?

"All-Star level. All-star, ya know? All-Star. Starting point guard, easily."

Riff says he sees similarities between MM and future 1st-ballot Hall of Famer, D. Wade.

"[Wade] was a pretty good college basketball player at Marquette. Went to the NBA, immediately started," Riff Raff says.

"[Dwyane's] about 6'2", 6'3". Mac is 6'2", 6'3". He's not small. He's not a small player, has long arms. People compare him to Jason Williams. Jason Williams is about 6'2", 6'3"."

Obviously, Wade had a great college career (he was an All-American in 2003), was the 5th pick in the draft, and ended up winning 3 NBA titles and making 13 All-Star teams.

So, yeah ... Wade was a legendary player, and "White Chocolate" wasn't too shabby either.

But, when we asked Riff Raff if he truly saw similarities between the ballers, he did NOT hesitate.

"Yes and yes."

One of LeBron James' very first game-worn NBA jerseys is hitting the auction block ... and the piece of history could fetch more than $630k!!!

Goldin Auctions tells TMZ Sports ... the jersey was worn during King James' 5th and 8th games of his rookie season with the Cleveland Cavaliers ... including his first-ever matchup against his best friend, Dwyane Wade, and Miami Heat on November 12, 2003.

The other game was against the Indiana Pacers, when 18-year-old Bron scored 23 points on November 7.

The jersey -- which was certified legit by Resolution Photomatching -- is the earliest jersey of James' NBA career to hit the market ... and could possibly end up being the most expensive jersey in modern history.

“LeBron James memorabilia is some of the most sought-after memorabilia currently,” Ken Goldin tells us.

"After setting the record earlier this year for the sale of a LeBron James card for $900,000.00, we are hoping this jersey will set the record for the highest price paid for a basketball jersey which is $630,300.00."

Remember, the King also holds that record ... when his 2020 All-Star Game jersey went up for auction earlier this year.

LaVar Ball tells TMZ Sports ... LaMelo WILL BE the owner of his Australian hoops team -- and the Big Baller says the plan is to deck out the squad in BBB gear head to toe once it's official!

Papa Ball spoke with us this week about his youngest son's plan to buy the NBL's Illawarra Hawks ... and says despite some snags with the deal last week -- the purchase is still going down.

In fact, LaVar says he's SUPER proud of his 18-year-old boy for the move ... saying Melo's ownership will help out American basketball players in Australia going forward.

"It's a lot of guys that come out of high school and they'll get over there in the NBL and guess what? You're not going to shine like that," LaVar says ... "And, Melo might see it differently."

"Like, 'Dang, you get to Melo's team, you're going to get to play. That might be different because it's American over there now.' So, Melo's looking at it like, 'Shoot, they let me do my thing and I got a chance, I'm going to give the next guy a chance.'"

Melo is reportedly working with ex-NBA player Jermaine Jackson to complete the purchase of the team ... and it seems LaVar expects the deal to become official soon.

As for when Melo is finally wearing the ownership cap ... LaVar says the team WILL BE sponsored by the BBB in every way.

"That's like a no-brainer," LaVar says.

But, sadly, LaVar tells us he ain't renaming the team to the Big Baller Hawks ... saying, "That'd be a little bit crazy."

NBA superstar Devin Booker was just named a Special Olympics Global Ambassador, and the Phoenix Suns guard credits his little sister, Mya ... for inspiring much of the amazing work he's done.

"I've celebrated the accomplishments and witnessed the challenges my sister has experienced as a person with intellectual disabilities," Booker said Thursday.

"She motivates me every day, and I'm humbled to be part of Special Olympics, a global organization with a mission to help spread awareness about the abilities of people with intellectual disabilities."

Booker's 18-year-old sister was diagnosed with DiGeorge syndrome -- a rare genetic chromosomal disorder that can lead to mild intellectual disabilities.

23-year-old Booker says he's been so inspired by what she's been able to accomplish in the face of the adversity ... he's deeply involved himself in the Special Olympics.

Booker has invited special needs fans to NBA events constantly and has even donated annually to Special Olympics Arizona as part of his "Devin Booker Starting 5" charity efforts.

"People like Devin who have a sibling with intellectual disabilities possess inherent empathy for the population we serve," Special Olympics CEO Mary Davis says.

"We are lucky to leverage his passion to inspire others around the world to join our all-out effort to end discrimination against and empower people with intellectual disabilities.”

Michael Jordan is the one player EVERY hooper in NBA history wished they had the chance to team with during their careers ... right??

Nope!!! So says Jerry Stackhouse ... who reveals being Jordan's teammate actually SUCKED in 2002 ... and he wished it never happened.

"Honestly, I wish I never played in Washington and for a number of reasons," Stackhouse said on "The Woj Pod."

"It was really challenging to be able to be in a situation with an idol who at this particular point, I felt like I was a better player," Stack said.

It may sound crazy for JS to say he was ever better than the G.O.A.T. ... but let's remember, MJ was NOT the real MJ we all know and love during his Wizards days.

Jerry points out the season was off to a better start because the offense was running through him ... and then MJ had to take over.

"He wanted to get a little more isolations on the post, of course, so we had more isolations for him on the post."

To add insult to injury ... Stackhouse's old team, the Detroit Pistons, ended up winning the title 2 years after he was traded to D.C. ... and the Wizards never sniffed the playoffs.

Stackhouse says he never really had much fun that season ... and ended up losing respect for Jordan.

The average WNBA player reportedly makes around $75,000 per season.

The average NBA player reportedly makes around $7.7 MILLION per season.

Which is why Hall of Famer Sheryl Swoopes tells TMZ Sports a BUNCH of WNBA hoopers are afraid they could be left financially "struggling" if they don't get paid for the 2020 season.

The 2020 Season was supposed to kick off on May 15 -- but it's been pushed back without a new target date due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The tough part is the unknown," Swoopes tells us ... "Not knowing when the season will start, if the season will start. Without getting too personal, a lot of [the players] have no idea if they will even be paid."

We asked Swoopes if she felt the super-profitable NBA (as a league) has a duty to help WNBA players during this unprecedented time.

"Should they do it? I would say yes."

Don't get it twisted, Swoopes definitely isn't upset with the NBA -- in fact, she praises the league for everything it's doing to help combat the pandemic.

"You look at everything that the NBA, they have done, that they're currently doing, donating money to other causes and trying to help find a way to fight this pandemic and help find a cure ... they are helping in other areas."

But, the fact of the matter is she's concerned for the WNBA.

"There are some WNBA players, not a lot, but there are some WNBA players because they've been playing for so long and played overseas for years, who've made some great money ... But for the most part, there are players in the WNBA who probably without a doubt will be struggling if the season does not happen this summer."