Basketball

Magic Johnson is doing his best to douse any potential flames between LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ... telling TMZ Sports there's no real beef between the two NBA legends.

We spoke with Magic out in NYC Tuesday night ... and the Lakers great reassured us there's no need to sit down for mediation with LBJ and KAJ -- 'cause he trusts they'll hash it out.

"I think they'll work out," Johnson said. "They'll work out. It's not that big of a deal. They'll work it out."

Kareem recently criticized James for engaging in actions "beneath him" -- most notably when LBJ imitated Sam Cassell's infamous "big balls" dance earlier in the season -- saying that type of behavior was "embarrassing" for the 4x champion.

Abdul-Jabbar also took issue with James' reluctance to promote the COVID-19 vaccine. Although LeBron was vaccinated, he clearly wasn't comfortable pushing the vax on people.

In fact, LBJ used a popular Spider-Man meme that compared COVID and the flu.

"Help me out folks," James captioned the post.

It hasn't been all negative from Kareem. Cap has publicly praised James for his philanthropic efforts ... saying he "admires the things he's done," and that he has "deep admiration and respect" for the Lakers star.

KAJ has since apologized to LeBron, saying, "It wasn't my intention to criticize LeBron in any way. He has done so much for the Black community as well as for the game of basketball."

"We may not always agree, but I want to wholeheartedly apologize to LeBron and make it clear to him that I have tremendous respect for him. And if he can accept that, I'll be very happy."

Magic didn't say whether he spoke with James or Kareem, but sounds confident their relationship hasn't been fractured as a result of Kareem's remarks.

Hubert Davis is getting Kenny Smith's stamp of approval after his first year at North Carolina -- the former Tar Heels star tells TMZ Sports he's "super proud" of his team's new coach.

Davis and the 8-seed Tar Heels were 20 minutes away from cutting down the nets at the national championship game on Monday ... but the Kansas Jayhawks were able to come back from down 16 to win it all.

While the loss was crushing for UNC fans, pretty much nobody predicted the Heels would make it all the way to the title game ... and The Jet says he's thrilled with Roy Williams' replacement's success.

"I think from start to finish, his team improved the most in college basketball," the TNT analyst said on Tuesday. "Without question. Not even close. I don't think that any of us could have predicted that they'd be in the Final Four in his first year in the final game in the national championship."

"We're super proud of Hubert. I'm proud to be a Tar Heel today."

The referee who was kicked and punched in the face repeatedly following a Georgia youth basketball game needed 30 stitches to stop the bleeding ... a tournament official tells TMZ Sports.

But, Kenneth Tarver -- the founder of KB Sports who helped put on the youth tourney in Lithonia over the weekend -- says, somehow, the guy is doing better now.

The terrifying incident was all captured on video on Sunday at the Love Of The Game event at the Stronghold Christian Church -- when several young players and other bystanders appeared to beat the hell out of a ref after a game had concluded.

Tarver tells us the game actually featured teams full of eighth graders ... but, he said he has no idea what caused the postgame scuffle.

Tarver said he has spoken to the referee since the incident -- and while he needed to be stitched up after the attack, Tarver said he's going to make a full recovery.

Tarver added that he's banned the team involved in the scuffle going forward ... and he vowed to beef up security at future events as well.

"I'm gonna make it safer for the officials," Tarver tells us.

Don't say goodbye to your coach just yet, Duke fans -- former Blue Devils legend Jay Williams says there's a real possibility Mike Krzyzewski could return to Durham next season ... after one of his top assistants left the program this week.

Williams started the speculation on ESPN Radio's "Keyshawn, JWill, & Max" ... after news came out that assistant/former player Nolan Smith was going to become associate head coach at Louisville under Kenny Payne.

Williams started by saying how happy he was to see Smith get the opportunity at Louisville ... but brought his attention back to Duke and the massive hole that needs to be filled from a recruiting standpoint.

"And it leads me to think, which I’ve been thinking a lot about since I heard this news (Monday), does Coach K come back for another season?" Williams asked. One more final season?"

Of course, the North Carolina Tar Heels defeated Duke, 81-77, on Saturday ... in what was billed as Coach K's final game of his coaching career.

Williams believes Coach K might reconsider handing the keys over to Jon Scheyer now that Smith is gone ... and explains his theory.

"Here’s why I give it a legit chance," Williams said. "If you’re Nolan Smith, and you have a great relationship with all these players, you’re in the (same) conference. You’re at Louisville."

"You’re picking up the phone and [recruiting players from Duke]. It weakens the hold of Duke. If you’re Coach K, how do you strengthen that hold? -- You’re coming back."

The NBA analyst stated that he wasn't speaking on information he heard or knew -- instead, he was speculating on what Coach K MIGHT do.

Several youth basketball players beat the hell out of a referee following a game in Georgia over the weekend -- and the violent punching and kicking was all captured on video.

The alarming scene went down Sunday at Stronghold Christian Church in Lithonia, GA ... when, following a contest on the floor, multiple players from one of the teams went after one of the game's refs.

You can see in video from the scene -- a couple of young men chased after the guy in the striped shirt, who for a few seconds, appeared to be defending himself well.

But, eventually, there became too many people involved in the attack -- and the guy appeared to be brutally beaten on the floor.

Footage shows the man was kicked and punched in the face repeatedly ... before his attackers finally let up.

No word on if the man sustained serious injuries ... but a spokesperson for the Dekalb County Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports cops did respond to the scene in reference to an assault.

The spokesperson added an investigation into the incident is underway.

A rep for the church, meanwhile, said in a statement following the game, "It is truly unfortunate about the turn of events that took place during the basketball game held at our facility this weekend."

"We open our doors to serve our community and our goal is to provide an atmosphere conducive for enjoyment, enrichment, etc."

The Spurs might suck this season, but one fan single-handedly made Sunday's game a whole lot better ... by absolutely dominating a lip sync challenge to Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone."

It all went down at the AT&T Center in San Antonio during the Spurs' matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers ... when the jumbotron cam focused in on 27-year-old Briana Saldaña to show off her skills -- and she didn't hold back.

Check out the awesome vid -- Briana jumps from her seat and uses her drink as a makeshift microphone ... dancing and even including her man in the routine.

The crowd absolutely loved it ... and clips of Briana's performance quickly spread like wildfire on social media.

We know what you're thinking, but everyone affiliated with the viral moment swears up and down that this was NOT a staged act ... and it just so happened to come out better than anyone could have hoped.

No word on if Kelly herself got to check out the clip ... but it's only a matter of time.

The North Carolina Tar Heels and Kansas Jayhawks are hours away from facing off in the NCAA National Championship on Monday ... and anyone looking to catch the game in person is in luck -- 'cause ticket prices are torpedoing.

TMZ Sports has learned ... ticket prices have been steadily dropping since the title game matchup was announced.

According to Gametime -- an app for last-minute tickets -- fans can purchase seats starting at just $22 ... a far cry from Saturday's lowest asking price of $123.

Before UNC upset Duke and Kansas topped Villanova ... the top-priced seats for the big game were a whopping $9,423 per ticket.

But now, fans will have to cough up $5,561 per ticket for a premium seat in the building -- which is nothing to scoff at, but not nearly as much as they would have paid before perennial powerhouse Duke got eliminated.

There's a logical theory behind the price change -- many fans had hopes of seeing Coach K and the Blue Devils go out on top in the title game ... as Krzyzewski previously announced this season would be his last.

Coach K -- who's won 5 national championships with Duke -- was seeking that elusive 6th title ... but the Tar Heels, led by stars Caleb Love and Armando Bacot, and coach Hubert Davis had other plans.

Tyron Woodley, Nate Robinson and the Houston Rockets mascot all now have something in common -- each has been knocked out by Jake Paul!!

The Problem Child added "Clutch" to his KO victim list in a hilarious scene at the Rockets vs. Timberwolves game in Houston on Sunday -- moments after the furry mascot challenged Paul to a "fight" near his seat.

In video of the "altercation" posted to his social media page Monday, you can see the Houston mascot came over to Jake with some comically large gloves on and challenged him to a boxing match.

At one point, the mascot appeared to tag Jake in the arm -- which got the YouTuber out of his chair.

Jake then quickly put Clutch into his place, hitting the bear to the floor with a big right hand.

Paul talked a little smack and went back to his seat -- and fans found the interaction hilarious.

Of course, the punch was all scripted and the mascot is OK ... but Jake still had fun with it all on his Instagram page -- writing in the video's caption, "Will Smith'd em."

Univ. of South Carolina students lost their minds after the school's women's basketball team won the NCAA title on Sunday ... with many stripping down to their undies and jumping into a campus fountain!!!

The wild party all happened just moments after the Gamecocks dominated UConn in a 64-49 win on Sunday ... with students choosing to celebrate the title in a wet way.

You can see in video from the scene ... students surrounded the fountain outside of Thomas Cooper Library before jumping into it. One fan actually came prepared -- and rocked a speedo for the occasion!

Fans celebrated at the school all night -- with others lighting off fireworks and climbing into trees.

Of course, this ain't the first time Gamecocks fans went all out for their women's hoops team -- you'll recall, fans got drenched in the same fountain in 2017 when they won their first title.

And, it appears the campus might need to get used to parties like this -- because coach Dawn Staley -- a former 6x WNBA All-Star point guard -- has turned the SC program around since she arrived in 2008.

The Gamecocks have won 6 SEC titles, been to four Final Fours and won two championships -- and look poised to be a powerhouse going forward for the foreseeable future.

LeBron James might soon pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time scorer, but the dude still has a long way to go to be truly great as a role model ... so say KAJ.

The Lakers legend shared his pointed criticism at LBJ Sunday amid his presentation of a new trophy bearing his name ... which he bestowed upon Carmelo Anthony for his social justice work during the 2021-22 season.

It seems that after the ceremony, Kareem stuck around and talked to reporters ... who asked him how he felt about the idea of LeBron overtaking him as the points leader, which is likely to happen sometime next season -- barring any prolonged sitting out on LeBron's part.

Kareem said he had no problem with Bron taking the mantle, but where he (still) has issues is with LeBron's legacy as a whole -- including his off-the-court comments/antics/stances ... some of which Kareem said were "beneath him" in the grand scheme of things.

While he praised LeBron for some philanthropy work he's done -- including sending TONS of kids to college on his dime -- Kareem said there are still some things the King should be embarrassed about.

He's also quoted as saying this ... "Some of the things he's done and said are really beneath him, as far as I can see." Kareem adds, "Some of the great things that he's done, he's standing on both sides of the fence almost, you know? It makes it hard for me to accept that when he's committed himself to a different take on everything. It's hard to figure out where he's standing. You've got to check him out every time."

Now, as for what exactly Kareem may be referring to -- it's no secret if you've been following along. Dude's been openly critical about LeBron's apparent vaccine hesitancy, not to mention his waffling on where he stands with COVID in general, a la that Spider-Man meme.

At the time, Kareem wrote an essay ... saying LeBron's joke was a blow to his legacy, asking he do better -- especially as a leader in the Black community. He's also opined about LeBron celebrating on the court (particularly in dancing), saying that's not G.O.A.T.-worthy.

It was bedlam on the streets of Chapel Hill Saturday night, after the Tar Heels snagged a spot in the NCAA men's basketball National Championship game.

10 people, and maybe more, were hurt after the game ... 4 were injured badly enough to require hospitalization.

Chapel Hill cops planned for a big celebration -- shutting down streets in advance -- but it got out of hand as it turned into a wild block party. There were around 40,000 fans who were reveling in the Tar Heels 81-77 win over Duke in the Final Four.

It got real when some fans started bonfires in the streets.

So, now the real dead ... North Carolina faces off with the Kansas Jayhawks Monday for the brass ring. Ya gotta wonder who Chapel Hill cops will be routing for!

Got plans tonight that don't involve Duke vs. UNC? Chris Duhon clearly thinks you're going to regret that -- telling TMZ Sports the Final Four game could be one of the biggest contests in sports history.

The Blue Devils are slated to play the Tar Heels in an NCAA Tournament semifinal game for the first time in the two rivals' history ... and Duhon -- a Duke legend -- says it's going to be can't-miss TV.

The two schools hate each other, it could be Coach K's last-ever game ... and there are future NBA players all over the court -- making it, according to Duhon, an event worth clearing the calendar for.

"It's going to be epic," Duhon tells us. "I think everybody is going to be there, everybody is going be watching. I think there's a possibility of being the most-watched event in sports history."

In fact, the game is so big, country music star Eric Church has actually already canceled a concert so he can watch his beloved Tar Heels.

As for Duhon's message to the Blue Devils to calm the nerves before the huge game -- watch the clip, Chris seems to have some great advice for his former squad ahead of the big matchup.

Don't let these two similar shots of 2 Chainz and Stephen Jackson flossing courtside distract you from the task at hand .... Take a (free throw) shot and guess the differences in these similar snaps of the famous rapper and former NBA player.

The hitmaker and b-baller sat in the stands as fans for the sporting event ... but might have stolen the show with these top-notch looks ... can you look past the fashion-forward friends to find the different little looks?

Yes, the photo is a vibe, but can you pass the check and spot the differences?

Eric Church is extending an olive branch to thousands of pissed off fans for scrapping a concert to attend the North Carolina vs. Duke game ... by scheduling a completely FREE show later this year for anyone impacted by the cancelation.

The MASSIVE Tar Heels fan came under fire earlier this week for bailing on his upcoming gig ... all so he could watch his beloved team play in the Final Four against their hated rivals and coach Mike Krzyzewski (for the very last time).

Fans were super upset, though, with many storming his Facebook page to blast him for the decision.

The country star released a statement regarding the controversy on Friday ... saying he's grateful for the opportunity to check out the game -- and promises to make up for it.

"Thank you San Antonio for letting me take my family to this game," Church said. "It took a minute to figure out how and when I could properly express my thanks."

Church says he'll return to Texas in September for a "one of a kind" free gig for anyone who bought tix ... in hopes of getting back in good graces with the Church Choir.

Will it work?? We'll see ... but at least EC can now enjoy the game without feeling too guilty.

St. Peter's star Doug Edert is striking while the iron's hot -- the NCAA tournament hero is cashing in on his new fame by charging $100 for personalized vids on Cameo!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the 22-year-old Peacocks hooper is raking in the dough on the video platform ... and so far, he's getting great reviews.

In fact, 17 reviews have been left on Edert's page ... and they're all 5 stars!!

The price tag is pretty interesting -- especially considering North Carolina star Armando Bacot charges 60 bucks.

But, it shouldn't be too shocking -- Edert became a fan-favorite during St. Peter's Cinderella run in the tourney ... as he helped knock off 2-seed Kentucky in the first round with 20 points.

The Peacocks ended up making it all the way to the Elite 8 before being booted by UNC.

During their epic run, Edert also made the best of his spotlight by securing deals with Buffalo Wild Wings and Barstool Sports.

Shout-out to the NCAA's new NIL rules ... 'cause now athletes can finally get what they deserve.

Add another accomplishment to Chris Paul's resume -- President Biden just appointed the Phoenix Suns guard to his Advisory Board for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the White House announced Thursday.

Joe tapped the NBA star to serve alongside 17 other new members -- including actress Taraji P. Henson, who was also asked to join the board -- as the Biden administration continues to put a focus on advancement through HBCUs.

According to the White House, the goal of the Advisory Board is to advance the HBCU Initiative, which was started by the Carter administration in 1980.

Joining CP3 on the board will be the presidents of five HBCUs -- Alabama State University, Virginia State University, Norfolk State University in Virginia, Dillard University in New Orleans and Prairie View A&M University in Texas -- as well as Delaware State University's own Tony Allen -- who serves as the chair.

Allen, president of DSU, says the board "will be will be an eclectic mix of the talent and commitment that defines Historically Black College and Universities (HBCUs) and those who recognize our tremendous value in higher education and in a smaller, more connected global community."

Paul, who served as head of the National Basketball Players Association from 2013-2021, has made it a point to actively and publicly support HBCUs throughout his career.

CP3 was a part of the push to get HBCU schools featured during the NBA's All-Star Weekend ... and as a result, the men's basketball teams for Morgan State and Howard played each in the inaugural NBA HBCU Classic in Cleveland.

The game aired on ESPN2 and TNT, and both schools received a $100,000 donation from the NBA and AT&T to support student-athletes continuing their education.