Basketball

If LeBron James needed any more motivation to win in this year's playoffs ... he certainly got it on Wednesday night from Dillon Brooks, who blasted the Lakers star as "old" after beating him.

The Grizzlies wing -- known as one of the biggest agitators in the NBA -- made the eyebrow-raising comments following Memphis' 103-93 Game 2 victory.

Brooks had gotten in LeBron's face repeatedly during the contest in Tennessee ... and when he was asked if he had considered that it could potentially set James off -- Brooks unloaded.

"I don't care," he said. "He's old. You know what I mean?"

Brooks then accused LeBron of only trash-talking back when the Memphis star got in foul trouble.

"I poke bears," he said. "I don't respect no one 'til they come and give me 40" points.

FYI -- LeBron had 28 points, 12 rebounds and three assists in the loss. Brooks, who said he prides himself on his defense, had 12 points, one rebound and three assists in the win.

The two teams won't play again until Saturday night for Game 3 of their series ... and something tells us LeBron's now going to be pretty pissed off heading into the tilt in L.A.

Bradley Beal is now being dragged to court over his tiff with fans following a game against the Magic last month ... TMZ Sports has learned a lawsuit was just filed against the Wizards star on Tuesday.

In the docs, Kyler Briffa alleges he was the man who Beal got physical with during a March 21 altercation inside Amway Arena in Orlando, Fla.

Briffa says he and a friend got courtside seats to the Wizards vs. Magic tilt -- and were eventually allowed to go inside a team tunnel following the contest to interact with Washington players as they made their way into the visitor's locker room.

Briffa claims things were going fine -- until his friend made a comment to Beal about losing a bet during the game.

According to the suit, Beal "stopped, turned around, walked back toward the unsuspecting [Briffa] and without a word, intentionally struck the side of [Briffa's] head knocking his hat off of his head."

Briffa claims the hat flew "5-6 feet behind him." He then says Beal started to bully, threaten, intimidate and humiliate him in front of other fans -- which included children.

He added that he believed Beal "was attempting to provoke a physical altercation."

In the suit, Briffa says it was all finally broken up by a Wizards staffer -- who escorted the shooting guard away from the area.

Briffa says he suffered emotional distress and pain and suffering from the incident. He's suing Beal for assault. He's also suing the Wizards for negligence. He's asking for more than $50K in damages.

For Beal's part, he generally acknowledged the incident during a season-ending interview with media members earlier this month ... saying he never appreciates being heckled over gambling and betting.

Police, meanwhile, said they launched an investigation into the incident ... though no charges have been filed.

The Warriors will be without Draymond Green for their crucial playoff game Thursday night ... the NBA announced late Tuesday the Dubs star has been suspended for Golden State's contest against the Kings for stomping on Domantas Sabonis earlier this week.

In revealing their ruling, league execs explained Green was receiving the ban "based in part on Green's history of unsportsmanlike acts."

It did not appear the 33-year-old will be allowed to appeal -- meaning the Warriors will have to try to avoid going down 0-3 in the series with Sacramento without one of their best players.

The controversial incident happened in the fourth quarter of Game 2 on Monday night ... after Sabonis and Green got tangled up while trying to fight for a rebound.

Sabonis hit the floor, and while he was down, he grabbed Green's right ankle. In response, Draymond stomped on the Sacramento center's chest.

Sabonis was given a technical -- and Green was booted from the game.

While Sabonis was not suspended for Game 3, there is a chance he might miss it after all ... he's dealing with a sternum injury due to Draymond's kick that could force him to sit out.

Vanessa Bryant shared a touching tribute to her late husband, Kobe Bryant, on Tuesday ... posting a throwback picture together in honor of their 22nd wedding anniversary.

"Happy anniversary, baby. I love you @kobebryant ❤️ #22," Vanessa captioned the picture in Florence, Italy.

Of course, Bryant held Italy near and dear to his heart -- he spent his childhood there, spoke fluent Italian and would frequently visit with Vanessa.

Kobe and Vanessa got engaged when Vanessa turned 18 ... and the couple officially tied the knot on April 18, 2001.

Vanessa's close friends Ciara and Lala showed her and Kobe love by commenting on the post ... as well as New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu, who Kobe mentored.

Last summer, Vanessa penned a heartfelt birthday note on Kobe's 44th birthday, writing about how much she loves and misses him.

Russia's men's basketball team will not be allowed to compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, the International Basketball Federation ruled Tuesday ... as the killing in Ukraine continues.

FIBA decided to not permit the Russian squad from participating in upcoming qualifying tournaments ... meaning the team will not play in the Olympics.

Bulgaria, the next highest-ranked team, will be given Russia's place.

It's not exactly a shocker ... FIBA suspended Russia from competing shortly after the attack on Ukraine in early 2022, when President Vladimir Putin's forces invaded the sovereign country. The fighting continues to this day.

So, the decision was expected, but nothing was official until today.

FYI, it's not that the Russian women have been granted permission ... they already missed out on qualifying due to their team being suspended over the war.

Despite today's ruling (and similar rulings made by other governing bodies), individual Russian athletes can still compete, but they can't rep Russia (they're essentially neutral -- countryless).

Ultimately, 12 teams will make the Olympic tourney and compete for gold ... but Russia won't be one of those teams.

Draymond Green has found himself in hot water once again ... this time, the Warriors star was ejected from a playoff game Monday night -- after he stomped on an opponent's chest.

The wild incident happened in the fourth quarter of Golden State's Game 2 matchup with the Kings in Sacramento ... when Green got tangled up with Domantas Sabonis following a missed basket.

You can see in video of the play ... Sabonis crashed to the ground while trying to position himself for a rebound -- and he landed near Green's legs.

Sabonis then made a clear attempt to hold Green's right ankle -- and in response, Draymond kicked down right on the Kings star's sternum.

Sabonis screamed out in obvious pain -- and refs stopped the game immediately. They would go on to review the play.

But, as they checked out replays of the incident ... Green got into it with fans, who trash-talked him and flipped him off.

Eventually, refs hit Sabonis with a technical foul for grabbing Green ... but tossed the Warriors forward from the game, determining his stomp was worthy of a flagrant 2.

The Warriors went on to lose without Green -- who appeared pissed over the call afterward.

"My leg got grabbed," the 33-year-old said. "Second time in two nights. Referees just watched it. I gotta land my foot somewhere. And I'm not the most flexible person. So that's not stretching that far."

For Sabonis' part, he ripped Green for the play, telling reporters, "There is no room for that in our game today." He required X-rays ... but, reportedly, he avoided injury.

Green is no stranger to controversy -- especially this season ... you'll recall, he stepped away from the Warriors for several days in October after socking his teammate, Jordan Poole, during a practice.

Aliyah Boston -- the top pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft -- believes NIL deals for college hoops stars like Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark could change the league ... and by that, she means bigger paychecks for the players!!!

TMZ Sports spoke with the former South Carolina forward/center recently in New York City ... just as the "NIL deals vs. WNBA salaries" conversation started to trend over Reese's reported income from brand deals

According to On3, the LSU star's projected earnings grew to $876k after her Final Four performance ... which is more than any WNBA player's 2023 salary, including Diana Taurasi, who'll make $234,936 this year.

This revelation was met with a lot of criticism, considering pros like Taurasi and A'ja Wilson make less than college student-athletes. But, Boston -- who will play for the Indiana Fever this upcoming season -- believes it could actually force the league to increase their salaries.

"Everything that's happening is to grow the game," the 21-year-old said. "I just think no matter how it goes, I just think it's all just to grow the game."

The 2022 Naismith Women's College Player of the Year also believes it's a personal decision whether a college athlete wants to stay in school or not ... saying they must do "what's best for them."

Hip-hop legend E-40 will not be attending Game 2 between the Warriors and the Kings Monday night ... after he was kicked out of Game 1 for what he claims was "racial bias."

Shams Charania just tweeted the news ... saying a rep for the Bay Area rapper said 40 wouldn't be at the Golden 1 Center to see his Warriors play following Game 1's incident. TMZ Sports also confirmed the news.

ICYMI ... E-40 was escorted out of the Kings arena Saturday night after a heated confrontation with Kings fans and security.

40, a big Warriors fan, sitting courtside for Game 1, was accused of standing up and blocking the view of the fans sitting behind him during the game, causing them to complain to arena personnel.

After an alleged back-and-forth, 40 was ultimately booted from the game, missing the end of the Kings' 126-123 win over his Dubs.

The rapper sees the situation differently, releasing a lengthy statement explaining he was "subjected to disrespectful heckling" throughout the game, admitting he "turned around and addressed one heckler in an assertive but polite manner."

40 said the ordeal was another reminder that "racial bias remains prevalent," explaining "security saw a disagreement between a Black man and a white woman and immediately assumed that I was at fault."

The Warriors will look to tie up the series against Sacramento ... but they'll have to do it without their number one celebrity fan in the building.

As for 40, he'll be back in the building in San Fran this Thursday for game 3!

Russell Westbrook got into a heated confrontation with a fan Sunday night ... and, at one point, told the man, "Watch your mouth, motherf***er," and it was all captured on video.

It all went down during game 1 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix ... Russ, on video, repeatedly told the guy wearing Suns gear to watch his mouth as the two exchanged words.

It's unclear what led to the encounter ... but it happened in the club area during halftime of Game 1 of the Clippers-Suns first-round matchup.

According to a Suns insider, visiting players have been going through the club area where the incident occurred all season to get to the visitor's locker room.

As for the game ... Westbrook struggled to hit shots all night, scoring just nine points on 3 of 19 shooting from the field.

However, the former MVP was a presence on the glass, securing ten rebounds and making the game's defensive play, blocking Devin Booker's shot and sealing the deal for the Clippers.

Lamar Odom is (maybe surprisingly) all for the Lakers signing Tristan Thompson ... in fact, the former NBA star tells TMZ Sports he believes the power forward can "100%" help them win an NBA title.

We caught up with the 43-year-old at LAX on Friday, just two days before his beloved Lakers face the Memphis Grizzlies in a best-of-7 playoff series.

Despite the Lakers making it into the playoffs with a play-in win against the Timberwolves, many doubt the team can actually go anywhere. There's also been a ton of doubt about why the organization signed Thompson, who hasn't played meaningful minutes in the league in over a year.

Those people haven't talked to Lamar ... who believes Tristan solidifies the Lakers' frontcourt, which will "100%" help them as they make a run at another title.

"He's played with LeBron," Odom said. "He's won a championship and L.A. is always the best place to play."

Lamar, who also has his own podcast about the Lakers called The LADE Show, says the main components to the Lakers winning another title is LeBron and staying healthy.

"God James. His name is God James. The god of basketball," Odom said. "As long as we healthy, we're gonna win a championship."

Alexi Lalas is heaping a ton of praise (and perhaps a little pressure) on the U.S. Women's National Team as they close in on a chance to make history at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup this summer ... telling TMZ Sports they'd arguably be the greatest team of all-time if they secure a historic third straight win!

The U.S. soccer legend and great FOX Sports analyst told us the USWNT is already in rarified air with their 4 World Cup titles (1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019), but winning 3 in a row, which has never been done before, "would certainly put them in the conversation of the greatest team ever."

Lalas likes the USWNT's chances in the event -- which features 32 teams (eight more than in 2019) -- and will be held in Australia and New Zealand, but says other countries are looking to "spoil the party," so winning it all won't be an easy task.

"The rest of the world has started to catch up," Lalas said. "They are putting more resources in. That's a good thing. Competition is a good thing. You have the likes of England, France, and Germany and our friends up to the north, Canada, and the Netherlands.

"Yes, we want to win every single game," Lalas said. "Yes, we want to win more World Cups, but we want it to be competitive. I want the U.S. to win, but I might want England not to win it even more. Anybody but England winning, I'll be cool with."

Despite the competition gap closing, Lalas believes USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski has enough to win it all because of stars like Alyssa Thompson, Dennis Rodman's daughter, Trinity Rodman, and Julie Ertz, who happens to be married to NFL tight end Zach Ertz.

FYI, the U.S. are slight favorites to win the whole tourney.

Tuesday marked the 100-day countdown to the world's biggest soccer tournament, airing on FOX Sports and FS1.

Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan are madly in love ... and a lot of people are wondering how Scottie feels about his ex-wife dating his nemesis' son -- so TMZ Sports went straight to the source and asked the Bulls legend all about it.

And he said nothing!!!!!

The Hall of Famer was leaving Il Pastaio in Beverly Hills earlier this week ... and naturally, we brought up the hot couple's relationship and whether he was cool with all of it.

Pippen didn't entertain the question ... he just hopped in his Tesla and drove off.

Before he left, we also asked about another thing that had Scottie in the headlines recently -- Larsa revealing how much sex they used to have during an episode of "Real Housewives" -- but he wasn't too interested in opening up on that, either.

Even though he didn't talk, what we do know is that Larsa and Marcus can't get enough of each other -- as we reported earlier this week, they were super mushy as they hung out on a boat in Miami.

Shawn Kemp has been charged with first-degree assault ... a charge stemming from that March parking lot altercation where the NBA legend was seen shooting a gun.

The case had been in limbo until this week. Authorities in Washington initially arrested the SuperSonics legend, before deciding they needed more time to investigate. All the while 53-year-old Kemp claimed he acted in self-defense, saying his actions were "reasonable and legally justified."

Unfortunately for Shawn, that's not the way prosecutors ultimately saw it, and they've now hit him with a first-degree assault charge. If convicted, the charge can carry a life sentence.

We broke the story last month, Kemp -- wearing a red vest -- approached a vehicle and pointed his gun, appearing to yell something before firing at least one shot outside a Tacoma, Washington shopping mall around 2:00 PM on March 8.

Kemp claimed he was simply trying to locate his phone, which was previously stolen, when things took a violent turn, and he was forced to defend himself.

Fortunately, no one was injured.

At the time of the confrontation, witnesses told us they heard multiple gunshots before pulling their phones out to record the incident, suggesting SK wasn't the only person shooting.

Moments later, the video also seemingly captured Shawn dumping his firearm in a bush.

Witness footage also showed police locating the weapon minutes later.

Now, barring a plea, Kemp's going to have to fight for his freedom in front of a judge ... and fight is exactly what his attorney says he's going to do, saying he'll plead not guilty to the charge.

NBA star Miles Bridges has been suspended 30 games by the NBA ... for a domestic violence incident involving the mother of his kids last summer.

But, because 25-year-old Bridges missed the entire season (he was unsigned), the NBA has credited him with serving 20 games, meaning he only will have to sit out 10 more games next season.

"The incident occurred on June 27, 2022, in Los Angeles, after which Mr. Bridges was arrested and charged with multiple offenses."

"On November 3, 2022, Mr. Bridges entered a plea of no contest to a felony domestic violence charge and the remaining counts against him were dismissed," the league announced Friday afternoon.

Shortly after the incident, Mychelle Johnson claimed she suffered injuries to her face, arms, legs and back.

The NBA says they conducted their own investigation and conferred with D.V. experts, and that's how they arrived at the penalty.

"The 30-game suspension is based on all facts and circumstances of this matter and considers the conduct and its result, as well as the outcome of the criminal matter, among other factors."

Bridges was arrested on June 29 and ultimately charged with felony domestic violence ... and while he always maintained his innocence (Miles claims his ex has incessantly harassed him), he pleaded no contest to the charge in court.

The NBA star was sentenced to 3 years probation and 100 hours of community service, as well as requiring he take parenting classes.

Miles was the 12th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, after starring under Tom Izzo and Michigan State. Bridges has averaged 13.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists over the course of his career.

The Dallas Mavericks season may be over, but the team's still making headlines -- the NBA fined the organization $750K for resting several key players like Kyrie Irving vs. the Bulls in the second-to-last game of the season, with the league accusing the team of losing on purpose.

The league announced the hefty punishment Friday ... explaining the Mavs violated the league's player resting policy on April 7 in the game with Chicago to improve their chances of keeping their first-round draft pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

NBA executive VP Joe Dumars condemned Dallas for the move ... saying the team's actions "undermined the integrity of the sport," adding their actions "failed our fans and our league."

The Mavs were tied with the Bulls for the tenth-best lottery odds heading into the matchup ... and would have owed the Knicks their first-round pick if they beat Chicago, going back to terms agreed on during the Kristaps Porzingis trade.

The NBA launched an investigation after Dallas rested several key players -- Kyrie Irving, Christian Wood, and Tim Hardaway Jr. -- even with the team's play-in tournament hopes still alive. Luka Doncic played the first 12 minutes and 35 seconds but missed the rest of the game.

Dallas head coach Jason Kidd seemed to confirm the idea of resting their players in the crucial game came from upper management ... but said he agrees with his bosses' decision.

The short-handed Mavericks took Chicago down to the wire ... but ultimately lost their final two games, finishing the regular season with a disappointing 38-44 record after reaching the Western Conference Finals last season.

Rudy Gobert says he apologized to his teammate, Kyle Anderson, for punching him earlier in the week during Minnesota's final game of the regular season  ... and says he has nothing but love for Kyle.

Gobert rejoined his team Thursday after the Timberwolves sent him home from the arena and suspended him for one game ... and Rudy told the media he and Anderson are both putting Sunday's incident behind them.

"We both apologized to each other, and you move on," Gobert said. "I still love Kyle. He's still my brother. I tell people, 'Sometimes you fight with your family. Sometimes you fight with people that you have a lot of love and respect for.'"

He continued ... "It's life. No one is perfect. Mistakes happen, and then you grow, and you move on."

Anderson echoed similar sentiments as Gobert did on Tuesday ... saying the two "hashed it out" and reminded people that grown men fighting "happens all the time in sports."

"We're teammates at the end of the day," Anderson said. "I don't want it to be a Kyle vs. Rudy thing. That's never the case. I always got my teammates' back, and we moved on."

Meanwhile, Gobert's status for Friday's elimination game against the Thunder remains uncertain as the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award winner deals with lingering back pain.