Basketball

An NBA fan was removed from his courtside seat on Sunday ... and it's all 'cause he allegedly hurled Kardashian heckles at Tristan Thompson.

For real.

Here's the deal ... during the fourth quarter of the Kings vs. Grizzlies game in Memphis, Thompson became visibly upset with a fan sitting courtside, and pointed the man out to refs and stadium staffers.

Video from the scene shows security spoke with the fan ... and then returned just seconds later to give the guy the boot from the arena.

Afterward, Grizzlies beat writer Drew Hill reported the commotion all stemmed from some Kardashian comments the man had aimed at Thompson, who has a child with Khloe Kardashian.

While Sacramento head coach Alvin Gentry did not confirm the report following the Kings' loss -- he did say the fan said "inappropriate things" to his players.

"They can say anything they want to me or they can boo and do everything they want with the players," Gentry said, "but there's no room for saying inappropriate things in a sporting event. That's not why you're there."

Of course, this is not the first time this month that an NBA player has had fans removed for heckling -- just last week, LeBron James kicked out two people sitting courtside over their verbal jabs.

Imagine having a wide-open layup ... and missing it.

That's the equivalent of what Jeremy Lin's Beijing Ducks teammate did on Chang Lin's big day this week ... winding up from point-blank range to beam the player with a birthday cake -- and he hilariously airballed it!!

The ex-NBA player shared it all on his Instagram this week ... showing the teammate getting the golden opportunity to throw a cake in Chang's face -- as part of a "tradition."

But the teammate completely missed the target ... and threw the dessert right into the window behind!!

Lin -- who rejoined the Beijing Ducks this past June -- roasted the player's hiccup ... saying, "My teammate w the biggest airball of the season lollll."

All in all, everybody was a good sport about it -- the team shared laughs after making sure to let one of their own have it ... joking and smiling as they point at the cake remains on the window.

Here's hoping the dude won't miss this badly on the basketball court anytime soon.

"Do I think he can win it? No. I know he can win it!"

That's LaVar Ball telling TMZ Sports he knows his son, LaMelo, can win NBA's MVP this season ... which would make him the youngest player to ever win the award.

The 20-year-old is already a star -- he won 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year, was selected All-Rookie First Team and became the youngest player in Hornets franchise history to have a 30-point game.

But, can LaMelo -- who's averaging nearly 20 points, 8 rebounds and almost 8 assists in his second season -- really win the trophy over guys like Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo?!

LaVar says "yes" ... but there's something he's gotta do first.

"Here it is ... they're not gonna give Melo the MVP unless he makes it to the Finals," LaVar said at Cool Kicks L.A. "Then you gonna make MVP."

"You know why? The NBA -- what do you need? You need the next superstar, and you know who he is?! My boy! And, I got a bunch of 'em!"

FYI -- the current youngest MVP was Derrick Rose, who won it at 22 years for the Bulls.

The Hornets are currently in the middle of the Eastern Conference ... but it's still pretty early in the season, so who knows what'll happen.

Kanye West is clearly upset over his impending divorce with Kim Kardashian, but Friday night he had a ton of fans offering him comfort.

Kanye was swarmed at the Lakers game as he entered the Staples Center. He signed autographs and posed for selfies and seemed like he was in a great mood as fans mobbed him.

Ye sat courtside with a friend as he watched the Lakers fall to the Kings in a nail-biter. Kanye wore a black leather jacket with a matching hoodie and a cap. He chowed down on chicken strips and fries.

His mood seemed to change pretty dramatically ... hours before, he posted a photo of him and Kim kissing, in yet another effort to resuscitate their marriage.

Ye stopped by the L.A. Mission Wednesday and grabbed a mic ... telling the folks he was keeping faith that God would repair things between Kim and himself.

Kanye has pulled out all the stops to try and save his marriage ... even admitting to failures as a husband.

On Thanksgiving, Kanye posted a prayer, confessing to drinking too much, letting his ego and temper get the best of him and even to being a "self-righteous Christian," saying, "I was arrogant with my Jesus. Like I had just got me some Jesus at the Gucci store with a stimulus check."

He went on ...  "Good Lord, my wife did not like me wearing the red [MAGA] hat. Being a good wife, she just wanted to protect me and our family. I made me and our family a target by not aligning with Hollywood's political stance, and that was hard for our marriage."

LeBron James took it in the crotch Friday ... and it cost him $15k.

LeBron was in Indiana with the Lakers, and after making a pretty awesome shot, he grabbed his crotch. Now there's a backstory here. Two Indiana fans had just been ejected for grabbing their crotch -- presumably taunting LeBron and it apparently caught his eye. After making the next shot, LeBron returned the favor to the crowd by grabbing his crotch.

LeBron said after the game, "When obscene gestures and language come into it, can't be tolerated. There's a difference between cheering for your team and not wanting the other team to win, and things I would never say to a fan and they shouldn't say to me."

The Lakers won in overtime 124 to 116 ... nevertheless, it's been a rough November for one of the best players ever. As you know, LeBron was suspended a week ago after elbowing Detroit center Isaiah Stewart. After a bloodied Stewart went after LeBron, both players were booted from the game.

LeBron was also suspended for a game, which enraged him. He called "bulls***" on NBA officials who benched him, saying the elbow was unintentional. He said he merely "grazed" Stewart. BTW ... the "bulls***" comment didn't sit well with NBA officials ... they gave him a warning.

LeBron explained the contact with Stewart this way ... "His elbow got kinda high, got me off balance a little bit. His elbow lifted my arm. I basically tried to swim move down on his arm. When I went down on his arm, he got off balance, and the left side of my hand grazed his face ... definitely accidental."

Should the Miami Heat retire Udonis Haslem's jersey??

Dwyane Wade says it's a matter of when, not if -- telling TMZ Sports he knows his former teammate's jersey will hang from the rafters in Miami one day.

Haslem -- who was drafted by Miami in 2002 -- has spent his entire career with the org ... and is considered a Heat legend for the longevity he has with the team.

Of course, D-Wade and Haslem have a strong bond -- the two played together for the Heat franchise for a number of years ... winning 3 championships in that span.

UD postponed retiring this past offseason and signed on with the Heat for year 19 ... and even though the veteran doesn't see much playing time these days, his impact on the sideline and locker room is certainly felt by the players.

As for Wade -- who was in New York for the release of his new book "Dwyane" -- we asked him if he had any advice for players on the Phoenix Suns ... whose owner -- Robert Sarver -- has been embroiled in allegations of racism and misogyny.

"You know, I'm in ownership now," the Utah Jazz part-owner said. "I don't comment on other teams."

LeBron James seems furious he was booted from a game and then suspended, saying he never intended to bloody an opponent.

LeBron calls, "bulls***" on officials who took action against him, for elbowing Detroit Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart last Sunday.

The injury was gnarly, and Isaiah went after LeBron, sending both men back to the locker room. Officials called the elbow intentional.

LeBron begs to differ, calling the incident accidental ... adding he simply "grazed" Stewart's face.

LeBron said, "His elbow got kinda high, got me off balance a little bit. His elbow lifted my arm. I basically tried to swim move down on his arm. When I went down on his arm, he got off balance, and the left side of my hand grazed his face ... definitely accidental."

He said he could understand why he was booted from the game, but really kind of blamed Stewart, saying, "I thought it warranted an ejection because of what happened after that" -- referring to the fight, adding, "But a suspension, I didn't think it was warranted. But, the league made that call."

LaVar Ball says the Charlotte Hornets are screwing up the LiAngelo Ball situation ... telling TMZ Sports he's convinced the team is making a massive mistake by not pairing Gelo with his brother, LaMelo Ball, on its NBA roster.

"They don't understand what they got," the Big Baller said of the Hornets out in L.A. this week. "They need to let my boy go ahead and play."

"I dropped them a superstar in the G-League and they don't know what to do with him."

The Hornets actually signed Gelo back in October ... but waived him just a day later, and he's been on the team's G-League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, ever since.

Gelo has played decently with the Swarm -- he scored 22 points in the season opener earlier this month -- but the Hornets have still yet to pull him up to their roster.

LaVar clearly thinks that's a mistake ... saying the team needs to "bring him in" and "let him play with Melo."

LeBron James was ejected on Sunday, but it was his turn to do the booting on Wednesday ... with the Lakers superstar getting two courtside fans removed from the game during an overtime thriller.

The moment went down with 2 minutes left in OT against the Indiana Pacers ... right after Bron hit a three-pointer to put L.A. up 117-114.

It's unclear what set James off, but whatever it was triggered him to approach an official and point at a man and a woman sitting in the front row.

In the video, you can hear a fuming LeBron say "right f***ing here" and pointing directly at the fans.

Shortly after, they were being escorted out of the arena by security ... with the female fan getting one last jab in at Bron by making an animated crying gesture towards him.

Eventually, the game was resumed and the Lakers held on for the win, 124-116.

It's not the first time James has had fans removed -- last season, he had a "Courtside Karen" escorted out after being heckled in a game against the Atlanta Hawks.

Travis Scott is finally venturing out of his Houston home after the Astroworld tragedy ... flying to SoCal to golf with some A-list friends and spend the holiday weekend with family.

Travis hit the links this week with Michael Jordan, Mark Wahlberg, Kris Jenner's BF, Corey Gamble and actor Said Taghmaoui.

Witnesses spotted the famous group Tuesday on the course attached to the gated Palm Springs-area community where Kris has a home.

Travis still looked pretty somber in some shots taken while they were chilling off the course. The outing marks the first time the rapper's been seen out in public since 10 people were killed and hundreds injured during his Nov. 5 festival in Houston.

He had been laying low at his home in the Houston area for several weeks, devastated by what went down during the concert.

As we've reported ... Travis, Live Nation, Apple and several other organizers have been hit with multiple lawsuits since then. Most notably, one for $750 million and another for a whopping $2 billion.

His attorney, Ed McPherson, told us Travis was unaware of the scope of casualties during his performance ... and didn't learn of it until several hours after the show. Travis has vowed to pay all funeral expenses for the Astroworld victims.

Great sight for hoops fans last night -- legendary college broadcaster Dick Vitale made his return to the broadcast booth amid an ongoing cancer battle ... and the scene was emotional.

Vitale -- who battled melanoma earlier this year -- revealed back in October that he was battling another form of the disease ... and would be required to undergo six months of chemotherapy treatment.

Dickie V announced that he would continue to call games even during his treatment for lymphoma ... saying "That's my best medicine of all," and on Tuesday, he kept true to his promise.

Vitale was on hand last night to call the highly-touted matchup between #1 Gonzaga and #2 UCLA ... and naturally, it was a special moment.

In the video, you can see an emotional Dickie V fighting back tears as he was overwhelmed with emotion ... detailing how he felt during his first college game since his most recent diagnosis.

"It's great being here, Dave. I didn't want to cry," Vitale said. "I can't believe I'm sitting here. It's really a big thrill for me."

82-year-old Dickie V also said he never thought he'd be at courtside again following the diagnosis, but the support from ESPN, his family and the fans made his return possible.

"I want to thank all you people who sent me so many great messages. I want to thank, certainly, my family. All the fans."

It appears LeBron James found somewhere other than the team hotel to watch his Lakers play Tuesday -- 'cause the suspended superstar was spotted slinking away from the swanky NYC venue just before L.A.'s tip-off.

The NBA great -- who was banned one game for his role in a wild altercation with Detroit Pistons center Isaiah Stewart on Sunday -- walked quickly and sported a hood over his head while he got into a van to try to find somewhere to catch the Lakers vs. Knicks matchup.

Unclear where the 36-year-old was headed ... but it's apparent the dude did not want to be seen by cameras.

Check out video of him leaving the Four Seasons, his oversized coat, hoodie and brisk walk show he wasn't in any mood to stop and talk.

Of course, Bron was not allowed at Madison Square Garden after the NBA barred him from the contest following his incident with Stewart.

You'll recall, LeBron kick-started a near-melee by hitting Stewart in the face ... and just 24 hours after the fracas, the NBA handed down its punishment to the Lakers player, suspending him for the first time in his 19-year career.

As for how the Lakers fared without the star -- they lost yet again, dropping their game to the Knicks, 106-100.

Duke basketball star Paolo Banchero is finally addressing his run-in with police near the Durham, NC campus ... vowing to learn a lesson after getting jammed up by the police.

As we previously reported, 19-year-old Banchero -- who many believe could be the #1 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft -- was cited for aiding and abetting his Duke teammate, Michael Savarino, who was busted for DWI last week.

20-year-old Savarino, who happens to be Coach K's grandson, was pulled over by North Carolina Highway Patrol after they allege he blew a stop sign.

Banchero was a passenger in the car at the time of the stop ... which ultimately led to his citation.

On Monday, Paolo finally broke his silence, telling the media he wasn't able to speak in specifics but made it clear he wants to move on past the incident.

"You can't really say much about it, but we learned from it and handled it as a team. We moved on and we want to get on with our season."

Banchero said he didn't regret the incident, adding, "My teammates had my back, so it wasn't too hard for me."

The freshman had his best performance of the season during Duke's 107-81 win over Citadel Monday night, dropping 28 points, and admitting the situation's been weighing on him the past week.

"I'm not going to say it wasn't on my mind the past two games. It was. I feel like today was a bounce-back game for me and I felt good out there.''

The likely future NBA star says he's ready to learn his lesson and move on with the season ... one Duke hopes will end in an NCAA championship.

"Got a big trip coming up. Two big games Gonzaga and Ohio State next Tuesday."

Horrifying moment during the Citadel vs. Duke game on Monday ... Bulldogs head coach Duggar Baucom collapsed on the sideline and needed to be taken to the hospital.

It all went down at Cameron Indoor Stadium ... when just a few minutes into the first half, Baucom terrifyingly crashed to the floor.

You can see in video from the arena, trainers and players rushed to the 61-year-old, who was eventually helped off the court and taken to Duke University hospital, where he stayed overnight for further evaluation.

Fortunately, Bulldogs assistant coach Jack Castleberry -- who took over for Baucom during the game -- said after the contest that Baucom was "coherent" and was "as good as he can be" considering the circumstances.

"He just said he was in pain," Castleberry said. "You can tell with the look in his eyes that it was very, very genuine."

After the 107-81 loss, the team said that Baucom -- who is in his 7th season with the Bulldogs -- is expected to be fine and is scheduled to travel back with the team Tuesday.

"The Citadel Head Coach Duggar Baucom is alert and in good spirits," the team said in a statement.

"He is scheduled to return back to Charleston with the team Tuesday morning. Our thoughts and prayers are with Coach B and his family at this time."

Iman Shumpert is a champion once again ... and just like coming back from a 3-1 lead, it was a shocking upset win.

The former Cavs guard -- who made history when he became the first former pro hoops player to advance to the finals of "Dancing with the Stars" last week -- took home the Mirror Ball trophy with his partner, Daniella, after a freestyle dance that had all of social media talking.

It was a nail-biter 'til the end ... and a lot of folks thought Siwa was going to take it all. But, there can only be one winner, and it was the 6'5" hooper crowned champ.

Shumpert is the first NBA player to ever win it all ... joining other pro athletes like Emmitt Smith, Shawn Johnson, Hines Ward and more who have come in first.

Shump's fellow Cavs champ LeBron James gave a big shoutout to Iman after the win ... saying, "Congrats bro!! That's so (fire emoji)"

As we previously reported, Iman's wife, Teyana Taylor told us before the show the NBAer had an advantage after spending countless hours at her dance rehearsals -- and it clearly paid off!!

Shumpert tasted victory in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers ... becoming the first team to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win it all.

Kyle Kuzma's pregame outfit Monday night featured an oversized sweater that looked more like a damn blanket  ... and naturally, he got roasted like a marshmallow over it.

The 26-year-old showed off his Raf Simons oversized-sleeve virgin wool jumper -- which comes with a $1,659 price tag and sleeves that almost reach the floor -- on his way into the locker room before Monday's game against the Charlotte Hornets ... and the dude's NBA buddies had a blast at his expense.

"Cmon bro 😂," DeMarcus Cousins commented on Kuz's IG pic showing off the 'fit. "S*** getting outta hand now."

Isaiah Thomas added ... "Come on killa… lol that one ain’t it haha."

J.R. Smith even took a break from class to get in on the clowning sesh ... saying, "Man hellll nawwwwwww 😂😂😂"

Not everyone hated it, though -- WNBA player Liz Cambage praised the interesting wardrobe choice ... saying, "he went and done did it 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽."

Influencer Zack Bia had a simple reaction, adding, "Yes."

LeBron James even went in on his old teammate ... saying, "Ain’t no f***ing way you wore that!!! 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂. I’m not pressing the like button cause this is outrageous Kuz! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣"