Basketball

The Minnesota Timberwolves are on to the second round of the NBA playoffs ... and Anthony Edwards made sure to soak in the team's 4-1 series win over the Lakers -- hitting the streets of L.A. for a victory lap!!

Edwards took a stroll outside Crypto.com Arena shortly after the Wolves sent LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the rest of the Lakers to Cancun with a 103-96 victory.

The 23-year-old wasn't shy to interact with sad fans mourning the loss ... saying, "How y'all gonna be f***ing with me, I just sent y'all n****s home!"

Vanessa Bryant honored her daughter, Gigi, on what would be her 19th birthday ... saying she misses her "more than I could ever express."

Kobe's widow posted the emotional tribute to Instagram on Thursday ... showing Gigi sporting her Mamba Sports Academy uniform.

"Happy birthday Gigi!" she wrote in the caption. "Mommy loves and misses you more than I could ever express. I love you Gianna."

Tyrese Haliburton's father denies he cursed at Giannis Antetokounmpo during their heated exchange after the Pacers-Bucks playoff series wrapped, insisting it didn't happen, saying they actually exchanged "I love yous" on the court.

The Pacers star's dad, John, spoke with TMJ4 to tell his side of the story ... recalling the moment The Greek Freak confronted him after waving a towel featuring Tyrese's face in front of him on the court after the Bucks' season-ending loss to the Pacers on Tuesday.

Antetokounmpo, during his post-game press conference, relayed that John was droppin' f-bombs while waving the towel in his face, describing the moment as "very disrespectful."

Hoops, they did it again ... lovey dovey couple Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet packed on the PDA as they watched the Los Angeles Lakers take on -- and lose to -- the Minnesota Timberwolves Wednesday night and looked as in love as ever.

Check out the pics ... the Kylie Cosmetics founder beamed as she sat alongside her actor beau at the Crypto.com Arena ... frequently grabbing onto his left arm and hand as adorable displays of affection.

Timothée returned the favor at one point, placing his hand on grinning Kylie's thigh.

Stephen A. Smith's gotta be scratching his head this morning after President Donald Trump ranted to him about Harlem and Black people ... when Stephen A. asked him about Harvard.

The bizarre exchange went down Wednesday night when the Prez phoned into News Nation for a chat with Stephen A., Chris Cuomo and Bill O'Reilly. Smith fired off a question about POTUS withdrawing billions of dollars of federal grants to Harvard University -- and, for some reason, Trump said, "Well, I say this, we had riots in Harlem, and frankly if you look at what's gone on ... and people from Harlem went up and they protested."

You gotta see this, because things got even more awkward when President Trump said, "I got a very high Black vote. You know that."

Donald Trump may have just endorsed his successor ... 'cause he says Stephen A. Smith has all the necessary skills to be POTUS -- most especially, entertainment value.

The president gave a phone interview on NewsNation Wednesday night ... chatting with Bill O'Reilly, Chris Cuomo and Stephen A. -- when Bill asked him what he thought of Stephen taking a shot at the highest office in the land.

ICYMI ... last month, Smith blasted the Democratic Party and claimed he had "no choice" but to consider running for the job in 2028.

Alijah Arenas is out of the hospital just days after his serious Cybertruck crash ... and while it's fantastic news, the family says he is at the beginning of his recovery process.

TMZ Sports has obtained a statement from the Arenas and Govan families ... which states the 18-year-old USC commit is "now resting comfortably under close watch."

"While his journey to full recovery is just beginning, his spirit remains strong, and he is surrounded by love and support," the family said Wednesday.

Giannis Antetokounmpo couldn't beat the Pacers on Tuesday night, but he sure laid the smackdown on their team's best player's father afterward -- ripping Tyrese Haliburton's dad for his actions following Indiana's big win over Milwaukee.

Giannis and Haliburton's pops, John, got into it immediately after Indy took down the Bucks, 119-118, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Tyrese had just hit the game-winner, and in order to celebrate, John raced onto the floor and waved a towel with his son's face on it in front of Giannis.

11:30 AM PT -- There's a happy ending to this story ... as TMZ Sports has learned Lakers superstar Luka Doncic has donated $5,000 to help restore the mural.

It's an incredible gesture ... as that is the total amount the fundraiser was hoping to rake in for the effort.

A tribute to the late Kobe and Gigi Bryant was defaced with graffiti ... with the mural becoming a canvas for an apparent beef between street artists.

The vandalism was spotted recently ... with a piece depicting the Lakers legend in uniform and kissing his young daughter on the cheek being covered in white paint and a graffiti tag.

In the top corner, where the original artist's name "Sloe Motions" appeared, it looks like someone scribbled out the tag and wrote "Keep running your mouth, p***y."

Kevin Love and his former teammate Tristan Thompson shared an emotional and powerful moment before Monday's Cavs-Heat playoff game, following the recent passing of Love's father, his "first Hero."

The touching scene went down before the Cavs' 138-83 blowout dub vs. the Heat at the Kaseya Center in Miami, when Love and Thompson -- who played together in The Land from 2014 to 2020 -- reunited on the court.

It was all caught on the broadcast ... showing Thompson hugging and comforting Love, who is mourning the death of his father, Stan, who passed away on Sunday.

Alijah Arenas' condition is improving to the point where he has been able to walk and talk after wrecking his Cybertruck last week ... but the 18-year-old still has a lengthy journey before getting back to 100%, according to the young hooper's loved ones.

A rep for the Arenas and Govan families tells TMZ Sports ... "Although Alijah has shown significant improvement following the traumatic experience, he still has a long road to full recovery due to severe smoke inhalation."

"He was able to walk on his own and speak with his mother, Laura Govan, and his father, Gilbert Arenas, by his side. Alijah remains hospitalized under close observation, with additional testing still underway. The families continue to ask for privacy and ongoing prayers during this critical time."

Damian Lillard's 2024-25 NBA season has come to a brutal end ... as the Milwaukee Bucks superstar will miss the rest of his team's playoff run after suffering a torn left Achilles.

The news broke Monday morning ... with ESPN saying an MRI revealed the extent of the ailment following the team's 129-103 loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 4 of their first-round matchup.

The injury occurred during the first quarter of the contest when Dame went to grab a rebound. After falling to the ground, he reached for the back of his ankle before getting up and being helped to the locker room.

Kevin Love shared the heartbreaking news of his dad's death with an emotional goodbye on Sunday ... saying he was "so proud to be" former NBA player Stan Love's son.

The 36-year-old Miami Heat forward -- who has spent time away from the team due to personal reasons -- said his dad "fought for a long time," and although it was painful to watch him "deteriorate" in his final days ... he still viewed him as his a "Giant," his "Protector," and his "first Hero."

"Your only wish was to be at home surrounded by your family when you took your dying breath," Kevin said. "That breath came. And now it’s time to rest."

Most Dallas fans still haven’t figured out what the heck Nico Harrison was thinking when he traded away franchise player Luka Doncic ... but one former Maverick seems to understand the move at least a little bit -- Brendan Haywood!!

TMZ Sports caught up with the 2011 Mavs champ at LAX this week ... and asked him all about the transaction that sent shockwaves through the league back in February.

Haywood said he's looking at the entire picture ... telling us, "Defense wins championships, that’s what Nico's talking about."

Alijah Arenas' Cybertruck ended up wrapped around a tree in an L.A. suburb early Thursday morning -- and the cause is still a mystery -- but investigators do NOT believe alcohol or drugs were a factor.

TMZ Sports spoke with our law enforcement sources ... and we're told LAPD didn't observe any signs of intoxication at the scene, just moments after the 18-year-old 5-star recruit was pulled from his burning vehicle around 4:55 AM.

After Arenas was transported to a local hospital, cops followed up ... but the soon-to-be USC basketball star was already intubated (tube down his throat), so no blood draw was done.

Lisa Leslie is adding a few more assists to her stat sheet -- by surprising small businesses with $20,000 checks!!!

The WNBA legend made the special announcement in honor of Small Business Hero Day. Leslie, alongside Intuit QuickBooks and Intuit Mailchimp, presented three mom-and-pop shops with financial support at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.

"It actually gives me great pride to be able to tell your stories," she said during the event. "It really warms our heart and inspires us."