Basketball

What do you do when you ink a fat, new deal?? For Luka Doncic, there was only one answer -- hit up Las Vegas for the Backstreet Boys concert with Lakers execs!!

The two sides agreed to a massive three-year, $165 million extension Saturday to keep him in Purple and Gold through 2030 ... and before the ink was even dry, they made their way to Sin City to catch the legendary boy band at the Sphere.

Videos of the Lakers superstar attending the performance began to make rounds on social media ... and it's clear the vibes were at an all-time high after putting pen to paper.

If Kevin Durant, James Harden and Russell Westbrook had stayed together in Oklahoma City, there would be a couple more championship banners hanging in the Paycom Center rafters ... at least, that's according to Serge Ibaka.

The former Thunder center -- who played alongside the trio of future Hall of Famers during their stint in OKC -- told TMZ Sports out at LAX this week he's sure they all would have some more championship bling in the jewelry cases if the team had just found a way to keep everyone together.

"Minimum two," he told us.

Ex-NBA player Danilo Gallinari's pregnant wife experienced the "worst day" of her life while vacationing in Puerto Rico ... revealing she was attacked by a shark.

Eleonora Boi -- a TV reporter who got hitched to 36-year-old Gallinari in 2022 -- opened up on the terrifying incident on Instagram ... saying, "I never thought I could get attacked by a shark and I was near the shore and on a super crowded beach."

Boi stated she and the baby on the way are "fine" following the incident at the Carolina Resort beach ... although she had to undergo surgery to mend her leg.

Stephen Curry is one of the most clutch players in NBA history ... and he's got those skills off the court, too -- 'cause he's taking a hands-on approach to celebrating his wedding anniversary.

The superstar's wife, Ayesha -- a businesswoman and chef -- shared a series of PDA-filled pics on her Instagram on Friday ... fresh off their 14th anniversary on July 30th.

"Screaming I LOVE YOU to my baby @stephencurry30," Ayesha said in the caption. "14 year wedding anniversary and 17 years attached at the hips and the lips."

Gilbert Arenas is making it clear he has no plans to return to jail after his arrest this week ... saying he plans to sing like a canary, and save his own ass!

The former NBA star, who is accused of running an illegal gambling operation, spoke about the crazy situation on a live stream Thursday night, and it's obvious Gil ain't sweatin' the charges.

"Good luck in court. I'm pretty sure I ain't gonna be there when it's starting to go, cause, yeah, I'm snitching."

WNBA star Napheesa Collier's made plenty of strides on the court as the Minnesota Lynx's power forward ... and a large part of her success story involves her husband, Alex Bazzell.

The basketball player and her spouse have been together for several years, and their personal connection's carried over to their professional lives as well.

We're going to check out how the athlete and her partner started a family together ... and how they're working on creating a lasting legacy within the sports world.

Bazzell and Collier's love story goes way, way back, because he met the athlete during her senior year of high school, according to People.

The sports industry figure and the athlete evidently stayed in touch afterward, because he acted as her trainer when she was a student athlete at the University of Connecticut.

The pair began dating when she was a junior in college, and Bazzell popped the big question in October 2019.

You know that old rhyme, first comes love, then comes marriage? That doesn't really apply in this case ... because the couple welcomed their daughter Mila in May 2022 before they tied the knot that October.

Remember how we said Bazzell trained Collier when she was in college? Turns out, she's not the only person he's trained over the years -- do the names Carmelo Anthony or Kyrie Irving ring any bells?

The sports executive was associated with Kobe Bryant, as well as his daughter Gianna -- who he trained -- and he told People the Los Angeles Lakers star was "the biggest mentor I've had."

Bazzell said the late athlete showed him how to remove the "pressure" for his daughter to follow in the footsteps of her parents and pursue an athletic career.

Oh, and he's spent a little bit of time on the court as well, as he briefly played professional basketball in Germany, according to his LinkedIn.

On top of their personal connection, Bazzell and Collier are professionally involved, as they've both worked on the development of the Unrivaled women's basketball league.

Collier co-founded the league alongside fellow WNBA star Breanna Stewart, and Unrivaled serves as a venue for professional female basketball players to play the sport in the offseason.

Bazzell, who serves as the league's president, provided a statement to CNBC Sport, saying the league would "fill a gap in the calendar" for numerous athletes, and described Unrivaled as "extending the runway of professional basketball."

Officials are pushing back on Marcus Morris' claim he went "51 hours" without something to eat or drink in jail ... telling TMZ Sports there is video proof he was delivered meals and beverages while behind bars.

Morris, 35, made the accusations on his Instagram this week ... after he was released from jail in Broward County. He was arrested over the weekend for allegedly writing $260,000 in bad checks to two Las Vegas casinos in 2024.

"24-hour lockdown," Morris said while addressing his alleged treatment in the slammer. "No food or water for the whole 51 hours."

Winnie Harlow and Kyle Kuzma are making sure their birthday festivities don't come and go in just a day -- the engaged couple is keeping the vibes going on a fancy yacht in the Mediterranean!!

The 30-year-old NBA hooper -- whose special day was on the 24th -- was spotted out on the water with his model fiancée this week ... and it sure seemed like a joint celebration, as she blew out 31 candles on the 27th.

The pair appeared to be as happy as they could be aboard the boat with friends near Formentera ... and Harlow didn't shy away from putting her incredible figure on display with a bikini.

Sophie Cunningham was as unfiltered as it gets in her defense of Caitlin Clark ... claiming anyone who doesn't think her Indiana Fever teammate is the face of the WNBA is "dumb as f***."

Cunningham -- known for her passionate defense of Clark on the court -- proved she's just as loyal off it in her new podcast, "Show Me Something," this week ... explaining to her cohost and Bravo star West Wilson why she gets so worked up over the debate surrounding the superstar's impact on the W.

The 28-year-old made her stance crystal clear -- "It pisses me off when people are like, 'She’s not the face of the league.' What? ... When people try to argue that she’s not the face of our league or that our league would be where we’re at without her — you’re dumb as s***, you're literally dumb as f***."

The offseason adventures of Klay Thompson and his new boo, Megan Thee Stallion, continue ... as the NBA star took the rapper out on the open waters for a fishing trip!!

Klay shared their excursion on his Instagram on Wednesday ... with Meg calling herself the "first mate" to his "captain."

Before the two even left the harbor, the 12-year NBA veteran was feeling some type of way ... saying "you're so fine, baby" as she sat on his lap.

3:34 PM PT -- Federal prosecutors say Gilbert Arenas pleaded not guilty to the charges during his arraignment on Wednesday afternoon and was released on $50,000 bond.

A trial date was set for late September.

Former NBA superstar Gilbert Arenas was arrested in Southern California on Wednesday after authorities say he ran an illegal gambling business.

Federal prosecutors claim the ex-Washington Wizards guard, along with five others, rented out his Encino mansion to hold high-stakes card games from September 2021 to July 2022.

Luka Doncic has turned plenty of heads this offseason thanks to his noticeably leaner frame ... and it's now gotten to the point where he's being asked if he's using Ozempic.

The 26-year-old joined "Today" on Wednesday morning to discuss a number of topics ... and when the conversation shifted to his fitness, Craig Melvin surprised viewers by asking, "No Ozempic, none of those shots or anything?"

Doncic quickly shut it down ... saying his new look was the result of diet and exercise. He even revealed he took a full month off from basketball to focus solely on fitness, something he's never done before.

Marcus Morris is opening up on his arrest and the allegations he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from two Las Vegas casinos ... and he's adamant the whole ordeal is just one big misunderstanding.

The NBA player took to his Instagram page on Wednesday morning to share his side of the story for the first time since he was thrown behind bars in Florida on Sunday ... and in a lengthy post, he explained the drama all stemmed from when he recently took "out a marker to gamble" in Vegas.

Morris, who said he's been spending big cash in Sin City for over a decade, admitted to taking the dough from the casinos ... but thought he had more leeway when it came time to pay it back.

Caitlin Clark's groin injury has stopped her from shooting basketballs, but not kicking soccer balls ... and some of her fans are pissed!

A video surfaced showing Clark at McCombs Middle School in Des Moines, Iowa, on Monday, where she was seen playing with kids, including kicking around a soccer ball.

Some fans were left stunned after watching the clip -- and not in a good way.

Angel Reese might've just added John Kruk to her Hater List -- she apparently clapped back at the former MLB catcher for shading the hell outta her during Tuesday night's Phillies game.

Kruk's comment came during the Phils' win over the Chicago White Sox ... when his co-announcer, Tom McCarthy, gave a birthday tribute to one of his buddies' wives -- pointing out the guy "played at Rider and Monmouth. It's all because I missed a lot of shots and he cleaned them up."

Kruk then hit back with a bit of a zinger ... replying, "I don't want to say anything, but there's someone here in Chicago that does that a lot."

A WNBA game on Tuesday night was delayed several minutes ... because of a flying sex toy.

Seriously.

The wild scene -- click here if you wanna see it -- unfolded late in the fourth quarter of the Valkyries vs. Dream matchup at the Gateway Center in College Park, Ga. ... when a fan decided to hurl a neon green dildo onto the court as the two teams were tied at 75 with one minute to play.