Basketball

Brittany Renner wants a court to increase P.J. Washington's child support payments to her -- saying in a new filing this week $5,500 a month is just not enough.

Renner made her case to the judge in documents that TMZ Sports has obtained ... asking for "at least $35,000" a month from Washington in an effort to raise their 4-year-old son in a manner suitable to a kid with such a rich father.

She claimed in the docs when she and the NBA player first agreed on the $5.5K number, they lived together in North Carolina -- but things have drastically changed since she and the toddler moved to California late last year.

Napheesa Collier didn't exactly hold back about her views on the WNBA's brass in a post-season exit interview -- and she had some choice words about the league's commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, to boot.

The Minnesota Lynx star went scorched-earth in her statement, and claimed the WNBA managed to have "the worst leadership in the world" despite having some of the best players and fans out there, according to CBS Sports.

Collier claimed the WNBA's brass, including Engelbert, wasn't looking out for their players' best interests and described the attitude taken towards athletes' concerns as "dismissive."

The athlete claimed she'd had a conversation with Engelbert in February in which the latter brushed off her concerns about issues with officiating games.

Oh, and she also alleged the commissioner stated Caitlin Clark should have been "grateful" to play in the league despite her official salary not being reflective of the popularity she brought to the WNBA.

It reportedly only took a few hours for Engelbert to respond to Collier's comments, and the commissioner claimed she was "disheartened" by the athlete's remarks.

LeBron James claims he isn't going to continue his NBA career just to have the chance to play with both of his sons -- the Lakers superstar revealed his retirement plans don't revolve around Bryce.

The 21-time All-Star discussed his basketball future at media day a few minutes ago ... when a reporter asked James if he'd hold out on retiring to have a chance to play alongside his second-oldest kid, who's gearing up for his freshman year with the University of Arizona basketball team this fall.

"I'm not sitting here ... no, I'm not waiting on Bryce," James laughed.

Donovan Mitchell is opening up on his recent engagement to Coco Jones ... telling reporters being able to call the singer his future wife is a true "blessing."

The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar was asked about his now-fiancée during team media day ... and he couldn't help but gush about what makes her such a special partner.

"Man, that’s my dog. I love her to death. She’s amazing. She’s an amazing human being. She brings me peace."

Spencer Dinwiddie's time in Calabasas is coming to an end -- the former Laker just listed his mansion for a little over $6 million after signing with the Hornets this offseason.

The 6'5" guard put his house back on the market this week with Josh & Matthew Altman of Douglas Elliman ... a 7,269 square foot property that's close to the Malibu coast and has breathtaking views of the Santa Monica mountains.

The 2021 custom-built property has it all ... an open layout with wide oak hardwood floors, Italian fixtures, balconies, two elegant staircases and a three-car garage.

Wilt Chamberlain's game-worn uniform from his epic 1969 NBA Finals battle with Bill Russell's Celtics is on the auction block ... a piece of basketball history that'll almost certainly rake in over 7 figures!

The iconic jersey and shorts combo -- worn by the NBA legend during the regular season AND in two games during the Finals --  is currently being auctioned by Sotheby's, and will close Tuesday afternoon ... where it's expected to sell for over a million bucks, and potentially much more.

The current bid is $320K.

Justin Bieber hit the hardwood for a basketball showdown on Thursday ... helping his team to a victory over his former squad!!

All eyes were on the 31-year-old "Swag" crooner at SRGN Studios in Los Angeles for The League festivities ... a good sight for those who might have been worried about his recent ankle injury.

After a pregame pump-up speech from pastor Judah Smith, Bieber had two points in the first quarter for his SKYLRK clothing brand's squad ... before asking to be subbed out about two and a half minutes after the start.

Kelsey Mitchell's built up a pretty recognizable public profile throughout her basketball career ... and she's earned her fair share of accolades along the way.

The Indiana Fever star's helped lead the team to a pair of playoff appearances, and she almost earned herself one of the highest honors the WNBA can bestow upon a player.

We're going to examine how the athlete became one of the most prominent players in the league ... and see how she missed out on a pretty big title.

Is LeBron James' tenure in the Purple and Gold worthy of a statue?? Lakers legend Byron Scott can't see it happening as it stands right now ... telling TMZ Sports the King hasn't had enough success in L.A. -- yet.

We caught up with Scott -- a three-time NBA champ -- earlier this week while hosting KiKi Shepard's 7th Annual Celebrity Golf Classic in the City of Angels ... and asked the former Lakers guard how he felt about a potential "LeBronze" figure outside Crypto.com Arena.

"I think if he gets another one, then he has a chance," he said. "But right now, if you look at the players that have statues in front of Crypto.com [Arena], these are long lifers. They've been with the Lakers for almost their entire career, and they've had multiple championships."

Kyrie Irving just gave TMZ Sports an update on how he's recovering from serious knee surgery ... and his words are sure to be music to Mavericks fans' ears.

The nine-time NBA All-Star, who tore his ACL back on March 3 during a Dallas tilt with the Kings, told us while out in New York City this week for his NYFW apparel launch everything's going "incredibly well" with his rehab.

"I appreciate you asking me," he added at the Anta HÉLÀ SEASON 2 and HÉLÀ CODE shoe private event.

Jake Paul has new business partners ... Lonzo Ball and LiAngelo Ball struck a deal that'll officially make the bros equity partners in Betr, as they also relaunch their podcast with The Problem Child's company!

TMZ Sports has learned that Zo and Gelo, as part of the deal, will get a piece of the fast-growing company ... though how much is unclear.

Betr has taken off like a rocket ship since Paul launched the biz in 2022, and is now worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Shaquille O'Neal's Sacramento State and Master P's University of New Orleans basketball programs are going head-to-head in an epic scrimmage showdown ... a matchup made in TMZ Sports heaven!!

Just last week, we reported the rap legend -- who recently became the president of basketball operations at UNO -- wanted to set up a friendly competition with the Hall of Famer's Hornets ... and the Big Aristotle told us he was 100% in!!

Fast forward to Thursday ... and the two schools are now set to hit the hardwood on October 18 at the Lakefront Arena in New Orleans for a spectacle called the "Southwest Shootout."

Bronny James has jumped over the biggest hurdle any man faces in a relationship -- he got his girlfriend's parents' approval ... with Salli Richardson and Dondre Whitfield telling TMZ Sports the Lakers hooper is good one!!

We caught up with the famous Hollywood couple/Parker Whitfield's mom and pops out at LAX this week ... and naturally, had to ask about their kid's romance with LeBron's oldest son.

While the two didn't spill on specifics, one thing's for sure -- they're Bronny fans.

A day after the NCAA announced it permanently revoked the eligibility of three players due to their involvement in a gambling scheme ... the organization announced it is now looking into 13 players from six different schools for alleged sports betting violations.

The NCAA shared the news in a press release on Thursday, saying that while each situation between the players varies -- the allegations range from betting on and against their respective teams, point shaving and game manipulation.

No identities were given by the NCAA ... but they said it involves players formerly associated with Temple, Arizona State, Eastern Michigan, North Carolina A&T and Mississippi Valley.

Jerry Jones still has one very large Cowboys fan in his corner despite his shocking trade of Micah Parsons -- Shaquille O'Neal!!!

The Big Diesel told TMZ Sports this week he still has Jones' back ... this despite the Dallas owner jettisoning his favorite team's best player to Green Bay late last month.

In fact, Shaq jokingly threatened to get physical with our Michael Babcock for even remotely implying that Dallas supporters should turn on the Cowboys' boss.

While Malik Beasley is no longer a target of a federal gambling investigation, the NBA is doing its due diligence into the serious allegations involving the free agent guard.

The league told ESPN it is conducting its own probe into Beasley after a sports book detected unusual betting interest in his stats in January 2024.

While it's unclear how long the league has been looking into the 28-year-old ... the outlet cited a source that said the process is "believed to be in its final stages."