Basketball

It's safe to say Kevin Love is a future Hall of Famer ... and when that day comes, the NBA star tells TMZ Sports he would be honored to get the recognition "as a Cavalier."

We caught up with the 2016 champion and five-time All-Star this week ... and talked all about his NBA present and future, legacy in Cleveland, recent Instagram antics and partnering up with Shift Naturals, a lineup of non-alcoholic products to help folks unwind after a long day.

At 37 years old, the Utah Jazz forward said he's started to think about what retirement life would be like ... but as of right now, he's open to playing a few more seasons.

Luka Doncic did his best to sidestep any questions about the Nico Harrison firing on Wednesday ... saying while he'll always have love for the Mavericks fans and players, he's ready to move on and focus on the Lakers.

The Slovenian superstar met with the media after the Purple and Gold's blowout road loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder ... and naturally, he was asked how he felt about the general manager who shipped him to Los Angeles getting canned just nine months later -- and if it provided "closure."

Doncic elected to focus on everyone else in Dallas instead.

Mavericks fans couldn't wait for Nico Harrison to get kicked to the curb after he traded Luka Doncic to the Lakers ... but NBA champ Kendrick Perkins still believes both sides won the infamous deal -- telling TMZ Sports we'll find out if/when Dallas gets healthy!!

Harrison was handed his pink slip on Tuesday ... an inevitable move nine months after the franchise player was shipped to L.A. in exchange for Anthony Davis.

At the time, Perk said he loved the transaction for both sides ... but Mavs backers weren't buying it -- and wanted Harrison gone ASAP.

Jason Williams thinks he knows why Klay Thompson is strugglin' on the basketball court this season -- MEG THEE STALLION!

That's what the former NBA star said on the "Hoopin’ N Hollerin'" podcast on Wednesday, just a week after the Dallas Mavericks announced they were benching the four-time NBA champion, who is averaging just 7.4 points per game, while shooting 26.7% from the three.

The podcast crew, including Patrick Beverly, mentioned Thompson's new relationship with Meg, one of the hottest stars in all of music ... when Williams, a 12-year NBA vet, chimed in.

Miles Teller will be able to say "look at this photograph" for the rest of his life ... and that photograph is the viral shot of an NBA player taunting him right in the middle of a game -- which Jimmy Fallon so kindly had framed for him!!

The "Tonight Show" host surprised the actor with the gift during Tuesday night's episode ... after the two had a brief chat about Pacers player T.J. McConnell getting right up in his face and gloating during a playoff matchup against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden last season.

The snap is honestly museum-worthy -- it shows the hooper celebrating as Miles and his wife, Keleigh, Timothee Chalamet and Kylie Jenner stare blankly back at him from their courtside seats ... and it was plastered all over social media at the time.

Lenny Wilkens -- a Hall of Fame basketball player and coach -- has died ... the NBA confirmed in a statement Sunday.

Wilkens reportedly passed away while surrounded by loved ones ... though the family has not revealed a cause of death at this time.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver called Wilkens "one of the game's respected ambassadors" ... adding his on-court contributions were incredible -- yet paled in comparison to his influence on the community of Seattle.

Denzel Curry and Armani White’s friendly game of basketball was interrupted Thursday ... when the rap stars had to gang up on a vagrant sleazing around the park who was threatening to kill the kids!!!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained video of the "GOATED." collaborators at Plummer Park in West Hollywood from earlier this afternoon ... draped in hooping gear but heavily focused on the timeout they took to address a man sitting in the grass.

Our tipster says the group had just finished playing HORSE when Denzel, Armani and another player approached the man ... after hearing him scream at the children playing on the jungle gym, “I will kill all these kids and burn their fucking bodies!!!”

Tony Allen pleaded with cops to hear him out during his drug arrest ... insisting he had nothing to do with "all the extra s***" officers found in the vehicle he was riding in on Wednesday.

TMZ Sports has obtained the bodycam footage of the ex-NBA star's run-in with police in Arkansas ... which shows an emotional Allen insisting the alleged cocaine discovered in the whip was not his -- and an incident like this would torpedo his image.

When the cop initially pulled up to the car, he asked Allen and the driver if either had weed on them or had smoked in the vehicle recently. The driver admitted he sparked up in it the night before ... and his grinder might have some flower in it, although he wasn't sure.

Milwaukee Bucks center Myles Turner got a cold reception in Indiana on Monday -- the former Pacer returned to his old home for the first time as an opponent ... only to be met with a chorus of boos from the crowd.

The jeers happened immediately after the Gainbridge Fieldhouse scoreboard played a tribute video for Turner before tipoff.

The ex-Pacer -- who spent a decade in Indy -- signed a four-year, $108.9 million contract with the Bucks this offseason ... a move that left many Indiana fans feeling betrayed.

Jaylen Brown's prayers have been answered -- hair companies are lining up to work with the Boston Celtics superstar ... just a few days after he was apparently caught painting his hairline.

Dr. Christine Shaver of Bernstein Medical tells TMZ Sports she saw Brown's Twitch stream earlier this week ... when he faced the music and admitted it might be time to get some help.

Brown went as far as to say he was considering a hair transplant in Turkey ... but Dr. Shaver said she'd be delighted to keep him right here in the States -- especially since she's Bostonian and a die-hard Celtics fan.

Most folks wish they were a few inches taller, but Kevin Durant is opening up on how being vertically gifted actually made him insecure ... admitting he was once depressed over being "too tall, too skinny."

The two-time NBA champion shared his mental battle on Bobbi Althoff's "Not This Again" podcast ... saying around six years ago, he struggled with his appearance.

"I was insecure about how I looked," he said. "It hit me all at one time."

Nikola Topić -- the Oklahoma City Thunder's first-round draft pick in 2024 -- has been diagnosed with testicular cancer.

General manager Sam Presti announced the news Thursday ... three weeks after Topić underwent a necessary procedure in order for him to have a biopsy, which concluded he had the disease.

Topić has since kick-started his fight against cancer ... and requested the team keep his situation under wraps until he began the chemotherapy process.

The otters at Oregon Zoo were flippin' out -- dunking, dribbling, and flexing skills that might just have the NBA sweating ... and TBH, their game is pretty legit!

The zoo in Portland just dropped an IG clip of their star players -- Lincoln, Juno, and Sushi -- three sea otters casually slam-dunking jack-o’-lanterns like it was the playoffs ... and as you can see, they were total show-boaters.

The trio was launching out of the water, slamming pumpkins like pros -- they were rewarded with fishy treats -- and even nailing a worthy aerial that's straight-up epic!

According to the zoo, the otters aren’t just clowning around ... dunking’s part of their training. Usually it’s basketballs, but this time pumpkins -- seasonally appropriate -- all to keep 'em moving and keeping those little joints in top shape.

LaMelo Ball's middle finger cost him a Honda Civic -- the NBA just fined him $35,000 for flipping off a referee during the Hornets vs. Heat game this week.

The league announced the punishment on Thursday ... days after the Charlotte star made an "obscene gesture" during the showdown at Kaseya Center in Miami.

It occurred in the last minutes of the matchup, when Ball expressed his frustrations after he was called for an offensive foul. He received a technical foul for his actions.

Paul Pierce has apparently gotten a driver in the wake of his recent DUI arrest ... as the NBA legend was seen getting a lift home from a party on Wednesday night.

Just eight days after he was charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol ... Pierce was seen out in Beverly Hills taking the safe way home from a Halloween-themed event.

Paps caught the former Celtics star -- who was rockin' a curly wig, big chains and a zebra-print, purple jacket -- hopping into the backseat of an SUV ... after he seemed to have a good night with friends.

Jaylen Brown's hair -- or perhaps lack thereof -- is the talk of the NBA right now ... and even the Boston Celtics broadcast team got in on the jokes with a mid-game jab on Wednesday.

Brown bald balled out against the Cavs with a 30-point performance ... and after one highlight in the second quarter, play-by-play guy Drew Carter made reference to the speculation he got caught painting his hairline.

"Brown, the spin and the deuce ... went flying to the basket like he'll be flying to Turkey at some point this season," Carter said.