Basketball

Former NBA star Charlie Villanueva is counting his blessings today ... revealing he's ultra thankful to be alive after he was involved in a bad car crash earlier this week.

The former Milwaukee Bucks forward said on his Instagram page Wednesday night that he and his wife, Lala, were riding in a Mercedes G Wagon when someone hit them from behind.

Thankfully, the 39-year-old ex-hooper revealed no one was seriously injured in the wreck -- though in pictures he shared from the crash scene, you can see his car was almost completely destroyed.

"If you wondering what happened, my wife and I got hit bad by another car, and the crazy part is that whomever hit me, decided to run," Villanueva said.

"Sore neck, sore back, messed up car, we are thankful to see another day. Our lives can’t be replaced, but the vehicle can."

Villanueva -- who played 11 seasons in the NBA -- praised God for keeping them safe.

He then went on to leave a message for those who've dealt with similar scary situations this year.

John Salley says the Ja Morant critics need to pipe down ... telling TMZ Sports he truly believes the NBA superstar didn't have bad intentions when he appeared to do a gun celebration on Tuesday night.

Salley told us the firearm-themed gestures -- which Morant seemed to hit following a thunderous alley-oop dunk in the Grizzlies' overtime win over the Pelicans -- were merely "a part of hip hop culture" ... and nothing more than that.

"He's not saying, 'Forget ya'll -- I got my gun!'" the four-time NBA champion said on Wednesday. "He probably didn't even realize it."

"It's nothing meaning anything," he added.

Of course, basketball fans all over social media have disagreed with that stance -- with many on X calling it a "tone-deaf" situation ... considering the 24-year-old had just served a 25-game suspension for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos.

Salley, however, was just sure there was no ill will involved in the post-dunk celly.

"I don't think he's trying to mock anybody," Salley said. "I don't think he's trying to be mean about it."

"Leave Ja Morant alone ... Leave him alone."

Salley also shared with us his opinion on his former Detroit Pistons squad -- which just lost its 27th game in a row on Tuesday night.

2:48 PM PT -- Aaron Gordon reportedly needed 21 stitches to fix the wounds he suffered in the dog attack on Monday.

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone, meanwhile, said on Wednesday there's currently no timetable for a return for his star -- saying he wants Gordon to "heal inside and out" first.

Aaron Gordon will be away from the Denver Nuggets for the foreseeable future ... after he was attacked by a dog on Christmas.

The NBA org. revealed on Wednesday the 28-year-old was bitten by a pooch following the team's victory over the Golden State Warriors on Monday.

The Nuggets said in a statement the power forward suffered cuts to his face and hand during the incident, but, thankfully, he's "in good condition."

"[He] will remain away from the team while he recovers," the team added.

Gordon looked just fine while playing 31 minutes in the victory over the Dubs just prior to the incident ... scoring 16 points while adding 10 rebounds and three assists.

He's been a key player for Denver since he was traded to the team in 2021 -- helping the Nuggets win their first-ever NBA championship last season.

Zion Williamson just got some fresh ink to prep for the start of the new year -- getting a giant cross tattooed on his chest!!

The NBA star hit up Onder Ink's Andres Ortega just a few weeks ago to get the piece done -- and as you can see, it came out awesome.

The tat features a cross with an image of a snarling gorilla inside of it -- and it appears to be strategically positioned more toward his heart.

Unclear what the exact significance of the image is for Williamson -- but Ortega tells TMZ Sports it all took about three hours during a session in New Orleans to complete.

It's, of course, been a busy few weeks for the Pelicans forward ... because outside of getting some permanent ink placed on his body -- he also helped welcome his baby into the world in November as well.

His recent play on the court has been the focus of many too -- as basketball pundits have criticized his weight and conditioning amid an up-and-down start to the NBA season.

Ja Morant's barely been back on the NBA hardwood for a week, but he's already found himself mired in a bit of controversy again -- this time after he hit a celebration that appeared to feature imaginary guns.

The Grizzlies point guard pulled out the celly Tuesday night after he helped give Memphis an insurmountable lead over the Pelicans in overtime of their game in New Orleans.

The 24-year-old -- who just came back from a 25-game ban for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos last week -- seemed to turn his hands into the shape of pistols after throwing down a thunderous alley-oop dunk, before he appeared to spray the road crowd with fake bullets.

The gestures only lasted a few seconds, before Morant returned to defense to finish off the game -- but basketball fans were still critical of the moves nonetheless.

Several roasted him as "tone deaf" -- particularly after he had just returned from his suspension on Dec. 19.

Of course, it's entirely possible Morant was not mimicking firing guns and was instead just simply hitting a dance -- but the hooper has yet to publicly address it all.

Timothée Chalamet encabezó el elenco de celebridades que asistieron a un partido de los Lakers el día de Navidad en Los Ángeles, pero su novia, Kylie Jenner, se perdió toda la diversión.

Chalamet se sentó con su padre, Marc -un editor de UNICEF- y el agente deportivo, Rich Paul, para ver a los Lakers perder contra los Celtics de Boston 126-115 en el Crypto.com Arena de Los Ángeles.

Kylie no estaba a la vista, pero estamos seguros de que estará presente para el cumpleaños número 28 de Tim mañana.

Mientras tanto, un montón de otras personas notables aparecieron en el partido de baloncesto, tres ex jugadores de los Lakers: Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza, Derek Fisher, junto con la ex-esposa de Fisher, Gloria Govan.

Entre el público también se encontraban el DJ Zack Bia, la estrella del fútbol Eduardo Camavinga y las personalidades de Internet Corinna Kopf y David Dobrik.

Por último, pero no menos importante... Kanye West apareció cerca del estadio y fue acosado por los fans que querían autógrafos y tomarse selfies con el rapero. Pero el equipo de seguridad de Kanye mantuvo a la gente alejada de él.

Timothée Chalamet headed up a celebrity cast attending a Christmas Day Lakers game in Los Angeles ... but his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, missed out on all the fun.

Chalamet sat courtside with his dad, Marc -- an editor at UNICEF -- and sports agent, Rich Paul, to watch the Lakers take a loss against the Boston Celtics 126-115 at L.A.'s Crypto.com Arena.

Kylie was nowhere in sight, but we're pretty she'll be present for Tim's 28th birthday tomorrow.

At some point, Chalamet had some car trouble in the parking lot ... the valet driver crashed his electric car into a wall, scraping the front driver side of the vehicle.

Meanwhile, a bunch of other notables also came out for the basketball game, namely three Lakers alums -- Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza, Derek Fisher, along with Fisher's ex-reality star wife, Gloria Govan.

Also in the crowd were DJ Zack Bia, soccer star Eduardo Camavinga and Internet personalities Corinna Kopf and David Dobrik.

Last but definitely not least ... Kanye West popped up near the stadium and got hounded by fans wanting autographs and to take selfies with the rapper. But Kanye's security detail kept the people away from him.

A Lil Wayne and Kevin Durant track exists ... and the rap legend just revealed it almost made it onto his most recent project with 2 Chainz, but he decided it simply wasn't time to share it to the world.

Weezy spilled the beans in a Bleacher Report interview with Taylor Rooks, who said she spoke with Durant before their sit-down ... and he let her in on their secret.

"He said he had a question -- 'Are you going to drop a snippet of you all song on the radio show?'" Rooks explained to Tunechi.

The "A Milli" rapper was caught off guard, as their duet was supposed to be "on the low" ... and Wayne hilariously called KD out for tellin' their business.

"I just want you to know you messed up," Wayne laughed as he sent a message to the Phoenix Suns superstar. "That song was being considered to be on 'Carter VI' and now since you're saying something, it's not goin' on 'Cater VI.'"

In fact, Wayne said it was initially supposed to go on the "Welcome 2 ColleGrove" album that just came out in November ... but he's saving their special song for something else.

"KD's a jewel," Wayne said about KD's rap skills. "He's a backpack rapper."

"I can imagine he probably could call a timeout in a game, and probably ask him to rap and he probably got a verse for you."

Of course, Durant isn't the only NBA player with bars ... Damian Lillard has been known to spit impressive lyrics on his songs, including his hit single dedicated to Kobe Bryant.

Even Shaquille O'Neal was a gifted MC ... and trendsetter Allen Iverson went by the rap name Jewels.

Durant has some experience in the rap game -- not only did he have the song "It Ain't Easy" with LeBron James, he was recently enlisted as A&R for Drake's "For All The Dogs" project.

Olvídense del Sicko Mode, esto fue como estar en modo Slippo (escurridizo) para Travis Scott en el partido de los Knicks contra los Nets el miércoles por la noche, ¡¡¡porque el balón del juego hizo que el rapero derramara su bebida por todo el suelo del Barclays Center!!!

El incidente ocurrió al comienzo del cuarto trimestre del partido de Brooklyn contra Nueva York, cuando Immanuel Quickley perdió el control de una pelota de baloncesto en la cancha y fue directo a la mano derecha de Scott.

¡¡¡Mira el video de la transmisión del juego, una vez que el balón hace contacto se puede ver que cómo su bebida seltzer explota por todas partes!!!

"Oh, wow", dijo el play-by-play Ian Eagle en la transmisión. "¡Eso es un géiser!".

Afortunadamente, el líquido no manchó demasiado su costosa ropa y los trabajadores del estadio limpiaron el desastre sin causar mayores demoras.

Además, en un giro aún más fortuito para Scott, el rapero tenía otra bebida ya lista cerca, obviamente, una de las ventajas de ser dueño de su propia bebida alcohólica "Cacti".

Scott, por supuesto, se divirtió con todo. Fue visto sonriendo mientras miraba una repetición en la pantalla gigante por encima de su cabeza.

Esta es la segunda vez que Scott ha estado cerca de un desastre esta semana. El martes estuvo a punto de caerse del escenario en su concierto en Nueva York, tras ser golpeado por uno de los accesorios que decoraban su puesta en escena.

Forget Sicko Mode ... it was more like Slippo Mode for Travis Scott at the Knicks vs. Nets game Wednesday night -- 'cause a loose ball caused the rapper to spill his drink all over the Barclays Center floor!!!

The incident happened at the start of the fourth quarter of Brooklyn's tilt with NY ... when Immanuel Quickley lost control of a basketball on the court -- and it made a beeline for Scott's right hand.

Check out video from the game's broadcast ... once the rock made contact, you can see it caused his seltzer to explode everywhere!!

"Oh, wow," play-by-play man Ian Eagle said on the broadcast. "That's a geyser!"

Thankfully, the liquid didn't seem to get onto his pricey clothes too much ... and arena workers cleaned up the mess without causing a lengthy delay.

Also, in an even more fortuitous turn of events for Scott -- he had another drink already ready nearby ... obviously one of the perks of owning his own boozy "Cacti" beverage.

Scott, of course, had fun with it all ... he was seen smiling as he watched a replay on the jumbotron above his head.

It's the second close call Scott's had this week -- on Tuesday at his concert in NYC, he was nearly knocked to the floor by one of his props on stage.

Myles Turner pulled out all the stops for the Pacers' Star Wars night on Wednesday ... showing up to the arena decked out in a Han Solo costume -- and enlisting a stunning Princess Leia to join him!!

Of course, the Pacers center is a big-time nerd (we say that with love) ... so it's no surprise he was planning to go full send when the team announced the Dec. 20 matchup against the Charlotte Hornets would be all about the wildly successful movie franchise.

Myles is pretty open about his fandom for all things fantasy ... and takes advantage of any opportunity to put it on display for his followers -- like when he and his lady threw on some Hogwarts garb for their Harry Potter-themed Halloween costumes this year.

In fact, the team even showed Myles dressed up with a robe and lightsaber on him as part of Wednesday's promotion -- a limited edition Star Wars shirt, hot dog, chips and a Pepsi product included with a $25 ticket!!

There will be a ton of other Star Wars-themed events throughout the game ... including activities in the concourse and in-game entertainment.

As for his Leia, Myles has kept her identity pretty private ... so no info on the girlfriend outside of what he's shared on social media.

Justin Bieber channeled his inner Allen Iverson on the court Tuesday night ... showing off his solid dribbling abilities in a basketball game in L.A. -- and TMZ Sports has the video.

The "Ghost" crooner showed up to the BIG3 street popup event at SRGN studios ... once again suiting up for The League's Nahmias squad.

Of course, J.B. has been balling out in famous shoe customizer The Surgeon's hoops organization over the past few months ... so it was no surprise when he held his own in the most recent matchup.

Check out the footage ... Bieber starts off strong by dribbling the ball between his legs as he zooms past his defender for an easy bucket.

He also took a shot at the BIG3's signature deep 4-pointer ... but that didn't go necessarily as planned.

It's clear Bieber takes the contest seriously ... hustling his ass off throughout his playing time.

As we previously reported, the dude knows his way around the hardwood ... whether it's draining jumpers or passing dimes to his teammates.

Chance Comanche, el jugador de la NBA G Leaguer (la menor liga organizada por la NBA) que fue detenido por su presunta participación en el asesinato de una mujer a principios de este mes, confesó a la policía que estranguló a la mujer antes de enterrar su cuerpo en un desierto de Nevada. Esto, de acuerdo a nuevos documentos judiciales.

En los documentos, los investigadores del Departamento de Policía Metropolitana de Las Vegas dicen que a través de una serie de entrevistas se enteraron de que Comanche y su exnovia de 19 años, Sakari Harnden, jugaron un papel en la desaparición de Marayna Rodgers y cuando hablaron con el jugador sobre todo esto confesó haberla matado.

Los oficiales dicen que Comanche había ido a Las Vegas para participar en un partido de la G League con su equipo, los Kings de Stockton, el 4 de diciembre, pero desarrolló un plan con Harnden para matar a Rodgers poco tiempo después de que las mujeres tuvieran una aparente disputa.

En los documentos, los oficiales afirman que Comanche les dijo que él y Harnden habían atraído a Rodgers con la promesa de que iban a pagarle por actos sexuales. Todo estaba fechado para el 6 de diciembre.

Los policías dicen que Comanche les dijo que lograron que Rodgers se subiera a un carro y después de recoger una botella de alcohol de una tienda de licores cercana, le hicieron parecer que iban a tener relaciones sexuales con ella durante el paseo.

Sin embargo, según los documentos, Comanche le dijo a la policía que sacó un cable HDMI y estranguló a Rodgers durante unos 10 segundos. Al parecer, la soltó -aunque los policías dicen que les dijo que Harnden continuó estrangulándola- hasta que dejó de responder.

Los agentes dicen que Comanche les dijo que, una vez que creyó que Rodgers estaba muerta, arrojó su cuerpo a una zanja y luego lo enterró con piedras.

Comanche fue detenido por este caso el 15 de diciembre, mientras practicaba para los Kings. Inicialmente, fue fichado por un cargo de secuestro, aunque las autoridades dijeron más tarde que sería acusado formalmente de asesinato.

El jugador, de 27 años de edad, 6 pies con 10 y que ha jugado en un partido de la NBA en su carrera, se presentó en el tribunal del condado de Sacramento el martes y parecía estoico antes de renunciar a su extradición. Se espera que sea transportado a Las Vegas en los próximos días.

Chance Comanche -- the NBA G Leaguer arrested for his alleged role in the murder of a woman earlier this month -- confessed to cops that he strangled the female before burying her body in a Nevada desert ... this according to new court documents.

In the docs, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department investigators say through a series of interviews ... they learned that Comanche and his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Sakari Harnden, played a role in the disappearance of Marayna Rodgers -- and when they spoke to the basketball player about it all ... he fessed up to killing her.

Officials say Comanche had arrived in Las Vegas to participate in a G League game with his team, the Stockton Kings, on Dec. 4 -- but developed a plan with Harnden to kill Rodgers a short time later due to an apparent dispute the women had gotten into previously.

In the docs, officers claim Comanche told them he and Harnden had lured Rodgers out on Dec. 6 with the promise that they'd pay her for sexual acts.

Cops say Comanche told them they got Rodgers into a car -- and after picking up a bottle of booze from a nearby liquor store, they made it seem like they'd have intercourse with her inside of the ride.

However, according to the docs, Comanche told cops he pulled out an HDMI cord and strangled Rodgers for around 10 seconds. He allegedly let go -- though cops say he told them Harnden continued to choke her -- until she became unresponsive.

Officials say Comanche told them that once they believed Rodgers was dead -- they dumped her body in a ditch and then buried it with rocks.

Comanche was arrested on Dec. 15 while he was practicing for the Kings (the team released him later the same day). He was initially booked on a kidnapping charge, though officials later said he'd be formally charged with murder.

The 27-year-old, 6-foot-10 center -- who played in one NBA game in his career -- showed up in court in Sacramento County on Tuesday and appeared stoic -- before indicating he wouldn't fight extradition. It's expected he'll now be transported to Vegas in the coming days.

After 235 days away from the NBA hardwood, Ja Morant apparently still knows his way around the hoop -- scoring the winning shot in his first game back!!

The Grizzlies superstar had been barred from the court to start this season while serving a 25-game suspension for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos ... but in his return against the Pelicans on Tuesday night, his presence was felt right away.

He logged 34 points and 8 assists on the road game in New Orleans -- but, most importantly, he nailed a floater in the lane with no time left in regulation to win the game for Memphis, 115-113.

And, afterward, he had a big-time message for his haters ... saying simply as he ran into the locker room, "I kept receipts!"

Morant, of course, had developed a bevy of critics after he was seen on social media waving around a gun not once, but twice. He had also been accused last year of attacking a teenager during a pickup game at his home. It all eventually led to NBA commish Adam Silver sidelining him.

But, Morant took all the steps the NBA and the Grizzlies required for him to rejoin the team ... and after his big night against the Pels, he said there were certainly some low points while he was away from his teammates.

"I haven't played a game in eight months," he said. "I had a lot of time to learn myself, a lot of hard days where I went through it. But, you know, basketball is my life, what I love. It’s therapeutic for me and I'm just excited to be back."

Los Lakers de Los Ángeles recibieron el lunes por la noche la visita de un fan tan peludo y tan adorable que hasta los locutores del partido tuvieron que pararse a reconocerlo.

El hincha número 1 del Lake Show no era otro que Brodie The Goldendoodle, un perrito que ha ganado tanta notoriedad en los últimos años que ha conseguido un millón de seguidores en Instagram.

De alguna manera, el cachorro obtuvo uno de los mejores asientos para el juego de Los Ángeles contra los Knicks en el Crypto.com Arena, al puro estio Timothée Chalamet.

El perrito sin duda aprovechó el centro de atención en la cancha. Movió su cola tan duro durante una pausa, que llamó la atención de Mike Breen.

"Ese es Brodie", dijo Breen en vivo mientras el perro agitaba sus patas en el aire. "¡Nunca había visto algo así en más de 30 años de carrera!".

Brodie, por supuesto, está acostumbrado a ser el centro de atención... él y su dueño han viajado por todo el país juntos apareciendo en eventos deportivos esporádicamente.

El curioso fan ha sido una estrella durante los juegos de los Marlins y los Heats en el pasado y al parecer también es grande en Los Ángeles. Decimos esto porque apareció luciendo una camiseta de Austin Reaves durante la mayor parte del partido de los Lakers contra NY.