Boston Celtics

Brian Scalabrine says there's absolutely NO WAY in hell the Celtics can beat the Cavs and advance to the NBA Finals ... that is, unless there's a zombie apocalypse!!

The NBA champ and current Cs analyst says even though Boston took Game 3 on the road, and only trails the series 2-1, they got no shot at dethroning King James and Co. with Isaiah Thomas sidelined with an injury.

"There's not one sliver of hope that they can actually pull this series off," ... UNLESS "we have a zombie apocalypse and LeBron gets bitten in the neck."

Could Lonzo Ball be a Boston Celtic??

It's possible ... because Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck tells TMZ Sports the team is definitely considering drafting the former UCLA stud with the #1 overall pick.

Grousbeck was leaving the NBA Draft lottery in NYC Thursday night when he told us he's fired up about securing the top spot -- "It seems like Celtic pride is going crazy right now!"

Wyc says the team hasn't made its mind up on who will be #1 -- but says they're looking about the 6 "really good guys" in the draft ... and bad news, LaVar -- that list includes Lonzo.

Of couse, LaVar has made it crystal clear he wants his son in the Purple and Gold ... but Wyc says Boston ain't exactly a bad place to end up either!

"We're a place that people would wanna come and play," Grousbeck says ... "We're doing well and room for improvement."

A Washington Wizards fan socked a Boston Celtics fan in the face at the TD Garden during Game 7 -- dropping the dude into the seats ... while nearby fans cheered them on.

Unclear what started the fight, but the man in the John Wall jersey reached back and clocked the dude -- while the victim was still clutching his cell phone.

Another Celtics fan tried to jump in and help out his fallen comrade ... but the damage was already done.

We spoke with cops who say no one was arrested at TD Garden on Monday.

Meantime, we got a photo of the aftermath ... it was bloody.

Here's Boston Celtics superstar Isaiah Thomas arriving in D.C. on Wednesday for his playoff game with the Washington Wizards ... but we couldn't help noticing the way he walked off the team bus.

Some people in our office thought it looked like a limp ... like he was favoring his left leg.

Others are saying he just walks with swag -- and maybe he was just tight from the bus ride.

NBA superstar Isaiah Thomas says "the pain I am feeling right now is impossible to put into words" following his sister's fatal car crash.

Thomas' 22-year-old sister, Chyna, died Saturday in Tacoma, WA after her car violently slammed into a metal pole. Thomas -- who played in Game 1 and 2 of the Celtics' playoff series against the Bulls -- traveled home as the family prepares for the funeral and he's clearly grief-stricken.

He said, "I never could have imagined a day where my little sister, Chyna, wouldn't be here. She and my family are everything to me ... This has been without question the hardest week of my life."

Thomas went on to say he's overwhelmed by the love and support he's received from friends, fans, the City of Boston, the Celtics org and NBA community throughout.

What bad blood??

Glen "Big Baby" Davis says he'd love to have Ray Allen on board for the 2008 Boston Celtics reunion ... but understands why some of the other guys think differently.

We spoke with Davis outside Ace of Diamonds in L.A. Monday night about Rajon Rondo's plan to reunite the '08 title team this summer ... minus 1/3 of the famous Big 3.

Nothing pisses off Kelly Olynyk more than a poorly run fantasy basketball league -- which is why the Boston Celtics player tore our TMZ photog a new one right in the middle of the street.

Long story short ... our guy is in a league that starts the fantasy playoffs THIS WEEK. Olynyk feels that's wayyyyy too early. He's right.

When our guy tried to explain why (in case NBA playoff-bound teams sit their stars at the end of the regular season) ... Kelly called B.S. and called for the commish to be FIRED.

It's been an up-and-down season for the Boston Celtics ... but that's not keeping superfan Mark Wahlberg from staying positive ... saying the Celtics will finish with one of the best records in the East.

Boston was predicted to be one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference ... but currently sit just a couple games above .500 at 13-11.

So, when we saw Mark in NYC promoting his new movie "Patriots Day," we asked about the teams less-than-stellar start.

Mark ain't worried though ... saying it's WAYYY too early to freak out, predicting that the Celts will finish with either the 3rd or 4th seed in the East.

Boston Celtics player Gerald Green was so stoked about kicking off the NBA season Wednesday night -- he braided a CLOVER into his hair ... and it was awesome.

By the way, it worked -- the Celtics beat the Nets and Green dropped 9 points!

NBA rookie Demetrius Jackson has gone next level with his wardrobe personalization -- ordering up a sick custom jacket ... WITH HIS OWN FACE INSIDE IT!!

The Boston Celtics rook -- 45th pick in the draft -- hit up Ge Wang at ESQ Clothing and asked for 3 unique jackets. Wang delivered ... with custom lining made specifically for Jackson.

The first jacket featured DJ in his Notre Dame jersey. The second was a tribute to his dog, Obi. The third was ND's famous Golden Dome building.

We spoke with Wang ... who told us, "Demetrius didn't specifically say what to put on them. We tried to surprise him a bit. He's very passionate about his upbringing and his puppy, so we went that route.”

Wang wouldn't say how much DJ paid for his handmade threads -- but said his stuff usually runs about $2k per suit plus another $500 for custom lining.

The Paul Pierce era in Boston is now officially over -- because the former Celtics star has finally sold off his massive 2-story mansion ... but he took a pretty nasty hit on the way out.

Pierce bought the 7,631 square foot pad back in 2003 for $2.4 million ... but after he was shipped out of Boston to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013 -- Pierce put the home on the market for $2.6 mil hoping to turn a profit.

Things didn't go as planned.

TMZ Sports has learned ... after more than a year on the market, Paul finally found a buyer. But he only got $2.25 mil for the 5 bedroom, 6 bathroom spot ... $150k less than he paid for it.

Kevin Durant will be a free agent in 2016 ... and Mark Wahlberg is already lobbying to get him into a Celtics jersey.

We were talkin' to Mark about his custom Celtics basketball court at his new L.A. mansion and asked if any Celtics players had actually played there.

Wahlberg revealed that K.D. shot some hoops on the court recently -- and then made his pitch for the MVP to come to Beantown when his contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder is after next season.

It's probably an uphill battle for Celtic Nation ... Durant is reportedly leaning toward re-signing with OKC or heading to Washington D.C. ... where he grew up.

Still, good luck.

NBA superstar Paul Pierce tells TMZ ... just because he left Boston doesn't mean his career's over -- he wants to play another TEN YEARS in the league!!

35-year-old Pierce was leaving a grocery store in L.A. with a bunch of water (it's important to hydrate) when we asked how he felt about being traded from the Celtics to the Brooklyn Nets this late in his prolific career.

Paul's reaction was CLASSIC -- "Who says it's the end of my career? I plan on playing ten more years dude."

We're not saying it's an impossible goal ... but it's gonna be pretty tough -- considering no one in the modern NBA era has played until the age of 45 (Dikembe Mutombo and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played until they were 42 and Kevin Willis was 44).

Last night a handful of NBA hopefuls -- armed with nothing more than their best fitting suits and a smile -- hit the stage as their dreams came true.

Kevin Garnett would've laid the smack down on Carmelo Anthony if things came to blows during their post-game standoff this week ... all because of KG's cartoonishly long arms ... so says Marlon Wayans.

Marlon was out in NYC yesterday when we asked about the Melo vs. KG beef -- and his answer ... is ... hilarious.

Knicks star Carmelo Anthony has just been suspended for one game -- WITHOUT PAY -- for confronting Celtics player Kevin Garnett Monday night ... in an epic expletive-filled standoff.

TMZ posted the video ... showing 'Melo waiting for KG in the arena tunnel at Madison Square Garden ... after the two had been going at each other during the game.

'Melo had said KG insulted him on the court and said things that "crossed the line." There are reports that KG said Anthony's wife "tastes like Honey Nut Cheerios" ... but neither player has confirmed exactly what words were exchanged.

According to the NBA, Carmelo will serve his suspension on January 10th when the Knicks face the Pacers.

A rep for the league released a statement, saying, "There are no circumstances in which it is acceptable to confront an opponent after a game."