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Ex-NBA player Bonzi Wells underwent surgery in an Indiana hospital after suffering a heart attack -- but the 41-year-old says he's okay now.

Unclear when Wells was admitted to St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis -- but Wells says he's back home now and "feeling good."

Wells told the Star Press the heart attack was "minor" -- explaining, "Small clot hit bottom part of the heart. Had surgery so I'm back to 100% no restrictions."

Wells posted a photo with one of the nurses at the hospital and wrote, "I wanna thank these ladies for saving my life."

"They went above and beyond to make sure I would be ok."

Bonzi played 10 seasons in the NBA for teams including the Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets.

Hugh Hefner -- who founded Playboy and turned it into a globally iconic brand -- is dead at 91.

Playboy says Hugh died peacefully at home Wednesday, surrounded by loved ones.

Hefner's health had been in serious decline over the last year and he's not been seen in public for some time. His passing comes just over a year after his brother, Keith, died battling cancer.

Playboy magazine catapulted Hef into a cultural phenomenon ... paving way for the iconic Playboy Mansion that quickly became known for its legendary parties.

As TMZ reported ... Hefner parted ways with the pad in August 2016 ... selling to Pabst Blue Ribbon heir Daren Metropoulos for $100 million. But the sale had one condition -- Hefner could live in the mansion without the new owner's meddling until Hefner died.

Hefner married 3 times -- first to high school sweetheart Mildred Williams in 1949 ... then former Playmate of the Year Kimberly Conrad in 1989 ... and finally Crystal Hefner in 2012. She's 31.

His third marriage came 4 years after breaking up with longtime GF Holly Madison. He's survived by 4 children -- Christie and David from his first marriage and Marston and Cooper from his second marriage.

Hefner founded Playboy in 1953 with Marilyn Monroe gracing the first cover. The magazine landed huge celebrities for years to come -- including Cindy Crawford, Kim Basinger, Pamela Anderson, Madonna, Sharon Stone, Naomi Campbell, Carmen Electra, Drew Barrymore and Kim Kardashian.

The magazine stopped publishing nude photos in 2016 but went back to them in February of this year after Hugh's son, Cooper, was named chief creative officer.

The mag also had a strong pull with some amazing writers -- including Gabriel García Márquez, Margaret Atwood and Haruki Murakami.

You're looking at Maria Sharapova's worst nightmare -- a fully SNAPPED BACK Serena Williams ... looking fit, focused and ready to beat that ass ... less than a month after giving birth.

Serena gave birth to little Alexis Jr. on Sept. 1 -- and spent several days in the hospital due to "complications."

But early Thursday morning, Serena posted her first full-body post-preggo selfie -- and she looks superhero fit.

Seriously, this is a woman who won a major tennis tourney while pregnant -- who crushed it in the gym at 35 weeks pregnant -- and whose mother guaranteed she'd return to dominate the pro game after the kid was born.

So, when will Serena return? The next Grand Slam is the Australian Open in January ... the same tourney she won while she was in her 1st trimester.

You've been warned.

Donald Trump says NFL players should have "no choice" but to stand for the national anthem -- but the says NFL owners are too afraid to make it happen.

Trump appeared on "FOX & Friends" on Thursday and went off about the protests when asked about why he made the "S.O.B." comments in Alabama last week.

The President says he has a bunch of friends who are NFL owners and they're frustrated over the current situation involving the anthem.

"I think they're afraid of their players," Trump said ... "and I think it's disgraceful."

FYI, every single NFL owner put out a statement about the protests this past week -- and owners Jerry Jones and Shad Khan even participated in demonstrations with their teams.

Rob Kardashian got his ass beat by Blac Chyna while she was high on drugs and booze ... according to a new lawsuit he's filed against his baby mama.

According to the docs, Rob says Chyna went on the rampage in December 2016 by first trying to choke him with an iPhone charging cable -- and then repeatedly struck him with blows to the head and face.

He also claims she trashed the house, which he was renting from Kylie Jenner. In the docs, Rob says she broke a door, damaged walls and a TV ... doing more than $100k of damage. He says he tried to make a break for it in his Bentley, but Chyna threw a chair at his ride ... and then struck Rob with a metal rod.

She even smashed a holiday season gingerbread house, according to Rob.

In the docs, Rob says the melee played a factor in E! cancelling his and Chyna's reality show ... because execs thought the situation was way too volatile.

Rob's suing her for assault, battery and vandalism. We've reached out to Chyna, so far no word back.

Rick Pitino says there's not a SHRED of evidence proving he did anything wrong to justify his firing -- and has lawyered up in what seems to be a prelude to a legal war with Louisville.

As we previously reported, the University of Louisville says it put Pitino on "unpaid administrative leave" in the wake of an FBI probe of an Adidas exec, who was allegedly bribing recruits to attend Adidas sponsored schools, including UL.

While Pitino hasn't been formally accused of a crime -- and no other Louisville staffer has been accused either -- the school took action anyway ... and Rick is pissed.

"Coach Pitino has done nothing wrong and there is no evidence to suggest otherwise," his attorneys said in a statement ... adding, "The rush to judgment is regrettable."

Pitino's legal team says the school "did not give him prior notice of the disciplinary action or an opportunity to be heard, as required by University policy."

In a preview of what's to come, Pitino's lawyer said, "The matter will now follow its legal course."

Pitino insists there is no evidence that would implicate him in any type of misconduct or other activity that would violate the terms of his contract.

Pitino says the "complete and accurate facts" will inevitably exonerate him.

2 Chainz is calling for people to "pledge allegiance on one knee" -- in a direct response to Donald Trump ... and it's all part of a new song with NBA star Victor Oladipo.

The Indiana Pacers star just dropped his 2nd single called "Rope a Dope" (dude can really sing) -- and it features a rap verse from Tity Boi himself.

A rep tells TMZ Sports the song "serves as a response to President Donald Trump's attack on athletes who have been kneeling during the National Anthem."

"I wanted to address what was going on and bring awareness to it, but in a positive manner,"Oladipo says.

"We need to come together as a country to deal with these problems. We aren't going to solve anything unless we're united."

The Legends Football League -- made up of women playing in lingerie -- have taken an official position on the national anthem ... "WE STAND"!

The LFL just issued a video statement on the issue taking over the country -- saying the flag, "symbolizes all the blood, sweat and tears that have been shed so that we as Americans can raise our flag across our nation."

"The LFL salutes all those who make this the greatest the country in the world, and we stand in salute of our flag."

10:06 AM PT -- University of Louisville interim president Greg Postel says Rick Pitino has technically been placed on unpaid administrative leave, effective immediately.

Rick Pitino has just been fired by Louisville, according to multiple reports ... marking the first big-name head coach to get the ax after the FBI corruption sting that rocked NCAA basketball on Tuesday.

Federal prosecutors say an Adidas executive worked with basketball coaches from Louisville in an illegal scheme to pay high school recruits to ultimately attend the University.

Neither the University nor any Louisville coaches have been formally accused of wrongdoing ... at least not yet. However, the Adidas exec has been arrested.

Pitino has maintained his innocence since the allegations came to light ... with his lawyer, Steve Pence, promising "a bare-knuckle fight" should the university choose to fire him.

"These allegations come as a complete shock to me," Pitino said in a statement.

"If true, I agree with the U.S. Attorney's Office that these third-party schemes, initiated by a few bad actors, operated to commit a fraud on the impacted universities and their basketball programs, including the University of Louisville."

"Our fans and supporters deserve better, and I am committed to taking whatever steps are needed to ensure those responsible are held accountable."

Eric Decker says playing for the sucky NY Jets made him long for the days when he was a Denver Bronco.

Cameras were rolling on the WR the day after he was cut by the NY Jets back in June -- and now his reaction is a part of his E! reality show, 'Eric & Jessie' (airs Wed. at 10 PM).

"It's weird, I was fired," Decker says ... while discussing how it sucked not making the playoffs during his 3-year run in NY.

Jessie asks where he wants to play next -- and Eric replies, "I do wanna go somewhere where I have a good chance to get back to the playoffs because I think I took for granted how (great it was)."

"We did it almost every year in Denver and ... I thought it was the norm."

College hoops icon Dick Vitale is taking the NCAA to task ... blasting the league for having a dirty underbelly and calling for the jobs of any coaches found guilty of corruption.

"There’s a cesspool that’s existing in college basketball and on the scholastic level," Vitale said -- taking aim at NCAA eligibility requirements and AAU basketball.

Dicky V says he's "crushed" over the FBI corruption sting that came to light this week ... where 4 CBB coaches were arrested and charged with federal crimes.

The legendary analyst tells us to reserve judgement until the coaches have their day in court ... but stresses that these allegations cannot be taken lightly now that the feds are involved.

Steven Seagal says the NFL protests are "outrageous" and "disgusting" and it makes him sick to his stomach to watch.

And he said this all while sitting in a chair in Moscow.

Seagal joined Piers Morgan on "Good Morning Britain" on a satellite feed from Russia (he was granted Russian citizenship in 2016) and went off on the kneeling demonstrations.

"I believe in free speech. I believe that everyone's entitled to their own opinion. But I don't agree they should hold the United States of America and the world hostage by picking a venue where people are tuning in to watch a football game and imposing their political views."

"I think it's outrageous, I think it's a joke. It's disgusting."

Seagal -- who's worked with various law enforcement departments in Arizona, Louisiana and New Mexico -- continued, "I respect the American flag and I myself have risked my life countless times for the American flag and I don't understand or agree with this kind of behavior. I think it's an outrage."

Seems Donald Trump wasn't too bothered by the Dallas Cowboys' pre-national anthem kneel -- 'cause POTUS says he spoke with Jerry Jones and everything is gravy, baby.

"Spoke to Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys yesterday. Jerry is a winner who knows how to get things done. Players will stand for Country!"

Jerry -- who owns the Cowboys -- locked arms with his players and took a knee BEFORE the American flag was unfurled for "The Star-Spangled Banner" on Monday Night Football.

Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett says the team had talked over their plan for days and the players agreed on how they would demonstrate.

Gotta wonder if this new tweet will have an effect on the team moving forward.

Miami Dolphins WR Jarvis Landry will NOT face criminal charges for an alleged domestic violence incident involving the mother of his child, officials in FL have confirmed.

The Ft. Lauderdale PD was looking into an April 1 incident in which Landry allegedly got physical with the woman. Both Landry and the alleged victim later denied he ever struck her.

The case was kicked over to the Broward County State Attorney's Office -- which ultimately decided not to move forward with charges.

Landry issued a statement through his reps saying, "I am very thankful that this matter is over and my family and I can put this behind us now."

"I greatly respect and appreciate the Broward County State Attorney’s Office for their hard work and thorough investigation into this matter and I am thankful that they were able to come to a conclusion that reaffirms the true facts that no crime was committed."

USC says it has already launched an internal investigation into its basketball program after Asst. Coach Tony Bland was arrested ... and the Trojans have hired an ex-FBI director to lead the charge.

As we previously reported, Bland was arrested as part of an FBI sting into corruption and bribery in college basketball. Officials believe he illegally took bribes to put student athletes in touch with financial advisors.

USC says Bland has been placed on administrative leave -- and they've brought in Louis Freeh and his firm to conduct the internal investigation "so that we can take action quickly and appropriately."

An NCAA (Div 2) university in Colorado has banned its student-athletes from kneeling during the national anthem ... saying the demonstration shows "disrespect towards our country."

A spokesperson for Colorado Christian University tells TMZ Sports ... "all athletes must stand for the National Anthem and prayer before a game or sporting event."

CCU has several varsity teams which compete in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference -- including basketball, baseball, soccer, tennis and golf.

Jeff Hunt, who runs CCU's Centennial Institute (which the university describes as its on-campus "think tank") issued a statement saying he's "proud that CCU will not take part in these disrespectful protests."

"Unfortunately, refusing to stand during the National Anthem dilutes the message of the protestors and portrays disrespect towards our country, all who are serving it, and our veterans."