Chicago Bulls

Bobby Portis is paying the price for his brutal punch on Bulls teammate Nikola Mirotic ... as the team has slapped him with an 8-game ban.

Portis laid out Mirotic at practice on Tuesday ... sending him to the hospital with a fractured jaw and a concussion.

Nikola was discharged from the hospital later that day, but will likely need surgery -- forcing him to sit out at least 4 weeks.

The incident went down after the Bulls forwards got into it with trash-talk and shoving. Multiple reports claim Mirotic was the aggressor -- repeatedly charging at Bobby before being put down.

Which is probably why Portis only got 8 games. Could've been a lot worse.

4:18PM PT -- The Bulls released a statement addressing the incident.

"Chicago Bulls forwards Bobby Portis and Nikola Mirotic had a physical altercation during today's practice. As a result of the incident, Mirotic suffered a concussion and maxillary fractures. Surgery is likely required. Mirotic is out indefinitely."

Bulls forward Bobby Portis socked teammate Nikola Mirotic and broke his face and gave him a concussion at practice today.

Portis and Mirotic reportedly got into a shoving match ... that ended with Bobby cheap-shotting Nikola ... The Vertical reported.

Mirotic was taken to the hospital with multiple broken bones in his face. He was also evaluated for a concussion. The report says N.M. has since been released from the hospital.

Mirotic was expected to begin the season as the team's starting PF, ahead of Portis.

NBA star Zach LaVine has high ambitions in Chicago ... but can the high-flyin' dunk master jump over the Jumpman and pass Michael Jordan as the best Bulls dunker of all time??

That's exactly what we asked LaVine -- who was just recently traded from Minnesota to the Windy City -- and while the 2-time dunk contest champ has some serious hops, he doesn't think he'd ever match His Airness' classic moves.

It's a pretty humble response from LaVine, who's only 22 years old and has already put on a dunking clinic in just 3 years in the league ... but we get it. It's M.J. we're talking about.

We also asked about getting traded away from the T-Wolves ... and it's nothing but love for his old squad.

John Salley vehemently refuses to even entertain the idea that the '17 Golden State Warriors have passed the '96 Chicago Bulls as the greatest team ever.

Salley -- who played with Michael Jordan on the legendary '96 Bulls team -- was leaving Craig's in WeHo when we had to ask straight-up: could Steph Curry and Kevin Durant have beaten M.J. and Scottie Pippen?

Salley: "Are you kidding me!?"

He breaks down the matchup -- player by player -- and scoffs at the idea that Steph would shoot the Bulls outta the arena.

Rajon Rondo rocked a short sleeve suit jacket to the Bulls game Friday night ... and we gotta say -- kinda swag!!!

Ronda is currently nursing an injured thumb and has a cast on his right hand that might prevent him from fitting his arm into a regular full sleeve.

So, he made an adjustment and went short-sleeved ... and totally pulled it off!

Michael Jordan is mourning the death of his former Chicago Bulls General Manager, Jerry Krause ... offering his "heartfelt condolences" to Jerry's family and friends.

Jordan won all 6 of his NBA titles while playing under Krause -- and, while they butted heads at times, MJ is honoring his memory now.

Jordan issued a statement to TMZ Sports through his rep saying, "Jerry was a key figure in the Chicago Bulls dynasty of the 1990s and meant so much to the Bulls, the White Sox and the entire city of Chicago."

"My heartfelt condolences go out to his wife, Thelma, his family and friends."

Ex-Chicago Bulls General Manager Jerry Krause -- who built the Bulls dynasty of the '90s -- has died, a family member confirmed. He was 77.

The Chicago Tribune says Krause passed away Tuesday afternoon.

Krause was the 2-time NBA Executive of the Year and signed two pretty decent rookie prospects, Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant.

But it wasn't all roses for Krause ... he famously locked horns with Pippen, Michael Jordan and Phil Jackson during his time in Chicago.

In fact the beef between Jordan and Krause was so real that MJ even took some parting shots at Krause during his now legendary Hall of Fame induction speech.

"Jerry is not here. I don't know who invited him, I didn't. He said organizations win championships, I said I didn't see organizations playing with the flu in Utah, I didn't see him playing with the bad ankle."

The Chicago Bulls were so pumped after beating the Golden State Warriors Thursday night, some of 'em hit the club with Chance the Rapper to celebrate ... including the old guy on the squad!

Dwyane Wade (he's 35 now) joined Jimmy Butler at Studio Paris in Chicago where Chance performed that night.

In the video, you can see all the guys hanging in the VIP section where they got served up with champagne and cake.

Guess if you can't beat 'em, eat with 'em ... at least that's how Bulls guard Jimmy Butler must feel ... 'cause he grabbed dinner with DeAndre Jordan just moments after DJ's Clippers handled the Bulls.

Clippers beat the Bulls 102-95 Saturday night ... but that didn't stop the DJ and JB from dining out at Catch -- which is apparently the only restaurant in Los Angeles -- after the final whistle blew.

Our camera got the two men leaving ... and when we asked Jordan if the loser of the game had to pay he smiled and said "I had a good meal" (free food tastes better).

Bonus bombshell revelations? Jordan says his character of Mrs. Hooper in the State Farm ads is DONE FOR GOOD ... which is a major drag, like a BIGGEST drag, the BIGGEST drag we've ever seen.

Shocker ... ex-Bulls star Dennis Rodman is pulling for the Chicago Cubs to win the World Series.

And with his ex-teammate, Scottie Pippen, going through a pretty nasty divorce, we asked if he had any advice for his fellow NBA legend.

Dwyane Wade ain't leaving Miami empty-handed ... 'cause his former teammate, Dorell Wright, just hooked him up with an awesome custom art piece to bid him farewell.

Wright -- who played with Wade for 6 years on the Heat -- hit up Michael Farhat of ART Mobb ... and commissioned him to make a one-of-a-kind art piece for his "big brother," D. Wade.

The vision? Farhat told us it's "Wade reflecting on the success and hard work he put in Miami and using that as motivation for Chicago."

The project -- which took 7 hours to complete -- was spray painted on a piece of plexiglass using handmade stencils ... and it's dope.

Rajon Rondo is pumped to have Dwayne Wade in Chicago -- not just on the court -- telling TMZ Sports he's super excited about teaming up with DW to mentor young black men in the community.

Don't get it twisted, Rondo says he's fired up about the Bulls' chances this year -- but says the guys really click when it comes to helping people.

There's one die-hard Chicagoan who's actually HAPPY Derrick Rose is no longer wearing a Bulls uniform ... Common ... who says the NBA star wanted out of the Chi, and he's happy he got his wish.

Common was leaving Equinox -- where he practically LIVES -- and asked the huge Bulls fan how he felt about the blockbuster trade that sent Rose to the Knicks.

Tracy McGrady thinks there was a way to stop Michael Jordan & the Bulls from winning the '97 NBA title ... just add a little T-Mac ... saying the team woulda never won had he been on the squad.

We got McGrady out at LAX and asked him about his claim that he was almost traded for Scottie Pippen during the 1997 NBA Draft.

The Bulls went on to win a ring that year so the question is ... would they have won that title with a young McGrady instead of an old(ish) Pip?

Check out the clip -- T-Mac keeps it real ... saying he was just too damn young (18 when he was drafted) to help the Bulls win a 'chip in '97.

Klay Thompson's dad Mychal Thompson is calling out Scottie Pippen ... saying his son's team would definitely beat the '96 Bulls in a never-gonna-happen fantasy basketball series.

Thompson -- a former NBA #1 overall pick -- was out in L.A. when we asked him about Pip saying his record setting Bulls team would SWEEP the Warriors if the two were able to magically meet up.

The comments caught fire on social media with some accusing Pippen of old man "get off my yard" nostalgic bravado ... and some saying he was dead on.

Count Mychal among that first group ... 'cause he says Steph and the gang would take out MJ and Pippen's crew in a sizzling seven game series.

Former "Entourage" star Jeremy Piven has an answer to the biggest sports question currently dogging his native city of Chicago ...

Is it time to finally give up on former MVP Derrick Rose?

Rose hasn't been the same since he won the award a few years ago ... and after all the injuries, legal issues and subpar play, some are wondering if it's high time to move on.

We got Piven -- a die hard Chicago sports fan -- doing some shopping out in L.A. and laid the question out to him ... his answer is sure to make the entire Rose family breathe a sigh of relief.