Controversial S#!T

PayPal has an ultimatum for the Phoenix Suns and Robert Sarver ... either their disgraced owner resigns, or one of the biggest companies in the world pulls the plug on a lucrative sponsorship deal.

CEO/President of PayPal, Dan Schulman, released a strongly worded statement Friday morning ... and he didn't mince words.

"PayPal is a values-driven company and has a strong record of combatting racism, sexism and all forms of discrimination. We have reviewed the report of the NBA league's independent investigation into Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver and have found his conduct unacceptable and in conflict with our values."

The statement continued ... "PayPal's sponsorship with the Suns is set to expire at the end of the current season. In light of the findings of the NBA's investigation, we will not renew our sponsorship should Robert Sarver remain involved with the Suns organization, after serving his suspension."

Of course, a lengthy investigation revealed the 60-year-old Suns owner allegedly used the n-word on at least five occasions. He's also been accused of making sexually inappropriate comments to women and treating women in the workplace differently, among other troubling allegations.

For his behavior, the NBA suspended Sarver for one-year and fined him $10 million ... the maximum amount allowed under NBA bylaws.

Still, many people, including some of the biggest NBA stars in the world, have publicly said the NBA screwed up the punishment ... 'cause they went far too easy on Sarver.

LeBron James went to social media and tweeted ... "I gotta be honest…Our league definitely got this wrong."

Chris Paul, a Phoenix Suns star, cosigned Bron's sentiment, saying "the sanctions fell short in truly addressing what we can all agree was atrocious behavior."

Despite Sarver's ugly and offensive behavior, PayPal did note the Suns have many talented people within the front office.

"While we strongly reject the conduct of Robert Sarver, we remain supportive of the team, its players and the experienced and diverse talent now leading the organization, including Head Coach, Monty Williams, General Manager, James Jones, Assistant General Manager, Morgan Cato, and Senior Vice President of People and Culture, Kim Corbitt."

Fat Joe's getting increasingly vocal following the murder of PnB Rock ... using the tragedy to make it clear to younger artists that there are all sorts of pitfalls -- sometimes deadly -- attached to their profession.

Joe sat down with Charlamagne Tha God Thursday evening for a special episode of 'Hell of A Week' ... and urgently screamed rappers should now be placed on the endangered species list due to the constant shootings and killings.

The Terror Squad boss also doubled down on the popular notion started by Jim Jones that being a rapper is the most dangerous job.

From his perspective, rappers now face a three-headed enemy: the police, federal agents and the most alarming ... their own kind.

The conversation with Charlamange was carried over from Joe's lengthy Instagram Live earlier in the day ... where he fumed about PnB no longer being able to be with his family.

Joe acknowledged some people in the world were just going to rob and steal by nature, but what he doesn't understand is the murder part ... especially if they've already successfully pulled a theft.

PnB was shot and killed Monday, prompting LAPD officers to put out a city-wide manhunt for his killer.

TMZ broke the story ... the Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles restaurant where the Philly rapper was murdered did a quick 24-hour turnaround to resume business hours and turned over surveillance footage to authorities.

Phoenix Suns minority owner Jahm Najafi followed in the steps of his team's star player, Chris Paul, this week by calling for harsher penalties for Robert Sarver -- saying the owner should give up his position.

Najafi -- the Suns' second-largest stakeholder -- sent a letter to Phoenix employees Thursday ... saying that Sarver should resign ASAP after the NBA found he's used racist language and bullied employees during his tenure.

"Similar conduct by any CEO, executive director, president, teacher, coach, or any other position of leadership would warrant immediate termination," Najafi said in his letter.

"The fact that Robert Sarver 'owns' the team does not give him a license to treat others differently than any other leader. The fact that anyone would find him fit to lead because of this 'ownership' position is forgetting that NBA teams belong to the communities they serve."

He continued, "I cannot in good judgment sit back and allow our children and future generations of fans to think that this behavior is tolerated because of wealth and privilege. Therefore, in accordance with my commitment to helping eradicate any form of racism, sexism and bias, as Vice Chairman of the Phoenix Suns, I am calling for the resignation of Robert Sarver."

Following a months-long investigation into claims Sarver was inappropriate in the Suns' workplace -- the NBA announced this week it did find he used the n-word on multiple occasions.

Investigators also said he made unprofessional comments about female employees, and did not treat them equally. The probe also found Sarver engaged in inappropriate physical conduct toward male employees.

Sarver was banned one season and fined $10 million as punishment. Paul said following the announcement he believed the penalties should have been more severe.

"This conduct especially towards women is unacceptable and must never be repeated," Paul said. "I am of the view that the sanctions fell short in truly addressing what we can all agree was atrocious behavior. My heart goes out to all of the people that were affected."

LeBron James just unloaded on the NBA ... saying the league bungled Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver's suspension -- calling it straight up "wrong."

"Read through the Sarver stories a few times now," the L.A. Lakers superstar tweeted Wednesday afternoon. "I gotta be honest…Our league definitely got this wrong."

"I don’t need to explain why," he continued. "Y’all read the stories and decide for yourself. I said it before and I’m gonna say it again, there is no place in this league for that kind of behavior."

As we reported, following an NBA investigation, league officials said Sarver did, in fact, use the n-word on multiple occasions in the workplace. They also said they found he made inappropriate comments about female employees, and did not treat them equally. Investigators added that Sarver was inappropriate physically toward male employees as well.

They did note in their findings that Sarver's use of the n-word was not motivated by racial hate or prejudice.

As punishment for it all, the league announced on Tuesday it was hitting Sarver with a one-season ban ... and fining him $10 million -- things LeBron clearly believes were nowhere near harsh enough.

"I love this league and I deeply respect our leadership," LeBron said. "But this isn’t right. There is no place for misogyny, sexism, and racism in any work place. Don’t matter if you own the team or play for the team. We hold our league up as an example of our values and this aint it."

For his part, commissioner Adam Silver did apologize to those affected by the owner's actions ... and did vow to do better going forward.

NBA commish Adam Silver is addressing comparisons between Donald Sterling and Suns owner Robert Sarver -- who was punished for allegedly saying the n-word -- calling the situations "dramatically different" from one another.

Sarver was slapped with a $10 million fine and one-year suspension on Tuesday after a lengthy NBA investigation showed the multi-millionaire owner repeated the n-word on at least five occasions and treated female employees differently, among other accusations.

The league noted Sarver didn't appear to use the word with racist intent ... but was repeating the word.

Still, many people have raised Sterling's name ... asking why the former Los Angeles Clippers owner was banned forever (he also received a $2.5 million fine), while Sarver was hit with a relatively modest 365-day suspension.

Of course, TMZ Sports broke the Sterling story in 2014 ... when the real estate developer and team owner was heard berating "friend" V. Stiviano over a photo she took with Lakers legend Magic Johnson at Staples Center during a Clips game.

"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with Black people. Do you have to?" Sterling asked Stiviano.

Sterling also told her ... "You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games."

Silver explained why he believes the Sterling situation is far worse than Sarver.

"For me the situations are dramatically different. What we saw in the case of Donald Sterling was blatant racist conduct directed at a select group of people," Adam told media in NYC.

Silver also apologized to former and current Suns/Mercury employees, and spoke about the sheer shock he felt when learning of the accusations against Sarver.

"I was in disbelief to a certain extent about what I learned had transpired over the last 18 years in the Suns organization. I was saddened by it, disheartened, I want to again apologize to the former and in some cases current employees of the Phoneix Suns for what they had to experience, there's absolutely no excuse for it, and we addressed it."

Bobby Shmurda popularized his own 'Shmoney' dance but it's not rap's greatest rug-cutter as far as the "Hot N***a" rapper is concerned.

While sitting down with Complex for its "Bracket" series, Bobby named the "Chickenhead," famously shown in Chingy's "Right Thurr" video as hip hop's GOAT dance move!!!

None of the other entries had much of a shot ... once Bobby pictured women gyrating and jiggling in "Chickenhead" form, he wasn't able to keep his composure and all but crowned it on the spot during the early voting.

His explanation was clear: he's a gangsta and the most entertaining stuff grabs his attention the best, which would be the "Chickenhead" in this case.

Bobby's choice is still a bit surprising ... he picked the "Chickenhead," which originated in St. Louis, over New York-born trends like "Harlem Shake" and the "Milly Rock."

In fact, Bobby says he used to win cash money on the street doing the "Harlem Shake" in dance contests. As for his 'Shmoney' dance, Bobby yielded to Pop Smoke's "Woo Walk" ... giving the late Brooklyn artist his shine for impacting the culture.

Another interesting thing Bobby clarified in the interview ... he doesn't fancy himself as a "drill artist," especially since the movement sprung up while he was incarcerated.

Bobby says he doesn't dance much these days ... he just "swerves," which fits the vibe of his latest project "Bodboy" to the tee.

The NAACP is ripping the NBA over the one-year suspension and $10 million fine of Phoenix Suns/Mercury owner Robert Sarver ... calling the punishment a complete joke.

As we previously reported, Sarver was hit with the penalty on Tuesday ... after a lengthy investigation found the 60-year-old used the n-word several times, treated female staff unfairly, sexually harassed women, and used inappropriate physical conduct towards male employees, among other troubling trends.

NAACP President Derrick Johnson is pissed over the NBA's response to the disturbing behavior ... saying "fining a billionaire $10M is nothing but a speeding ticket."

It should be noted ... the $10 million fine is the most allowable under NBA bylaws.

"The NBA's response is shameful. They have failed to adequately address this man's history of racism, sexism, and his years-long nourishment of a toxic culture," Johnson said.

"The fact that the NBA would hand down this so-called 'punishment' in the same year we lost a legend like Bill Russell, who fought racism his entire life, only underscores how prevalent racism still is today."

"The punishment doesn't fit the crime whatsoever, and the NBA must do better than this. This is far from accountability."

The NAACP continued on Wednesday .. retweeting an ESPN segment on the Sarver story ...  questioning how this penalty equals retribution.

"So remind us again why a $10 million fine and a 1-year suspension is really teaching anyone a lesson with as extensive a track record of just not caring what anyone thinks or fearing what the consequences of those actions are?"

"This punishment is a JOKE!"

Will Zalatoris -- one of golf's hottest young stars -- is begging Tiger Woods to officially apply for a cart exemption on the PGA Tour ... telling the legendary ball-striker to "get in the damn cart!"

Tiger has struggled to get around courses in his return to golf following his near-fatal car crash in 2021 ... and it's bothered him so much, it's affected his scores, and his ability to play tournaments with regularity.

Woods can get permission from Tour officials to remedy the situation by using a cart -- given the severity of the leg injury he suffered in the L.A. accident -- but he's said he'll never do that, telling media members previously, "If I can’t play at that level, I can’t play at that level."

Zalatoris, who's set a goal to play a round with the golf legend at some point in his career, clearly thinks that's a mistake -- believing a cart exemption could extend Woods' reign on courses for several more years.

"The part that amazes me is he has such a hard time walking, but man, he can still play some good golf," Zalatoris told Graham Bensinger on the latest episode of "In Depth With Graham Bensinger."

"Tiger could get a cart if he wants to. But you know he's never going to take it. Because that's who he is. And it's like, selfishly, I'm like, 'Dude, get in the cart. I want to play with you.'"

Zalatoris, who finished in second in both this year's PGA Championship and U.S. Open, added, "I want to see you when you're 50 ... get in the damn cart."

Woods has played competitively with a cart recently -- he used one in his famous return to golf with his son at the PNC Championship in 2021 ... and dominated.

Here's the reaction to the Robert Sarver punishment you didn't know you needed ... courtesy of City Girls rapper JT, who hilariously gave her two cents on the Phoenix Suns owner to an Arizona news outlet on Tuesday.

As we previously reported, Sarver was suspended one year and fined $10 million after an investigation into workplace misconduct accusations ... with the league finding the owner said the N-word several times, among other inappropriate actions.

KTVK 3TV in Phoenix hit the streets to ask Suns fans for their thoughts on the penalty ... and one oblivious reporter just so happened to run into one-half of the popular rap duo without knowing who she is.

"I think that he should be suspended forever," JT said in the clip. "You don't do that. Like -- one year is like, so short."

You gotta give JT props for playing the role of concerned local resident really well ... even though she's from Florida and was only in town for a concert.

As it turns out, the 29-year-old said on Twitter it was always a dream of hers to "rant" on local news ... so check that one off the bucket list!!

JT also explained her passion behind her soundbite ... saying it was in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The lead man on "The Bachelorette" has a blackface controversy that's dogging him -- and a couple of former Black contestants have mixed reactions on how he should proceed.

We got former 'Bachelorette' stars Olumide Onajide and Riley Christian in NYC Tuesday to weigh in on Erich Schwer donning dark makeup back in high school to make himself look like Jimi Hendrix.

Olumide tells us he's on the fence over Erich's apology ... especially with the history of blackface and what it means for African-Americans. Still, he doesn't think the dude had bad intentions in his heart -- and thinks he might still have a chance with Gabby Windey.

Riley also acknowledges the painful connotations of blackface ... saying he can't believe it's still being done in this day and age (he ain't alone there).

But on the issue of forgiveness, RC says it's certainly achievable for Erich ... especially if he's genuinely sorry and can learn from this mistake. It sounds like he and Olumide are on the same page on how to proceed -- let the show go on, and allow Gabby to decide what she wants to do.

As we reported, the old photo of Erich dressed as Hendrix for Halloween resurfaced during this season -- which was shot a while ago. He apologized for it, citing ignorance and naivete ... claiming he wasn't aware how offensive it was at the time.

Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett admitted Tuesday what everyone already knew -- he blew the ending of Monday night's game against the Seahawks.

Hackett got candid at his meeting with media members less than 24 hours after losing to Seattle ... revealing he should have, in fact, stuck with Russell Wilson on fourth-and-five instead of kicking a 64-yard field goal as the time ticked away on "MNF."

"Looking back at it," he said, "we definitely should have gone for it."

The Broncos were trailing the Seahawks, 17-16, but Wilson, who's no stranger to late-game magic, was driving the Broncos down the field with the hopes of winning in his much-anticipated return to Seattle.

The problem? When Russ' drive stalled near midfield -- Hackett elected to pull him from the game, and trot Brandon McManus to attempt to make a historically long kick.

Of course, he missed ... and the Broncos lost -- and Hackett made it clear he regrets the decision.

"It's just one of those things that's unfortunate, but that was our plan going into it," the rookie head coach said. "Obviously, looking back at it, if you missed the field goal, you're always going to wish you would've gone for it, and if you would've gone for it and not gotten it, you wish you would've given him a chance."

Hackett's decision was so questionable ... Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning, who was hosting the ManningCast during the game, was visibly dumbfounded over it all.

Mike Martz went scorched earth on Trey Lance this weekend ... blasting the 49ers quarterback for his performance in Week 1 while admitting, "I've never liked him."

The former Niners offensive coordinator held nothing back when discussing Lance's loss to the Bears on The 33rd Team -- ripping the 22-year-old for his play in the 19-10 defeat in Chicago.

"I want [49ers coaches'] eyeballs here," Martz said. "I've never seen anything about this kid that was encouraging at all."

Martz criticized Lance's throwing motion, his decision-making ... and his running ability -- adding that has no idea "what [Lance] is."

"He looked like a fullback stumbling around, trying to run the ball to me," Martz said.

"He's not particularly a good guy running with the football -- and based on what I saw today, I mean, he missed two guys completely by themselves."

Lance completed just 13 of his 28 passes for 164 yards and an interception in the defeat. And, while it was raining cats and dogs at Soldier Field, Martz said that's just not enough of an excuse for the way Lance played.

"I know this," the former coach said, "he can only go up. He can only get better because you can't get any worse than what he did today."

Martz also went in on Lance's opponent -- Bears QB Justin Fields -- saying the Chicago signal-caller was "less than remarkable" in the win, despite his two touchdowns.

"I don't know if I've ever seen such a bad performance by a quarterback in his opening performance of the season," said Martz, a heralded quarterbacks coach during his time in the NFL. "He was just completely awful."

Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver was just hit with a massive penalty after an extensive investigation into alleged workplace misconduct ... getting banned from the league for one season and forced to pay a $10 million fine.

The NBA released the findings of its investigation after interviewing 320 current and former Suns employees ... and determined Sarver said the n-word at least five times "when recounting the statements of others."

It's worth noting -- the league says Sarver's use of the n-word was not motivated by racial hate or prejudice.

The league also concluded Sarver did not treat female employees equally and made inappropriate comments about their appearance.

The NBA also states Sarver engaged in inappropriate physical conduct toward male employees.

"The statements and conduct described in the findings of the independent investigation are troubling and disappointing," NBA commish Adam Silver said in a statement. "We believe the outcome is the right one, taking into account all the facts, circumstances and context brought to light by the comprehensive investigation of this 18-year period and our commitment to upholding proper standards in NBA workplaces."

"I am hopeful that the NBA community will use this opportunity to reflect on what this great game means to people everywhere and the values of equality, respect and inclusion that it strives to represent. Regardless of position, power or intent, we all need to recognize the corrosive and hurtful impact of racially insensitive and demeaning language and behavior."

"On behalf of the entire NBA, I apologize to all of those impacted by the misconduct outlined in the investigators’ report. We must do better."

During Sarver's suspension, he must complete a workplace conduct course. He will not have any access to the team or its facilities during the ban.

FYI -- the $10 million fine is the absolute most the NBA is allowed to hand down.

The Suns will now have to hire an outside firm to advise on issues like workplace training, hiring and compensation.

Anthony Edwards should NOT be canceled for the homophobic remarks he recently made -- and that's coming from one of the biggest LGBTQ organizations in the world, which tells TMZ Sports it wants to sit down with the NBA star and believe he can be an ally going forward.

PFLAG -- the leading organization for LGBTQ+ people, families and allies -- tells us it saw the IG video posted by the Minnesota Timberwolves guard, where he made offensive comments about a group of shirtless men hugging each other on a sidewalk.

"Look at these queer ass n****s, man," Edwards said in the clip posted this weekend, adding ... "Look at the world I came to."

Edwards apologized after the video circulated on social media ... saying his actions were "immature, hurtful, and disrespectful, and I’m incredibly sorry."

Some have accepted the apology ... while some haven't.

Jean-Marie Navetta -- Director of Learning and Inclusion for PFLAG National -- says while the video is "an unfortunate reminder that equality and inclusion are still an elusive goal," there's a partnership that can now be formed that benefits all.

"The impact that public figures like professional athletes have is tremendous, and in this case, the message that was sent was of shame and ridicule. But, PFLAG believes that allies are all on a journey, and we hope this will be the beginning of a journey towards allyship for Anthony Edwards -- and we're here and ready to help."

It's not that what 21-year-old Edwards said wasn't bad ... it clearly was homophobic. In fact, Navetta calls the behavior "disappointing and hurtful," but there's nothing to be gained by cutting Anthony off.

The group would also like to see the NBA step up and make clear it values the LGBTQ community.

"While no organization can possibly manage the beliefs and behaviors of everyone employed, when situations like this one arise, it's a powerful opportunity for organizations to step up and affirm their values, contrast them with what transpired, and spotlight the work happening inside the organization."

Aaron Rodgers is livid Novak Djokovic was not allowed to compete in the U.S. Open tournament ... highlighting the absurdity of some of the COVID-19 regulations that simply make no sense.

Rodgers sat down with Bill Maher for an episode of his 'Club Random' podcast ... where the two had a candid conversation about Djokovic being kept out of the high-profile tourney for remaining unvaccinated.

"The best f***ing player on the men's side can't play," Rodgers said of Djokovic. "One of the most fit guys in the f***ing world whose had covid at least once, if not twice, can't f***ing come to New York?"

Rodgers then brought up Kyrie Irving's long, drawn-out saga with the Nets ... which saw the star point guard miss a bevy of games during the season over his refusal to get vaccinated.

"Kyrie Irving attended a basketball game courtside but couldn't play for his team."

"How is that f***ing possible?" Rodgers asked. "He attended a basketball game and got to watch it in the stands but couldn't play f***ing play on his team because he wasn't vaxxed."

"Make it make sense. Make it sense. You can't," Aaron continued.

Rodgers and Maher accused the Nets, who told Irving he could play in road games but not home games, then said he couldn't play for the team at all ... of changing their tune once the team started struggling.

AR and BM were dumbfounded that Bradley Beal, who is unvaccinated like Irving, was allowed to play in games at Barclays Center and Madison Square Garden, despite the NYC mandate.

Prince Andrew was the target of a heckler during Queen Elizabeth's funeral procession, taking some nasty insults before police intervened.

The Queen's funeral cortege passed through the streets of Edinburgh Monday, as Andrew was among the men walking behind QEII's casket.

Eventually, police grabbed the 22-year-old heckler ... he's reportedly been arrested for a breach of the peace, aka disturbing the peace.

That's when the heckler unloaded, shouting, "Andrew, you're a sick old man!"

As you know, there's been lots of drama surrounding Prince Andrew.

He settled a lawsuit back in February ... after a woman named Virginia Giuffre claimed he had sex with her 3 times when she was still a minor, something he categorically denied.