Coronavirus

NBA rookie Tyler Herro's shooting percentage just went WAYYY up during the NBA's coronavirus suspension ... pulling up from half-court with an absolutely stunning model -- and he SWISHED!!

The 20-year-old Miami Heat rising star is known for being a sharp shooter on the court ... but the youngblood decided to test his range on Twitter ... hitting Katya Elise Henry with the "wyd" (which means "what you doin'" for all the old readers out there).

As it turns out, the bold move worked out for Herro -- 'cause the fitness guru responded "quarantine n chill?" with the side-eye flirty emoji!!!!

Of course, all the NBA players have been told to practice social distancing during the COVID-19 break ... but for Henry?? Might be worth risking it all.

KEH has been tied to guys like Austin Mahone and Kyle Kuzma in the past ... but it's unclear if she's really pursuing Herro or if they're joking and we're all idiots.

Nail salons from coast-to-coast are full of empty chairs, and way fewer employees are waiting to provide mani-pedis ... because COVID-19 is already killing businesses.

The general consensus among salon owners and employees we spoke to is they're totally screwed with next month's rent coming due in a couple weeks. Angela Yi owns Ivy Nail & Spa in NYC, and told us all scheduled appointments the past few days have canceled and there have been no walk-ins. She is, understandably, panicking. She says normally they'd make $1,500 to $2,000 per day off about 20 customers, but now they're earning zilch and will be for the foreseeable future.

Angela's already cut her staff from 15 to 3, but says that $15k rent train is coming down the tracks. She says people are comparing the business decline to after the September 11 attacks, but this is way worse ... with no end in sight.

Same story for Tina's Nail and Spa near L.A. -- owner Tina Tran says she only saw 3 customers Monday and made $120. Her rent alone is $2,500, and it's due next week.

Tina says they're a small shop with only 3 employees, and despite making sure they are careful with cleanliness, the reality is nobody's coming. Nails, and other cosmetic services, just ain't top of mind.

The manager for ZaZaZoo Nail Salon in Chicago says biz is down 95 percent, and staff hours are slashed in half to make sure they follow the guideline of 10-person gatherings.

Ditto for Luv Nail Shop in Miami, where they have ONE scheduled appointment for the rest of the week, and they're considering shutting down immediately.

Kevin Love wants his NBA brothers to step up and lead the community during the coronavirus suspension ... calling for everyone to be "more than athletes" and follow his lead.

As we previously reported ... the Cleveland Cavs champ was the first player to lead the charge and donate $100k to support Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse employees who are without work during the NBA suspension.

K. Love spoke about his generous donation on the "Today" show Wednesday morning ... and he wants more players to get involved.

"It's been an incredibly stressful time for number of people ... a lot of people living paycheck to paycheck," Love says. "So I felt this is a really good time, especially for NBA players, to walk-the-walk and be more than athletes."

Love continued ... "We see people in the community, we see people working in our arena work at least 41 nights out of the year, us playing home games, so it was way for me to try and help navigate this incredibly stressful and anxiety-ridden time to just pay it for and really help them."

The 5-time All-Star -- who is outspoken about mental health awareness -- emphasizes it's a time for his NBA family to help relieve the stress arena staffers may have when they don't know when the next paycheck will come through.

Paris Jackson says it's understandable people might slip into depression while isolated away during the coronavirus quarantine -- but there's a simple solution ... or possibly several.

We spoke to MJ's only daughter Tuesday on the streets of L.A. -- where it felt about as busy as ever with the cars (and loud ambulances) zooming by -- and picked her brain about ways people can deal with the solitary confinement several folks are being subject to right now.

She actually had a super thoughtful answer for us -- check it out. Paris says humans, by nature, are social creatures ... and that the current conditions certainly work against that innate feeling of wanting to belong and interact with us in person. The easy fix, according to her, is to continue chatting ... virtually if necessary. Just don't emotionally disconnect.

As far as self-help techniques ... PJ goes through a few examples with our camera guy, who you can tell is pretty star-struck talking to her. Chip of the old block much? We'd say so.

Nelly says Kevin Durant's positive coronavirus test is a real REALITY CHECK for the world -- because it proves "nobody's exempt" when it comes to COVID-19.

"Our thoughts and our strengths are with him," the hip-hop star told us in Calabasas ... "Nobodys exempt. We're all the same right now."

He added, "Nobody's bigger than the other right one. I think we're all one at the same time right now."

"It's affecting the world, man, not just the music industry. And, anybody who feels like this is personal, basically got they head in the sand."

Nelly's message echoed Nevada governor Steve Sisolak -- who didn't mince words when addressing the people of the Silver State earlier this week.

"I don't know how to make this any clearer ... this is affecting the lives of our citizens. People are dying."

The coronavirus has gyms shuttering all across the country -- but several trainers are pivoting to a Prohibition-style method of business ... which might be in everyone's best interest.

TMZ spoke to a handful of high-end personal trainers in and around the L.A. area -- and they all say they're going to keep working one way or another ... to keep themselves financially afloat, obviously, but mostly for the health and wellness of their clients who need it most.

Fact is ... while some people can afford to take the next few weeks off their gym game, we're told several others simply cannot -- for health-related reasons and otherwise. The trainers we spoke with say many of their clients MUST keep working out, and to meet the demand amid mass shutdowns throughout California, speakeasy gyms are becoming the go-to locale.

It's not as seedy or clandestine as it might sound. Basically, we're told a lot of these trainers -- who work with very affluent people, BTW -- have access to studio gyms ... which are way smaller than your run-of-the-mill LA Fitness joint. It's more intimate and personal, and can normally accommodate 4 to 5 people max at a time, trainers included.

Other trainers are making house calls, while some bigger names are actually making people come to them ... like celeb trainer Mike O'Hearn, who tells TMZ his own clientele is swinging by his pad for their regular 1-on-1 services. He says he's got a home gym, which is fully equipped and constantly being cleaned and sanitized to avoid any risks.

That said, Mike tells us he's encouraging people that are actually feeling ill to stay home. But, if not, he thinks exercise is a good way to keep the immune system strong in these contagious times.

When there's a will ... there's a way to break a sweat.

A man from Norway just won the massive Iditarod dog sled race in Alaska ... and was cheered by a roaring, freezing crowd that clearly doesn't give a crap about coronavirus.

Thomas Waerner -- along with his 10 incredible pooches -- crossed the finish line of the great Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race  Wednesday morning in Nome, Alaska after 9 days of hard sledding.

The Iditarod is a grueling competition -- where mushers must cross roughly 1,000 miles of frozen tundra with a team of 10 sled dogs. Crazy stuff.

When Waerner crossed the finished line, he immediately thanked his lead dogs -- K2 and Bark -- and gave his doggies a victory snack.

"This is awesome,'' Waerner said ... "This is something special.''

But, the icy event is now taking TONS of heat after fans refused to heed the coronavirus warnings. There was no social distancing, just partying.

In fact, people were packed together in bars and hotels and at the finish line -- exactly what health experts say we're NOT supposed to be doing right now.

The coronavirus has officially made its way into the NHL ... the Ottawa Senators say one of their players has tested positive for COVID-19 and is showing "mild symptoms."

The team is not naming the player yet ... but it's believed this is the first positive test in the hockey league.

"The Ottawa Senators are in the process of notifying anyone who has had known close contact with the athlete and are working with our team doctors and public health officials," the team said in a statement Tuesday night.

"As a result of this positive case, all members of the Ottawa Senators are requested to remain isolated, to monitor their health and seek advice from our team medical staff."

The Senators last played on March 11 at Staples Center in Los Angeles ... which was also the last place the Brooklyn Nets -- who had FOUR players just test positive -- played.

The Nets and Senators did NOT use the same locker room -- according to the L.A. Times' Arash Markazi -- but it's possible they used the same team bus during their time in L.A.

The Athletic reports several other Senator players are feeling ill and are awaiting COVID-19 test results as well.

Coronavirus isn't having nearly the same impact on our neighbors to the South -- namely, Mexico -- and as such, one company is cool with shipping college kids off for Spring Break.

A rep for STS Travel -- a touring company that sells vacation and party packages -- tells TMZ ... it does NOT have any plans to cancel scheduled trips for the time being. Instead, they're moving forward ... despite a majority of their customers pulling the plug themselves.

When we spoke to STS on Monday, they said about 1,500 students were already in places like Cabo San Lucas, Cancun and Nassau -- and just 10% of their clientele from that batch had canceled over coronavirus. Now, about a week later, and right before they ship out another group this weekend, they're telling us a vast majority of customers are calling to cancel their Spring Break packages. Makes sense ... lot's changed in the past few days.

In any case, whether they're canceling now or later ... STS says none of these young bucks are automatically entitled to cash refunds, at least not outright. They tell us they are trying to reschedule people for trips down the line, but it sounds like they're hesitant to give everyone's money back. STS is putting some of that burden on the hotels and airlines they partner with, telling us some of those companies are offering credit to the kids.

It's a weird situation for sure -- STS says it's already got a bunch of people down in these tropical destinations who are supposed to be flying back soon, so they're not gonna hold up those travel arrangements, or halt those already set to take place in the coming days.

Besides that, Mexico itself is one of the few countries that's caught flak of late for allegedly taking a somewhat lackadaisical approach to the coronavirus -- with the government there allowing certain public events to move forward and not implementing hard bans like here.

There aren't nearly as many confirmed cases in Mexico yet, so it seems Americans -- and this company who'll sponsor them -- are trying to get in their last licks while they still can. And, hey, flights are dirt cheap right now ... even if it doesn't look all that poppin' this year.

Costco's been packed to the gills lately -- and to get folks the hell out of their warehouses ASAP ... certain locations aren't even giving you the option to park it anymore for a bite.

Check out these photos TMZ got of the Costco location out in Arlington, VA -- just a stone's throw from D.C. -- where they've got their act together down to a tee ... especially in the food court area, where they've yanked all the dining room tables that are normally there.

As you can see ... the area in front of the pick-up window -- which is usually designated for seating -- has been completely cleared. Heck, even most of the food options are limited ... looks like their hot dog and soda special is one of the few things you can grab to go (emphasis on go).

When it comes to the other survival staples members have been clamoring for these past few days -- it appears the Arlington location lets you know from the jump what's available ... and what isn't. They got signs out front indicating which products are in stock.

It's certainly efficient, and right on brand with Costco as a whole. With lines wrapping around the building, it looks like the honchos figured out easy ways to save people time and headaches -- especially when it comes to post-spree meals people might wanna indulge in.

Measures like pulling the dining tables are happening at several different locations across the country -- and pretty soon ... most of them might very well be doing this.

So, don't consider Costco a place to casually shop and nosh -- it's turned into In-N-Out these days. Hop to it now!

Celeb chef Jose Andres is doing everything in his power to be part of the solution when it comes to the coronavirus ... and it starts with feeding America, practically for free.

We got Jose outside his famed D.C. restaurant, Jaleo, on Tuesday where he was preparing to open the joint and serve to-go only meals for $7 to those who can afford it, and for free to those who can't.

Jaleo is just 1 of Jose's 8 restaurants in D.C. and NYC where he's doing this ... and his reasoning is simple -- it's practically a call of duty. The Michelin rated chef -- who's famously feuded with President Trump -- says what he's doing by turning his fancy joints into community soup kitchens, is what every well-off restaurant owner should be doing too.

Check out the video ... Jose's preparing for the worst, which would explain his much bigger ambition to have other restaurants take part in feeding the needy. As he put it, he does NOT want the lack of food to make the ongoing medical crisis any worse.

BTW ... Jose's kept the social distancing guideline of 10 people in mind. The sidewalk outside his restaurant is marked with "stand here" flyers to keep patrons spread out.

President Trump's considering giving Americans up to $1,000 to help people suddenly out of work due to the coronavirus, and his main man on economics has a tip on where to spend it.

We got Larry Kudlow Tuesday on Capitol Hill shortly after the announcement of those checks -- part of a proposed trillion dollar relief package -- could be in the mail within a couple of weeks. Kudlow is the Director of the Nat'l Economic Council, so he's the guy to ask about how best to stretch that check ... if you get it.

First, LK says you definitely should NOT blow the dough on stupid ventures. For instance, even if ya got time on your hands at home during quarantine, online gambling -- even on the weather -- ain't the wise move, according to Larry.

He says your best move is putting it back into the economy -- spending, not saving, it on essential household items, supplies, food and, of course ... your rent or mortgage.

However, he's not opposed to getting yourself something pretty -- on Wall Street, that is. Larry says the best way to make the cash pay off in the long run is to take advantage of deep discount stock prices.