Houston Rockets

Klay Thompson's dad, Mychal, says the Warriors better hope the Carmelo Anthony trade is dead, 'cause if the Rockets get Melo, they'll be a legit threat to dethrone his son's team.

Houston's already stacked with James Harden and CP3 ... so we asked Thompson -- a former NBA stud himself -- if acquiring Melo would make the Rockets the best team in the league.

"You add Carmelo Anthony to Chris Paul and James Harden, you gotta take them serious."

But is it enough to topple KD, Steph, Klay and Draymond?

We also talked to Mychal about Klay's epic dance moves in China ... guess where KK got those moves.

Ted Cruz thinks James Harden deserves every nickel of his historic $228 million contract extension with the Houston Rockets ... just as long as it pays off on the court.

The Texas senator was in D.C. Sunday morning where he was asked what he thought of Harden landing the record NBA deal. He gives a bit of a stump speech answer at first -- saying Harden and CP3 should give Golden State a run for their money.

"Business and basketball are two different things. They say don't take it personal, but everybody does." -- Austin Rivers on Chris Paul.

The Clippers star was at LAX when it kept it 100 about the situation involving his former teammate -- telling TMZ Sports he's happy for the guy, but it's gonna get intense when they face the Houston Rockets next season.

"You saw what happened when the Warriors played the Thunder this year. There was a lot of emotion in there."

"I don't think it'll be quite like that but it'll definitely be a lot of fireworks that game if I had to take a guess."

1 second left on the clock, who gets the final shot in Houston ... Chris Paul or James Harden???

It's a no-brainer according to Kenny "The Jet" Smith who tells TMZ Sports ... CP3 should probably get used to the sidekick role.

Smith says CP3 will undoubtedly elevate the Rockets to a new level -- but Harden is the "best scorer in the league" ... and thus, The Man.

James Harden wasn't in the mood to mope after his Rockets got beat up by the Spurs Thursday night -- he partied ALL NIGHT LONG while fans in Houston chanted at him, "MVP!"

TMZ Sports obtained footage of Harden at Set in Houston where he turned up in the VIP section while Travis Scott performed.

Kylie Jenner was in the building along with some Houston Texans players.

Harden and the Rockets had a rough night before the club -- losing to the Spurs in a 114-75 route that eliminated them from the playoffs. Harden only scored 10 points.

If James Harden doesn't win MVP this season, he's most definitely the Most Generous Teammate ... 'cause the Rockets superstar dropped $30k to hook up his teammate with a gold Cuban Link chain!!

TMZ Sports spoke with celeb jeweler Boodaddy Diamonds, who says Montrezl Harrell and Harden were checking out his bling when Harrell instantly fell in love with the chain, but decided not to drop the 30 racks.

Boodaddy says Harden went behind his back and paid the full price for the piece with CASH as a surprise present for Harrell.

But Harden's shopping spree ain't gonna end there ... Boodaddy says if the Beard wins MVP, he's gonna ice him out in honor of the award.

One of the most powerful men in music claims Dwight Howard's failure in Houston was cardiovascular ... saying D12 would've needed a "heart transplant" to win a ring in H-Town.

TMZ Sports got James Prince -- you might remember him as the Houston rap god who got Steve Francis' chain back when it was jacked at a Sauce Twinz show last year.

We wanted to know from Mr. Prince what every Rockets fan wants to know regarding Dwight Howard's time in Houston ... what went wrong?

Check out the clip -- Prince -- never one to mince words (ask Diddy) -- keeps it pretty real about his feelings on Howard bolting for ATL ... basically calling Dwight's heart into question.

Did you know ... rap legend Bun B is longtime homies with Kevin Durant???

It's true -- and now the rap legend is reaching out to the NBA superstar to convince him to sign with his beloved Houston Rockets.

With Durant officially on the market, the Trill OG made this video pitch to KD -- explaining why Houston is the PERFECT fit for a 27-year-old multimillionaire.

Beware, children of Earth ... if you dare to get on a basketball court with James Harden you might go viral ... 'cause the Rockets star just totally put a kid in the popcorn machine and it's all on video.

It all went down at Harden's basketball camp where he went 1-on-1 with a kid and probably made the tyke's whole summer.

Check out the clip ... Harden gives him a little shake, a little bake, and a BIG fake ... then finishes the whole thing with a dunk.

Khloe Kardashian says her genitals did NOT curse the Houston Rockets -- insisting her lady junk is powerful, but it definitely can't sink an entire NBA team.

Khloe was doing a live video chat and taking questions from fans when someone asked if it's fair to blame her relationship with James Harden for the Rockets' crappy 12-14 record.

"Someone's trying to give me too much power," Khloe said ... "but my p**sy is f**king powerful bro, let me tell you that."

She went on ... "First, don’t give me that much power AND [James is] the f**king sh*t ... so suck my d**k and my balls."

This is gonna get interesting ...

Texas Rap legend Bun B is turning the tables on Lil B ... saying his "Based God Curse" can't hurt the Houston Rockets ... cause LB is as guilty of dance jacking as James Harden.

Lil B recently took credit for Houston coach Kevin McHale losing his job ... saying as long as the franchise enables James Harden to steal his "Cooking Dance" ... they'll remain cursed.

TMZ Sports spoke with Bun B ... and he tells us the Rockets are immune to the so-called curse cause Lil B TOTALLY JACKED the dance from another rap god, Pimp C.

"I've known Lil B since he was in the Pack. I support him musically. But we don't buy into that because we know that Pimp C created [the cooking dance] not Lil B. We don't stand for that."

That wasn't the only curse Bun B was willing to tackle ... he also dispelled any notion that there was a Kardashian curse plaguing the Rockets ... because Harden is dating Khloe.

1:00 PM PT -- We've now learned Khloe and James did NOT need a permit to set off the fireworks. They did need the Coast Guard to sign off on the safety of the display, and they got that.

Khloe Kardashian and James Harden threw their own personal 4th of July with a GIANT fireworks display that woke up thousands of residents -- and city officials are scrambling to find out HOW it got approved.

The thunderous fireworks show -- visible from multiple towns along the oceanfront -- went on for 15 minutes at the stroke of midnight. TMZ has learned the whole thing was a yacht party for Harden's 26th birthday, and it was all on the up and up.

Law enforcement sources tell us a permit was issued to James and someone in the Kardashian family. Khloe had bragged about throwing the party for her BF, but nobody expected this kind of over-the-top display.

In fact, there's a mini-conspiracy theory brewing. We've spoken to the L.A. department that normally issues permits for fireworks in the marina ... and they did not sign off, and never would for such a display on a Tuesday night. We're told the display was far enough off shore to be outside of city jurisdiction.

We also spoke to an LA. City Councilman who is angry and trying to figure out who exactly OK'd the fireworks. One law enforcement official told us ... in 5 years he's never heard of a permit being issued for fireworks like this on a non-holiday.

It really is their world, the rest of us are just living in it.

Nike is unsure if it's gonna just do it with James Harden -- TMZ Sports has learned the Swoosh isn't jumping to top his $200 million Adidas offer.

We spoke with some Nike honchos who told us they held a war room style gathering in the wake of Adidas trying to nab last year's MVP runner-up, and former Nike client. We're told they were unable to reach any consensus about a counter offer amount, or if they even want to make a counter.

As one source put it, "Signing James is Nike's top priority, but we do have other athletes as well that we're looking to sign."

Translation: We're not sure we want to break the bank for just one guy. Nike has one week to counter, and we're told it will use all of that time, if necessary.

Don't worry Rockets fans ... just because James Harden is banging a Kardashian doesn't mean he's gonna suck -- so says NBA legend Sidney Wicks.

Wicks spent 10 years in the NBA and was a 4-time All Star -- and insists that what happens in the bedroom doesn't really have an impact on the court.

"You date whoever you want as long as you're able to focus your lives and keep them separate," Wicks says.

Wicks also says Harden doesn't seem like the kind of guy that would be distracted by all the media fanfare that comes with dating Khloe K.

7/16 -- Harden's lawyer, Tony Bisconti, tells TMZ Sports ... "Mr. Harden denied these false allegations and vigorously defended against this meritless lawsuit from the outset."

"As a result of Mr. Harden’s refusal to allow himself to be subjected to these baseless accusations, the plaintiff ultimately decided to drop the lawsuit, which was dismissed without the plaintiff receiving any monetary payment."

"We are pleased with the outcome and glad to have it resolved."

Remember when James Harden was accused of punching a Lakers fan in the face who told him "Kobe owns your ass?"

Well, seems Harden has finally thrown in the towel in that legal war ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We broke the story, Harden was sued by a guy who admitted taunting James on the way out of a nightclub back in 2013.

The accuser says James socked him in the kisser and flipped him off ... before speeding off into the night.

For his part, Harden never copped to the punch but said if -- and only IF -- he did it, the guy had it coming because he posed a threat to James and his friends.

They were poised for a legal showdown -- but now, we've learned Harden struck a settlement with the accuser ... essentially ending the case for good. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

When a couple WORKS OUT together -- you know it's serious.

Which is why it was interesting that NBA star James Harden took Khloe Kardashian to a spin class in Hollywood last night ... proving their weekend in Vegas was no fling.

The two hit up Cycle House -- where Harden has hit the bike in the past ... and also happens to be a place featured on an E! reality show called, "Hollywood Cycle."

And with "Keeping up with the Kardashians" also on E! -- seems like the perfect date night, combined with the perfect amount of promotion ... just how the Kardashians like it.