Chris Paul & Blake Griffin HILARIOUS ROOKIE HAZING In Vegas Nightclub
Seems the L.A. Clippers are over that whole Donald Sterling thing -- because the team hit up a Vegas nightclub together Saturday night ... and even (playfully) hazed one of their rookies right on the dance floor.
It all went down at Tao in the Venetian -- where Chris Paul was the "celebrity host." But CP3 didn't come alone ... he was joined by teammates Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, J.J. Redick, Big Baby Davis and more.
There were bottles, there were hot ladies ... and there was a moment where the guys forced rookie C.J. Wilcox to get on the dance floor and turn up while the team cheered him on.
Not exactly Miami Dolphins-style hazing.
At one point, Big Baby grabbed the mic and led the crowd in a rendition of his single, "Big Baby Gon Turn It Up" ... and everyone loved it.
It's clear these guys really like each other off the court -- question is ... will their close-knit bond translate to wins ON the court? Stay tuned ...
Matt Barnes & Gloria Will Get Back Together ... Says Gloria's Sister
Don't put a fork in Matt Barnes and Gloria Govan's marriage just yet ... 'CAUSE IT AIN'T OVER ... so says Gloria's sister Laura Govan -- who knows what it's like to be in a relationship with an NBA star.
Laura -- who has 4 kids with NBA star Gilbert Arenas -- was out in Calabasas when our photog asked if there was chance her sister would ever reconcile with Matt now that they've separated.
Peep the video -- it's clear Laura's a "glass half full" type of gal ... and explains why there's no doubt they'll be one happy couple again in no time.
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Blake Griffin RIPS Donald Sterling 'He Was Like A Weird Uncle'
Blake Griffin says he's THRILLED the Clips are finally rid of Donald Sterling -- saying the guy was "like a weird uncle" who was clearly "off his rocker."
Griffin just spilled his guts about his former boss on The Players Tribune -- saying his relationship with Sterling was bizarre from day 1 ... when the old man tried to hook him up with two women at a Malibu beach party who were likely paid escorts.
"Two blonde models showed up on either side of me. They had clearly been hired for the event. I knew this because they were wearing size XXXX-L Clippers T-shirts tied at the stomach. I looked at Sterling. He had a big dumb grin on his face. I looked at one of the girls, as if to say, “Uhhh, you don’t have to do this.” She looked back: “Uhhh, yes I do."
In the article, Griffin also talks about how he felt the first time he heard the infamous Sterling audio recording -- saying:
"It was shocking to actually hear what he said, but not really that surprising to me."
There's more about Sterling ... here are some of the highlights:
-- "The guy was off his rocker."
-- "He kind of sounds like a combination of Walter Matthau and Michael Jackson."
-- "[Steve Ballmer] is a good dude. He’s like a cool dad who gives you candy. Donald was like a weird uncle"
Griffin concluded his tell-all with this nugget:
"Someone asked me the other day if I’m mad that he made out with $2 billion for selling the team. Maybe a little bit. But in the end, I’m just happy he’s gone."
Matt Barnes' Wife Allegedly Forged NBA Star's Signature ... For Secret $150k Loan
Seems the "trust issues" in Matt Barnes' marriage may be coming to light ... because his estranged wife Gloria Govan has been accused of forging the NBA star's signature to take out a $150k loan ... this according to a lawsuit obtained by TMZ Sports.
The woman behind the lawsuit is Nina Rawls -- the widow of R&B legend Lou Rawls -- who claims Gloria approached her back in March and asked to borrow $150k for a TV project produced by Gloria and Matt's production company.
Rawls says she agreed -- but the loan had to be repaid in full just 2 MONTHS later. According to the suit, May came and went ... and Gloria (who stars on "Basketball Wives: LA") never ponied up the dough.
Eventually, Nina says Gloria ADMITTED that she forged Matt's signature on the loan docs in the first place. It's unclear if Matt ever knew about the loan in the first place ... but our sources tell us Barnes was completely in the dark about the alleged deal.
Now, Nina wants the full $150k back -- plus damages.
We called Matt and Gloria's reps for comment -- so far no word back.
NBA Star Matt Barnes Separated from Gloria Govan ... 'Trust Issues'
L.A. Clippers star Matt Barnes has separated from his reality star wife Gloria Govan ... TMZ Sports has learned -- and sources close to the couple tell us it's all over "trust issues."
Barnes and Govan were married back in 2012 -- and have 5-year-old twin boys together.
Sources connected to the couple tell us Matt and "Basketball Wives: LA" star Gloria have been separated for about 6 weeks.
We're told they're still technically living in the same house -- but it's just temporary and it's just a matter of time before one of them moves out and they start the divorce process.
Maybe one of the biggest signs things were going south ... Matt hasn't posted a picture of Gloria on Instagram in months. And we haven't been able to find a picture of Gloria wearing her wedding ring since late-August.
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Donald Sterling Busted at Home with V. Stiviano Shelly Calls Cops
Donald Sterling and V. Stiviano reunited at his Beverly Hills mansion today -- and when Donald's wife found out ... she called police, trying to get V. arrested ... TMZ has learned.
We're told Shelly Sterling got wind of Donald and V.'s tryst ... and believed Stiviano must have broken into the house. Our Sterling sources tell us Shelly called Bev Hills PD immediately and reported a break-in.
We're told police officers responded ... and spoke to Donald and Stiviano. One source tells us V. was an "invited" guest, so ... no break-in, and no arrests.
Shelly has beef with V. ... She sued the alleged mistress, claiming she embezzled $1.8 mil from Donald ... and Shelly says half of that was hers. Shelly claims V. swindled an old man who wasn't with it.
Cops tell us V. wasn't scared off ... she stayed after they left.
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LeBron & CP3 Train Together By Day Party Together By Night
Work hard, play hard ... that's the way it was for LeBron James and Chris Paul Sunday -- who hit the gym together during the day and the CLUB together at night.
LeBron and CP3 spent their Sunday training at the gym at UCLA with Bron's Cleveland Cavs teammate Tristan Thompson ... and even posted a pic to Instagram.
But when the sun went down, Bron and Paul freshened up -- and hit up Greystone Manor in West Hollywood.
The two arrived around midnight and spent about 2 hours in the place ... finally leaving the when the club shut down.
The two have been good friends for years -- but the big question, when the tab came ... who paid?
Blake Griffin OPEN MIC NIGHT At Legendary Comedy Club
What do Blake Griffin and Michael Richards have in common? They both tested their comedy chops at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood. Safe to say, one went better than the other ...
The L.A. Clippers superstar appeared at the legendary Sunset Strip comedy club to perform at open mic night ... and decided to read some of his "Slam Dunk Poetry."
Griffin's been reciting some of his work -- inspired by snap-off warm-up pants, mouthpieces and bobblehead dolls -- as part of an ad campaign for Vizio.
Now, it seems he's taken his show on the road. And so far, people seem to be diggin' it.
At the very least ... his comedy club debut went better than Kramer.
NOVEMBER 2006
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Doc Rivers Is Adam Silver a Better Commish Than Roger Goodell?
Doc Rivers is no stranger to national controversy (see: Donald Sterling) ... so the question we had to ask -- could NBA Commissioner Adam Silver have handled the Ray Rice situation better than Roger Goodell?
Of course, Silver was hailed as a hero for his swift and thorough handling of the Sterling scandal -- when he sent a team of NBA investigators to L.A. ... who quickly gathered facts and independently verified the authenticity of the Sterling recordings.
On the other hand, Goodell is being accused of bungling the Rice case -- after admitting he screwed up on Ray's initial punishment and claiming he was never able to get his hands on the elevator security footage.
As for Doc ... watch the video, he doesn't attack Goodell -- but makes it clear, he's THRILLED to have Silver as his Commish.
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Matt Barnes The Tat I Regret The Most Is ...
L.A. Clippers star Matt Barnes admits ... he's not proud of all of his tattoos -- in fact, Barnes says there's one piece of ink he hated so much, he HAD to go out and cover it up.
Barnes was out at Kitson in L.A. Wednesday to support teammate DeAndre Jordan when he told us about the regrettable work he got on his arm back when he was a teenager ... and why he had to make it go away.
But one bad tat didn't keep Barnes from inking up the rest of his body -- and he shows off the special tribute tattoo on his stomach that means more to him than all the rest.
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Donald Sterling & Shelly Reconcile for 60th Anniversary How Can You Resist This Body?
Despite the fact he called her a "pig" in open court ... despite the fact he's STILL suing her ... Donald Sterling got together with estranged wife Shelly to celebrate their 60th anniversary on the beach ... and TMZ Sports has the shocking photo.
The two put their insanely nasty war on hold last weekend -- and bathed their bodies in the sun at the Balboa Bay resort in Newport Beach.
Multiple sources connected to the couple tell us they decided to get together to celebrate their 60th anniversary ... but they still consider themselves very much estranged.
As one source put it, "It looks weird from the outside ... but it's just the way they are."
Sure, Donald trashed the hell out of Shelly for the past couple of months ... but at the end of the day, his bank account is up $2 BILLION.
Can't stay mad at that forever.
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V. Stiviano Lawsuit Donald Sterling Is Gay ... I Was a 'Beard'
V. Stiviano has just filed new legal docs in her war with Shelly Sterling -- claiming she NEVER slept with Donald Sterling ... 'cause he's into men and she was his beard.
TMZ Sports has obtained the lawsuit -- which Stiviano filed in response to Shelly's allegations that V. accepted cars and property from Donald that he didn't have the authority to give her.
In the new docs, Stiviano argues that the items in question were given to her in exchange for being Donald's "beard" -- and she insists Shelly knew about it.
Stiviano states ... she was "not ever a sexual partner of Donald T. Sterling" and "believes that [Sterling] is a homosexual and enjoys sexual acts and or sexual congress with males."
In the legal doc, filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Stiviano says Shelly was "acutely aware of [Donald's] sexual orientation and condoned same as well as acknowledged and approved [Donald's] gifts of money [to Stiviano]."
Stiviano also says the gifts she received were NOT community property -- but rather Donald's separate property.
Stiviano is also suing Shelly and Donald for defamation -- claiming they slandered her in the media by calling her a thief and saying she embezzled money and property from Donald. She's demanding no less than $10 MILLION.
We reached out to Donald's camp -- so far, no word back.
Story developing ...
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Magic and Doc DONALD WHO? Hit Baseball Game with New Clips Owner
Here's a photo of the new L.A. Clippers owner in a public photo with TWO black people.
Take THAT Donald Sterling!
Steve Ballmer hit up the L.A. Dodgers game with Magic Johnson and Clippers President Doc Rivers last night.
It's interesting ... considering it was a photo featuring Magic Johnson that led to Donald Sterling's downfall ... when he blasted V. Stiviano for posting a photo of Magic on social media.
In audio posted on TMZ Sports, Sterling screamed at Stiviano for being seen in public with black guys and told her not to bring any black people to his games.
Earlier this week, Sterling himself admitted -- "I'm finished. I'm over."
Yup.
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Donald Sterling 'I'M FINISHED, ... I'M OVER!'
For the first time in months, Donald Sterling seems to have his feet planted firmly in reality -- with the ousted Clippers owner telling TMZ Sports, "I'm finished. I'm over."
Sterling was out in Beverly Hills over the weekend when our photog walked up to him and ask about the latest with the Clippers saga -- and that's when Donald shooed our guy away saying, "I'm finished. I'm over."
It's an interesting comment -- considering on Wednesday, the judge denied Donald's last-ditch effort to block the sale of the Clips to Steve Ballmer.
In short -- he's finished. He's over.
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L.A. Clippers State Farm is Back On Board ... Now That Sterling's Gone
Steve Ballmer's purchase of the L.A. Clippers is already paying off -- huge sponsor State Farm is jumping back into bed with the team now that the old Sterling regime is dead ... TMZ Sports has learned.
A rep for the insurance giant tells us it reinstated its deal with the Clippers almost immediately after the NBA made the official announcement yesterday that Ballmer's $2 billion deal had been approved.
We broke the story ... State Farm suspended its relationship with the Clips after we posted Sterling's racist audio recordings.
More than a dozen advertisers jumped ship back in April.
Like a good sponsor, State Farm is there ... again.
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Los Angeles Clippers Sale Official ... It's Steve Ballmer's Team
Steve Ballmer is now the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Ballmer completed the deal with Shelly Sterling for $2 billion. After several attempts by Donald to block the sale failed ... the deal closed on Tuesday.
Shelly Sterling's attorney, Pierce O'Donnell, tells TMZ, "Shelly is confident he will bring a championship to the city of L.A. in the very near future. We wish him and his family every success."
As TMZ Sports first reported, the NBA has sued Donald Sterling for his numerous attempts to sue the league and wants him to pay all their legal expenses to fight him.