Los Angeles Lakers

Nothing softens the sting of being fired from the Los Angeles Lakers organization like a chicken sandwich ... just ask ex-coach Mike Brown ... who hit up a Chick-fil-A right after he got the chop today.

TMZ obtained photos of Brown hanging at a Chick-fil-A restaurant in Costa Mesa, CA around 11:30 AM ... just a few hours after news broke that he was fired from the team over their dismal 1-4 start.

We're told Brown was super-nice to fans ... taking pics and shaking hands ... but he never discussed the firing.

However, it appears Brown WAS in the mood to talk ... 'cause he was in the middle of a phone convo with legendary L.A. sports reporter Jim Hill when he stopped to take the above photo.

Dwight Howard gave his back one final test last night before he gets ready to make his Los Angeles Lakers debut ... by getting his grind on with a few girls in Sin City.

In the video, D12 can be seen dancing on a stage with a very attractive woman ... but then he calls an older woman on stage (still attractive in her own right) and gets down with her too!

Another positive sign for Kobe Bryant's marriage -- the NBA star took his estranged wife Vanessa out on a romantic lunch date today ... and they totally SPLIT A SANDWICH & SOUP COMBO MEAL!!!

The two rolled in to the PDM Bakery and Cafe in Newport Beach, CA this afternoon looking and acting very coupley -- despite the fact their divorce is still pending.

Sources tell us ... Kobe and Vanessa split the Tuscan chicken sandwich (served hot) and tortilla soup combo meal -- and washed it down with a pair of iced teas.

We're told the Bryants hung out at the restaurant for about an hour ... and couldn't have been nicer.

Vanessa filed for divorce back in December ... but it seems like they're all but reconciled these days. Not only did Vanessa support Kobe in London during the Olympics, she also attended the Lakers pre-season game last night.

Former LA Lakers point guard Smush Parker is calling out Kobe Bryant for being a diva who treated his teammates like crap -- and it comes just hours after Kobe blamed Parker for costing him a huge trophy 7 years ago.

Parker played with Kobe during the 2005-06 season, and tells TMZ the Lakers great is only lashing out because he once dared to say Kobe was "overrated" as a teammate.

Parker's never explained what he meant by that, but now tells us ... Kobe "told me out of his own mouth that I couldn't talk to him. That my accolades under my belt weren't deserving enough for me to talk to him." He also says Kobe didn't talk to most of his teammates.

Parker says he's opening up about Kobe's diss because Kobe told reporters earlier today ... he lost the '05-'06 NBA MVP trophy to Steve Nash because he was surrounded with no-talent players that season.

Kobe said, "I tell Steve, you won MVP, but I was playing with Smush Parker."

Kobe piled on more, saying ... "He shouldn't have been in the NBA but we were too cheap to pay for a point guard. So we let him walk on."

You know you're a pro athlete when ... YOU BUY A $16,000 PINKY RING ... just like one former L.A. Lakers player, who's now being sued for allegedly bailing hard when the bill came.

The guy at the center of the lawsuit is DJ Mbenga -- an 8-year NBA vet who rode the bench with the Lake Show when they won 2 NBA championship rings in 2009 and 2010.

DJ is being sued by a Texas jewelry company called Lemmerman's -- which calls itself "The Player's Choice."

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ ... Mbenga ordered $59,750 worth of jewelry around 2010 ... including a $16k diamond pinky ring, several bracelets and a $3,750 Polanti watch.

Lemmerman's claims DJ forked over $10k ...but when it came to collecting the remaining $49,750 ... Mbenga refused to pay.

Lemmerman's is seeking the money they say they are owed, plus attorney fees.

L.A. Lakers star Jordan Hill will not go to jail for allegedly choking his ex-GF during a nuclear argument in Houston back in February after striking a sweet plea deal with prosecutors ... TMZ has learned.

According to a clerk at Harris County Criminal Court in Houston, TX ... Hill plead no contest to the charge this morning and in exchange was given a 1-year deferred sentence and a $500 fine. In other words, if Hill stays out of trouble for the next year and pays the fine, the whole case will be wiped from his record.

We broke the story ... Hill was charged with felony domestic violence after his ex filed a police report, in which she accused the NBA player of assaulting her, leaving bruises on her legs, and then trying to choke her.

The fight allegedly took place on February 29th. Hill's ex filed the police report on March 29th.

Kobe Bryant's on-again off-again wife, Vanessa, is selling one of the 3 mansions she owns in the Newport Beach area ... and she stands to make a fortune.

The mansion -- which Kobe deeded to her outright in January -- is listed for $3.75 mil ... that's over a million bucks more than Vanessa and Kobe paid back in 2003.

Vanessa's mom, Sofia, has been living in the 6,000 square foot mansion. We don't know if she's moving in with Vanessa or moving elsewhere.

The 3.2 earthquake that rocked Beverly Hills this weekend definitely scared the crap out of Dwight Howard.

The newest member of the Los Angeles Lakers was leaving his Bev Hills hotel when we asked how he handled his very first L.A. earthquake, which hit Bev Hills at 3:36 AM on Monday.

"I was in the toilet ... and It shook me off the toilet," Dwight told us.

For the record, 3.2 is WEAK SAUCE ... the Northridge quake that hit back in 1994 was a 6.7 and lasted almost 20 seconds. The Sylmar quake in '71 was a 6.6.

So how does he feel about his new home now that he got his first taste of the tectonic terror?

Kobe Bryant can afford a $300k Ferrari ... but for some reason, the NBA star hasn't sprung for a hands-free device for his cell phone.

Bryant was cruising down the 405 Freeway yesterday ... steering through traffic while yakking away on his hand-held cell phone ... a major no-no in the state of California.

In fact, Kobe's lucky he wasn't spotted by the CHP -- 'cause a talking-while-driving ticket usually runs around $159 for the first offense ... and $279 for subsequent violations.

Vanessa Bryant claims she's not a shallow gold-digging, championship-hoarding basketball wife ... insisting she would have married Kobe Bryant even if he NEVER won an NBA title.

Bryant is finally responding to critics who skewered her for the interview she did with New York Magazine in which she said, "I certainly would not want to be married to somebody that can't win championships."

Now, Vanessa tells TMZ ... "I'm sad to hear that comments in my New York Magazine interview are being misconstrued and taken out of context. I have and will continue to support my husband’s dreams."

Vanessa continues, "I have been with Kobe for 13 years. I accepted his marriage proposal PRIOR to him winning any of his 5 championships with his teammates."

"For anyone to think otherwise is wrong. It is not about being married to a ‘winner’ it is about our sacrifice as a family. “

FYI -- Kobe and Vanessa got engaged in May 2000 ... and he won his first championship in June of 2000.

Dwight Howard's working on a backup plan if this Lakers thing doesn't work out -- celebrity impressions ... and he busted out his Charles Barkley today in Beverly Hills.

The Lake Show's new all-star was leaving a salon in the 90210 (he really likes BH), and when someone asked him to whip out his Barkley ... Dwight jumped right into it.

We'll say this ... it's okay. Not as good as the Kobe Bryant impersonation he did last week, but decent.

Just days before Dwight Howard got officially traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, he was presciently #trademarking the city he will now call home ... and TMZ has the hashtag-tastic photo.

For the uninitiated, "trademarking" is the latest in social media photo trends -- a la Tebowing and planking -- and all the crazy kids are doing it (Cody Simpson and the Jenner sisters, to name a few).

Howard was outside the L'Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills (where Howard has been staying the past few months) earlier this week when he ran into Ryan Nassif (left to Dwight) whose dad Chris Nassif is a prominent talent agent and whose uncle is "Real Housewives" star Paul Nassif.

Ryan asked Dwight if he would partake in a little trademarking with him ... since the city would soon be his ... and the two posed for the pic with a few friends.

Dwight Howard didn't waste any time busting on his new teammates -- and he started with the biggest one of 'em all ... Kobe Bryant.

Just a few minutes after the Lakers introduced Dwight at a news conference Friday afternoon ... he did an impression of Kobe -- a pretty good one too.

Dwight was telling reporters how his first convo with Kobe went after the trade ... and he just couldn't resist mimicking KB.

No one is more excited about the blockbuster Lakers deal than Dwight Howard -- who was sporting a megawatt smile on his way out of a Beverly Hills hotel moments ago ... telling TMZ, "I'm just happy."

Howard pulled out of the hotel in a gleaming white Bentley, and it was obvious the big man is pumped to play for the Lake Show.

We asked Howard why he finally decided on L.A. -- and he responded by saying it wasn't entirely his decision ... claiming, "It wasn't on me."

Dwight Howard is officially suiting up for the Los Angeles Lakers -- the NBA approved the 4-team trade that finally gets him out of Orlando and into the purple and gold.

General managers for the Lakers, Magic, Nuggets, and 76ers wrapped up a conference call with the league to finalize details of the trade this morning.

Howard, a 3-time Defensive Player of the Year, had asked the Magic to trade him several months ago ... and since then there have been non-stop rumors about him ending up on the Nets, Mavericks, Rockets, or Lakers.

Kobe Bryant says he's already spoken with Dwight Howard ... and says the two are "locked and loaded" to win an NBA championship together.

Bryant -- who's currently in London playing for Team USA -- just went to his Facebook page to declare "Superman has found a home" with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Kobe writes, "The Lakers landed a piece that will hopefully carry the franchise long after I'm gone. I have spoken to Dwight Howard already and we are locked and loaded to bring back the title."

Kobe also mentions Andrew Bynum -- who will be shipped to Philadelphia as part of the 4-team trade.

"I wish nothing but the best for Big Bynum. I hope he follows what was a great season last year with an even better one next year."