Los Angeles Lakers

Samuel L. Jackson isn't the kind of guy who beats around the bush -- so when we asked if he thinks Kobe Bryant will ever win another NBA title, the guy was as brutally honest as it gets.

But don't crawl into a ball just yet Laker fans, there is a silver lining ... according to Sam, there's still a way for the Mamba to fetch another ring ... but it won't be due to his performance ON the court.

B-Real is no Aaron Paul -- telling TMZ Sports he REFUSES to give up on his Lakers ... even though they were the first team eliminated from playoff contention.

The Cypress Hill rapper is a huge fan of the purp and gold ... and says a true fan should stick with their team through the good times and the bad (right now, it's really bad) ... unlike Paul who gave up on the Broncos the day after the Super Bowl.

He also tells us why he thinks it's GOOD that Kobe's hangin' em up for the rest of the season.

The $4 MILLION apology ring Kobe Bryant gave to Vanessa screwed things up for cheaters everywhere ... so says Marlon Wayans who says Kobe set the price of forgiveness way too damn high.

Marlon dished out the knowledge after we asked if Robin Thicke's apparent flower offensive would help the singer win back his wife after she broke things off.

"Robin's trying to bring it back to simplicity," Marlon said ... "Kobe changed the game."

"How is any man that f**ks up ... and we all f**k up ... how am I gonna compete with that?!"

For the record, Kobe didn't just splurge on a ring ... he also gave Vanessa 3 MANSIONS!

Glen "Big Baby" Davis is adjusting pretty well to life in L.A. ... crushing it on the court -- and also at the nightclubs ... and TMZ Sports has the video proof.

We spotted Davis leaving DBA nightclub last night ... with (at least) THREE hot chicks in tow.

After they got in his waiting SUV, a bunch of other chicks flocked to Glen's ride ... like skeezer moths to a rich and famous flame.

Aside from chick wranglin', Davis also talked basketball -- telling us his L.A. Clipppers are gonna win the NBA championship.

Dear Ty Lawson,

We get it. The Lakers are terrible. First, they lost to the Clippers on Thursday by a whopping 48. Then last night in Denver, you made Lakers guard Jodie Meeks FALL DOWN ON HIS ASS with an ill crossover dribble.

The video above (which was posted by the NBA's official account) shows the move from every angle imaginable.

This isn't the first time you clowned the boys in purple in gold. Last year you

to our cameras after beating the Lakers in Los Angeles.

For Sale: Vlade Divac's beach house in L.A's Pacific Palisades. The retired NBA star is asking $3.25 million for the home.

Here are some of the highlights.

-- 5 bedrooms ... to flop in.
-- a wine cellar ... to flop in.
-- yoga room ... to flop in.
-- walk-in closets ... to flop in.
-- outdoor dining area with ocean view ... to flop on.
-- 4.5 bathrooms ... to poop in.

Divac -- who reportedly made more than $93 million during his career -- bought the place back in 2003, but according to Realtor.com, he had offered it as a rental for $13k-per-month.

The home is expected to draw as many offers as Vlade did fouls. #flopjokes.

THIS. IS. FUNNY!!!!

'Memba when Nets player Andray Blatche was shuttin' down that big-assed woman in Bev Hills last week?? Well, Lakers star Nick Young sure does ... and last night, he REENACTED the whole scene.

Young was out in front of the Roosevelt Hotel when he brought up the TMZ Sports video featuring a drunken Blatche trying to duck a thirsty jock-chaser like his life depended on it.

So, in an obvious tribute to his former Washington Wizards teammate ... Young and a friend acted out the moment right in the street -- it's pretty damn hilarious.

Ya gotta watch the clip.

There's a major sports star who's trying to get the rights to call himself the "Black Mamba" -- only it's not Kobe Bryant, it's Floyd Mayweather's uncle ... who's been using the nickname for decades.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Roger Mayweather -- a former boxing champ turned trainer -- filed a trademark application with the U.S.P.T.O. hoping to win the rights to the mark, "Roger 'Black Mamba' Mayweather."

FYI -- Roger says he gave himself the nickname years ago after watching a nature show about reptiles.

According to official documents, Roger is in the final stages of locking down the trademark ... which he intends to use to brand his boxing empire (personal training, coaching, etc).

But get this ... when researching the trademark claims on "Black Mamba," we couldn't find any evidence showing Kobe has ever tried to trademark the name for himself.

We did find applications for condom brands, carbonated drinks, male enhancement products, spinal implants, cigars and more ... but nothing from Bryant.

YOU GOTTA SEE THIS!!!

It was full KOBE-MANIA at an L.A. mall yesterday ... when the Black Mamba arrived to promote his new Nike Kobe 9 Elite shoe and the entire shopping center ERUPTED!!!!!!

Thousands of people packed the joint at the Westfield Culver City mall on Saturday to get a glimpse of Kobe ... and after giving him one hell of a welcoming cheer, they showered the guy in a thunderous "MVP" chant.

Even Kobe was impressed ... at one point saying, "This is a lot of love."

You've heard the stories about Kobe Bryant and his legendary chopper ... but former Lakers player Devin Ebanks tells TMZ Sports he NEVER saw the Mamba helicopter to practice once!!!!

Ebanks -- who spent 3 seasons with the Lake Show -- was at LAX this weekend when he dropped the bombshell ... telling us the helicopter stories are more urban legend than fact.

Guess this means Kobe was must have had to slum it to practice in one of his pedestrian cars ... like his Ferrari, Bentley or Lamborghini.

#RichPeopleProblems

All good things must come to an end ... including Steve Nash's career -- 'cause despite his incredible run in the NBA, Gary Payton says it's time for Steve to hang it up.

The Glove was at LAX this week when we asked about the constantly-injured Lakers star ... who's only played in 60 of the the Lakers 135 games since joining the team.

"He gettin' hurt to much," Payton says ... "I mean, when you are getting hurt that many times, you think you can play, but it don't help you ... I think he should go on a little."

Kobe Bryant didn't have to go through the regular NBA hazing rituals when he was a rookie -- in fact a bunch of retired Lakers GREATS came out to initiate the Mamba including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ... so says Cedric Ceballos.

The former NBA All-Star appeared on the "TMZ Sports" TV show and told us ... back when Kobe was drafted in '96, most of the team took it easy on the guy since he was fresh out of high school ... but he definitely had to pay his dues.

"We'd make him chase balls into the stands of the huge arenas, or take bags off the plane in the freezing cold. Or we'd say, 'I need coffee from Starbucks and donuts from Krispy Kreme' -- and it'd be 2am in a town we just arrived in."

And who was behind the hazing?

Cedric says Eddie Jones used to make Kobe bring him Gatorade right before every game ... but the fun didn't stop there!

"Even the veterans who are retired ... James Worthy, Kareem, Wilt Chamberlain ... all those guys came down to give him a little bit of rookie hazing, knowing that he was going to be the great player he is."

Cedric says Kobe "understood what it was all about" and didn't remember the Mamba resisting ... but says the hazing was all about having fun -- "We don't belittle the guys."

Magic Johnson's son EJ is BLOWING UP as a reality star on "Rich Kids of Beverly Hills" ... and the NBA legend tells TMZ Sports he couldn't be PROUDER!!!

In fact, Magic says he thinks the shameless E! reality show will springboard EJ into a TV superstar -- and predicts it won't be long before the kid has his own show.

Magic really couldn't be a more supportive parent -- especially after the way he had EJ's back when his son revealed he's gay.

There's more .. Magic also talks about recently buying the L.A. Sparks and also takes another shot at the Lakers. Check out the clip.

Jack Nicholson upped the ante on duck-lip selfies by shooting his own ... of course he did it from $2500 COURTSIDE Lakers seats! Take that 25-year-old chicks.

76-year-old Jack struck the tired-ass pose with a cute blonde fan last night at Staples Center.

This was probably the closest he came to smiling last night since the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers got crushed by the Indiana Pacers 104-92.

Our best guess on Jack's thoughts during the game ... "This town team needs an enema!"

Gabrielle Union -- the future Mrs. Dwyane Wade -- took her brand new million dollar 8.5 carat diamond ring out in public yesterday ... but not without some serious hired muscle to keep it safe.

Gabby and Ring arrived to the Staples Center in L.A. ... flanked by private security ... to watch their man dominate the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers.

Funny, Kobe knows a little something about expensive jewelry ... in fact, he may have bought the most expensive ring out of ALL the NBA players ($4 million) .. except his wasn't a "Will You Marry Me" diamond -- it was a "FORGIVE ME!" diamond.

There's a reason the L.A. Lakers have committed a total of ZERO individual technical fouls this season -- THEY DON'T COME CHEAP ... so say some of the guys on the squad.

Jordan Hill and Jodie Meeks were leaving Boa Steakhouse Wednesday night (which also ain't exactly cheap) ... when they told us they're not exactly stoked about having to pay the 4-figure league fines that come with being T'd up.

For the record ...the league fines players $1,000 for their first two technical fouls, $1,500 each for the next two, and $2,000 for #s 5 and 6.