Los Angeles Lakers

Losing a bunch of money on Dogecoin?? Here's a new investment opportunity -- an autographed ticket from Kobe Bryant's last NBA game is hitting the memorabilia stock market ... and it has the potential to go to the MOOOON!!!

The late NBA legend played his last game on April 13, 2016 ... putting up an iconic 60-point performance against the Utah Jazz.

Now, a ticket stub from that memorable night -- signed by the Black Mamba himself -- is making its way to the Otis investment app ... and folks can get a piece of the history for $10!!!

The ticket is valued at $31,700 and has a PSA VG 3 grade -- only 4 other tickets have ever been graded higher ... so, that's pretty good!!

Bryant memorabilia has skyrocketed in value since his heartbreaking death in Jan. 2020 ... with collectors paying up to 20x more for items in the days following the tragedy.

As we previously reported, the Otis app works just like the stock market -- the ticket will go up for trading once all the shares are sold ... and shareholders will be able to keep or sell their shares.

The Lakers may need more than LeBron James and Anthony Davis if they're trying to return to the NBA Finals ... so says Lamar Odom, who tells TMZ Sports they're one more star away from dominance.

Of course, the Lake Show was sent home early after losing to the Phoenix Suns in the first round ... and AD's groin injury is believed to have played a major role in their demise.

We asked LO if the Purple and Gold need to make big changes this offseason ... and he says Bron and Davis are usually enough, but their heath issues could spell trouble in the future.

"I was hurt!" Odom tells us. "I was hurt when I watched them. They gotta get another guy who can play right alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis."

LeBron also had to sit out a portion of the season due to a tough ankle injury ... and keeping everyone healthy is a major concern for LO.

"I mean, [James and Davis] probably is enough but we need them healthy but just in case if they're not healthy."

"I think once the Lakers put another piece with those two guys, then they'll be alright because they have enough supporting cast right now but I just think they need one more strong piece."

The guy knows what it takes to win it all -- after all, he won championships alongside Kobe Bryant in 2009 and 2010.

Odom points out the Brooklyn Nets ... saying that squad has 3 legit MVP caliber players on their team ... and L.A. needs that third option to be able to compete.

Speaking of Brooklyn, Odom had strong words for Charles Barkley, who recently said he's rooting against the Nets due to his hatred for "super teams."

"Yeah, nah f*** that. F*** that. GMs, you gotta get better then."

LeBron James and the Lakers would still be playing right now if it weren't for Anthony Davis' brutal injury ... so says Ben McLemore, who tells TMZ Sports "everybody knows" things would've been a LOT different if AD stayed healthy.

Remember, AD went down with a groin injury in Game 4 of the first-round series against Phoenix ... and the Lakers ended up getting eliminated in 6 games.

We spoke with McLemore about the impact the injury had on the series ... and it's safe to say he thinks the Lakers would've extended their run had the whole team been healthy.

"I think everybody know that," McLemore told us out on Rodeo Drive this week. "Great superstar. Everybody knows that."

AD was a beast for the Lakers before the injury -- posting back-to-back 34-point performances in games 2 and 3 -- but Devin Booker and Chris Paul proved to be too much for the shorthanded Purple and Gold (they also dealt with injuries to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso).

LeBron James' iconic #23 is no more ... the Los Angeles Lakers superstar is officially switching back to #6 for the start of next season.

So ... why the change?? Bron initially decided to gift #23 to Anthony Davis when he joined the Lakers in 2019 ... and said he would wear #6 -- a number he wore with the Miami Heat and Team USA -- instead.

Nike famously vetoed the number trade ... saying it would lose WAY too much money if the guys swapped, so they put the exchange on ice for a bit.

But, this is where things get tricky -- The Athletic is reporting AD is NOT taking LeBron's #23 and will keep #3 ... which means James' move is a bit of a head-scratcher.

There's one potential reason LBJ wants to go through with the change -- James dons #6 in the new "Space Jam: A New Legacy" flick ... so maybe he wants the movie to be as REAL as possible??

Pat Riley opened his mouth ... and now he's gotta open up his wallet.

The Heat prez has been hit with a BIG fine for comments made about a potential reunion with LeBron James in Miami ... with the NBA determining he broke the league's anti-tampering rule.

Riley -- who orchestrated the Heat's Big 3 of LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh that won 2 titles in 4 years -- recently opened up about James in an interview with Dan Le Batard ... saying he'd welcome the King back to South Beach with open arms.

"I would leave the key under the doormat if he would call me and let me know that he's coming," Riley said Friday. "I would do that, but I doubt very much that key -- that key is rusted now."

He added ... "LeBron, look, he's one of the greatest of all time and for 4 years down here, if we want to go back and remember what those 4 years were like, it was 4 years in the Finals, 4 years of excitement, 2 world championships."

"It was the best time for the Heat. So, I wish him nothing but the best, and if he ever wanted to come back, I'll put a new shiny key under the mat."

Of course, LeBron is signed with the Lakers through the 2023 season, and execs aren't allowed to make comments about players under contract that could "entice" them to join their franchise.

The Association got wind of Riley's comments ... and slapped the legend with a $25,000 fine on Wednesday.

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson is throwing on the Purple and Gold one more time to channel his inner Black Mamba ... by rocking a Kobe Bryant jersey before Game 1 against the Clippers!!

Of course, Clarkson and Bryant grew close as teammates on the Lakers for two seasons ... and JC has consistently paid tribute to the late NBA legend following his tragic death in January 2020.

While it's usually weird to see a player rep a different team before a game, players across the league have made an exception when honoring Kobe.

Clarkson is making it known he's got Kobe's signature "Mamba Mentality" leading up to the Jazz vs. Clippers matchup in the Western Conference semis on Tuesday ... wearing the classic #8 Bryant wore for 10 seasons while meeting with media.

BTW -- Clarkson has had by far the best year of his career in 2021 ... averaging 18.4 points a game and winning the Sixth Man of the Year honors.

We must add ... there could also be another reason behind the Kobe jersey -- trolling -- after all, the Clippers have always HATED the Lakers.

Magic Johnson is NOT happy about his beloved L.A. Lakers getting knocked out of the playoffs Thursday night ... admitting "You know I'm mad."

Magic and his wife, Cookie, were leaving the Staples Center after LeBron and the Lake Show suffered a 113 to 100 loss to the Phoenix Suns ... eliminating L.A. from the playoffs.

It's the first time in Bron's career he's ever been eliminated from the playoffs in the 1st round.

So, what happened??? That's what the photogs asked Magic after Game 6.

"I want you to ask those players what happened," Magic told the snappers

When one pap asked if he was upset over the situation, Magic responded -- "Yeah, I'm mad! I love the Lakers! You know I'm mad."

Part of the issue ... DEVIN BOOKER WAS UNSTOPPABLE.

The 24-year-old dropped 47 points on the Lakers -- helping the Suns build a 29-point lead in the first half!!

When the second half started, the Lakers looked like a defeated squad -- and the Suns rolled to victory.

Another issue for the Lakers ... Anthony Davis.

He was medically cleared to play in Game 6 after tweaking his groin in Game 4 -- but tweaked the injury in the opening minutes and never returned to action.

Now, the Lakers are out ... Magic is upset and LeBron says he's already focused on next year.

"The #1 thing for us is getting AD healthy," Bron said after the game ... "If we get big fella healthy ... that will put us in the best possible chance to be successful next year."

YOWWWCH!!!

Anthony Davis' foot had a meeting with Suns forward Jae Crowder's baby maker during Tuesday night's game ... and it looked just as painful as it sounds.

It all went down less than a minute into Game 2 of L.A. and Phoenix's 1st-round matchup in the NBA playoffs ... when AD kicked his right leg out while attempting a deep 2-point shot -- and made solid contact with Crowder's groin.

Understandably, Crowder immediately fell to the court in pain ... but to add insult to injury, the guy was called for a defensive foul while contesting the shot!!!

To even things out ... Davis also got called for a flagrant 1 foul, which gave Crowder 2 free throws and the Suns the next possession.

Of course, Davis' move looked similar to one of Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green's infamous groin kicks -- something TNT analyst Reggie Miller referenced during the game broadcast.

However, Miller pointed out he believed Davis' kick was unintentional ... which set Green off on Twitter.

"So it’s unintentional now @ReggieMillerTNT?," Green said Tuesday night. "You referenced me as if mines was also unintentional? None of y’all said that during the time. Clarify your point? Would love to know..."

He added ... "Because if you’re saying mines was unintentional, there’s a lot of cowards that just went silent? And if you’re saying it’s intentional on my behalf but not here, then I shouldn’t have been referenced @ReggieMillerTNT just curious."

Davis finished the game with 34 points and 10 rebounds as the Lakers tied up the series at 1 game apiece with the 109-102 win.

The NBA says LeBron James was not blocked from playing after violating the league's COVID protocol because officials decided he was NOT a risk to spread the virus.

In fact, the league says investigators determined everyone who was allowed at the May 17 event for LeBron's tequila company -- the event that triggered the violation -- was either vaccinated or tested negative for COVID before being admitted.

The event was attended by some massive celebrities including Michael B. Jordan and Drake.

There was some outrage after the league announced LeBron had attended the event -- with some calling for the NBA superstar to serve a mandatory quarantine before being allowed on the court out of fear he could infect someone else ... especially since he refuses to publicly confirm or deny if he's been vaccinated.

But, the NBA says there's nothing to fear ...

"LeBron James briefly attended an outdoor event last week where participants were required to be vaccinated or return a negative test result," a league spokesperson said Monday,

"Under these circumstances and in consultation with medical experts, it was determined that his attendance did not create risks related to the spread of COVID-19 and therefore no quarantine was necessary."

The NBA also says LeBron did NOT receive special treatment because he's a superstar.

"Over the course of this season, there have been numerous similar violations of the league's Health and Safety Protocols, which were addressed with the player's team in a similar fashion."

Then, the league added this line ... which makes it sound like Bron HAS been vaccinated.

"Under current NBA rules, vaccinated players are permitted to engage in outside activities including their individual commercial arrangements, such as sponsor appearances or ad shoots."

Lakers guard Ben McLemore was involved a single-car accident in the hours following his team's huge win over the Warriors ... but, thankfully, he was uninjured -- TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us sometime Thursday morning -- shortly after the Lakers beat the Warriors in their play-in game Wednesday night -- cops responded to a 911 call for an accident in Playa Vista, Calif.

We're told when officers arrived on the scene, they found McLemore and his crashed Ford truck ... and conducted a field sobriety test.

Sources say the 28-year-old, though, passed all their tests and did NOT appear to be drunk.

We're told McLemore explained to officers he had accidentally hit the gas instead of the brakes and crashed into a gate arm.

McLemore -- who had no injuries -- was not arrested and not issued any sort of ticket, we're told.

The former Kansas star played in 21 games for the Lakers this season ... averaging 8.0 points per contest.

He did not play in the team's win over Golden State due to a coach's decision.

Kyle Kuzma appears to have found the PERFECT way to avoid NBA playoff prep stress -- his smokin' hot GF, a tiny bikini and a beautiful backyard!!

The Lakers star hit up somewhere with really nice weather with his model GF, Winnie Harlow, on Friday ... and you can tell by the pic the couple shared -- there's no basketball stress here!

Despite the Lakers coming into the postseason as the #7 seed and under immense pressure to repeat as champs ... Kuzma clearly ain't doing any hand-wringing ahead of the games.

Check out the photo he and Winnie posted ... she looks great, he looks happy -- and yeah, what pressure again???

Kuzma won't be asked to do too much while LeBron James and Anthony Davis shoulder most of the load for the Lake Show ... but he's still going to have to play well for L.A. to make another run to the title.

A special moment for Kobe Bryant's family ... when Vanessa and their children visited the NBA legend's exhibit at the Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday ... and it's a pretty emotional sight.

Bryant -- who is being inducted into the Hoops Hall on Saturday -- got his very own stand-alone tribute called "Kobe: A Basketball Life" in Springfield ... the first since Michael Jordan's exhibit in 2009.

The 600-ft. display -- co-designed by Vanessa -- features incredible memorabilia from Bryant's career ... including a piece of the Lower Merion H.S. basketball court, the shoes from his 81-point game, game-worn jerseys, and a video screen showing his Oscar-winning short film, "Dear Basketball."

The Bryant family got a personal tour of the exhibit minutes ago ... and Vanessa captured pics of 1-year-old Capri and 4-year-old Bianka smiling from ear to ear as they get to see their dad's accomplishments up close.

Vanessa also posted a snap alongside Kobe ... saying, "Love you always."

Of course, this year's induction is going to be incredibly tough following Bryant's death in January 2020 ... as fellow inductee Kevin Garnett told reporters earlier today, "I don't think I'm the only one in here that thinks that Kobe Bryant is fairly missed."

"Miss him everyday and what he brought not just to the game of basketball but to sports period."

The ceremony is set to kick off on Saturday at 2:30 PM PT ... with Kobe, Garnett and Tim Duncan receiving the honors.

Michael Jordan is slated to do the presentation honors for Kobe ... with Vanessa giving a speech.

Byron Scott shares LeBron James' hatred for the NBA's play-in tournament ... telling TMZ Sports he wishes the league would cut the crap and stick to its regular postseason format.

Remember, King James teed off on the NBA's postseason rule for 2021 earlier this week ... saying, "Whoever came with that s*** needs to be fired."

We spoke with Scott outside Il Pastaio in Beverly Hills about James' take ... and while the ex-player/coach says nobody needs to be canned over the concept, he makes it clear he thinks the idea sucks.

"I agree with him ... it should be the first 8 teams just like it's been for so many years," Scott tells us. "I don't believe in that play-in and all that stuff."

The play-in format has garnered mixed reviews ... with folks like Stephen Curry loving the idea ... and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban calling it an "enormous mistake."

Byron says it's obvious why guys like the current 8-seed Warriors would welcome the idea ... simply because it gives them a better shot at making the playoffs.

While the current 6-seed Lakers are a sneeze away from being forced into the play-in tournament, Scott says L.A. fans should take a chill pill ... 'cause it'll be "nearly impossible" for them to be sent home early.

"When LeBron gets back and he's healthy, Anthony Davis is back healthy, they're too good."

He added ... "They were together all last year. They know each other well enough. They know what they gotta do, so I'm not worried about it one bit."

Scott thinks the Lakers -- despite struggling with injuries and bad losses late into the season -- can "absolutely" repeat as champions in 2021 ... and has full faith in the organization.

LeBron James HATES the idea of the NBA's new postseason play-in tournament ... saying straight-up Sunday night, "Whoever came with that s*** needs to be fired."

It's shocking that LBJ and the Lakers are even in a position to possibly need the extra games to lock in a playoff spot -- but after losing 6 of their last 7, it's becoming very real now.

And, James is clearly NOT happy about it.

LBJ went off on the league's new postseason rule after L.A. fell 121-114 to the Raptors ... explaining he believes teams who finish the regular season in the top 8 should advance, no play-in games required.

FYI -- the NBA implemented the new rule this year where the 7 through 10 seeds will have to battle it out to be the official 7 and 8 seeds of the playoff bracket.

The games will start on May 18 ... a couple days before the real postseason tips off.

The Lakers -- who got off to a roaring 21-6 start but have since seen their record fall to 36-28 as they've battled a ton of injuries -- are the current 6th seed in the West ... but they're just one loss away from the dreaded 7 spot.

And, with LeBron -- who's missed most of the last two months with a sore ankle -- still ailing ... it's possible he won't even play in Monday night's crucial game against the Nuggets.

But, LBJ said he won't compromise his health to make sure the Lake Show avoids the play-in games ... explaining, "It doesn't matter at the end of the day if I'm not 100% or close to 100%. It don't matter where we land."

The Lakers have just 8 games left before the potential play-in tournament begins.

LeBron James is starting to stack up children's books like championship rings ... 'cause the NBA superstar just announced his second piece of work will hit bookshelves later this year!!

36-year-old James has been writing up a storm after he inked a deal with HarperCollins Children's Books in 2020 ... co-authoring a 40-page picture book called "I Promise" last August, which became an NYT bestseller.

Now, Bron is back with a middle-grade level chapter book called "We Are Family" ... which follows 5 friends with completely different backgrounds and ambitions who team up to "save their basketball season and prove that sometimes getting a chance is all it takes to succeed," according to the release.

The story -- co-written by journalist and writer Andrea Williams -- is based in Ohio, which shouldn't come as a surprise. James has always kept his roots in mind when creating new stories for the youth.

LeBron spoke about the project ... saying, "Everyone has a story and unique set of challenges they’re going through that we don’t hear about."

The 4-time NBA champ added, "'We Are Family' shows how an unlikely group of kids comes together to chase their dreams, despite having the odds stacked against them."

"It’s an important story of family, purpose and perseverance in the face of adversity that I hope inspires everyone who reads it to never stop dreaming and believing in what they’re capable of."

Donald Trump just went after LeBron James in the wake of his controversial "You're Next" post ... calling the NBA star's words "RACIST" and telling the hooper to stick to sports.

"LeBron James should focus on basketball rather than presiding over the destruction of the NBA, which has just recorded the lowest television RATINGS, by far, in the long and distinguished history of the League,” Trump said in a statement.

“His RACIST rants are divisive, nasty, insulting, and demeaning. He may be a great basketball player, but he is doing nothing to bring our Country together!"

LeBron tweeted -- and later deleted -- a photo of the cop who shot and killed 16-year-old Ma'Khia Bryant after responding to a violent altercation this week in Columbus, Ohio.

In his post, the Lakers star captioned the pic, "YOU'RE NEXT #ACCOUNTABILITY" ... implying the officer should be prosecuted in a similar fashion to Derek Chauvin.

The problem ... some found the post to be threatening, with the National Fraternal Order of Police -- the biggest police union in the country -- calling it "disgraceful and extremely reckless."

U.S. Senator Tom Cotton from Arkansas added, "LeBron James is inciting violence against an Ohio police officer. This is disgraceful and dangerous."

Trump clearly felt similarly, releasing his scathing statement through his office Thursday night.

James eventually offered an explanation for the post after the backlash, writing in a statement of his own, "I’m so damn tired of seeing Black people killed by police. I took the tweet down because it's being used to create more hate."

"This isn’t about one officer," LeBron continued. "It’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism. I am so desperate for more ACCOUNTABILITY."

James has been vocal about social injustices and police brutality throughout this NBA career ... leading kneeling demonstrations during the NBA bubble last summer and often providing impassioned post-game and pregame speeches to media about equality.