Money

Lakers co-owner Jesse Buss just got a whole lot richer -- and LeBron James just got a new neighbor -- 'cause the youngest of the six Buss siblings just sold his L.A. mansion next to LBJ's for $10.7 million.

Buss put the home on the market in October after buying it in 2018 ... and TMZ Sports has learned it just sold this week.

Buss got darn-near asking price for it -- he originally listed it through Jennifer Beron of Compass for $11 million -- and it's easy to see why.

In addition to being near LeBron's famous L.A. pad, the mansion has over 6,500 square feet and features 6 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms, a home theater, a yoga room, and an infinity pool which offers great views of the city and canyons.

There's more -- the crib also comes with a chef's kitchen with state-of-the-art appliances, a full gym, an illuminated bar, and a temperature-controlled wine cellar.

There's gonna be less space in space, because the newest clutter is the most powerful telescope ever hurled into the heavens, and it promises a new, never-before-seen look that could alter the way earthlings live.

We're talkin' The James Webb Space Telescope, which lifted off early Xmas morning from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.

NASA described the launch this way ...  "At 7:20am ET (12:20 UTC), the beginning of a new, exciting decade of science climbed to the sky. Webb’s mission to #UnfoldTheUniverse will change our understanding of space as we know it."

That may not be an overstatement ... the telescope is the most powerful and most complex ... a space observatory that will study exoplanets -- those are planets outside our solar system.

Thing is ... scientists think some of the exoplanets could be habitable, and that means 1) is there existing life on any of them? And 2) could we live there either by choice or necessity?

There have been years of delay in launching the scope for various reasons. As for specs -- its mirror can extend more than 21 feet, which gives it the ability to capture more light from the objects it's photographing ... and that will enhance the details scientists will study.

The mirror has 18 hexagonal, gold-coated segments ... fancy!

Bottom line ... scientists should be able to see things, including planets, they've never seen before.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas for some homeless military vets in L.A., thanks to Arnold Schwarzenegger ... 'cause they now have new homes.

Arnold just paid a visit to some of the vets, now ensconced in the 25 tiny homes he bought for them. They've finally been installed, and Arnold's thrilled ... "It was fantastic to spend some time with our heroes and welcome them into their new homes."

Schwarzenegger also shared photos of the homes and selfies with the vets and everyone was stoked, including The Terminator, who said, "I am ecstatic! I am really ecstatic. To me, this is the greatest Christmas gift."

Arnold bankrolled the houses to the tune of $250k. It's become a thing in L.A. and elsewhere ... a way to abate the homeless crisis. Jon Cryer and his wife, Lisa Joyner, have also been super involved with tiny homes.

The homes are fully equipped with electricity, air conditioning and room enough to settle in. Arnold's optimistic ... "We proved that when we all work together, we can solve any problem."

Josh Altman says there's no competition between 'Million Dollar Listing' and "Selling Sunset" ... but it's not the nice gesture it might sound like at first glance.

The 'MDL' star joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday and we asked him if there's any competitive fire between his group and the folks on 'SS' ... because we know how fiery L.A. realtors can be.

Josh ripped a page outta Jay-Z's playbook, telling us the 'Sunset' folk aren't even in the same conversation as his show, because the 'Million Dollar' team's doing way bigger deals than anyone over at Oppenheim.

While Josh brags about the massive dollar figures over on his side -- and there are some really BIG numbers -- he does give the Netflix show some credit, but mostly for fashion.

He's got a new spinoff, "Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles: Josh and Josh" premiering tonight on Bravo. It costars his frenemy-turned-BFF Josh Flagg, and while there's been plenty of friction between them -- Altman acknowledges 'Sunset' might have 'em beat in the drama department, but NOT if you're talking bottom lines on a sales ledger.

The funny thing is Josh told us, "I'm not trying to start a fight" with that other cast.

Jeff Bezos and his GF Lauren Sanchez are getting back down to Earth for their Christmas vacay -- well, as much as you can when you're the second richest man in the world.

The couple couldn't keep their hands or lips off each other while hiking in St. Barts. The PDA fest went down while there were plenty of other folks on the trail ... but looks like they're too chill to give a damn.

The scenic stroll seems pretty pedestrian compared to what Jeff's been doing a lot of lately ... either riding into orbit himself aboard his Blue Origin spacecraft or greeting his companies astronauts -- like Michael Strahan and William Shatner -- when they touch down.

As you may know, the former journalist and the big-time billionaire went public with their relationship back in January 2019... after Bezos and his ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott announced their high-profile divorce.

Lauren and Jeff have come a long way since then -- and by that we mean they've traveled tens of thousands of miles together. Fabulous trips like this one to the Caribbean island are kinda their thing.

Bad news for Tommy Fury -- the boxer might have missed his shot at fighting Jake Paul for good ... 'cause the YouTube superstar says he wants a bigger name to be his next opponent.

Fury -- who backed out of the Dec. 18 bout with a chest infection and broken rib -- said earlier this week he was gunning to reschedule their fight ASAP ... promising to make it happen as soon as he's healthy.

But, Jake seems to be over it, revealing in an interview with USA Today he's not interested in going down that road again after knocking Tyron Woodley out in dramatic fashion.

"Most likely not Tommy," Jake said. "I kind of want someone with a bigger name."

"We’ll see how all the stars align, but I’m tired of carrying all these Pay-per-view buys by myself."

It would be a huge bummer of an ending of the Paul/Fury feud if they don't fight -- after all, they LOVED trolling each other all 2021.

Now, the Fury name is huge in boxing -- Tommy's older bro, Tyson is the world heavyweight champ -- but Paul's called out UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal, who quickly shut down his $5 million offer.

In the meantime, Jake says he's gonna rest up and enjoy some downtime before entering the ring again.

Britney Spears is reminding fans what kinda voice she has -- and while she's looking forward to using it again in a studio, she's not ready to let go of her past anger at her family.

Britney posted a video Wednesday standing in front of her mirror and singing at the top of her voice -- not many lyrics, mostly an R&B-style vocal run. Her caption, though, is pure venom for her family ... she wrote, "I just realized this today guys … after what my family tried to do to me three years ago … I needed to be my own cheerleader 🤷🏼‍♀️ !!!! God knows they weren’t."

She posted a bunch of her accomplishments, apparently after a little Googling, she found she's sold 100 million records, 33 million albums and logged billions of online streams. That's the good news.

On the other hand, she says, "I’m here to remind my white 'classy' family that I haven’t forgotten what they did to me nor will I ever forget !!!!⁣"

As for what happened 3 years ago, Brit's likely referring to when her family allegedly put her back into rehab in 2019. Remember, she was just about to start her Vegas show, but needed to postpone it ... and her dad, Jamie Spears, had become very ill.

Britney also teased fans, saying ... "Pssss new song in the works … I’m gonna let you know what I mean 😉 !!!!!"

Mariah Carey's classic Christmas jingle is the gift that keeps on giving ... to her bank account, that is ... we've done the math and she's scored millions of XMAS $$$.

Our music industry sources tell us Mariah still pulls in big bucks on licensing and commercial deals for the classic. While we're told she's only making a fraction of a cent every time someone streams "All I Want For Christmas Is You," the fractions add up to seven figures and counting, considering the popular Xmas track has over 1 billion streams just on Spotify.

One source who manages artists tells us singers typically make between .003 to .004 of a dollar per single stream ... and in Mariah's case, that would work out to between $3,249,600 and $4,332,800 just on Spotify alone ... and the figure will only grow.

Mariah's 1994 song is hugely popular around the holidays and as another source put it ... "Mariah can sit on her a** for the rest of her life and ONLY promote AIWFC and still be a millionaire."

What's more, the numbers don't even take into account streams on other platforms, including Apple Music. We reached out to Apple for an all-time count on 'AIWFC' streams ... so far no word back.

Streaming platforms weren't around when Mariah first launched the song, and it's pre-streaming days when she would've made the most money in sales ... but that doesn't mean today's numbers translate to chump change.

Cardi B wasn't the only one to shower Offset in gifts for his 30th birthday -- LeBron James also sent some dope presents to the rapper to celebrate the big night!

The King signed a pair of all-white Air Force 1s and shipped them over to Offset's bday bash in Los Angeles on Tuesday, and they're pretty awesome.

The Lakers superstar put his autograph on both sneakers ... and added a happy birthday message to one of the shoes as well.

James also gifted Offset with a custom bottle of his Lobos 1707.

Offset clearly loved the presents -- he shouted out LeBron on social media, thanking the NBA player for the swag.

Of course, the gifts were great, but LBJ had a ton of competition to win the night's best present award.

A bunch of celebs showed up to celebrate Offset at the bash, with most coming baring gifts -- including Cardi B, who handed over her man a $2 MILLION check.

Yeah ... LBJ's signature is great, but hard to beat cash!

Offset just got $2 million richer!! That is... after Cardi B gifted him a fat check at his celeb-filled, sneaker-themed birthday bash.

Offset turned the big 3-0 earlier this month, and last night he and Cardi turned things waaaay up by cutting her hubby a $2 mil check ... during a night filled with money-hurling, drinks and lots and lots of twerking.

As you see, hubby and wife let loose for the celebration. Offset was decked out in a Louis Vuitton blue jacket, and Cardi's chest glistened with a giant Playboy bunny chain. As you know, she was recently anointed the mag's creative director.

Now, she's looking to help her man diversify too ... Cardi says the $2 mil check for Offset is seed money for some big biz ventures he has coming up in 2022.

That's the trend in show biz these days ... significant others are pumping up loved ones' portfolios. Remember, Tiffany Haddish's wish list was real estate, and ditto for Cardi. Investments are the new Lambo!!!

But, back to the party ... Cardi and Offset weren't the only big names front and center ... Kanye, The Game, Takeoff, French and Quavo also pulled up to last night's event.

Ye came solo, in authentic Kanye fashion ... a purple hoodie, covering his face with a black baseball cap and sunglasses in the dead of night. He layered things up with an oversized leather coat, grey jeans and chunky-soled boots.

Jake Paul is channeling his inner Godfather and making Jorge Masvidal an offer he can't refuse ... saying he will shell out $5 MILLION to get the UFC fighter to be his next opponent.

Fresh off his knockout win over Tyron Woodley, the Problem Child announced the offer on his brother Logan's "Impaulsive" podcast on Tuesday ... saying he's not all talk and REALLY wants to scrap.

Jake says Masvidal keeps shutting him down for 2 reasons -- he only fights the best, or he fights for the money ... so now, Paul is giving him the latter.

And, a LOT of it.

"Masvidal, I got an offer for you right now -- $5 million guarantee plus percentage of Pay-Per-View," Jake said. "Let's make it happen."

Remember, Jake called out Gamebred and Nate Diaz right after the win ... calling them "bitches" in the process.

The big obstacle, though, is that both guys are under contract with UFC ... and would need permission to take a fight outside the promotion.

He says he's down to take either UFC star in the ring ... calling it "light work."

"Diaz isn't good," Jake added. "Look at their records! Numbers don't f***ing lie, bro. I'm undefeated. Diaz literally wins two fights and loses one. Two fights, loses one. F*** that."

It wasn't always this bitter between the two -- back before the Ben Askren fight, Jorge was actually helping Jake train.

Is the money enough to get Jorge's attention?? Most likely. But, the real question is, if UFC honcho Dana White -- who ain't exactly the biggest Paul fan -- will sign off on the fight?

Amari Bailey might be son of the year -- 'cause the high school hoops star just copped his mom a brand new Porsche for the holidays!!

The Sierra Canyon combo guard revealed the amazing gift on Monday ... saying, "This year I wanted to kick off the holiday season a lil different and got my mom a car."

"Thank you for all of the sacrifices to even make this dream of mine come true. I love you ❤️. Thought I’d beat you to getting the whip for you tho."

His mama, Johanna Leia -- who you might also recognize as Drake's one-time girlfriend -- was left speechless ... posting a heartwarming thank you note to her 17-year-old son.

The whip appears to be a 2022 Porsche Cayenne ... which comes with a starting price tag of nearly $70,000.

So, how does a high school kid pay for that?? We're guessing he took advantage of the NCAA's new NIL rules.

"I wasn’t gonna post anything because I’m an extremely private person. However, I am still shocked by what this truly represents," Leia said on IG.

"Amari, this truly speaks to your heart, your mind, your work ethic, and all of our long hours in the gym, and long talks in the car. All I’ve ever wanted is to see a smile on your face and no holes in your heart."

The sacrifice has paid off so far ... Bailey is one of the top high school basketball players out of the 2022 class and the 5-star recruit signed with the UCLA Bruins in November.

"My dream is to see you live yours and to help you in any way that I can," Leia said.

"But truly this is unbelievable that at 17 this is how you choose to say thank you and make me smile. Keep living your life Pooks."

Amari is also helping out two single mothers in Chicago this holiday season ... saying, "It feels good to know that I’ve worked hard enough to give back to my community."

Diddy is the proud owner of his clothing brand again -- being reunited with his Sean John line after buying it out of bankruptcy for a steal.

The rap mogul won the rights to Sean John after a bidding war with 4 other parties ... claiming it for about $7.5 million, cash. The deal will be finalized this week, barring any objections -- and safe to say, the guy's pretty excited about it.

He tells TMZ ... "I launched Sean John in 1998 with the goal of building a premium brand that shattered tradition and introduced Hip Hop to high-fashion on a global scale."

Diddy adds, "Seeing how streetwear has evolved to rewrite the rules of fashion and impact culture across categories, I’m ready to reclaim ownership of the brand, build a team of visionary designers and global partners to write the next chapter of Sean John’s legacy."

Like we told you ... the SJ line fell into bankruptcy recently under management firm GBG USA Inc., which had owned 90%. When word of its assets being up for grabs reached Mr. Combs, he'd expressed interest in gaining control once again, especially considering how cheap it was going for earlier this month.

Britney Spears' lawyer says it is an "abomination" her father is asking for even more money now that the conservatorship has been terminated and reports have surfaced alleging the conservatorship was one big money grab.

Mathew Rosengart issued a blistering statement -- "The conservatorship has been terminated and Mr. Spears was suspended ignominiously. Under the circumstances, his petition is not only legally meritless. It is an abomination. Britney poignantly testified about the pain her father caused her and this only adds to it. This is not what a father who loves his daughter does."

Jamie Spears filed legal docs to make Britney's estate pay for his legal fees in winding down the conservatorship, asking that it be paid in a "prompt" fashion.

This all comes on the heels of a blistering report by the New York Times, alleging, among many other things, Jamie received a $40,000 loan from Britney's then business manager, Tri Star Sports & Entertainment early on. According to the NYT, Jamie received $6 million from Britney's estate, while Tri Star benefited to the tune of untold millions.

The report also claims the estate paid for a security company that surveilled members of the #FreeBritney movement who went after Jamie and Tri Star and its owner, Lou Taylor.

And the NYT reports Tri Star donated tens of thousands of dollars from Britney's charitable foundation to a Christian counseling group ... a group in which Taylor was associated.

And, the allegations go on ... that Britney's estate paid for advertisements touting Tri Star and Taylor.

As we previously reported, Tri Star was receiving a percentage of Britney's earnings, which for many years were sky-high. When she stopped performing, Tri Star asked Jamie to approve a minimum guarantee of $500,000 which we're told Jamie approved. This drew heavy criticism because the concept of getting a percentage is that you take the good with the bad.

Jamie's lawyer, Alex Weingarten, has said all expenditures were made with the approval of the court or Britney's court-appointed lawyer, saying, "Jamie has nothing to hide and will therefore hide nothing."

The feds say a New Jersey man copped to impersonating a New England Patriots player as part of an elaborate scheme to obtain and sell Super Bowl rings engraved with Tom Brady's name.

Federal prosecutors say the man behind the scheme is 24-year-old Scott Spina ... and he's struck a deal with the authorities, pleading guilty to 5 felony charges.

The feds say Spina started cooking up the scheme way back in 2017, when he bought a Super Bowl 51 ring off a Patriots player with at least one bad check, then sold the ring for $63,000 to a California broker specializing in championship rings.

Prosecutors say Spina not only got the ring off the player but also received other information allowing him to pose as the player, allowing him to purchase similar (but slightly smaller) rings designated for players' families from the company who made the SB rings.

Posing as the former Patriots player -- identified only as J.T. in court docs -- prosecutors say Spina started ordering 3 "family and friend" Super Bowl LI rings with the name "Brady" engraved on each one, which he falsely claimed were gifts for TB12's baby.

The feds say the real Tom never authorized the rings ... and Spina plotted to flip them for a fat payday.

According to prosecutors, Spina hammered out a deal with the Cali ring broker to sell him the 3 engraved Brady rings for $81,500 ... but the broker got cold feet and backed out the same day Spina got the rings in hand, with the buyer questioning the story Spina was spinning.

The feds say Spina pivoted and sold the engraved Brady rings to an auction house for $100k ... and months later one of those rings sold at auction for $337,219.

Prosecutors say Spina admitted to defrauding the ring broker by telling him the rings "were ordered for Tom Brady directly ... for select family members" and copped to posing as the former Pats player to buy the engraved rings.

The feds say Spina agreed to plead guilty to the 5 felony charges against him -- 3 counts of wire fraud, and 1 count each of mail fraud and aggravated identity theft -- and he's facing up to 92 years in federal prison.

The chef who accused Antonio Brown of stiffing him out $10K will no longer be pursuing a lawsuit against the NFL star ... 'cause he says AB has settled the debt.

A rep for Steven Ruiz, who owns TasteThatLA in Los Angeles, tells TMZ Sports ... the two parties reached an agreement recently and both sides are now moving on.

"Both parties were satisfied," the rep said. "After two months of being slandered in the press, Mr. Ruiz felt it was in his best interest to move forward and attend to his clients' needs for their Christmas parties this week. He wished the best to AB and the Bucs as they head toward the playoffs."

It's unclear if Brown was required to pay more than $10K to settle the dispute.

We've reached out to Brown's attorney for comment, but so far, no word back yet.

As we previously reported, Ruiz -- who cooked for Brown in the months leading up to the 2021 season kickoff -- was so scorned after his interactions with the football player, he went public with his accusations that AB had submitted a fake COVID vaccine card to the NFL.

The league investigated the claims and said after it wrapped the probe that it had found validity to Ruiz's story -- and suspended Brown three games.

Ruiz told us after the ban was announced that he was preparing to sue Brown.