NBA

Former NBA star Jayson Williams will have four days to drown his sorrows before heading to prison next week ... because the alcohol monitoring bracelet is coming off.

Jayson's lawyer, Linda Kenny-Baden, tells TMZ the SCRAM bracelet he was ordered to wear after his DUI bust last month will come off on Friday.

But Jayson's bracelet isn't being 86'd for a good reason. He's being sentenced to prison on Tuesday over the death of his limo driver -- and the bracelet has to come off before he goes to the pokey.

It must Absolut-ly suck to be Jayson.

Kobe Bryant chose not to mix with scantily-clad women last night, and the night club that threw the shindig he was scheduled to host is pissed.

As we first reported, Bryant was splashed all over a poster promoting a party at Bacy's and sponsored by a magazine that features barely-clothed women.

Bryant, who you may remember had a little problem in Colorado a few years back, has done such a good job of rehabilitating his image -- the whole thing was a conundrum.

Kobe would never comment on the hosting gig, but the club insisted it had a signed contract. But when we arrived last night, there were signs posted saying Kobe would not be appearing ... the promoter and the patrons were none too pleased.

The sign read: "Due to circumstances beyond our control, Mr. Kobe Bryant will not be in attendance tonight. No refund beyond this point."

BTW -- the photo above shows Bryant sitting courtside at the Slam Dunk contest in Dallas last night.

TMZ spoke to a manager of Aura Nightclub in uptown Dallas who told us that before Shaq arrived at the club, the record-setting snowfall blew out some electrical transformers ... leaving everyone standing in the dark.

We're told O'Neal's people were already at the club when the lights went out and decided that between the heavy snowfall ... and the complete and utter darkness ... it'd be best if Shaq didn't roll in.

But the good news: The Cleveland Cavaliers' big man is set to host a party at Aura tonight as well ... pending the presence of electrical power.

NBA Commissioner David Stern announced today that the two Washington Wizards players have been suspended for the remainder of the season without pay.

Stern released a statement on his decision, claiming "The issue here is not about the legal ownership and possession of guns, either in one's home or elsewhere. It is about possession of guns in the NBA workplace, which will not be tolerated."

Stern noted, "It is not disputed that ... both Mr. Arenas and Mr. Crittenton brought guns to the Verizon Center locker room and ... displayed them to one another in a continuation of their dispute."

Stern claims he met with both players -- and they each expressed remorse. Stern added that both men "have volunteered to engage in community service in order to turn the lessons they have learned into an educational message for others.

Here is Stern's letter in its entirety ... "The NBA has conducted a thorough investigation of events relating to this matter ...

Question is ...

The Clips lost to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. And so much for trying to low-key it -- Charlie's face was plastered on the Jumbotron.

Lots of drama for Charlie. Last Friday, the set of "Two and a Half Men" was cleared after what sources say was a threat to Jon Cryer -- we're told something with his ex.

David Goldman (left) was recently reunited with his son Sean (right) after a five-year custody battle with his deceased ex-wife's family in Brazil.

Washington Wizards player Gilbert Arenas and the U.S. Attorney are negotiating a plea bargain ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

Our sources say Arenas' lawyer and prosecutors are discussing a plea in which Arenas would cop to misdemeanor gun charges. We're told a deal hasn't been struck yet, but it could come as early as today.

Sources say the filing of charges would coincide with the plea, so it would all go down quickly. We do not know what they are discussing with respect to a sentence ... the prosecutor would recommend a sentence but ultimately it's the judge's decision.

Arenas is under investigation for felony gun charges for the locker room incident last month.

As for what a plea would do to Arenas' status as a member of the Washington Wizards, we're told G.M. Ernie Grunfeld and Arenas were text messaging each other shortly after the incident. In one of the text messages, Grunfeld wrote that Arenas had violated his NBA contract which prohibits players from possessing a firearm in a team or league facility. As a result Grunfeld texted the team had a right to void his contract ... worth $111 million.

In the lawsuit, Lopez -- who claims to have been in a five-year relationship with Shaq -- says it went sour after Lopez missed her period and Shaq allegedly reacted by accusing her of sleeping with another guy.

Lopez says she ended the relationship, but then Shaq's large family -- and we're talkin' height -- got involved, making her fear for her safety. Lopez claims Shaq's 6'6" and 6'8" sisters made verbal and physical threats against her.

Lopez claims she was especially fearful of Shaq because "O'Neal is a large, powerful, wealthy man and a professional athlete" who has law enforcement connections and the right to bear arms.

And, Lopez claims, Shaq hacked into her voice mail and text messages, using sophisticated software.

As we first reported, Lopez has had run-ins with three other NBA boyfriends.

Lopez, who is repped by Gloria Allred, is suing for unspecified damages.

Story developing...

According to a 2007 police report filed in Colorado, Martin -- a former #1 pick -- claimed that Lopez got into his wallet without permission and used his credit card to buy $6485.90 worth of clothes on couturecandy.com.

Martin's bank notified him of the fraudulent charges when they noticed an incorrect billing address was being used for the purchases.

According to the docs, the case was cracked because the perp shipped all the merch to a "Vanessa Lopez" in Florida .

Sources tell TMZ, Martin never pressed charges on Vanessa because his credit card company repaired the damage.

Turns out Vanessa Lopez -- who is reportedly filing suit today against Shaq -- went to police after a bitter breakup with Redick back in 2007.

filed in Lake Mary, Florida, Lopez claimed she was being harassed by Redick's brother, David. According to the report, one of the alleged incidents occurred at the infamous Blue Martini bar in Orlando -- where Tiger Woods used to hang out.

According to the police report, while the cops were at Lopez's house taking a report, David called her and said he would leave her alone "when she leaves J.J. alone."

As TMZ first reported, Lopez also had problems with two other NBA players -- Delonte West and Kenyon Martin.

Lopez is expected to appear at a news conference with Gloria Allred later today to address the Shaq lawsuit.

The Washington Wizards have told locker room pistolero Gilbert Arenas they believe he is in violation of his contract and they have the right to void the $111 million deal ... sources tell TMZ.

We're told a team official was trading text messages with Arenas after the locker room incident. Sources tell TMZ ... in one of the messages, the official told Arenas the team felt Agent Zero violated the clause in his contract prohibiting him from engaging in conduct detrimental to the team or the NBA ... and they could have the contract voided as a result.

Most NBA contracts contain morality clauses -- but it's difficult to void an NBA contract on those grounds. The Indiana Pacers didn't void Ron Artest's contract after "The Malice at the Palace" in 2004.

Nevertheless, there are strong indications the Wizards want out of the Arenas deal. As one law enforcement source put it, the team has been overly cooperative in the police investigation that targets Arenas.

Jayson Williams' blood alcohol level was .24 -- 3 times the legal limit -- when he crashed his SUV last week ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

Williams was arrested for DWI after his vehicle swerved across four lanes of traffic before striking a tree in NYC early Tuesday morning.

Williams fractured his neck in the accident. He was arraigned in the hospital.

Our sources tell us Arenas has already been called in by the U.S. Attorney but he made it clear he would not testify on grounds of self-incrimination. We're also told Crittenton has lawyered up and took the same position as Arenas.

We're also told head coach Flip Saunders came to the grand jury last week. We don't know if he actually testified in front of the grand jury or just spoke with the U.S. Attorney.

As we first reported, cops are still looking for Javaris' gun -- which witnesses have told cops he tossed into a laundry basket after the confrontation with Arenas. Our sources say someone from the team wheeled the basket out of the locker room. D.C. cops are looking at surveillance video to see if there's a shot of the basket being wheeled out.

Both players could be indicted on felony gun charges.

Jayson Williams drunkenly drove across four lanes of oncoming traffic before smashing his Mercedes into a tree earlier this week -- this according to a witness whose testimony is being used in court.

According to new court docs, cops are accusing the former NBA star of 2 counts of drunk driving for his Tuesday morning car crash -- which left Williams with a fractured neck.

The unnamed witness told cops he or she saw Williams get into his black 2007 Mercedes and operate his car "in an unsteady and abrupt manner, in that the vehicle crossed four lanes of oncoming traffic and crashed into a tree on the sidewalk."

According to the document, the officer who first responded to the crash scene noticed Williams was "bleeding from his face and the that [Williams] had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath."

Williams is set to be arraigned from his hospital bed later today.

According to several police reports, Vanessa Lopez has had serious legal run-ins with Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin and Cleveland Cavaliers guard Delonte West -- during the same time period she claims she was secretly hooking up with Shaq.

Back in 2006, Delonte West -- then with the Boston Celtics -- called security on Lopez, claiming she refused to leave his Orlando hotel room.

Police were called to the room -- where Lopez, according to the police report, then accused West of making unwanted sexual advances toward her.

West acknowledged that he had slept with Lopez in the past -- but claimed he never hit on her that night. West said Lopez tried to seduce him -- but he rejected her because he had another woman coming over.