NBA

When Kim Kardashian first arrived to Cedars-Sinai to deliver her baby, she didn't get the fancy celebrity suite she had hoped for 'cause they were all in use ... and one of the VIP occupants was Dwight Howard's newest baby mama, TMZ has learned.

Sources connected to the births tell us ... before Kim went into labor, she had made arrangements to stay in one of the fancy suites at the L.A. hospital. But the baby came 5 weeks early, and the fancy suites were all booked. So Kim was placed in another unit.

But while Kim was laid out in bed, Kanye roamed the maternity ward ... and bumped into NBA superstar Dwight Howard, whose lady was giving birth to his child.

FYI -- Dwight's a seasoned vet when it comes to the maternity ward ... he's reportedly fathered 3 other kids (with 3 different women).

We're told Kanye and Dwight got along great ... with Yeezy giving Howard a preview of his new album "Yeezus."

As for Kim ... we're told she's finally out of the hospital -- and mother and the baby are shacked up in a private location.

When the Heat and the Spurs went into OT during last night's dramatic Game 6 of the NBA Finals ... Dwight Howard was busy eating dinner -- telling TMZ he didn't have the stomach to watch.

Howard hit up Crustacean in Beverly Hills last night -- at the very same time LeBron and Co. were taking on Tony Parker and the rest of San Antonio.

Sources inside the restaurant tell us ... The L.A. Lakers star (at least for now) was nowhere near the TV during the game ... and focused on dinner with his buddies the entire time.

On his way out of the restaurant, Dwight explained why he chose not to watch -- telling us, "I'm not watching ... I'm not playing so ain't no need to be [watching]."

He added, "I don't want to see nobody win a championship."

Former NBA superstar Allen Iverson has returned his kids to their mother ... and insists he was NEVER holding them hostage in the first place ... at least that's what A.I. claimed in court last week.

We broke the story ... Iverson's ex-wife filed court docs insisting Allen had all 5 of their kids holed up at an Atlanta hotel and refused to hand them over to their mother on the designated swap date.

But TMZ has learned ... Allen appeared in Fulton County court in Georgia last Wednesday and told the judge his ex-wife had full access to their kids during their stay at the hotel ... and therefore he wasn't doing anything wrong. We're told Tawanna also testified that she could have picked up the children from Allen but didn't want to drive 45 minutes to his location.

After A.I.'s testimony, the judge decided the former Philadelphia 76ers star didn't deserve to be thrown in jail -- despite his ex-wife's request before the hearing. The kids -- ranging from ages 3 to 16 -- were returned to their mother following the hearing.

In fact, sources connected to the case tell TMZ ... Allen and his ex have worked out some of their issues ... and she has already allowed Allen to spend more private time with the kids.

So far, no comment from either side.

It's the stuff that caused a war between Kobe Bryant and his parents -- a collection of the NBA star's tacky jewelry, shoes and jerseys -- and now it's officially up for auction.

A diamond-encrusted NBA Championship ring complete with the words "Bling Bling" engraved on the side ... prototypes of Kobe's shoes ... Bryant's high school jersey -- it's all up for sale.

As we previously reported, Kobe sued his mom to prevent her from selling the memorabilia ... claiming she had no ownership rights to the merchandise.

But Pamela Bryant -- along with her husband Jellybean -- fought back ... claiming Kobe had gifted the stuff to them over the years and they had every right to sell it.

Last week, the two sides hammered out a settlement agreement ... in which Kobe allowed his folks to sell off 10% of what they had originally tried to auction ... and the items are pretty interesting.

Former NBA star Allen Iverson has abducted his own children ... so says his ex-wife, and now she's begging the court to force Allen to give them back.

Tawanna Iverson just filed legal docs, claiming Allen recently asked for permission to take their five kids on a short vacation to Charlotte, NC from May 22nd-May 26th (and Tawanna agreed) but when May 26th rolled around, the children hadn't been returned.

The kids range in age from 3 to 16 years old.

In the docs, Tawanna says she tried to set up an exchange on June 4th at a neutral location -- a nearby Target store -- but A.I. never showed up.

Tawanna -- who has sole legal and primary physical custody of their children -- now believes Allen never took their kids to Charlotte at all ... and is currently keeping them at a Sheraton hotel in Georgia.

Tawanna claims she's especially concerned because Allen's an alcoholic who drinks around their kids.

She now wants the court to force him to return the kids ... and punish him as well, even suggesting the judge lock him up in jail.

It's not the first time she's tried to get Iverson locked up ... she had previously begged the court to send him to the pokey for allegedly not paying more than $40,000 in child support.

Los Angeles Lakers executive Johnny Buss -- oldest son of deceased Lakers owner Jerry Buss -- has filed for divorce from his wife, who happens to be an ex-Clippers dancer, TMZ has learned.

Johnny -- who's currently the V.P. of Strategic Development for the Lake Show -- filed divorce docs in L.A. County Superior Court ... seeking to end his marriage to Christy Curtis Buss ... a marriage that began in 1991.

Here's the weird part ... in the court docs, obtained by TMZ, Buss states that he and Christy separated back in 2000 ... which means they've been split up for 13 YEARS!

Apparently, Johnny finally felt like cutting the cord ... because he filed the docs himself on June 11, 2013. It's unclear why he waited so long. They have no minor children.

In the docs, Buss blames the split on irreconcilable differences ... but checked the box that acknowledges he'll have to pony up spousal support.

Seems Kobe Bryant started a German trend ... 'cause NBA star Jermaine O'Neal took Kobe's lead and flew out to Germany for a special medical procedure that ain't exactly legal in the U.S. of A..

34-year-old O'Neal -- a 6-time NBA All-Star -- just posted a photo standing next to famed German surgeon Dr. Peter Wehling along with the caption, "Just finished up my last day of a week long of treatments out here in germany with the great Dr Wehling!"

There's only one reason O'Neal would go to Germany -- Regenokine ... a special procedure involving the manipulation of red blood cells that's believed to accelerate the body's healing process.

The only catch ... the procedure ain't exactly approved by the American FDA ... 'cause according to Grantland.com, it violates an FDA regulation that mandates that all human tissues (such as blood and bone marrow) can only be "minimally manipulated."

Obviously O'Neal isn't afraid ... neither is Kobe ... and even A-Rod is reported to have gone to Deutschland for a quick German fix-me-up.

It's unclear which body part O'Neal was hoping to fix -- but last year, Wehling reportedly worked on Jermaine's knees ... and it seems to have worked. J.O. played 55 games in the 2012-13 season ... the 2nd highest he has played in the last 10 seasons.

The NBA doesn't seem to mind the procedure ... 'cause Kobe never faced any repercussions from the league -- in fact, he played noticeably BETTER after he came back.

As for O'Neal ... he's not just hungry for an NBA championship ... he's also craving some high quality food ... recently tweeting, "Anybody know what's the best steakhouse to go to out here in Dusseldorf, Germany?"

The nasty feud between Mark Cuban and Jason Kidd is officially OVER ... at least for now ... 'cause Mark tells TMZ the two have made up -- and have even started emailing each other again.

Cuban famously TRASHED Kidd in the media last year after Jason decided not to re-sign with Cuban's Dallas Mavericks ... and instead struck a deal with the NY Knicks.

Cuban had said he was "more than upset" with Kidd -- and said there was "no chance" he'd ever honor Jason by retiring his Mavs jersey.

But something happened over the last few months ... 'cause when we asked Mark how he felt about Jason landing the Brooklyn Nets head coaching job this week, M.C. told us:

"I'm excited for him. He has great knowledge on the game so I'm sure he will do well. And yes we have started emailing again so all is well with the world.”

Kobe Bryant has ended his legal war with his mother ... settling the lawsuit over his basketball memorabilia.

As TMZ reported ... Kobe went after his mother for trying to auction off jerseys, rings, trophies and scores of other items. Pamela Bryant claimed her son gave her the stuff, but Kobe claimed she was full of it and she was just pissed because he wouldn't buy her an expensive house in Vegas.

Now Pamela and Kobe's dad agreed to issue a letter of apology to the Lakers' star, according to ESPN. In return Kobe agreed to let Pamela sell off just under 10% of the items.

So the legal issue is now resolved. As for family relations, we're guessing that's a whole other Oprah.

Bryant's parents released a statement that reads, "We regret our actions and statements related to the Kobe Bryant auction memorabilia. We apologize for any misunderstanding and unintended pain we have caused our son and appreciate the financial support he has provided over the years. We also apologize to Goldin Auctions for their inadvertent involvement in this matter and thank them for their assistance."

Allen Iverson has a date this week with the judge who earlier this year called him a horrible parent ... and seeing as his ex claims he owes $40,000 in child support ... this new hearing will probably go as poorly for Iverson as the last one.

As TMZ first reported, when Iverson's divorce was finalized back in February, the judge in the case tore Iverson's parenting skills a new one ... saying, "He does not know how to manage the children" and he "has been a hindrance to their spiritual and emotional growth and development."

Now TMZ has learned Iverson's ex, Tawanna, has filed docs with the court saying that Iverson has failed to honor the child support agreement that was handed down back in January. The order stated that Iverson was to pay $8,000/month in support for their 5 kids ... but Tawanna claims Iverson has missed every payment he was supposed to make.

The two are set to be in court this week, where Tawanna wants the judge to order Iverson to fork over the $40,000 he owes in support and even suggest the judge lock Iverson up for his actions.

Tony Parker and his fellow San Antonio Spurs are poised to snatch the NBA championship title from the Miami Heat ... but a victory could cost Tony a fortune.

As you know ... the Spurs are up 1-zip in the finals, and the odds are they could win the whole shebang, because let's face it ... the Heat players are a little haggard.

Tony is in the middle of a $20 million lawsuit over the blowout fight between Drake and Chris Brown at W.i.P. Nightclub in NYC. Parker says he suffered lacerations to his cornea when a glass shard from a bottle struck him in the eye.

When Parker filed the suit, he was halfway through a $50 million contract with the Spurs ... and his future seemed uncertain given the eye injury.

Parker is suing the club, claiming it was negligent in not preventing the brewing brawl.

Now here's the problem ... Tony played a fantastic season this year. He could have won MVP if he hadn't sprained his ankle ... and if LeBron James had suddenly retired.

So the $20 million damage claim kind of goes out the window, especially if Tony gets a ring.

Here's the good news -- In a year, he'll sign a new deal, and $20 mil may look like chump change.

They're only up 1-0, but Michael Rapaport tells TMZ ... San Antonio Spurs fans can break out the brooms, 'cause they're going to SWEEP the Miami Heat in the NBA finals.

Justin Bieber was the ringleader in a SECOND pap altercation in Miami Wednesday -- ordering his goons to steal a photog's camera ... all while the man pled desperately for mercy -- and the entire exchange was caught on tape.

The incident occurred outside The Hit Factory recording studio at around 4 AM ... just hours before Bieber's security guards allegedly choked another photographer, and tried to jack his camera equipment as well.

On the tape, you hear Justin scream to his bodyguards, "Grab that camera!!! Get that f***ing camera out of here!!!" (time code: 1:08)

You can hear the photog plead with Justin, who responds like a benevolent prince, "Alright, alright. I'm gonna give you your camera back. I'm gonna take your SIM card though."

The photog begs and pleads to let him keep his memory card -- even offering to delete the photos he took -- but Bieber is unmoved.

Authorities are currently investigating the altercation that took place later in the day -- but law enforcement tells us, police have no record of the earlier incident because it wasn't reported.

We reached out to Justin's people ... so far, no comment.

All told, Bieber's had three run-ins with photogs while in Miami this week -- the first incident occurred Monday night at the American Airlines Arena following the Heat game. Someone snapped this pic of Bieber on his cell phone and the singer reportedly flipped out.

NBA star Lance Stephenson isn't going to the Finals ... or to Disneyland -- but it's ok, because he did get to see a roomful of naked chicks at a famous Miami strip club ... TMZ has learned.

Just hours after Lance and the Indiana Pacers lost game 7 to the Miami Heat Monday ... the shooting guard eased his pain at King of Diamonds -- the gentleman's club where Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, and Rihanna frequently make it rain.

Lance on the other hand ... made it sprinkle. Our KOD sources say the 22-year-old stood in the corner most of the night, only got 2 lap dances, and dropped a grand total of about $1100.

Not that $1100 is chump change, but typically we've seen celebs shower dancers with $5,000 to $10,000.

In Lance's defense ... he's only a 3-year pro who's hardly making LeBron dollars.

Or maybe he just adheres to the laws of BBD.

Lakers star Metta World Peace went out on a limb -- making a bold prediction on who will win the NBA Finals ... and then the limb snapped when he tried to spell his pick.

We'll tell you this much ... Metta's riding with the San Antonio Spurs to take down LeBron James and the Miami Heat -- but you gotta hear how he spells it.

He might have been joking, but then again ...

As the former Secretary of Defense, there's one question we HAD to ask Donald Rumsfeld in D.C. yesterday -- IS THERE ANY WAY TO STOP LEBRON JAMES???

The funniest part -- Rummy actually ANSWERS the question!!

The whole exchange is pretty great -- and it's clear, when it comes to the upcoming NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the Miami Heat ... Donald's riding with the squad from South Beach.