NBA

An Arizona judge has issued a ruling laying the groundwork for Alejandra Nash to get a significant increase in child support.

It's definitely a victory of sorts ... but as Alejandra has stated in the past, her main goal is to move the kids to Los Angeles, so the war ain't exactly over.

As we previously reported, Alejandra says she wants to be in L.A. so the kids can be closer to their father, who plays for the Lakers -- but Nash says she's full of crap.

Steve believes she wants to be in Cali because the Golden State has child support laws that are much more favorable to Alejandra (and would allow her to get more $$$ from Steve than she would get in AZ). Plus, Steve claims she's a materialistic social climber who wants to be in L.A. to be in the Hollywood scene.

And don't forget Steve slammed L.A as a crappy place to raise children.

Bottom line -- the AZ child support ruling may be a victory for Alejandra on one level, but until her mail is sent to an L.A. address, this thing is far from over.

Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade put the nail in his divorce coffin ... finally reaching a financial settlement with his ex-wife, six years after their severely bitter split.

Wade's attorney released a statement earlier today saying the NBA champ "provided a very generous settlement" to Siohvaughn Funches. Wade filed for divorce in 2007 ... it was granted in 2010, and Wade was awarded sole custody of their two sons in 2011.

The divorce was brutal, especially regarding custody -- Siohvaughn was arrested last summer for allegedly attempting to abduct their kids. She subsequently accused Dwyane of all sorts of bad parenting, including depriving them of life-saving asthma medication.

On Friday, Funches publicly accused Wade of leaving her homeless and destitute, taking to the streets of Chicago with a sign that read, "NBA Miami Heat star, mother of his children on the streets.”.Wade claims he's been paying her $25,000 a month, and also paid for her mortgage and four cars.

As for custody, it's still a contentious issue -- Funches wants visitation again, but a court hasn't decided whether to give it to her.

No wonder she fought so hard ... Kobe Bryant's mother raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars selling her superstar son's stuff.

As TMZ reported ...Kobe and his mom Pamela Bryant fought an epic battle -- when she tried to auction off a bunch of his sports memorabilia -- Kobe even sued her to block the sale. The two struck a deal -- the NBA star allowed her to sell around 10% of the treasure trove.

Well the auction ended Friday night ... and Kobe's old junk fetched a pretty penny -- 6 figures in all.

-- 2000 NBA L.A. Lakers Championship ring: $165,889.80
-- 2000 All Star ring: $52,854
-- Kobe's used H.S. Uniform: $48,048.15
-- Kobe's used Lakers jersey: $7,938.45 (less than the H.S. jersey, shockingly)
-- Kobe American Flag Adidas Sneakers: $7,216.25

A lot more was sold. All in all the items raked in $450,000.

Ni-Hao people of Los Angeles ... ex-NBA star turned Chinese b-baller Gilbert Arenas just dropped a couple million bucks on a sick new pad in the valley ... with killer views (not killer sharks).

Arenas -- who left the NBA in 2012 and now plays for the Shanghai Sharks -- bought a 5,853-square-foot casa in Encino, CA. He still owns his other home in Virginia as well (i.e. the one with the shark tank).

According to docs, Arenas took out a loan for $1.7 million for the digs. It's unclear what the final sale price was, but the house was previously listed for $2.5 million ... so he probably coughed up a hefty down payment.

As for the crib -- despite being in the Valley -- it's pretty sick. Tuscan villa design, 5 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, maids quarters, grill and BBQ ... plus the pool and spa sit at the edge of a cliff, creating views to die for.

After more than a decade in the league, NBA star Matt Barnes FINALLY signed the mega-contract he's always wanted ... telling TMZ, "I've been underpaid for a long time."

Barnes -- who recently inked a 3-year $11 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers -- was working out at TapouT in L.A. yesterday when we congratulated him on striking it rich.

"It's been a long time coming," said Barnes ... who only made $854,389 last season.

When we asked why he thought it took so long to get such a big contract, Barnes didn't hold back -- saying, "I don't know ... I don't think they liked me."

It's unclear who the "they" is ... considering he's played for multiple NBA teams including the Lakers, the Suns, Orlando and Golden State.

FYI -- back in 2010, Barnes passed on more lucrative offers to sign with the Lakers, hoping the opportunity to play in L.A. would lead him to a bigger contract down the line. It didn't work out at the time, but after the incredible season he had with the Clips last year, it would have been hard for the team NOT to show him the money.

Metta World Peace says he seriously considered retiring from the NBA when he was dropped from the Lakers ... because he REEALLLY wanted to drink mudslides on a beach in Florida.

Mudslides are, in fact, delicious.

"I was thinking about just going down to like Destin, Florida ... 'which is one of the best beaches in America that's not too expensive to travel to," Metta says.

"So I was thinking about going to Destin, Florida or maybe going to Sarasota and just enjoying the beach. Sitting back ... mudslides. I loooove some mudslides."

So, why didn't he hang 'em up? 33-year-old Metta says he still has 3-5 good years left in the league ... and he's really excited to play with the New York Knicks.

Denver Nuggets star Kenneth Faried plays power forward, and now -- thanks to his own drunken rant -- we know the source of his power ... is in his pants*.

(*according to KF's calculations)

OK ... this video is INSANE -- but in a good way ... a way that's going to make you laugh, make you shake your head, laugh again ... and then wonder, "What the hell did I just watch?"

The star of the video is Denver Nuggets superstar Kenneth Faried -- who also happens to be on the cover of the ESPN body issue ... the one with all the naked athletes.

The 23-year-old was leaving Lure nightclub in Hollywood last night -- and seemed a little boozy (but in a playful way) ... when things quickly spun out of control.

First -- our guy had no idea who Kenneth was (so Kenneth messed with him and told him he's a soccer player ... pretty funny).

As Kenneth continues to mess with our guy, one of the NBA star's friends whips out the ESPN mag ... and our photog finally puts 2 and 2 together. It's hilarious.

And that's when the REAL fun begins ... with our photog asking about the naked photo shoot:

Photog: Were you nervous in the nude?
Kenneth: No! My d**k is big!!!

Kenneth then holds up the cover and starts musing on and on about his physique ... "I'm a SEXY INDIVIDUAL. Look at that s**t. You see that s**t? Look at them yams! Look at them abs!"

KF also says he's down to do Playgirl ... but there's a catch.

The best part of the encounter ... Kenneth took the responsible route home -- and got into a waiting SUV.

Former NBA star Jason Kidd just pled guilty to drunk driving in New York ... but the Brooklyn Nets coach won't spend a single day behind bars.

As we previously reported, Kidd was arrested on July 15, 2012 ... after crashing his Cadillac SUV into a telephone poll around 2am. Cops say he reeked of booze.

In the hours leading up to the crash, Kidd was partying at a club and appeared so drunk, he had to be carried out of the place.

This morning, Kidd pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor DWI (driving while intoxicated) ... and was placed on interim probation. Kidd was also ordered to speak to high school students in Long Island about the dangers of driving drunk.

FYI -- "interim probation" is a voluntary version of regular probation. Bottom line -- if Kidd violates his probation, the judge can still throw his ass in jail.

LeBron James has sent out his wedding invites -- problem is the nuptials are SO top secret they don't list a time or location ... but instead send invited guests on a clandestine retrieval mission.

According to the invites -- obtained by TMZ -- LeBron and Savannah Brinson are still tying the knot on the weekend of Sept.13th to 15th, somewhere in San Diego (which we knew from the Save the Date).

But the invites are super vague ... only listing a "Welcome Barbeque" at 7pm on Friday, Sept 13th (which is the beginning of Yom Kippur. Sorry Jews). Then listing a "Farewell Brunch" at 10:30 am Sunday.

THERE IS NO MENTION OF AN ADDRESS OR SATURDAY'S CEREMONY!!!!!

Instead, guests are instructed to call a top secret phone number by August 1st. After guests call the number, someone will get back to them with actual details.

Wanna get Allen Iverson to pay his child support bill? Threaten jail ... because the ex-NBA star finally coughed up the $40,000 he owed his ex wife ... narrowly escaping time in the slammer.

TMZ broke the story ... Iverson's ex, Tawanna, has been trying to collect child support from the b-baller since their divorce was finalized in February, but no cigar. Then, last month she asked a judge to throw him in jail, if he continued to dodge the bill: $8,000 / month for the last 5 months.

In new court docs -- filed last month in Fulton County, GA -- Iverson said he never paid the money because he was led to believe he and Tawanna would reconcile.

Taking a hard stance a judge ordered Iverson pony up the cash within 72 hours ... or be arrested.

The threat apparently worked, Iverson's lawyer tells TMZ ... "Allen has complied with the order and met every term for which he was required."

Gilbert Arenas says his explosive arrest for having a truckload (literally) of fireworks did not put a damper on his show ... because he had TWO MORE truckloads worth!!!

TMZ broke the story ... the former NBA All-Star was arrested on June 27 after cops found him with 100 lbs worth of illegal fireworks.

But Arenas tells TMZ he was carrying the fireworks (which he claims were "technically" not illegal) for a charity fireworks event AND still managed to make it happen ... despite the setback.

He says, "I had three trucks full. They just got the one." Adding "It was epic."

Sure sounds like it.

One of the L.A. photogs Lamar Odom went nuts on this week has lawyered up, law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... and we're told the man plans to press charges against the NBA star.

According to sources, detectives are still investigating the incident -- when Lamar flipped on two photogs in Hollywood, damaging equipment and allegedly smashing one of their cars -- but the case will most likely be forwarded to the L.A. City Attorney soon for criminal prosecution.

It's unclear which photog is pursuing legal recourse ... but we're told one DEFINITELY wants to see Lamar go down for what he did.

As we reported, it appears Lamar snapped because a photog asked questions about Khloe Kardashian ... namely about Lamar's alleged extramarital affair with a stripper.

It's now clear why Lamar Odom flipped out on a paparazzo in L.A. yesterday -- he was pissed that the snapper repeatedly hammered him about a report he cheated on Khloe Kardashian.

The confrontation was all captured on video as the photog -- not a TMZ guy -- rolled up to Lamar's car and asked if he stepped out on Khloe with a stripper.

At first, Lamar calmly answered the question -- saying, "I would never cheat on my wife, that's why I wear my wedding ring."

But things quickly turned -- when Lamar asked the photog for his name and then said, "I'm gonna step out the car and I'm gonna talk to you."

The video cuts ... and when it turns back on, Lamar is in the middle of the street with the photog's gear ... and eventually puts it in his trunk.

The photog pleads for his stuff back -- Lamar replies, "Shut up."

Lamar Odom went absolutely nuts on 2 paparazzi in Hollywood this afternoon ... smashing a car, a camera ... and then fleeing the scene -- apparently with some of the destroyed camera gear.

The violent incident was captured on video ... where Mr. Khloe Kardashian was seen going into the back of a car belonging to one of the paps, and chucking all of the guy's equipment into the middle of a busy street.

He then walked across the street and smashed another photog's car with a metal bar, then picked up all the gear from the street and put it in his trunk.

Curiously, right after raging against the paps, Lamar also had a run-in with a fan -- and couldn't have been nicer. Watch the video ... it's kinda bizarre.

It's unclear why Lamar was so angry ... when the video starts he's already digging through the pap's car.

Here's a video of some chick with a GREAT ASS ... hangin' out with Memphis Grizzlies player Austin Daye in L.A. last week.

In less exciting news, it appears Daye got a parking ticket that day ... so that sucks ... but who cares -- LOOK AT THAT BUTT!