NBA

It's summertime ... so, here's DeAndre Jordan teaming up with his best party pal, Kevin Durant, to celebrate his birthday in Vegas ... with a guest appearance by one of the hottest DJs in the world.

DeAndre and his brothers hit up the Encore Beach Club at the Wynn in Vegas to celebrate the Clippers star's 29th birthday.

The NBA superstars kicked it with Diplo at the DJ booth -- they also had 3 cabanas for their party crew.

Sources at the party tell us the guys sipped on everything from Don Julio 1942 to Ciroc and even some Moet Nectar Champagne.

From what we're told, everyone had a blast -- despite the blistering 108 DEGREE temperature day!

By the way, KD and DJ are pretty tight off the court -- last summer, they traveled to Greece together after the Olympic gold medal victory to celebrate with a bunch of hot chicks in bikinis.

Joel Embiid just offered an olive branch to LaVar Ball ... but peace comes with three commas.

With the war raging between Embiid and Lonzo Ball's dad, we asked the Philadelphia 76ers star if there was ANY way he'd ever rock a pair of ZO2s on the hardwood this season.

There is one way -- but LaVar would have to cut a BILLION DOLLAR check!

Embiid has been firing shots at LaVar for a while -- dissing him on Twitter when Lonzo got drafted and following up by dropping an F-bomb on the Big Baller.

LaVar shot back by saying he was an injury-prone loser who spends too much time on social media.

CAN'T WAIT for the 76ers to play the Lakers this season!

University of Kentucky coaching legend John Calipari says he'd love to see his Wildcats link up in the NBA and make a run at a title ... but tells TMZ Sports, he'd NEVER coach the group.

UK greats Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins are already hooping together in New Orleans, and there's been some talk that they could try to lure other blue bloods to play there with them in the future.

Can you imagine a squad with Cousins, Davis, John Wall, and the rest of the boys taking on the NBA?

Well Calipari said he could when we got him out in D.C., telling our guys it would be fun to watch and that the boys would give the NBA some serious heartache.

He also got all fuzzy about his relationship with UK superfan Drake, waxing poetic about how much he loves the guy ... and telling us why.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver is showin' mad love for Lonzo Ball ... saying it's Zo's game -- not his dad, LaVar's big mouth -- that has the whole league buzzin'.

We talked to Silver -- one of the coolest guys in all of sports -- about all the talk surrounding the Ball family ... and he says he likes what he sees from the Summer League MVP so far.

There's more ... Silver also says he's a big fan of Ice Cube's BIG3 league and suggests there might be a way for the two leagues to work together in the future. Cool, right?

He also weighs in on the Houston Rockets sale and reveals which pro league commissioner foots the bill when all the honchos get together for lunch.

Lonzo Ball will have plenty of time to crush all the celebrity ass he wants -- AFTER he starts to kill it in the NBA ... so, don't go chasing the Kardashians just yet.

This is the wise message from ex-Laker Shannon Brown ... who knows all about dating famous women.

Of course, Brown famously married R&B star Monica back in 2010 -- after Brown had already won 2 NBA titles with the Lake Show.

Brown isn't saying to stay away from Kylie, Kendall or any other K-family member who might be interested (Kris?) ... he's just sayin' wait a minute.

BTW, Lonzo already has a hot girlfriend ... so, in theory, it shouldn't be a problem.

Rap star Kid Ink better hope the L.A. Clippers can win without Chris Paul next year, 'cause if they don't ... he's gonna become a walking TMZ billboard!!

The "Supersoaka" spitter is a HUGE Clips fan! Our camera guy, a big Miami Heat supporter. So when we ran into K.I. out in NYC, we tested his confidence in the team with a wager:

If the Clippers finish with a better record than the Heat next season, our photog will have to get a tattoo of Kid Ink's Batgang crew logo permanently etched on him. But if the Clips end up below Miami in the win column, the rapper's gotta get the TMZ logo tatted on him!!

FYI -- the MIA won 41 games last season. The LAC, 51 ... but that was with CP3.

For being such high stakes, the dude doesn't seem worried one bit. On the other hand, he already has like, a million tattoos. So what's one more?

Here's something you might not be used to seeing ... Terrell Owens taking the high road ... telling TMZ Sports he still loves Ice Cube and the BIG3 league, even though Cube killed T.O.'s hoop dreams.

Owens recently told us he wanted a spot in the league and made a personal plea to Ice Cube to make it happen, saying he had tried to get in and was getting the runaround.

We saw Cube and LAX and shot T.O.'s shot for him, and Cube straight Mutombo'd it ... saying the league is strictly for former NBA players, which Owens is NOT.

As luck would have it, we got T.O. mere moments after we saw Cube and broke him the news, and Terrell couldn't have been cooler with the disappointment, saying he's still 100% behind the league.

We tried T.O., but that Ice Cube can be downright cold (get it?).

Khloe Kardashian and Tristan Thompson might be shacking up together in a new crib .. kinda.

Khloe and her NBA superstar BF spent their Wednesday house hunting in L.A. We're told they're not buying a house together ... he's looking to rent a place in the Hollywood Hills or the Valley where he and Khloe can stay when they're in the city. She has a house in Calabasas -- Bieber's old house -- about an hour's drive from Hollywood..

We're told Tristan's budget is around $60k a month, and he wants to rent through September.

Khloe's said she'd marry Tristan if he proposed ... maybe this is the first step.

NBA champ John Salley ain't buying into the rumors that LeBron James is unhappy with the Cavs ... but if the King decides to bail on Cleveland again, he's got the perfect destination in mind -- L.A.!!

We spoke with the ex-Laker about the news of LBJ's frustration with the Cavs' lack of off-season moves ... and, although Salley doesn't believe it, he still makes a pitch to get Bron to join the Purple & Gold in 2018.

It's been rumored that King James would end up in La La Land, especially since he owns a home in Brentwood ... and Salley says it would be an "unbelievable plan."

Good news Laker fans ... a new era of Showtime could be right around the corner, that's according to Magic Johnson's wife, Cookie, who says Lonzo Ball has what it takes to be the next Magic.

Lonzo's been KILLIN' it in the Summer League, serving notice to the entire basketball world that he's really, really, good.

Question is, just how good can he be?

Cookie thinks he can be as good as her All-Universe husband, and told us as much when we got her out in Beverly Hills.

We'd say it's unfair to put such Hall of Fame expectations on the kid, but for some reason we think he's used to it.

Draymond Green is livin' it up like the world champion he is ... raging in Ibiza with international soccer superstar Neymar!!

Day Day and his boys -- including Dolphins DE Andre Branch -- have been in Spain this past week, and it's only right he hit up the Barcelona stud to show him around all the hot spots like Ushuaïa at Ibiza Beach Hotel.

In case ya didn't know, Draymond and Neymar are bros ... and the soccer stud even hit up the NBA Finals to watch Green beat up on the Cavs.

The partyin' is fresh off reports that Neymar has accepted Paris Saint-Germain's world-record $257 million transfer fee ... although FC Barcelona's honchos claim their star is going nowhere.

It's interesting ... 'cause Draymond has been rumored to be a HUGE PSG fan and has even been spotted wearing the French club's jersey several times. Sooooo ... maybe doing some recruiting?

Regardless, looked like one hell of a time.

Rock legend Flea -- a die-hard Lakers fan -- says he sees unparalleled GREATNESS in Lonzo Ball ... and guarantees he'll win Rookie of the Year.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist is no bandwagoner -- the guy is a hardcore hoops fan. He regularly attends high school games to scout out the top rising stars in the state. He's also had Lakers season tix for decades.

To say he's impressed with Lonzo's talent is a gross understatement -- you gotta watch the clip, he thinks Ball is already better than the legendary Jason Kidd.

Listen up Ice Cube, one of the greatest athletes of all time is about to ask you for a gig ... Terrell Owens, who is publicly asking Cube for a shot at hoops glory in the BIG3 league.

It's no secret Owens is a baller, his exploits in different leagues and charity games are well documented on Youtube, but when we talked to him, he told us he wants to try it on the pro level.

"I tried to get into that league. I gotta get Ice Cube's number to get my name in the hat to get on one of those teams."

The rub? The BIG3 league has been billed as primarily for ex-NBA and other professional BASKETBALL players to try their hand at. T.O. of course starred in the NFL.

That didn't stop him from making an impassioned plea to try his hand alongside Allen Iverson, Rashad McCants, Rashard Lewis and Kwame Brown, and it's clear he's 100% serious.

Washington Wizards player Kelly Oubre, Jr. ain't throwin' any punches, but he's still going for a knockout ... getting a custom-made, 14k white gold grill with his "K.O." initials on it!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... KOJ decided to treat himself to the white and purple VS+ diamond piece ... and hit up jeweler IF & Co. about a month ago for the job.

We're told Oubre dropped $12,000 for the finished product ... which is pretty tame compared to what other athletes have paid for their blinged-out mouth pieces in the past.

Regardless, the grill looks fresh as hell.

Another day, another enemy for LaVar Ball ... this time it's NFL superstar J.J. Watt who roasted Ball over the ZO2s ... saying they suck, are overpriced ... and most importantly, Watt's shoes are better.

Watt took to Twitter to announce the release of his $99 Reebok training shoe and took the time to call out Ball when he did it ... posting a not-so-subtle shot at the Big Baller Brand boss.

"400 dollars less than some shoes on the market and 100% more effective" ... "And I actually wear them."

LaVar and Lonzo's sneakers retail for $495.

Lonzo's been killin' it in the NBA Summer League ... but only since he stopped wearing the ZO2s ... and switched to Kobe's Nikes and Harden's Adidas kicks.

Shots fired.

Klay Thompson's dad, Mychal, says the Warriors better hope the Carmelo Anthony trade is dead, 'cause if the Rockets get Melo, they'll be a legit threat to dethrone his son's team.

Houston's already stacked with James Harden and CP3 ... so we asked Thompson -- a former NBA stud himself -- if acquiring Melo would make the Rockets the best team in the league.

"You add Carmelo Anthony to Chris Paul and James Harden, you gotta take them serious."

But is it enough to topple KD, Steph, Klay and Draymond?

We also talked to Mychal about Klay's epic dance moves in China ... guess where KK got those moves.