NBA

Here's James Harden proving he doesn't need teammates to shine ... getting his solo groove on after hours at one of the hottest clubs in NYC.

It went down at 1 OAK, where we're told Harden was partying with his crew (and some lovely ladies) until the early hours of Wednesday morning.

We're told the spot normally closes up shop at 4 AM, but James asked they stay open an hour later (which they do all the time for celebs) and the resulting groove is captured in this video.

BTW -- the song is "Heartbreak On A Full Moon" by Chris Brown ... and yeah, it's a jam, even if you don't want it to be.

Barack Obama just gave Michael Jordan the royal seal ... telling Prince Harry that he'd take His Airness over King James as the GOAT, without hesitation.

Obama sat down with Harry in a rare interview that aired Wednesday on BBC Radio 4 ... talking about everything from his presidency to Donald Trump.

But, when it came to the Prince's round of rapid-fire questions ... Harry immediately got Barack -- a HUGE NBA fan -- to close the book on the MJ vs. Bron debate.

"Jordan. Although I love LeBron, I'm a Chicago guy," Obama said.

Of course, Barack's pick ain't too surprising given his Bulls allegiance ... even though him and MJ haven't always seen eye-to-eye on everything.

American Airlines has issued an apology to two professional basketball players -- including ex-Chicago Bulls player Marquis Teague -- after they were kicked off a plane by a flight attendant who accused them of stealing blankets.

Teague -- the Bulls 1st round pick in the 2012 NBA Draft -- boarded a flight in Dallas on Sunday with his Memphis Hustle teammate Trahson Burrell. Both players are black.

As they headed back to their coach seats, two 1st class passengers handed the players their blankets. Problem is ... a flight attendant accused the men of stealing the blankets and kicked them off the plane.

American Airlines says the flight attendant involved is also black.

Add James Harden to the list of NBA players showing support for Meek Mill ... 'cause the Houston Rockets superstar visited the rapper in prison on Tuesday and says "his spirit is high."

Harden took some time in-between games to visit Meek at the State Correctional Institution in Chester, PA and reported back on social media.

"Got a chance to see my bro Meek Mill today. His spirit is high and hopefully we can get him out by February," Harden wrote.

"Told me to tell y'all when he get out he got some (fire) for y'all."

Sources connected to Meek tell TMZ Sports ... the NBA star had some special "Free Meek" sneakers whipped up and plans to rock them on the court on Thursday when the Rockets play the Celtics.

As we previously reported, Joel Embiid and 76ers owner Michael Rubin visited Meek last month and said he was doing well. Colin Kaepernick also spoke with Meek and said Meek was "humbled" by the support.

Don't get too comfy, Kobe ... Marco Rubio says "there's no doubt" the Heat are gonna retire LeBron's jersey -- giving the King two numbers up in the rafters (but in different arenas).

We got the Florida Senator out in D.C. ... and Marco told us there are no hard feelings over Bron taking his talents outta South Beach.

"He won 2 championships down there. We went to the finals 4 years in a row. Those were great days," Rubio told TMZ Sports.

So, #6 is goin' up in Miami just like #23 is goin' up in Cleveland.

Maybe not as epic as having 2 jerseys retired in 1 night ... but still pretty legendary.

Secret convo with Lonzo Ball? Buying another mansion in Brentwood?

LeBron James sure ain't quieting down the noise surrounding him coming to L.A. ... and ex-Lakers coach Byron Scott says the odds are damn good that happens.

"I think it's probably 50/50 right now," Byron told TMZ Sports outside Craig's in WeHo.

To be clear, Byron's assigning those odds to JUST the Lakers ... saying it ain't lookin' so good for the other team in Tinseltown.

But, when it comes to the Lake Show bringing in 'Bron (and Paul George) ... hell to the yes.

Nick Young says it's painfully obvious why the Patriots are so damn successful -- the NFL's CHEATING FOR THEM.

On the same night as his accidental Iggy Azalea reunion, we also got Swaggy P to weigh in on the controversial Pats-Steelers ending from last Sunday.

Young told us Pittsburgh got screwed on the overturned TD call ... not like it surprised him.

"Yeah man, they got cheated," Young told TMZ Sports. "They always cheat for the Patriots ... they can't do no wrong."

Swaggy even speculated the NFL might have its own Tim Donaghy problem ... saying gambling probably played a role in the Pats getting the W.

Kenny Smith isn't trying to be a hater ... but he says there's one really huge flaw with LaVar Ball's plan to launch a pre-NBA hoops league for guys who don't want to play in college.

LaVar's plan is to sign 80 players for his Junior Basketball League -- a paid league for players who graduated high school and are looking for an alternative to the NCAA. The league will pay players between $3,000 and $10,000 a month.

But Kenny says he doesn't think LaVar will be able to find 80 kids good enough to sustain the league -- pointing out the NBA already has the "G-League" for players facing that exact dilemma.

Blake Griffin was spotted perusing one of girlfriend Kendall Jenner's favorite jewelry stores in L.A., leaving one GIGANTIC question ... what's in the box??

The Clippers star was at XIV Karats in Beverly Hills Friday, which happens to be a store Kendall frequents. It's unclear exactly what Blake was checking out -- but he was seen a short time later leaving the shopping center with a bag.

Considering Griffin recently signed on for nearly $200 million to stay in Los Angeles, something tells us whatever he decides to get Kendall will be reallll nice.

Lot of toilet information to unpack in this post ...

First, Charlie Villanueva finally got his replacement toilet (courtesy of Poo-Pourri) after his crapper was stolen from his Dallas home earlier this week.

Charlie says ever since he went public about the burglary ... he's learned millions of people around the world don't have toilets and he now realizes there's a global sanitation crisis. He seems moved by the information and wants to help.

Also, we're told cops are getting closer to finding out who stole Charlie's toilet -- Dallas PD sent an investigator to the home and we're told there are real leads.

Turns out Santa Claus is real, and he's black, and he plays for the Washington Wizards -- because John Wall just got into the holiday spirit by buying Rolex watches for ALL of his teammates.

We talked with some peeps over at Govberg Jewelers in Philadelphia who tell us Wall came to them some time ago with the idea to cop Rolex President Day-Date watches for every member of the Wiz squad.

BTW -- these watches retail around $40k -- and the Wizards have 16 guys on the roster, so that's around $640k worth of yuletide.

Before you start to feel bad about the sweater you got your sibling, Wall signed a $207 million extension with the Wiz back in June, so y'all definitely aren't the same.

Get this ... Lakers player Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is serving a 25-day jail sentence -- AND playing in the NBA at the same time.

No, this is not a joke.

24-year-old KCP was sentenced to 25 days after pleading guilty to violating his probation stemming from a DUI arrest in Michigan back in March.

The NBA player was initially sentenced to 12-months probation -- and was required to submit to drug and alcohol testing. Problem is ... he didn't comply, so the judge ordered him to be locked up.

But here's the catch ... the judge allowed KCP to do a "work-release" sentence -- where he's locked up at a facility for most of the day ... but he's allowed to leave to do his job.

Lonzo Ball ain't the only Lakers rookie looking to make a dent in the sports apparel game ... his teammate, Kyle Kuzma, is also hawking his own line of shirts -- and they're selling like crazy.

Kuzma teed up some "Kuzmania" shirts on his website over the weekend -- and sold all 1,000 of 'em super quick. Now, he says he's got another batch on the way.

And get this ... they actually have a reasonable price tag at $27 a pop ... roughly half the price of a Big Baller Brand shirt.

And with Kuzma coming off a 38-point performance against the Rockets, his stock is rising in a big way.

Think LaVar's jealous??

Of course, Kuz and Lonzo are pretty tight -- Kuz even roasted Zo for his "$600" BBB hat -- but you gotta wonder if this is a little bit of a swag rivalry.

Tristan Thompson's Kardashian spawn ain't just gonna make him more famous ... it could damn well make him a better basketball player -- so says NBA vet Jim Jackson.

We got J-Jax at Cafe Gratitude in L.A. ... and he told us why knockin' up Khloe might translate to a fiercer Tristan on the hardwood.

"Having a child always settles you down a little bit," Jackson told TMZ Sports. "Maybe a kid settles him down and gives him more focus."

Seems like Jim isn't buying into the Kardashian curse -- basically saying TT should be good as long as he keeps handling business for the Cavs.

John Salley says Magic Johnson called him the day after the NBA legend's 1991 earth-shattering HIV announcement ... to ask if Isiah Thomas had been privately dissing him for contracting the disease.

Johnson and Thomas ended their decades-old feud this week with a teary-eyed reconciliation -- part of a sit-down interview between the two men.

Salley played with Zeke on the Bad Boy Pistons team of the 80's, and when we reached out to him to ask him about the hatchet burying, he gave us some insight into why things were so bad in the first place.

"I know how tough it was. The morning after Magic announced I was on the phone with him, and he asked me, 'Did Isiah say such and such?'"

The fact Johnson was so concerned with Thomas' reaction to his illness shows how fractured their relationship was -- and why it took nearly 30 years to repair things.

Salley went on to say he's glad Magic and Isiah have patched things up -- and the fact that Johnson apologized for the way he treated Zeke really makes a difference.

"I'm the biggest Magic Johnson fan ever ... and now even more."

LaVar Ball says his new amateur hoops league is gonna crush the competition ... and he's got a loud, pointed message for anyone doubting his ability to run the show.

"The (Junior Basketball Association) is a heck of a league! Gonna be one of the most exciting ever!"

"And for all you haters out there -- keep doin' what you been doin' -- NOTHING!" LaVar said in a video posted to social media.

The Big Baller Brand honcho says the JBA – a league recruiting top amateur players like his son, LaMelo -- is ahead of the curve ... and finally paying young players "what they're worth" ($3k-$10k per month, reportedly).

LaVar also seems to take a shot at FS1's Jason Whitlock ... which is kinda confusing since Whitlock basically went to bat for Ball on Wednesday.