NBA

How hyped is Rick Ross on Dwyane Wade being back with the Heat??

We asked the Miami rap star on his way outta London Hotel in New York City and he let us know in the most Boss way possible.

"Of course! Dwyane Wade. Wade County. The Spoelstra Nostra. The Heat gang. We goin' back!" he told TMZ Sports.

Rough translation -- D-Wade's back home with coach Erik Spoelstra ... and together, they can take his squad back to the Finals!!

It ain't gonna be easy -- Miami is currently the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference, but they've lost 7 outta their last 10 games.

Wade's reportedly embracing his role as a bench player -- but Spoelstra says he's open to moving Dwyane into the starting lineup if he starts ballin' out again.

How would Golden State Warriors co-owner Peter Guber handle LaVar Ball if Lonzo played for his team?

You're about to find out ...

We spoke with Guber outside Madeo in L.A. and asked about LaVar's newest ultimatum -- that he'll pull Lonzo off the Lakers if they don't sign his 2 other sons LiAngelo and LaMelo in the next 2 years.

"I don't listen to that conversation," Guber said.

He then mouthed a bunch of words he'd like to say to LaVar -- but quite honestly, we couldn't really make out what he was trying to say.

LeBron James is going OLD SCHOOL ... producing a remake of the 1990 classic "House Party" -- and he's tapping Donald Glover's brother to make it happen.

LeBron and his producing partner, Maverick Carter, are spearheading the project through their production company, Springhill Entertainment ... with "Atlanta" writers, Stephen Glover and Jamal Olori, doing the screenplay.

By the way, did you know there were actually FIVE "House Party" movies -- including the latest installment, "House Party: Tonight's the Night" which was released straight to DVD in 2013.

No word if Kid or Play will be involved in the Bron remake -- but c'mon, gotta hook 'em up with a cameo right?!

Now watch this dance move that we KNOW you did back in the '90s.

Some of the biggest stars in the NBA went to La Salle University on Sunday to pay tribute to Rasual Butler ... and honored their friend by circling together for an emotional chant.

Chris Paul, Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, Jim Jackson and others were in Philadelphia for the "service of love" for Butler ... who was killed in a car crash in L.A. on January 31.

CP3 was one of the speakers -- he and Butler played together back with the Hornets.

We're told the event was more of a celebration of Rasual's life -- and the highlight was when the NBA stars and Butler's friends huddled together to perform a chant in his honor.

Lonzo Ball was serving up some Migos with a side of booty on "Lip Sync Battle" ... where he performed with a twerking girl who nearly threw her back out during LB's session.

The Lakers rookie performed "Bad and Boujee" on the show (which airs Thursday) -- while decked out in a studded leather jacket and dreadlocks.

Oh yeah, LaVar Ball was on set, too ... because of course.

Chrissy Teigen seemed to love the performance -- and Lonzo invited her to be one of his twerk girls in future performances.

Cardi B isn't letting death threats from the Crips block her from a 6-figure payday over NBA All-Star Weekend -- it's all part of street life, as far as she's concerned.

Sources close to Cardi tell TMZ ... she's sticking to her 3 scheduled appearances next week in L.A. -- including one with her fiance, Offset, and his Migos mates -- and she has no fear of gang retaliation.

As we reported, the nightclubs hosting her events are beefing up, but Cardi's viewing everything as business as usual. We're told she's reminding everyone on her team -- from record company execs on down -- she's from the streets, so nobody's stopping her bankroll.

Our source says Cardi had no idea her use of the word "Flue" on IG would upset so many people, and that's why she deleted it, but that's the ONLY thing she's changing. After all, we're told there's around $250k on the table for the weekend.

Shawn Bradley -- arguably the most posterized player in NBA history -- has an important message for this generation's slam dunk victims ... your heads are in the right place!!

We talked hoops with the 7-footer at LAX ... and our conversation eventually got to the thing he's most famous for -- being on the receiving end of soul-crushing jams.

Turns out, Bradley's damn proud of it -- telling TMZ Sports that putting yourself in harm's way is the mark of a true baller.

"Watching some of these young guys, the ones that don't shy away -- it's OK to get dunked on, just go get 'em next time -- that attitude is the one I think is refreshing," Bradley said.

Shawn also told us his most memorable poster ... and we ain't surprised.

Paul George, Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony aren't gonna let a 106-81 loss to the Lakers pups get them down, 'cause all 3 men hit the hottest spots in L.A. after getting stomped at Staples.

PG and Melo got the night started at Craig's, grabbing some food while George deftly dodged all those Lakers questions. Guessing they just wanted to lick those post-loss wounds on a full stomach, right?

WRONG, 'cause later they met up with Russ at Poppy -- a big L.A. late night hot spot -- where the guys got a little turnt up and seemed to be in good spirits.

The Lakers have been CRUSHIN' IT the past few games ... and you can tell by all of the huge celebrity fans who've rushed back to their courtside seats!

Pharrell, Floyd Mayweather, Will Ferrell and a bunch of other stars were all courtside to watch the Purple & Gold put a beating on the OKC Thunder 106-81 ... L.A.'s 8th win in the last 10 games.

L.A. fans can be fickle when it comes to their sports teams -- even Jack Nicholson stopped coming to games and thought about giving up his tickets back in 2015 when the Lakers were terrible.

But now that the Lakers are on a hot streak, there's a pretty good chance we'll see Jack, Leo ... hell, maybe even David Beckham again?!

The son of former NBA coach Rick Adelman -- who was an assistant NBA coach himself -- was killed in Houston when he was struck by a vehicle while crossing the street ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Officials confirm 44-year-old R.J. Adelman was walking around downtown Houston around noon on Feb. 2 when he was hit by an 80-year-old woman driving a Chrysler Town & Country minivan.

According to the police report, Adelman was not using a crosswalk at the time of the accident.

Adelman was transported to the hospital in serious condition and was pronounced dead 4 hours later. According to the Harris County medical examiner, Adelman died as a result of blunt force injuries.

The driver was questioned by police and released without charges. However, we're told the accident is still under investigation.

R.J. was a scout for the Sonics and the Kings before becoming an assistant coach with the Houston Rockets while his father was the head coach. He later followed his dad to Minnesota where he took a job as Director of Player Personnel for the Timberwolves.

Back up off that ledge, Knicks fans -- Dr. Oz says Kristaps Porzingis can get 110% better from his torn ACL ... if he takes his advice.

We got doc Oz out in NYC ... and he broke down why Kristaps' season-ending injury ain't the end of the world (just the Knicks' season).

Don't get it twisted -- the celeb surgeon told TMZ Sports Porzingis is gonna have to bust his ass in rehab ... but if he follows a few of his recovery tips, Oz says he can legitimately "come back better than ever before."

An Australian politician is so pissed Ben Simmons didn't make the NBA All-Star game, he took the floor during a government session and alleged a full-fledged "Anti-Australian conspiracy!"

"No one with two brain cells to rub together would want Goran Dragic on their team," M.P. Tim Watts said this week in his Parliamentary address.

FYI, Simmons was born and raised in Australia before moving to the U.S. -- and the people Down Under are clearly bitter he's not getting the love they think he deserves.

"In a record breaking rookie year for the Philadelphia 76ers, Ben is currently averaging nearly 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists per game. He’s already had five triple doubles," Watts said.

He's also upset Australian-born NBA player Joe Ingles was not included in the 3-point contest -- saying, "[It] makes me think there’s some kind of anti-Australian conspiracy going on at league head office at the moment."

"If you thought that Australia was angry about the Simpsons vs. Australia TV episode, Yanks, you ain’t seen nothing yet."

Lonzo Ball is gonna be a daddy!!

The L.A. Lakers superstar and his longtime girlfriend, Denise Garcia, are expecting a Baby Baller together ... TMZ Sports has confirmed with multiple sources connected to the situation.

Zo and Denise have been dating since their days at Chino Hills H.S. ... and we're told Denise's family is excited to meet the baby and already loves it unconditionally.

We're told Denise is 4 months pregnant. We're told the baby is very healthy. No word on whether it's a boy or a girl ... but we're guessing LaVar is hoping for a hooper to continue the BBB legacy.

Congrats!!!

Baron Davis thinks Cardi B is probably safe in L.A. despite her recent Crips diss on social media ... but he ain't making any guarantees.

"Cardi B ain't no gangbanger," the South Central native told TMZ Sports.

Our photog asked if anyone will "press her up" when she comes to town for NBA All-Star weekend.

Baron replied: "I don't know that. The homegirls might."

FYI, Cardi has been getting serious threats on social media for saying she hates wearing "Flue" -- a derogatory term for the Crips' gang color.

Cardi has recently claimed to be a member of the Bloods.

The car crash that killed beloved ex-NBA player Rasual Butler and his wife, Leah LaBelle, was so loud, the audio was picked up on a home surveillance camera about a block and a half away from the incident.

You can hear the tires screeching for roughly 2 seconds -- followed by a series of loud bangs.

Cops say Butler's Range Rover was traveling at very high speed around 2:30 AM on Jan. 31 when he lost control and struck several parking meters, slammed into a wall and flipped two times before coming to a stop.

Judging from the audio, it sounds like Butler slammed on the brakes and tried to avoid the collision -- but he was going too fast to regain control of the vehicle.

Butler was one of the most well-liked guys in the NBA -- and tons of huge stars like Ray Allen and Kobe Bryant paid tribute to him after the incident.

Butler was 38. Leah was 31.

Three Kardashian baby daddies are all taking a leap of faith ... that their baby mamas will give them proper custody and/or visitation without the benefit of a custody agreement.

Sources connected to all three men tell TMZ, they never papered their financial and custodial arrangements. We're told Travis Scott and Kylie don't have anything in writing regarding custody or support of their newborn daughter. Same goes for Tristan Thompson and Khloe Kardashian, although that may be a bit premature since she hasn't given birth.

More interesting, perhaps, is that we're told Scott Disick doesn't have a written custody agreement with Kourtney Kardashian. They have 3 kids and from what we hear, the only conflict involves Scott's sobriety.

They have the option at any time of trying to ink a custody arrangement or going to court for one if they can't do it on their own.