NBA

Metta World Peace says Lonzo Ball isn't just killing it on the court, he's destroying the mic, too, telling TMZ Sports he's a huge fan of both of Ball's careers.

Metta was at LAX when we asked what he thought about Ball's return -- which has led to two pretty convincing blowout wins for the Lakers over the Mavericks and Hawks.

MWP says he thinks Lonzo's return to the court is a big reason for the Lakers mini-run of dominance, but then, out of nowhere, tells us that's not where his fanhood ends.

"He's a rapper, he's a really good rapper. I like his music actually."

The NBA's 1-and-done rule is "complicated" and objectionable" and has got to go ... so says ESPN star Michael Wilbon -- but he definitely stopped short of calling it "racist."

We got the "Pardon The Interruption" host leaving Craig's in L.A. -- and asked him about Stan Van Gundy's recent comments about the league's 1-year collegiate mandate being racist ... since most athletes it's holding back are black.

"The '1-and-done' is complicated and it's not good and its gonna go away," Wilbon said ... "I don't know if it's racist or not, but it's objectionable."

The complication? Wilbon points out that such a high percentage of college and pro basketball players are black ... suggesting people arguing against the rule might be able to twist the numbers to make their argument.

Danilo Gallinari LOVES skiing -- but he's got $65 MILLION reasons to stay away from the slopes ... telling TMZ Sports his huge NBA contract forbids him from hitting the mountain!!

The Clippers star was leaving Delilah in WeHo when he started raving about fellow Italian Sofia Goggia's gold medal performance in alpine skiing at the Olympics ... calling her the "best skier in the world."

That's when Gallinari dropped the interesting nugget about his paperwork ... saying he's not allowed to ski because it's written in his multi-million dollar deal with the Clips.

It's not the first time we've heard of a clause like this ... In 2012, Matt Stafford told us his $41.7 million deal he signed in 2009 specified no motorcycles or skydiving.

Smart move by L.A. ... gotta keep that $65 million investment secured!!

2:00 PM PT -- The Cavs have announced an investigation into identifying the fan behind the comment. As for the phrase, there are discrepancies with what has been reported and whether the fan said "Jamaica called."

“Hey, Jamaican dog -- they want their bobsledder back! Jamaica just called, they want their bobsledder back!”

That was the racist heckling directed at Spurs baller Patty Mills Sunday at The Q ... while he was at the free-throw line at the end of a blowout win over the Cleveland Cavs.

Patty -- who's not Jamaican, but Aboriginal Australian -- didn't hear the taunts during the game ... but when a fan brought it to his attention aftewards, he reacted like a true pro.

"I am a proud Islander. Like my Jamaican Brothers, me & my family in the islands of the Torres Strait have experienced racial slurs for decades. Hope your efforts will enlighten this confused, hateful fan. #BlackHistoryMonth," Mills said.

FYI, this is the second instance of racist heckling in a major U.S. sports league this month. A group of Chicago Blackhawks fans chanted "basketball" at black NHL player Devante Smith-Pelly last weekend ... and were later slapped with a lifetime ban.

Get happy, L.A. fans ... ex-Laker Steve Nash (remember that?) says the Lakers are "definitely" making the playoffs next year and they can do it with BOTH Lonzo Ball AND Isaiah Thomas on the team.

We got Nash and asked him about the great guard quandary in Tinseltown ... can Thomas and Ball share the backcourt together, or does one guy (looking at you, IT) got to go?

Not only did Nash say the guys can totally get along together, but when asked if the team -- currently 11th in the West -- will make the playoffs next year, Steve's answer was short but sweet.

"Definitely."

Dennis Rodman says he's 38 days booze-free -- but admits he still thinks about alcohol all the time and now realizes staying sober is a serious "struggle."

The good news ... Rodman seemed very serious about continuing down the sober path when we spotted him out over the weekend -- telling TMZ Sports he just wrapped up his 2nd Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in L.A.

"I feel great, man," Rodman said ... "It's kinda weird not to have a cocktail on a beautiful day in California but like I said, it's just one day at a time."

Rodman really opens up about his battle with alcohol abuse in the clip -- and also gives some advice to other people facing a similar struggle.

As we reported, Rodman entered rehab January 17 after getting busted for DUI in Newport Beach. He checked out a week later in order to continue long-term treatment at the Turning Point center outside L.A.

Iman Shumpert says just because his wife is down with G.O.O.D. music, it doesn't mean he is ... telling TMZ Sports he's never even gotten so much as a beat from his boss-in-law, Kanye West.

Shumpert is a pretty serious rapper himself, having released his Mixtape "Shumpman: The MD" back in 2016, and continuing to flood social media with new verses on the regular.

We got Iman at LAX, and asked him if his wife's label boss, Kanye West, has ever given Shump any help AT ALL in his rap career ... and here's a shocker, it's never happened.

Iman says he's never asked ... not outright at least ... however we did find a recent freestyle he dropped over Kanye's "Grammy Family" beat (and he killed it), so we gotta ask ...

LaVar Ball just got the stamp of approval from one of the most famous dads in the world, not named LaVar Ball -- 'cause Drake's pops says he's ALL ABOUT the Ballfather!!

We got Dennis Graham out at TAO in L.A. -- and he laid out the #1 reason why he's got nothing but respect for the BBB patriarch.

"I love him because he's outspoken," Graham told TMZ Sports.

"He's an outspoken guy and that's what you gotta be. Gotta speak your mind."

Dennis wasn't done there ... telling us that LaVar wilin' out on the Lakers, UCLA, Trump and anyone else in his warpath is exactly what he should be doing!

"People have been kissing butts for too long ... he doesn't do that."

Wonder if Drake feels the same way ...

Isaiah Thomas and Lonzo Ball miiight be able to mesh ... but the Lakers are probably better off letting I.T. walk this summer -- so says former longtime Laker Devean George.

We got Devean at LAX on Monday ... and the 3-time NBA champ wasn't ready to close the book on the Zo-I.T. era just yet.

"They're the same position, but they do different things. I.T. comin' in tryna score that thang, and you got somebody tryna dish it, so it might be able to work," George told TMZ Sports.

That said, D.G. told us the Lakers should look at other free agents before paying Isaiah a dime.

"I'd wait and see who else is on the market first."

Here's who else -- Chris Paul, DeMarcus Cousins, Paul George ... oh, and LEBRON -- who LaVar Ball told us is a lock to join Lonzo in L.A.

Matt Barnes asked his ex-wife last night if they could finally make peace -- instead, a war ensued -- with the two sides trashing the hell out of each other online.

It started when Matt posted a message to Gloria Govan on social media saying, "Wanna wish the mother of my children a very Happy Birthday! Hope this day is everything you hoped for and more."

"Although things have been rocky to say the least the last 4yrs I hope that for the sake of our two beautiful baby boys we can come together & co parent them to the best of our abilities! No more games or bullshit.. They need both of our love & support equally!"

"We lead different lives now but we still on the same team."

Seems harmless and well-intentioned, right? Gloria didn't take it that way and fired back ...

"Thank you, I think? And yes One can only continue to pray that you take your own advice and learn to peacefully co parent! But until then I'll see you in court next week because you love a frivolous lawsuit. But hey let's keep co-parenting."

Yeah ... Olive Branch attempt REJECTED.

Of course, Matt responded with some thoughts (and allegations) of his own ...

"Well ... stealing money my social security # & forging my signature to buy your parents night club & house is pretty serious but hey .. I tried! See you in court! Oh & happy bday."

Markelle Fultz -- along with a slew of huge names and top college basketball programs -- have been named in a bombshell report into NCAA hoops corruption involving illegal payouts to players.

The report centers around ex-NBA agent Andy Miller and his ASM Sports agency. Yahoo! Sports obtained hundreds of pages from an FBI probe which appear to show ASM Sports employees working with programs and players to ultimately get them to sign with the agency.

Fultz -- the #1 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft -- allegedly took $10,000 from the agency while in high school. He did not end up signing with ASM.

Other names ...

Dennis Smith Jr. (North Carolina State) allegedly took $73,500.

Isaiah Whitehead (Seton Hall) allegedly took $37,657. He signed with ASM, but later left for Roc Nation Sports.

Kyle Kuzma (Utah) allegedly took $9,500.

Bennie Boatwright (University of Southern California) and/or his father allegedly took $2,000.

A bunch of guys who currently play in the NBA are on payout sheets obtained by federal investigators including -- Kyle Lowry, Nerlens Noel, Fred Van Vleet and Kyle O'Quinn.

The docs also show ASM met with Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, "Villanova coaches," and the family of former top high school prospect Mitchell Robinson.

Tim Donaghy ain't goin' back to prison ... 'cause officials in Florida are NOT filing charges against the ex-NBA ref after allegedly threatening a man with a hammer ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We broke the story ... Donaghy was arrested on December 19, 2017 and booked for aggravated assault -- a 3rd-degree felony. He was facing up to 5 years in prison.

For his part ... Tim claims he was only trying to rescue his daughter ... who he believed was doing drugs, and in a dangerous environment.

Good news for Donaghy ... according to a court doc filed earlier today, prosecutors in Manatee County will not file charges ... meaning he's off the hook.

The one catch ... the state still has the right to file charges in the future ... but that seems unlikely.

Atlanta Hawks resident DJ Big Tigger is callin' on his squad to make the biggest pickup of the NBA season -- Quavo!!

"I think we should give Quavo a 10-day (deal) -- I don't know if he can play any defense but he can get us a couple buckets," Big Tigg told TMZ Sports outside the V103 radio station in ATL.

You'd think the former BET host was joking, but let's face facts ...

-- Quavo CRUSHED the NBA All-Star celeb game, winning MVP after Eurosteppin' on fools like James Harden.

-- Quavo's one of the biggest rap stars in the world right now, especially in his home state, and the Hawks have the lowest attendance in the league.

-- The Hawks are also last in the East, so they really got nothing to lose!!

Hip-hop superstar Kid Ink has some advice for NBA GM's looking to hold on to their jobs long-term ... TAKE TRAE YOUNG AS EARLY AS YOU CAN.

We got Ink out at a party for Ethika underwear when he began raving about the record-breaking Oklahoma freshman, who Ink says is his favorite basketball player on the planet.

Ink says Young -- who's averaging 28 points and 9 assists a game (that's after a mini-slump, mind you) -- should be the first player selected cause the dude's got game ... and SWAG!

There's only one point the Ink-Young lovefest won't go to, and that's when we asked Kid if he'd be getting a tattoo (he has hundreds) of Young to show his respect for him.

"That's taking it a little too far."

We get it.

Mark Cuban was just fined $600k by the NBA for openly admitting to tanking ... less than 24 hours after a bombshell report was released exposing "predatory sexual behavior" in the Mavs' workplace.

"Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has been fined $600,000 for public statements detrimental to the NBA," the league said in a statement.

Cuban made his tanking comments on Dr. J's podcast earlier this week, saying -- "I'm probably not supposed to say this, but I just had dinner with a bunch of our guys the other night ... and I said, 'Look, losing is our best option.'"

The fine's chump change for a billionaire like Cuban ... but the timing couldn't be worse.

Sports Illustrated published an article Tuesday night alleging crude sexual harassment on the part of former Mavs president and CEO Terdema Ussery. The article also claims a former writer for the Mavs' website kept his job despite committing multiple acts of domestic assault.

One of Mark Cuban's "Shark Tank" business partners says the billionaire always acted like a consummate pro with her ... and she'd be SHOCKED if he really did know about the horrible things happening with the Dallas Mavs.

We spoke with Raven Thomas who got Mark to invest in her gourmet food business -- The Painted Pretzel -- during a 2012 episode of "Shark Tank."

Thomas had nothing but positive things to say about her 6-year work relationship with Cuban -- and says he's always been a respectful partner and honorable business owner.

In fact, Thomas says she was "shocked" by the allegations that the Mavs' front office was a nightmare for women ... saying, "I would be surprised, shocked if he had any knowledge of this and didn't do anything about it."

Thomas says she's also spoken with other people who work with Mark and has not heard anything negative about their experiences.