NBA

The Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan relationship is getting more and more serious by the minute ... the two just penned sweet messages to each other for Valentine's Day, with Larsa now calling Michael Jordan's son her "forever" mate.

Pippen, 48, shared her love letter to Marcus on Tuesday on her Instagram page, posting a photo of the couple holding hands on a sandy beach.

"My forever Valentine ❤️," Pippen said in the caption.

Marcus, 32, responded in the comment section echoing her thoughts ... writing, "4eva ❤️‍🔥"

Marcus also took to his own IG to make sure Larsa felt the love there ... posting a photo of her with two bouquets of flowers while saying, "🌹Happy Valentines Day, Babe❤️‍🔥"

Larsa then reshared the post, droppin' the L-word in a "my love" comment on top of it.

It's all just one more sign that these two are way more than "just good friends" -- as they initially claimed to be -- as the sappy messages come just days after the two were seen sharing a secret handshake, sealed with a kiss.

What's worse than getting stomped by Seth Rollins?! Getting stomped by the WWE Superstar as he rocks a pair of MSCHF's "Big Red Boot" ... the viral/trendy footwear that's reselling for over $1K and is all the rage among celebs!

On last night's episode of Raw, Rollins came out to the ring at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn to confront The Miz ... and it was impossible not to notice his choice of footwear.

Seth was cutting a promo calling out Logan Paul for being an attention-seeker ... when Miz clowned him for wearing the "stupid Super Mario boots."

Austin Theory interrupted the segment, but Rollins temporarily got rid of him, before turning his attention back to Miz, and delivering his signature "Curb Stomp" finisher, boots and all.

Seth is the first WWE star to appear on TV wearing the popular boots, but he isn't the only famous person joining the wave, and he won't be the last.

Diplo pulled up to Madison Square Garden Monday night and was seen wearing the boots courtside while he took in the Nets-Knicks game in a battle for New York.

Last week, Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit up Crypto.com Arena (the night LeBron James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer) sporting the boots.

Lil Wayne, Janelle Monae, and a bunch of other celebs and athletes also wore the Big Red Boots.

The Big Red Boots release wide on February 16, and while MSCHF is only charging $350, the BRBs are already selling for $1,200 on the secondary market.

The Michigan State Spartans community is showing an outpour of support for the university as it deals with the aftermath of Monday's mass shooting ... with alums like Magic Johnson, Le'Veon Bell and more sharing their condolences.

"Cookie & I are devastated to hear about the news of a shooting on Michigan State’s campus," Magic tweeted shortly after news broke of the tragedy. "We are praying for the victims, their families, students, faculty, employees & administration."

"This is such a tragic situation & our hearts go out to the MSU community, all of Lansing and East Lansing! 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾"

Mat Ishbia, a 2000 national champion with the Michigan State basketball team and owner of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury, released a touching tribute ... saying, "Deeply saddened by the horrific tragedy that took place at Michigan State University last night. Sending my love, thoughts, and prayers to all MSU students, the university, and the entire Spartan family."

Bell -- who played at MSU from 2010-2012 -- said, "this is sad. condolences to the victims."

Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. -- who played for Sparty from 2017-18 -- also called on his followers to send their prayers.

Pro football player BJ Cunningham was shocked by the report ... saying, "This world is wild," while also sending a positive message to the families and students at his former campus.

Ex-Duke star and current San Antonio Spurs player Tre Jones sent out a statement, saying he's keeping the victims in his thoughts ... while adding shootings of this nature will keep happening until the government does something about it.

Police identified Anthony McRae as the suspect, who opened fire after entering two different buildings on campus ... killing three people and critically injuring five others before taking his own life.

Cops are investigating the tragedy ... but a motive behind the incident has not been reported.

Hope Bradley Beal doesn't have expensive Valentine's Day plans -- the Wizards star was just fined $25,000 for pushing an NBA official during Saturday's game against the Pacers.

It all went down at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC ... when Beal jumped to prevent a pass from going out of bounds, and his momentum carried him to the sideline.

Beal was unable to secure the ball ... and when he landed, he made contact with an official, who was trying to avoid being caught up in the action.

In the clip, you see Bradley and the official initially avoid a nasty collision -- but the All-Star guard ended up shoving the ref, causing him to fall backward over the chairs positioned behind him.

Beal spoke with the media after his team's 127-113 victory over Indiana, but the three-time All-Star and 2012-13 Rookie of the Year contender did not seem to comment on the situation.

NBA exec Joe Dumars announced the $25K fine for Beal just minutes ago ... so it seems the 11-year veteran will not have to worry about a suspension.

The Wizards' next game is Monday at Golden State ... but with V-day on Tuesday, Beal might be reconsidering his plans.

Master P is confident his sons, Mercy and Hercy, can BOTH be NBA stars ... telling TMZ Sports he's dreaming of seeing them team up on the New Orleans Pelicans one day.

We spoke to P in Beverly Hills last week on the heels of Mercy throwing down a monster dunk against Bronny James' Sierra Canyon team ... and he told us Mercy isn't the only budding superstar in the Miller fam.

"Mercy Miller, my son, he been a star," P said. "My other son, Hercy Miller, been a star. He in Louisville. Mercy at Notre Dame High School. They [are] the best-kept secrets in basketball."

"You seen the dunk and [Mercy] not just a dunker. He can shoot the three. He can rebound. He had like ten assists that game. He helped his team win and it was a blowout."

P said even though Mercy's highlight dunk came against Bronny's team, it's all love between the two ballers -- adding that they are friends with LeBron James and his family.

In fact, he said his kids work with Chris Johnson, who trained LeBron, and a slew of NBA stars including Ben Simmons, Dwyane Wade, Jimmy Butler, and Andrew Wiggins.

So when it comes to Mercy and Hercy's ceiling, P has his eyes on NOLA.

Of course, both were born and raised in Louisiana, so it makes sense the rapper-turned-business mogul wants him and Hercy to play for the hometown Pelicans.

"Two brothers on the same team. That'd be crazy."

LeBron James has been getting showered with gifts ever since he passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer, but Cap's not going home empty-handed, either ... the Lakers gifted the NBA legend a custom, iced-out, gold ring!

TMZ Sports has learned the Lakers commissioned renowned jeweler Jason Arasheben (aka Jason of Beverly Hills) to design a ring commemorating Kareem's remarkable career and his holding the prestigious scoring record for nearly 40 years until LeBron James surpassed him Tuesday.

The ring is made up of 578 flawless, round brilliant white diamonds set in yellow gold. The front features Kareem's number 33, along with an image of his signature skyhook shot, which he used over Utah Jazz big man, Mark Eaton when he set the record, passing Wilt Chamberlain.

The side reads "Abdul-Jabbar", his number, the date he set the record (April 5, 1984), his total career points (38,387), and the number 38, representing the years KA-J held the record.

"The Lakers are a first-class organization and always cherish and recognize players both old and new. We were very excited to help bring this ring to life and celebrate the career of one of the all-time greats," Jason tells TMZ Sports.

We're told Kareem was rocking the custom ring as he watched James pass him as the NBA's all-time leading scorer.

Of course, James broke Kareem's storied record in the third quarter of the Lakers game ... in vintage LBJ fashion with a fadeaway over Thunder forward Kenrich Williams.

LeBron James' dinner wasn't baa-d ... it was literally goated -- 'cause the Los Angeles Lakers superstar was in the presence of two live farm animals at a gathering with his wife and friends.

King James was honored with a pregame ceremony for becoming the NBA's all-time points leader before L.A.'s home matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks ... and the celebration continued into the night, with Bron and about 20 of his close friends hitting up A.O.C. in West Hollywood for some wining and dining.

LeBron and Savannah arrived at the fancy wine bar after the game ... and moments later, two goats and their handlers showed up for the shindig.

We're told the four-legged friends stayed for about 15 minutes before making their exit ... which probably isn't too shocking, considering animals chilling in a restaurant might be a big no-no with the health department.

Of course, LeBron recently deemed himself the G.O.A.T. in an interview with the O.C. Register ... saying, "What I bring to the table as a basketball player ... I feel like I’m the best basketball player that ever played the game."

#6 is really leaning into the whole "GOAT" title now ... and while the haters may say it's a bit much, he doesn't seem to care.

Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas used an anti-gay phrase during his postgame interview on Thursday night ... and hours later, he apologized for it -- saying he "definitely didn't intend to offend anyone."

Thomas muttered the expression while on the Barclays Center court speaking with a TNT reporter ... after the Nets had beaten the Chicago Bulls, 116-105.

The media member asked Thomas about comments that his new teammate, Spencer Dinwiddie, had said earlier this week about the Nets needing some help in the looks "department."

"I seen it," Thomas said of Dinwiddie's remarks. "But I was like, 'Man, he just talking.' We already had good-looking dudes."

The 21-year-old then added, "no homo."

The reporter was immediately caught off guard by Thomas' words ... saying, "Surely the league office will enjoy that one."

Thomas took to Twitter to issue a mea culpa a short time later.

"I was excited about the win and was being playful," Thomas said. "I definitely didn't intend to offend anyone, but realize that I probably did. My apologies again. Much love."

Months after best buds Ben Affleck and Matt Damon hit the set of their new movie, AIR, portraying Phil Knight and Sonny Vaccaro, the trailer for the highly anticipated biopic documenting the rise of Nike just dropped!

The upcoming movie, also starring Jason Bateman, Viola Davis, Marlon Wayans and Chris Tucker, is based on Knight and Vaccaro -- who brought Michael Jordan to the Swoosh.

Nike was launched in 1972 (Knight started another running company in the 60s), and was the opposite of the powerhouse it is today. The business began to grow, but really exploded when Vaccaro, played by Damon, got Jordan to sign with Nike.

Davis plays Michael's mom, Deloris Jordan.  Tucker plays Howard White, a Nike exec.

It's not the first time we've seen the guys in character ... back in June, we got photos from the set. Jennifer Lopez was even there supporting her man, Ben.

Back then, the guys received a mixed reaction ... but now that the trailer's out, fans seem excited about the movie!

But, they're not alone. We spoke with the real life Sonny Vaccaro last year, and he was pumped for the film.

"I'm 83 years old. It was complete surprise to me. It's an unbelievable honor and I believe in what they're going to do is going to be the truth on the film," Vaccaro told us last October.

"This is the best thing that I could have ever imagined."

It's obviously not the first time Damon and Affleck have teamed up together for a movie ... they've done it a bunch, including in the critically acclaimed "Good Will Hunting."

The signed, game-worn jersey from Kobe Bryant's 2007-08 NBA MVP season -- the only year he won the award during his career -- just sold for $5.8 million at an auction!!

Sotheby's tells TMZ Sports ... the Bryant jersey set a new record for Kobe-related sports memorabilia sold at auction, and is the second-most valuable basketball jersey to ever hit the market.

Bryant wore the jersey for 25 games in '07-'08 ... averaging 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists while leading the Lakers to the NBA Finals for the first time since Shaquille O'Neal left.

Kobe also wore the jersey the same evening he was awarded the regular season Most Valuable Player Award on May 7, 2008 ... and during Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

"This jersey is iconic in a way we seldom see in sports artifacts," said Brahm Wachter, Sotheby's Head of Streetwear and Modern Collectables.

Experts initially expected the jersey to sell for anywhere between $5-7 million.

Sotheby's recently sold LeBron James' 2013 Game 7 NBA Finals jersey for $3.7 million in January -- and Kobe's MVP season jersey is in that same rarefied air.

Jalen Brunson had the best reaction to his old college teammate, Josh Hart being traded to the Knicks ... 'cause he absolutely freaked out -- yelling, "OH S***!!!"

The Portland Trail Blazers traded the former Villanova guard to the Big Apple on Wednesday ... in exchange for Cam Reddish, Ryan Arcidiacono, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, and a 2023 first-round pick.

Brunson was back at Villanova's campus -- where he played from 2015 to 2018 -- to have his #1 jersey retired when the deal went down ... and as soon as someone showed him the news on their phone, he threw up his arms in excitement.

"OH S***!!!," the point guard yelled. "YES!!!"

FYI, Brunson and Hart won the 2016 NCAA championship together ... so it was only fitting Jalen was back in Wildcat territory when he learned about the reunion.

Unclear how Reddish feels about his now-former teammate being this excited ... but Cam barely got any playing time since he joined the Knicks last January, and only started 8 games this season.

Blazers superstar, Damian Lillard had good things to say about his new teammate after the trade, ... saying, "I've always liked Cam Reddish a lot."

"He's one of those guys you just always look like, 'Man, if he gets to the right place, could it just click?' Could you see something come out of it?' I take a lot of pride in pouring into guys [like him], especially in a situation like this."

Hart -- who's shooting 50% from the field -- is nice on defense, plus he's a rebounding machine, averaging 8.2 per game.

Kyrie Irving's first-ever Mavericks jersey won't have a place in a museum or a Hall of Fame -- no, it'll be somewhere in one of Floyd Mayweather's mansions ... 'cause the new Dallas star gifted the boxing legend with it following his debut on Wednesday night.

Floyd was one of the first people Irving sought out after he helped the Mavs beat the Clippers at Crypto.com Arena for the first time since he was traded on Sunday ... and as soon as the two athletes got within feet of each other on the court, they shared a lengthy embrace.

The guys exchanged words too -- and it all seemed somewhat emotional.

Finally, Irving passed off his jersey to Floyd -- who was with buddy Jona Rechnitz -- before he took off for the locker room.

Mayweather was pumped for the one-of-a-kind piece of NBA memorabilia -- he showed it off to cameras at the arena ... before he eventually headed home.

Of course, the guys have developed quite the bond recently -- after initially meeting years ago, Floyd has been in Irving's corner constantly.

In fact, back when Irving was going through his COVID-19 vaccine controversy with the Brooklyn Nets, Floyd released a video defending the basketball player's decisions.

Clearly, Irving hasn't forgotten the support.

Kyrie Irving isn't the only superstar getting shipped out of Brooklyn -- the Nets just are now trading Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns in a blockbuster deal, according to multiple reports.

The shocking news just broke minutes ago ... with Shams Charania reporting the Suns will send Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, four first-round picks and more draft compensation to the Nets in exchange for the 13-time All-Star and two-time NBA champion and T.J. Warren.

The deal comes just days after Kyrie Irving requested a trade of his own ... which resulted in a transaction with the Dallas Mavericks.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports the Nets will receive the Suns' unprotected picks in 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029. Woj also reports new Suns owner Mat Ishbia pushed to have the deal done Wednesday night.

This will be KD's fourth franchise -- after playing for the Sonics/Thunder, Warriors and Nets.

Russell Westbrook's days as a Laker have come to an end -- L.A. just finalized a trade to send the superstar point guard to the Utah Jazz in a three-team deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Lakers are sending Russ and a 2027 first-round pick (1-4 protected) to the Jazz in exchange for D'Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt, according to Shams Charania.

Meanwhile, Utah's Mike Conley Jr. will join Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Rudy Gobert in Minnesota ... as well as a second-round pick.

The Lakers acquired Russ in 2021 in a trade with the Wizards ... which sent Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to Washington in exchange for the 2017 MVP.

Westbrook's last game with the Purple and Gold was Tuesday night against the Thunder ... when LeBron James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer.

Russ' tenure with the Lakers had its fair share of ups and downs -- the former triple-double machine struggled to find his role during his two years playing alongside James and Anthony Davis.

First-year head coach Darvin Ham decided to bring Westbrook off the bench three games into this season ... a role he's flourished in, averaging 15.9 points per game to accompany 7.5 assists per game.

Westbrook has a legitimate case to win the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award, but the Lakers are opting to move in a different direction ... despite his steady production with the team's second unit.

There are reports Westbrook's arrival in Utah will end in a buy-out ... which will allow him to join a team elsewhere.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was NOT pissed off LeBron James broke his all-time scoring record, despite what many basketball fans have said, according to Cap's close friend, teammate, and fellow Lakers great James Worthy, who tells TMZ Sports his buddy handled the situation with grace.

Of course, 38-year-old James toppled KAJ's near-long-held record (nearly 4 decades) ... and 75-year-old Abdul-Jabbar was on hand, sitting in the first row, to watch history in the making.

However, many NBA fans commented on Kareem's demeanor, noting the 19x NBA All-Star looked unhappy to be there.

So, we asked Worthy, a 3x NBA champion who was sitting with Abdul-Jabbar Wednesday night, if Kareem was bothered Bron broke his record.

"Not at all," James answered, with no hesitation.

"I mean, Kareem was overwhelmed and for those of you who knew Kareem 30 years ago, Kareem has come full circle in life and really is enjoying himself and enjoying just living. I mean, he said that records were meant to be broken. I don't think he thought anybody would break it but I think Kareem handed it over with grace."

Now, as for Worthy ... he admits, as much as he likes LeBron, that he was a bit bummed to see the record change hands.

"I was a little sad to see the record being broken 'cause I just love Kareem. He's my best friend on the team. I'm sure somewhere down deep in his heart, he's had it for so long that it becomes a part of you that you never think it's gonna leave you. Not to be able to say that again, it's probably something that he'll miss, but his body of work will never be forgotten."

LeBron James' childhood basketball coach says he's "honored" to be a part of the superstar's journey to becoming the top scorer in NBA history ... telling TMZ Sports he couldn't be happier for the King.

Dru Joyce -- who first noticed LeBron's potential at just 10 years old -- played a huge part in shaping the 4-time NBA champ's career ... coaching James and the "Fab Five" to a state championship at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary in 2003.

We spoke with Coach Dru about LeBron passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time scoring list ... and he couldn't help but reminisce about their earliest memories together.

"It was an honor to know the little kid who used to be at my house, days on end, and young man I watched him grow into in high school, to now reach this historic moment in professional basketball ... I don't have the words to describe it."

"It's a special feeling, and to know we've been a part of the journey, it makes it even more special."

Joyce even recalls advice he gave LeBron at an early age ... and praised how James was already mature enough to make the right adjustments and get better -- parts of his game Coach notices he still uses to this day.

Joyce also sends a special message directly to LeBron ... saying, "You're the greatest of all time. It's a special time, and the way you've gone about it makes it even more special."

"Thank you for allowing me to be a part of this journey. I've enjoyed it -- much love. I'm kind of taken for words, but 28 years ago, I just remember knocking on your door ... and little did I know where this journey was going to take us. So proud and happy to be part of that journey."

As for LeBron, he also spoke about his journey to the top of the scoring list ... referencing the famous Cedar Point amusement park to get his point across.