NBA

Scary situation for Larry Nance, Jr. -- the Cleveland Cavaliers forward reportedly lost nearly 20 POUNDS in just over a week while battling a non-COVID-related illness.

But, luckily, the 28-year-old is starting to show signs of improvement and is "on the mend."

Nance came down with the mystery illness on March 29 while in Utah for a road game ... and hasn't played a minute of basketball since.

The details are now coming out about the hooper's symptoms -- and it's gnarly.

Nance spent the past week and change bedridden and unable to keep food down, according to cleveland.com ... all while getting consistently tested to help determine what he's fighting.

It's NOT COVID-19 ... but it's still unclear what exactly he's dealing with.

The report says Nance has experienced a DRASTIC weight loss in the short amount of time ... losing 20 pounds in a little over a week.

The good news?? Nance is starting to feel better ... and will slowly work on getting back to his reported weight of 245 lbs. and rebuild his stamina.

It's been a tough year for the guy -- Nance also previously missed 12 games while battling a fractured left hand.

Isaiah Thomas says it was "only right" to choose #24 when he signed with the N.O. Pelicans last week -- explaining it's the perfect way to pay tribute to his mentor, Kobe Bryant.

32-year-old Thomas inked a 10-day contract with the Pels on Friday -- and got emotional when talking to the media Tuesday about his jersey number selection before making his debut with the team.

'Kobe was one of my very close mentors," Thomas said ... "And [choosing #24] was an opportunity to pay homage to one of the best players to ever play the game."

"Hopefully it works out and I could play like Kobe a little bit if I get in there."

Thomas and Kobe had a close relationship -- IT says he would regularly text and call Mamba for advice about the game ... and about life.

"And, I miss that ... about being able to reach out to not one of the best basketball players in the world, but one of the best people in the world."

Kobe passed away in January 2020 -- but IT has vowed to honor Bryant's legacy every time he steps on the court ... and he certainly delivered on Tuesday.

IT made an immediate impact for the Pels as they took on the Atlanta Hawks -- scoring 8 straight points after he checked in.

The NBA hardwood looked more like the squared circle Tuesday ... 'cause Lakers star Dennis Schroder was taken down by a "WWE" move in a tiff with the Raptors -- and he was NOT happy about it.

The wild scene all went down in the first quarter of L.A.'s game against Toronto ... when Dennis fouled OG Anunoby HARD to prevent the guy from scoring points.

In Dennis' mind, the play was perfectly acceptable -- he said later in the night it was simply just a smart basketball move to stop a possible and-one play.

Anunoby, though, clearly disagreed ... because he was so pissed over the grab -- he straight-up flipped Schroder with a textbook wrestling move!!!

Dennis landed squarely on his back, and a brawl was nearly incited -- with Montrezl Harrell rushing into the play for a pushing and shoving match.

The refs ultimately separated everybody and ejected Anunoby and Harrell ... and Dennis was still HOT over it all after the game.

"I don't know what to say," Dennis told reporters. "He didn't get hurt. I mean, I just tried to foul him hard so he don't get an and-one. That's it. That was my intent."

"But what he did, it's just unnecessary. You got to go to the 'WWE' with that. That wasn't basketball. That's it."

NBA star Karl-Anthony Towns has received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine ... one week before the anniversary of his mother's tragic coronavirus-related death.

The 25-year-old Minnesota Timberwolves center shared the news on Tuesday ... posting a pic of the moment he took the needle in his left arm, while giving a big thumbs up.

Of course, the Towns family was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic -- KAT's mother, Jacqueline, tested positive in March 2020 and the symptoms were severe. At one point, doctors placed her in a medically induced coma due in hopes of saving her life -- but it didn't work and she passed away on April 13.

Karl and his father, Karl Sr., later contracted the virus ... but both have since fully recovered.

A large number of NBA players have received the vaccine over the past month ... although commish Adam Silver says it is not currently a requirement to play.

KAT previously spoke about how the virus affected his family ... saying, "I pray every day that this nightmare of a virus will subside and I beg everyone to continue to take it seriously by taking all of the necessary precautions."

Amazing stuff from Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers ... the NBA superstar and his team have committed to help build yet another all-inclusive playground in Oregon.

Portland's NBA squad has been heavily involved in funding fun, all-abilities play areas in the state for kids for the past 7 years ... and 2021 will be no different, the team announced Tuesday.

This year, the Blazers and Lillard say they're passing along $25,000 to the city of Astoria -- which is about 100 miles northwest of Portland -- to aid in the building of the new playground.

The place promises to be awesome ... it'll allow typical kids to play with others that might require wheelchairs or walkers without any sort of restrictions.

And, if you're unfamiliar, these kinds of parks are SUPER important to families with special needs children because they help break stigmas and include EVERYBODY.

You'll recall ... NFL star Drew Brees helped build a similar fully inclusive playground in the New Orleans area back in 2017 -- and it turned out GREAT!

Here's to hoping the same happens in Astoria.

Paul Pierce's run with ESPN is officially over -- the network is parting ways with the ex-NBA superstar just days after Pierce posted a racy twerk session with some scantily clad women on Instagram.

Unclear if the video is the reason for Pierce's departure ... but it drew a lot of attention over the weekend.

Also worth noting -- the timing of the move is interesting ... especially since the NBA season is far from over.

Pierce spent the past 3.5 years with the network ... appearing on "NBA Countdown" and "The Jump."

The ex-Celtics forward seemingly addressed the split on Twitter just minutes ago ... saying, "Big Things coming soon stay tuned make sure u smile #Truthshallsetufree"

PP also shared a 4-second video with the message ... showing himself laughing and smiling.

Pierce played 19 seasons in the NBA before joining ESPN ... he was a 10-time All-Star and won a title alongside Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett in 2008. He was named NBA Finals MVP.

Bruce Lee's family LOVES that Steph Curry rocked a special pair of sneakers to honor the legend during Sunday's game ... especially since he's going to auction them off for a good cause.

The Golden State Warriors superstar teamed up with the Bruce Lee Foundation to create a custom pair of Curry 8s with Lee's image hand-painted on each shoe.

One image is a solo shot of Lee. The other image is based off a photograph of Bruce with his wife and children.

Steph wanted to show solidarity to the Asian community in light of the recent wave of anti-Asian hate crimes -- so proceeds from the upcoming auction will go toward the families of the 8 people killed in the recent attack on Asian-run spas.

Bruce's daughter, Shannon Lee, who runs the Bruce Lee Foundation, praised Curry in a statement.

"I think Stephen’s gesture is a beautiful example of allyship and solidarity in action," Shannon Lee said.

"I am honored he would choose my father and my family as the symbol for the idea that we are all one family, as my father said, and therefore must all stand for one another."

After Sunday's game, Curry also talked about the collaboration and why it's so important to him.

Long before Jason Kidd was an NBA legend, he was a top H.S. hooper recruited by CBB's best coaches ... and now a postcard to the future HOF'er -- hand-written by Roy Williams -- has been discovered in an abandoned storage locker.

... and it's pretty awesome!!

The "Memories of Hawaii" postcard was penned by Williams as he flew to Los Angeles with his Kansas Jayhawks squad after playing a game in Honolulu ... and on January 2, 1990, sent to Kidd's Oakland-area home.

Williams -- a HOF coach who retired this week -- wrote, "Jason, We're on the plane from Honolulu to Los Angeles & we had a great trip to Hawaii. Our players really enjoyed it & worked hard while we were there also. We're going again in two years & I hope you're with us."

Williams later continued ... "Jason -- I hope Kansas will be an option for you. I know I would love to be your coach."

But, KU wasn't the only top program recruiting Jason ... there are also letters from current Chicago Bulls head coach, Billy Donovan -- at the time, an assistant for the legendary Rick Pitino at the University of Kentucky.

"Jason, this past week was the Kentucky Derby which was the 2nd largest sporting event in the state next to a Kentucky basketball game. Sincerely, Billy Donovan"

There's more ... UNLV head coach Jerry Tarkanian and UCLA head coach Jim Harrick -- and others -- also vied for Kidd's talents.

They wanted J. Kidd for good reason ... he was Parade and USA Today's H.S. Player of the Year -- averaging 25 points, 10 assists, 7 rebounds, and 7 steals as a senior, according to ESPN.

All of the postcards were recently discovered with a load of other memorabilia in an abandoned storage locker in Calabasas, CA.

It's unclear how or why the postcards got into the locker ... or why the valuable items were seemingly just left.

The locker was purchased by a collector ... who is now selling the items on eBay.

As for Williams, Donovan & Pitino, Tarkanian, Harrick and the other big time college coaches ... they all struck out.

The NBA has finally decided to take action against Kevin Durant for the homophobic and misogynistic insults he used in a private Instagram conversation with Michael Rapaport -- fining the guy $50,000.

"Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant has been fined $50,000 for using offensive and derogatory language on social media," the NBA announced on Friday.

"Durant has acknowledged that his actions were inappropriate."

As we previously reported, Rapaport posted screenshots of recent DM conversations with Durant which the actor felt crossed a line.

"I receive threats and disgusting messages DAILY, but never in my wildest dreams did I think [Durant] would be among them," Rap said.

In the messages, Durant used crude homophobic and misogynistic slurs to attack Rapaport.

KD has said the messages were not supposed to see the light of day -- and said he was "sorry that people seen the language that I used."

"That’s not what I want people to see from me. Hopefully I can move past it."

Durant has yet to publicly acknowledge that what he said is offensive -- or apologize specifically for the words he used.

WNBA star Angel McCoughtry is insulted by Draymond Green's claim that female athletes have only "complained" about the pay gap and haven't taken any real meaningful action ... and she's ready to educate him.

The 5-time WNBA All-Star says she's personally been in the trenches trying to get powerful sports leagues, production companies and sponsors to spotlight more women's sports ... but she keeps getting shut down.

McCoughtry even called out Lebron James and Steph Curry -- saying she's brought female athlete-centric projects to their production companies, but no one is pulling the trigger.

The 34-year-old -- 2-time Olympic gold medalist -- even invested in the PlayersTV network with the hopes of bringing more female athlete stories to the masses.

So, when she saw Draymond saying he's "really tired of seeing [female athletes] complain about the lack of pay" and suggesting they take more action ... it really rubbed her the wrong way.

"Draymond, have you done your research?! Have you asked us questions," Angel said Thursday during a USA Basketball training camp news conference.

"Don't you think we've tried to do that kind of stuff?! No, he hasn't done his research! That's my only thing with Draymond!"

Angel continued, "We want to get our stories out. I created a TV show about these kinds of issues, its a dramatic comedy called 'Fair Game.' I've gone to Springhill Entertainment, I've gone to Sony where Steph Curry's people are. We got turned down! 'Oh, we don't want a show about the WNBA.'"

McCoughtry says she's happy Draymond is keeping the women's pay issue in the headlines -- but suggests he "talk more to the women before just thinking he had a bright idea."

No, the NBA should NOT punish Kevin Durant for the homophobic insults he used in a private IG convo with Michael Rapaport ... so says P.J. Tucker.

"Of course not, he did nothing wrong," the Milwaukee Bucks player told us in Beverly Hills on Wednesday before taking on the L.A. Lakers.

"He didn't do nothing wrong."

Not everyone agrees with Tucker -- some people are VERY upset Durant used crude homophobic and misogynistic slurs to attack Rapaport in a private DM conversation the actor made public earlier this week.

Rapaport posted screenshots of recent conversations with the Brooklyn Nets star and said, "I receive threats and disgusting messages DAILY, but never in my wildest dreams did I think [Durant] would be among them."

"[Duant] himself is now threatening me, bringing up my wife and wants to fight. This is supposed to be America’s sweetheart right?"

The question now ... will (and should) the NBA get involved and take action against Durant, considering the league's recent push against hateful language directed at any minority group.

Remember, the NBA took action against Meyers Leonard who used an anti-semitic slur during a video game live-streaming session ... suspending him for a week and hitting him with a fine.

Sure, Durant's comments were intended to be private ... but fact is, they're public now.

For his part, KD has only commented once about the Rapaport convo -- saying, "Me and mike talk CRAZIER than this on the regular and today he's pissed ... My bad mike, damn!!"

Incredible scene on the NBA hardwood Wednesday night ... THREE Antetokounmpo brothers -- including Giannis -- played in a game at the same time!!

And, the embrace the trio shared afterward will hit ya right in the feels!!

The awesome moment all went down late in the 4th quarter of the Lakers vs. Bucks game in L.A. ... when Giannis and older bro Thanasis were pouring it on the home team.

Then, suddenly, with 2:18 left in the blowout ... the Lakers sent in the youngest Antetokounmpo, Kostas -- and the party was ON!!

For close to a minute ... the three bros hooped, with Kostas at one point even guarding Giannis!

Eventually, Giannis was subbed out, but Kostas and Thanasis still went at it ... and Thanasis even splashed a 3-pointer in Kostas' face!

After the Bucks sealed the victory ... the three bros hugged it out on the court -- and Giannis later called it all "my favorite moment I've had so far in the NBA."

"This moment, just seeing the guys that I grew up with and we slept in the same bed and we were looking at the ceiling and imagining if we were ever going to play in the NBA, if we ever were going to make it," Giannis said.

"And, just being on the same court while our mom is having her phone and videotaping the whole thing, I think it’s priceless and nobody can take this away from us."

Somewhat surprisingly, the Antetokounmpo brothers are actually NOT the first to accomplish the feat ... NBA star Jrue Holiday and his two brothers, Justin and Aaron, did it first back in December 2019.

Longtime NBA referee Leroy Richardson was due for a full-on ice bath Wednesday night ... 'cause the guy got banged up in not one, but TWO incidents while officiating a game -- including a shot to the family jewels!!

But, don't worry -- the ref recovered like a true champ and finished the game!! 💪

Richardson -- who's been a ref in the NBA for 26 years -- was working the Suns vs. Bulls game ... when Phoenix power forward Dario Saric accidentally smacked him right in the baby maker.

YEEEEEOUCH!!!

Saric immediately grabbed Richardson to apologize for the truly unfortunate nut shot ... and eventually, the ref was able to walk it off.

But, the bad luck continued with just 2 minutes left in the game ... when Chicago forward Denzel Valentine accidentally bumped into Richardson while contesting a 3-point shot ... sending the ref flying into the bench and tweaking his ankle in the process.

Either incident would have been a great excuse for a ref to leave the game -- but not Richardson. After all, he was in the Navy for 12 years ... so he's one tough dude!!

It hasn't been a great week for refs -- remember, NCAA official Bert Smith had a scary moment when he collapsed during an Elite 8 game earlier this week ... but thankfully, he's been in stable condition since.

Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson is opening up about the terrifying mid-air emergency on the team plane this week -- admitting several players were thinking, "This might be over for us."

As we previously reported, the Jazz team plane was forced to make an emergency landing Tuesday after striking a flock of birds -- which caused one of the engines to catch fire.

The plane landed safely -- and the Jazz eventually caught another plane to get to Memphis to take on the Grizzlies on Wednesday. After the game (the Jazz won), Clarkson talked about the plane incident and described a scary scene inside the aircraft where several players and staffers were pondering their own fate.

"I just remember walking back to my seat and as I got to my seat, I just hear a loud bang. Me and [Mike Conley] looked at each other and he was like 'Oooooh! Those are the birds!'"

"Then I turn and looked out the window and see the whole engine shaking and everything and then you see everybody in the back kinda like reacting to what's going on."

"A lot of people in the back that was sitting behind the engine, they seen a burst of flames so immediately they're probably thinking the plane is fully caught on fire and I see everybody kinda reacting towards that."

Clarkson says the "whole plane started shaking" -- and "a lot of us really came to like a point, at least 30 seconds in that flight, everybody came to the point where it was like, 'Man this might be over for us.'"

"It's sad to say that. I don't play with death or anything like that and it's something that we gotta push through and come together and keep going."

Clarkson said some players were so concerned "this might be really the end" -- and sent text messages to family and other loved ones.

Jazz star Donovan Mitchell did not make the trip to Memphis. The team cited "personal reasons" -- but Clarkson insinuated Mitchell was still shaken up from Tuesday's flight incident.

This is wild ... so many collectors are sending in their sports cards to be officially graded by PSA, the company has been forced to temporarily suspend services!

In other words, the hobby has exploded over the past several months -- and PSA can't handle the sheer volume of submissions.

FYI, PSA -- aka Professional Sports Authenticator -- is one of the most trusted names in sports memorabilia.

Collectors will often send cards to be "graded" -- which includes a thorough examination of everything from the physical condition of the item to the quality of an autograph.

PSA is widely respected in the industry -- so most people with a potentially valuable card, will submit the item to PSA for grading.

The problem ... there has been a well-documented surge in the card collecting industry over the past year, with sports collectibles in particular selling at never-before-seen prices.

In fact, PSA says the surge is still in full swing -- and in a statement Tuesday, the company explained, "We recently received more cards in three days than we did during the previous three months."

"Submissions continue at never-before-seen levels."

PSA president Steve Sloan says the company is unable to process submissions for the foreseeable future, so it is suspending submission services on 3 of its most popular levels until they can get caught up.

"Effective immediately, PSA is temporarily suspending our Value, Regular and Express service levels. This will allow us to fully unbox and receive the recent surge of orders and focus on our most impacted service lines."

Sloan adds, "Given our growing backlog, it would be disingenuous for us to continue to accept submissions for cards that we will be unable to process in the foreseeable future ... it is necessary to properly serve the customers who have already submitted to PSA."

PSA is hoping to bring all services back by July 1.

Bottom line -- the sports card market is blowing up with no signs of stopping any time soon.

Scary moment for the Utah Jazz ... the team's plane was forced to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff Tuesday after a bird strike.

Donovan Mitchell and the rest of his squadmates were off to Memphis for their Wednesday game against the Grizzlies ... when just minutes into their flight, the plane suffered engine troubles.

Delta officials confirmed the issue was due to contact with birds ... saying in a statement, "As the aircraft was taking off it hit a flock of birds. The left engine was shut down, the pilot declared an emergency in return to Salt Lake International Airport."

"Aircraft landed without incident and was able to taxi back."

Flight records show the plane was only in the air for a matter of seconds before it had to come back to the runway. Delta officials say they're working on getting a new plane for the team.

Fortunately, it appears no one was injured during the tense moments ... and Mitchell seemed to celebrate that good news by tweeting out a praying emoji after the incident.

As of now, the Jazz are still set to take on the Grizzlies in Tennessee at 5 PM PT on Wednesday.

We know what you're thinking ... and yes -- a bird strike is what forced U.S. Airways Flight 1549 to make an emergency landing on the Hudson River back in 2009.

Remember, Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger lost all engine power after striking a flock of Canada geese.

Fortunately in both cases, with Sully and the Jazz, the plane landed safely with no major injuries.