NBA

The NBA just unloaded on the Los Angeles Clippers, snatching five first-round draft picks, fining them $30 million, and suspending owner Steve Ballmer for an entire season!

The stiff punishment was all part of the league's investigation into whether superstar Kawhi Leonard circumvented the NBA's salary cap rules ... as a way to get compensation that wasn't on the books.

"The NBA announced today that the LA Clippers and Kawhi Leonard have been penalized for violating the salary cap circumvention rules contained in the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA)," the league said.

Paul Pierce was ordered to pay his baby mama, Princess Santiago, monthly child support for their son … but it was a far cry from what she was asking him to pay ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Paul was ordered to pay his ex $8,508 per month for his son, King Rafael Santiago Pierce. The judge did note the order is temporary, and the court still has the authority to change the child support amount as the case proceeds.

In addition, Paul will have to cough up $100K for his ex’s legal fees in the case ... and another $10K for her to retain a forensic accountant.

Jimmy Butler's baby mama says she's living with the NBA superstar after their nasty legal war over child custody and support ... TMZ has learned.

Jimmy's ex-girlfriend, Kaitlin Nowak, filed court docs explaining she recently worked out a comprehensive agreement on a parenting plan with the Golden State Warriors small forward.

Kaitlin said she is living with Jimmy and that "there are other circumstances which can be presented to the court" without specifically laying them out in filed docs.

Kyle Singler is raising serious alarms after the former NBA player and Duke basketball star posted a series of unhinged videos to Instagram ... targeting his iconic college coach.

Check out the troubling posts ... a disheveled and rambling Singler is wandering around his place ... saying he has nothing to his name -- and claims he was brushed off when he reached out to Mike Krzyzewski.

In one of the three posts -- there are four total, but two are the same -- Singler says Coach K "set me up," and when he reached out for help, he was "benched."

Cam Hazzard is ready to throw down against the biggest name in dunking!

The pro dunker with a 50-inch vert chopped it up with TMZ Sports just days before his big DUNKMAN matchup Tuesday night against fellow high flyer Joel Henry ... and while Hazzard is totally locked in on the task at hand, he can't help but anticipate a potential future matchup with Mac McClung.

“Of course I’ve thought about going against Mac,” Cam told us. “He’s a huge name. Won the NBA dunk contest three times in a row. And everybody always considers him the GOAT of dunking because he’s like the biggest name in the competition."

Cam, who is 21, isn't backing down.

Former NBA player Tamar Slay says some parents are hitting the rewind button on seventh grade ... all to give their kids a bigger edge in sports and potentially make more money in college.

Slay -- who now runs the Slay Basketball Academy in Charlotte, NC -- joined "TMZ Live" Monday and told us reclassifying has become a serious move for families chasing college offers, NIL money and, eventually, the pros.

Harvey pushed back on the trend ... arguing it can make school feel like an afterthought if a kid is repeating seventh grade mainly for basketball or football.

Julius Erving is giving the new-look Philadelphia 76ers a big thumbs-up ... but Dr. J's not ready to crown them champs just yet!

The Hall of Famer spoke to TMZ Sports this week and said he's all-in on the stacked squad ... but winning isn't just about accumulating All-Stars.

"What I've been doing is just pretty much giving the deal a thumbs up. Jaylen Brown, deal, thumbs up," Erving told us, ticking off some of the blockbuster off-season moves.

"They're gonna be one of the most talented teams."

But there's a catch.

Anthony Edwards' baby mamas aren't squabbling ... in fact, one of them is publicly saying she loves how much child support the other is getting from the NBA star.

Ayesha Howard -- the mother of Anthony's one-year-old daughter -- tells TMZ ... she's extremely happy for Alexandria Desroches and her son because they "defeated an inactive father" who she says was trying to provide only $3,222 of monthly support.

That number is important ... because, as we reported, it's the amount a judge decided Anthony should pay Ayesha in a default judgment when she didn't show up to trial or provide evidence to back up her claims.

Ayesha says her child support amount doesn't reflect a final support order, and she will continue to fight for herself and her daughter -- but, right now, she just wants to "celebrate [her] sister ALLY!"

There might've been bigger names at Karl-Anthony Towns and Jordyn Woods' wedding, but NOBODY cut the rug more than Knicks star Josh Hart ... according to his teammate Jose Alvarado.

TMZ Sports caught up with the Knicks point guard at LAX on Friday as he flew back from the star-studded nuptials, where the newly married couple said their "I Dos" in front of some of the biggest stars in the world, including Michael B. Jordan, Kylie Jenner, Timothée Chalamet, Ben Stiller and more.

“Definitely different to be in that room, but it was dope. You know, everybody, no matter what level you are, everybody’s human, so it was just cool to be around that,” Alvarado said of the vibe.

NBA star Anthony Edwards is now on the hook for $14K a month in child support to his ex, Alexandria Desroches, and the money is for a kid he claims he's never even met.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, the amount was determined based on the Minnesota Timberwolves guard's monthly income of nearly $4.8 million ... and the figure represents a massive increase over the baseline amount of around $3,200 per month. Alexandria was asking for a higher amount in child support.

The docs say Alexandria pulls in around $1,016 per month. She testified that she hopes to complete her college education to better support the child.

A little jet lag wasn't gonna stop Jalen Brunson from pulling up to his friend Fat Joe's star-studded birthday party for the ultimate surprise ... and that's exactly what the N.Y. Knicks star did this weekend!

The NBA champ was in the Los Angeles area since last week, attending teammate Karl-Anthony Towns and Jordyn Woods' wedding in Malibu on Saturday.

But JB wasn't going to let a few thousand miles make him miss his buddy's bday, so he hopped on a plane and flew back east on Sunday ... and by the evening, Jalen was partying it up at Radio Park, atop Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan.

LeBron James is taking his talents to the links -- and PGA Tour star Sam Burns is all for it!

TMZ Sports spoke to one of the Tour's top-ranked golfers Tuesday morning from a golf event in St. Louis (more on that in a minute), and Burns said he was thrilled to see the NBA legend jumping into the sport, which he thinks will provide a major boost thanks to King James' global reach.

"I think as a fan of golf, I mean, to have LeBron James be a supporter and obviously growing the game is great," Burns told us.

"He has such an impact on so many people around the world. So it's great for our sport. It's great for what he's doing for it. And we're happy to see him out there enjoying some golf."

Jeanie Buss is fighting like hell to keep the Los Angeles Lakers in the family ... but all five of her siblings are making it clear they're ready to move forward with selling their remaining ownership stake.

Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse Buss released a statement in response to Jeanie's plans to contest the sale on Tuesday ... and they certainly haven't changed their minds, saying they "remain united in that decision."

"We intend to move forward thoughtfully, respectfully and through the appropriate process," the statement said, according to Shams Charania.

There was no shortage of A-listers at Karl-Anthony Towns and Jordyn Woods' wedding, but there was someone noticeably absent -- Knicks legend and team exec Allan Houston -- and there's good reason!

TMZ Sports ran into number 20 in Times Square in NYC on Monday, and we asked him about the weekend's nuptials.

"I'm so proud of him. He and Jordyn's journey, they've been through a lot, and they're overcomers," Houston said of the couple tying the knot.

Why wasn't he there?

3:30 PM -- Not so fast -- Jeanie Buss' attorney just fired back with a letter to her siblings' legal teams ... stating the sale CANNOT happen.

In the letter, Adam Streisand cited a court order that states a sale can't be made without Jeanie's approval ... making the vote that was reported on Monday "void." It also stated Jeanie must remain the Lakers' owner for life.

"On behalf of Jeanie Buss, I demand that your clients make clear publicly that Jeanie Buss is the Controlling Owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and that your clients shall take no action on this supposed 'vote' to sell the 17.8% stake," Streisand wrote, according to CNBC.

He also accused Joey and Jesse of feeding Shams Charania bad info maliciously ... claiming they have a "years-long pattern" of doing so.

It truly is a new era for the Los Angeles Lakers -- the Buss family has sold its remaining 17.8% stake in the team to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner.

According to Shams Charania, the Buss family trust, which consists of Jeanie, Jim, Johnny, Jamie, Joey and Jesse, recently received the necessary votes to push the sale through.

As a result of the transaction, Jeanie will no longer serve as governor of the Lakers, as at least 15-percent ownership is required to hold the position.

Big development in the NBA’s long-running investigation into the Kawhi Leonard salary-cap scandal ... and it’s good news for billionaire Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, at least according to ESPN.

The league found no evidence that Ballmer funneled money through team sponsors to pay Kawhi off the books to dodge the salary cap, according to a report from the outlet.

But the NBA is pushing back, saying the story "contains numerous and significant inaccuracies."