NBA

Amon-Ra St. Brown's prep for the playoffs apparently included a box of hair dye and some NBA tickets ... 'cause a little more than a week before Detroit kicks off its postseason run, he colored his hair and hit up a Pistons game!!

The Lions superstar pulled up to Little Caesars Arena on Thursday night with his teammate Jahmyr Gibbs for Detroit's tilt with Steph Curry's Warriors ... and the guys showed no signs of nerves as their team gets set for a potential journey to the Super Bowl.

St. Brown showed off a new blue hairdo ... and even quipped to a sideline reporter that his girlfriend "loves" the way it looks.

Kawhi Leonard is one of the lucky ones amid the devastating Los Angeles wildfires ... as his home in the Pacific Palisades is still intact.

TMZ Sports obtained a photo of Leonard's home taken on Wednesday .... and outside of some apparent ash layering the mansion, it is seemingly unharmed. We're told as of Thursday, it remains the same.

It's gotta be a huge sigh of relief for the Klaw ... as others in the area were less fortunate -- including Lakers head coach JJ Redick, whose Palisades house was lost due to the fires.

Thursday's contest between the Lakers and Hornets has been postponed ... as firefighters continue to battle flames all across Los Angeles.

The league just made the decision to move the game minutes ago ... writing in a statement no makeup date has been scheduled just yet.

"The entire NBA family sends its thoughts and support to the community of Los Angeles during this challenging time," the league said. "We are grateful for the thousands of local firefighters and first responders who have demonstrated enormous bravery. Our prayers remain with those affected by the unimaginable devastation caused by the wildfires."

Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick was among the many citizens who lost their homes to the devastating wildfires this week, according to reports.

The first-year manager revealed his family was forced to evacuate the Pacific Palisades amid the blaze earlier this week ... while sharing his loved ones were "freaking out."

Unfortunately for the former NBA vet, their house did not survive, Shams Charania said Thursday.

JJ Redick says his loved ones were among the thousands forced to evacuate amid the Los Angeles wildfires ... and his family is distraught as the flames continue to spread throughout the area.

The Lakers head coach provided the update prior to his team's 118-97 road loss to the Dallas Mavericks ... revealing the blaze in the Pacific Palisades is right in his neighborhood.

Redick said his thoughts and prayers are with those affected ... and that also includes his wife's sister's family.

Shaquille O'Neal is moving on from his longstanding feud with Dwight Howard ... saying he has officially "deleted" his nemesis from his life.

The beef has been well documented over the years ... and initially, it mostly stemmed from Howard taking on the "Superman" nickname, which Shaq was known to use over the course of his Hall of Fame career.

Howard revisited their history during a recent podcast episode ... saying he was so pissed off over it all, he considered showing up at the TNT studios to confront Shaq -- as an old-fashioned beatdown might be the only way to resolve their issues.

A super-rare Allen Iverson card just hit the auction block, but it could very well be out of most collectors' price range ... 'cause someone's already bid $150K!!

TMZ Sports has learned the 1997 Skybox E-X 2001 Essential Credentials Now Iverson piece went up for auction at Heritage Auctions on New Year's Day ... and it's already received an aggressive six-figure bid.

It's a huge number ... especially considering the previous record for an Iverson card sale, according to HA, was $79,200.

Amon-Ra St. Brown and the Detroit Lions easily handled the Minnesota Vikings to secure a first-round bye in the playoffs on Sunday ... but they were definitely tweakin' in the locker room after the game -- thanks to LiAngelo Ball's new viral rap song!!

The top-seeded Lions dominated their NFC North opponents in a 31-9 victory ... and following the successful outing, the whole Detroit locker room got in on the latest craze -- the middle Ball brother's new "Tweaker" hit, which has spread like wildfire in the past week.

ASB shared footage of the celebration ... showing him vibing out to G3's track as his teammates rapped and danced along.

Former NBA player Barry Kramer -- the sixth overall pick to the San Francisco Warriors in the 1964 draft -- has died at 82 years old.

The 6'4", 200-pound forward was a star at the high school and collegiate level ... earning top accolades in the country at Linton in Schenectady, New York. During his senior season, he was teammates with legendary NBA coach, player and executive Pat Riley.

Kramer thrived at NYU -- where he had a career-best 29.3 points a game during his junior season in 1963.

Jimmy Butler's time in Miami is all but over ... days after the 6x All-Star made it clear he wanted out, the Pat Riley led org. suspended "Jimmy Buckets," and blasted the former first-round pick in the process!

"We have suspended Jimmy Butler for seven games for multiple instances of conduct detrimental to the team over the course of the season and particularly the last several weeks," the Heat said in a statement Friday evening.

"Through his actions and statements, he has shown he no longer wants to be part of this team. Jimmy Butler and his representative have indicated that they wish to be traded, therefore, we will listen to offers."

Derrick Rose is begging the Chicago Bulls to not honor him with a statue outside the United Center ... explaining he's seen how the tributes have turned out recently, and he'd rather not risk becoming a meme.

The former MVP made his intentions known in a sit-down interview with ESPN ahead of "Derrick Rose Night" at the Bulls' home contest against the New York Knicks on Saturday.

D-Rose had a solid reasoning behind why he didn't want himself immortalized outside his old arena ... almost certainly hinting at Dwyane Wade's recent sculpture outside the Miami Heat's venue, which was at the center of countless jokes online.

Charles Barkley made it clear Thursday night he's no fan of JJ Redick's apparent criticism of his "Inside The NBA" show ... ripping the coach as "a dead man walking" for several moments while live on-air.

Redick initially kicked off the war with Chuck back on Dec. 20 ... when he strongly implied the Hall of Famer's constant criticism of the game on TNT is one of the biggest reasons why ratings are down.

"If I'm a casual fan," the L.A. manager told media members, "and you tell me every time I turn on the television that the product sucks, well, I'm not going to watch the product."

Timothée Chalamet's wish to play Ernie Johnson in a biopic might come true ... 'cause the actor just got a big thumbs up from the "Inside the NBA" host himself!!

Timmy C -- who portrays Bob Dylan in the new "A Complete Unknown" movie -- recently revealed he'd be down to honor the longtime sports TV show host on the big screen ... if he were to ever take on another biopic.

E.J. got wind of Chalamet's comments on Thursday ... and he said the "Dune" star gave him a ton of cred with his family.

LeBron James' son, Bryce, is taking his talents to Tucson -- the 17-year-old high school star just announced he's committed to the Arizona Wildcats basketball program!!

Bryce shared the news on his social media pages just minutes ago ... saying he's all-in on his decision.

"100%committed," Bryce said alongside a few emojis to represent the school's "Bear Down" rally cry and an edited photo of himself in an Arizona uniform.

The NBA just punished Houston Rockets guard Amen Thompson for his role in Sunday's scrap with Tyler Herro ... handing down a two-game suspension.

The Association announced the penalty in a statement ... days after Thompson and Herro were ejected from the Rockets vs. Heat game for starting an on-court brawl at the Toyota Center.

During the incident, Thompson tossed Herro to the ground WWE-style before an inbound pass late in the fourth quarter ... with the two sides jawing and grabbing at each other's jerseys right before the big moment.

LeBron James says he could play at a "high level" in the NBA for up to seven more years, but will walk away from the sport long before that ever happens ... telling reporters his thoughts on retirement have intensified over time.

The King spoke with the media on his 40th birthday ... and he opened up on how much longer he'll continue his legendary career.

When asked if he'll know when it's time to hang it up for good, James said it won't be due to lack of ability ... as he has more gas left in the tank -- but he plans to go out on top.