NBA

NBA star Terry Rozier is under the microscope as the feds dig deeper into the illegal betting scheme that resulted in Jontay Porter's lifetime ban from the league ... with investigators looking into eyebrow-raising wagers made on the Heat guard when he was a member of the Hornets in 2023.

Officials believe some of the gamblers involved in Porter's rigged performances last season also had inside information on Rozier's status for his March 23, 2023 matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans ... and put up huge amounts against his point and rebound totals, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The betting activity was actually flagged at the time ... and Rozier-related options were promptly pulled from sportsbooks.

Stunning revelation from Dwyane Wade ... the NBA legend says he had to have nearly half of one his kidneys removed from his body in order to rid himself of a cancerous mass.

The 43-year-old Hall of Famer said on the most recent episode of "The Why with Dwyane Wade" he had the procedure done roughly 13 months ago ... after he went to a doctor for a checkup.

Wade said he had been having some cramping issues in his stomach -- and he'd also been battling some problems with his urine stream. After some testing, the former Miami Heat guard said doctors told him they found a tumor on his right kidney.

The L.A. FireAid concert is getting massive contributions from the biggest names in the music industry ... but now the event is getting a financial boost from Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who will match every donation during the event livestream!!

Event organizers made the announcement Tuesday morning ... saying the former Microsoft CEO -- who has a net worth of $129.4 billion -- and his wife, Connie, will help double the impact of the benefit.

This contribution is on top of the $15 million donation the couple pledged a few weeks ago to assist those impacted by the L.A. wildfires.

Bradley Beal’s family had an awful time during the Phoenix Suns game Monday night ... the All-Star's wife revealed a heckling fan (at a home game, mind you) was so relentless in his criticism of BB, it brought their kid to tears!

Kamiah Adams-Beal gave a blow-by-blow account of her experience at the Footprint Center for the Clippers-Suns game, which Phoenix won, explaining she usually ignores the "clowns" at Bradley's games, saying this specific fan crossed the line.

"During the game, a 'Suns fan' spent the entire night heckling my husband. It got so bad I sent my kids away in the third quarter after multiple people asked if we were okay & asked if I wanted them to say something," Adams-Beal said on Monday.

Timothée Chalamet might be a "Complete Unknown" in theaters ... but he certainly wasn't one at the Knicks game Monday -- 'cause Karl-Anthony Towns took some time out of his postgame routine to gift him a jersey!!

The cool scene all unfolded just after KAT and New York beat up the Memphis Grizzlies at Madison Square Garden.

The 29-year-old center walked over to the actor -- who had some sweet courtside seats for the contest -- stripped off his top, signed it and handed it over. The two then posed for a grip of pictures.

Rudy Gobert freaked out during the Timberwolves' win over the Hawks on Monday night ... when an apparent horn fell from the arena's scoreboard -- and landed right in front of the NBA star.

The malfunction was caught on the TV broadcast at the end of the first quarter of the showdown at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

The Wolves center was heading toward his team's bench after the buzzer ... when the black piece of equipment came crashing to the court, nearly hitting Gobert.

Conor McGregor was ready to pick on someone much larger than his own size at the Bucks vs. Jazz game on Monday ... looking big man Brook Lopez up and down right in the middle of the action!!

The hilarious interaction went down in the second quarter of Milwaukee's 125-110 road win over Utah ... when Notorious was walking along the sideline to get to his courtside seat, but was interrupted by something the 7'1" center said.

The UFC superstar quickly turned around and approached Lopez during Damian Lillard's free throw attempts ... and the two shook hands before McGregor playfully made it seem like he was scoping out an opponent.

Jimmy Butler very well may have played his last game for the Miami Heat -- the team just suspended the superstar again ... but this time, there's no timetable for his return amid the ugly feud.

The news broke on Monday ... with Shams Charania saying the six-time All-Star walked out of the team's shootaround after learning he was losing his starting role to Haywood Highsmith.

It marks the third time this month Butler's been hit with a punishment -- he was suspended for seven games back on Jan. 3 ... with the team saying it would field trade offers to get Butler out of town.

Kobe and Gianna Bryant passed away in the fatal helicopter crash five years ago today ... but, their legacy lives on -- through tributes and new projects they've inspired.

As you know ... on January 26, 2020, Kobe and Gigi -- along with 6 other passengers and the pilot -- were killed after their helicopter crashed on their way to Thousand Oaks for basketball practice.

According to a later investigation ... the pilot of the craft was at fault for the crash -- with investigators saying he flew into the clouds, became disoriented and ultimately crashed.

Kyrie Irving's serving up hard life lessons to young hoops fans, including the golden rule: With great seats, comes great responsibility ... to duck when loose balls come flying at your head!!!

Kyrie's Dallas Mavericks were playing the Boston Celtics Saturday night, when he uncorked a wild cross-court pass that missed his teammates ... but nailed a kid who was sitting courtside.

The poor young fan wasn't looking when the basketball blew up his world, leaving the kid dazed and confused for a few moments. Mavericks staff quickly tended to the fan, whose nose seemed to be bleeding.

A California high school basketball player gave new meaning to stuffing the stat sheet on Thursday ... scoring a whopping 102 POINTS in a game -- and the accomplishment got LeBron James' attention.

The unbelievable feat happened during Mesrobian High School's 119-25 win over Waverly High School .... when Nick Khatchikian went 48-60 from the field in just 22 minutes of action.

The young hooper had 40 points in the first, 79 by halftime and had his entire 102 with over two minutes left in the third ... when he was finally benched.

Anthony Davis is begging the Lakers to bring in a big man ... and Dwight Howard knows an easy solution -- going to social media to remind L.A.'s front office he's readily available.

AD voiced his desires in a sit-down with Shams Charania this week ... saying his strengths are in the power forward position, so acquiring a center and moving him to the four in the lineup would work wonders.

Howard -- who won a championship with the Purple and Gold in 2020 -- got wind of the Brow's comments ... and on Friday, he explained the Lakers wouldn't have to bend over backward to give AD what he wants.

It's Draya Michele's birthday, but it's Jalen Green who's enjoying the cake ... 'cause the Houston Rockets hooper wished her a special 40th by sharing a pic of himself grabbing her backside in a lovey social media post.

22-year-old JG gave the special shout-out on Thursday ... saying, "Happy Pday to the realest on my side. I love you."

The last three words are obviously a big deal ... and goes to show just how serious the two are, despite all the chatter surrounding their relationship.

Doesn't seem Jimmy Butler's sweating his latest Heat suspension ... 'cause just hours after the hooper's team hit him with a two-game ban, he was seen yuckin' it up with famed comedian Andrew Schulz at a swanky party.

TMZ Sports has learned Butler made his way to the Reserve Cup Draft & Dinner hosted by Moncayo Ocean Club on Wednesday night ... mere hours after he was punished by the Heat for missing the team's flight to Milwaukee for its upcoming road matchup with the Bucks.

Butler, who wasn't expected at the event, didn't appear to care one bit about the trouble with his employer ... as he smiled big while rubbing elbows with a bunch of celebs, including Schulz, Jerry Jeudy and Wayne Boich.

Forget ice cream and rom-coms, Naomi Osaka's apparently turning to hoops to get her mind off her recent breakup.

The tennis superstar was at the Brooklyn Nets game Wednesday night -- just a couple weeks after announcing her split from Cordae.

The 27-year-old -- who was forced to retire in the third round of the Australian Open due to an injury -- appeared to be in great spirits at the outing ... smiling and throwing up a peace sign during a break in the action.

Sydney Sweeney ditched her fiancé for a special plus-one at the Brooklyn Nets game on Tuesday ... catching all the action courtside with her 11-year-old movie costar.

The 27-year-old actress hit up the Barclays Center to watch the Nets' Battle of the Boroughs with the New York Knicks ... which ultimately ended with Karl-Anthony Towns and Co. coming away with the 99-95 victory.

Sweeney's partner, Jonathan Davino, was nowhere to be seen -- instead, she elected to have fellow "The Housemaid" cast member Indiana Elle join in on the fun.