Scandal

Former Louisville basketball star Kevin Ware is standing up for Rick Pitino amid his suspected involvement in the NCAA recruiting sting ... saying his ex-coach is being unfairly fingered by the feds.

"What are you doing a full FBI investigation on? ... That don't make a lot of sense to me unless you were already digging, trying to make Rick to be that culprit and take that fall," Ware told TMZ Sports.

Kevin says he didn't notice anything fishy when he was playing for the Cardinals from 2011-2014 ... including any sign of Katina Powell -- the escort whose prostitution scandal rocked the university last year.

Ware told us he's got nothing but respect for the man Pitino is off the court ... calling him "a very loving and caring person."

But even Kevin can see Coach P's days in college hoops are done -- which he says is for the best.

Ware also weighed in on Gordon Hayward's gruesome injury since he suffered a brutal leg-break while he was at Louisville ... telling us why the NBA superstar should be A-OK.

5:43 PM PT -- A Weinstein rep just called to say the plan has now changed. Weinstein will stay in Arizona for another month or so because he doesn't want excessive distractions and wants to continue working with his doctors. The outpatient program which Weinstein entered still ends Saturday.

Harvey Weinstein is leaving Arizona Saturday after completing a one-week program treating various psychological issues, and Weinstein's psychologist tells TMZ the fallen mogul took it seriously.

Weinstein gave his treating psychologist permission to speak with TMZ. The psychologist asked us not to use his name, but he was a key member of the team treating Weinstein.

The psychologist says Weinstin's program lasted 1 week, and involved "intensive therapy" on an outpatient basis.

The psychologist says he helped Weinstein focus on "dealing with his anger, his attitude toward others, boundary work and the beginnings of work on empathy." He says Weinstein was "invested in the program."

He disputes reports that Weinstein didn't take his sessions seriously and that he ranted that there was a conspiracy to get him. The psychologist says Weinstein "was able to focus on his therapy despite a ton of distractions," adding, "He showed up for all the meetings and was fully engaged."

We're told Weinstein had only one group session at the beginning of his treatment but doctors quickly decided there were confidentiality concerns, so every other session was individual and private.

As for reports that Weinstein was angry, the psychologist says there was anger that manifested itself, but other patients at the facility wouldn't have been privy to it so reports of Weinstein spinning out of control were "just not true."

The psychologist says, "There were things that triggered [Weinstein's] anger and our job was to help him recognize where it was coming from and how to control it. But he was not venting about some conspiracy to get him. It was an appropriate display of anger."

Weinstein will leave Arizona Saturday and begin "significant outpatient therapy" when he returns home.

Guillermo del Toro is a strong defender of Quentin Tarantino, saying he understands why Quentin didn't come forward years earlier to expose Harvey Weinstein.

We got the famed director Friday heading into The Palm in Bev Hills, and he said he gets it ... that Quentin had a relationship with Weinstein, and hindsight isn't reality in Hollywood or anywhere else.

Tarantino, who says he knew of several incidents of Weinstein sexually harassing women, has taken a lot of heat for not coming forward sooner. The reality is ... everyone in Hollywood knows this was talked about for years and years -- for cryin' out loud, multiple jokes were made on TV and even at a televised Oscar ceremony. At least Tarantino's being honest.

Harvey Weinstein's rape accuser already has the LAPD worried, because she orchestrated an interview with a newspaper immediately after going to the cops with her story.

Sources familiar with the investigation tell us, detectives think the almost contemporaneous move to talk to the police and the L.A. Times will make jurors suspicious. Cops say they've routinely had problems with prosecutors when alleged victims go to the media. These cases are hard to prove because they're almost always he said/she said, and when motivation becomes an issue it's problematic.

The detectives are also very concerned she came armed with a civil lawyer, David Ring, who's holding a news conference today to "share more information about the case."

On the other side, the woman says she told her priest and her nanny about the alleged rape. If the disclosures were made on the heels of the alleged rape, it's powerful evidence to support a prosecution.

The woman -- an Italian model/actress -- claims Weinstein raped her in a Beverly Hills hotel in 2013.

Kevin Hart is turning his sex tape scandal into a big joke that will ultimately make him richer, but his partner on the tape isn't laughing ... TMZ has learned.

In the new promo for Kevin's upcoming "Irresponsible" comedy tour, he openly takes shots at himself for getting caught in bad situations -- such as the Las Vegas hotel room sex tape with Montia Sabbag.

The spot, which started airing this week, is a slap in Montia's face ... according to her attorney, Lisa Bloom. She says both she and Montia find Kevin using the scandal "very distasteful" because Montia's enduring social media hacks, death threats and slut-shaming.

Bloom says, "This stuff takes a toll mentally and physically, and now with this tour it's like this whole thing was a joke."

She adds Montia will continue working with cops tracking down the extortionists.

Nick Cannon's advice to parents looking to get their child actors into Hollywood? Don't.

We got Nick out at LAX Wednesday and wanted to get his take on whether kids are safe in the industry following Reese Witherspoon's revelation she was sexually assaulted by a director as a 16-year-old. She confessed the harrowing experience amid Harvey Weinstein's continuing fallout.

Harvey Weinstein is not giving up -- not even close -- he vows he'll continue making movies, whether it's with The Weinstein Co. or someplace else.

Weinstein's showdown with TWC is set for Tuesday morning in NYC, where he will make his case by speakerphone that he was illegally fired and has a right to retake the reins. His lawyer, Patty Glaser, will be in the Board of Directors meeting to make the case.

Our Weinstein sources say he knows he's "momentarily toxic" but thinks with a little time, writers and actors will seek him out again because of his track record. He believes -- and probably rightly so -- that TWC exists because of him. He believes he can go back and produce movies, or he can just as easily do it somewhere else.

As one source put it, "Harvey's like Judge Judy. She can do her show for CBS, but if she wanted to go to NBC she can do it because it's all about her."

Reese Witherspoon was assaulted by a film director when she was 16 years old and Jennifer Lawerence was told to drop some lbs to star in a film ... just some of the abuse they say they endured coming up in Hollywood.

The Academy Award winning actresses shared the harrowing stories Monday night during the ELLE Women in Hollywood event. The actresses went into great detail on the heels of former studio boss Harvey Weinstein getting ousted from his company after scores of women accused him of decades-old sexual assault and harassment.

Reese says she's not only angry at the director who assaulted her, saying, "[I feel] true disgust at the director who assaulted me when I was 16 years old and anger at the agents and the producers who made me feel that silence was a condition of my employment."

She went on to say she was sexually harassed and assaulted on multiple occasions.

Jennifer said a director once told her to lose 15 pounds in 2 weeks ... and as motivation for her diet? Jennifer said a female producer told her to use naked photos of herself from a previous nude lineup as inspiration.

Another huge blow for Harvey Weinstein -- The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has kicked him out.

The Oscar winner is no longer part of the Oscar club after the board of governors -- which includes Hollywood royalty like Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks -- met at their headquarters in Beverly Hills Saturday and voted to expel him ... stripping away his lifetime membership.

The Academy issued a statement after the meeting, saying their decision was made to "send a message that the era of willful ignorance and shameful complicity in sexually predatory behavior and workplace harassment in our industry is over."

It continued ... "What's at issue here is a deeply troubling problem that has no place in our society. The Board continues to work to establish ethical standards of conduct that all Academy members will be expected to exemplify."

As we've reported ... Weinstein's been fired by his own company and is currently in Arizona for rehab.

He won an Oscar in 1999 for "Shakespeare in Love" and was nominated in 2003 for "Gangs of New York."

Larry King knows Harvey Weinstein well and is sad over revelations of sexual harassment and sexual assault, but he thinks it's crazy for people to wish Weinstein ill.

We got Larry and wife Shawn Friday night in WeHo leaving Craig's, and it was apparent the talk show King was reeling from the news ... which brings us to Shawn.

Watch and listen closely to the video ... she says of the sexual harassment stories, "It was very well known," and then she catches herself and says she didn't know. How would she know it was very well known if she was in the dark?

Dick Ebersol, the legendary co-creator of "SNL" who ran both NBC and NBC Sports, says his story of hooking up with an actress is WAY DIFFERENT from Harvey Weinstein's, starting with the fact it was consensual.

We got Dick, a long-standing show biz titan, at LAX Friday with wife/actress Susan St. James. Dick met Susan when she guest hosted SNL in 1981 and sparks flew. They've now been married for 36 years.

They've got a thing or 2 to say about the industry and whether the Weinstein scandal will unearth other mogul misdeeds.

Check out Susan's old monologue below.

Mariah Carey showed James Packer who's boss Thursday night by chowing down with the guy who made her ex-fiance crazy.

Mariah sushied out at Nobu in Malibu with Bryan Tanaka, the backup dancer who got super flirty with her ... so much so Packer had it out with him in Mariah's dressing room and then got Tanaka banned from Caesar's Palace, where MC performs.

As we reported ... Mariah and James had a nuclear breakup ... she claims after he did something terrible to her assistant last month on a yacht in Greece.

1:36 PM PT -- Blac just went off on Pilot, saying the photo in question was taken over 2 years ago. Blac's adamant she never slept with Pilot and adds that the entire ordeal is a ploy to drum up hype for his new track.

Rob Kardashian is under criminal investigation for allegedly threatening a man with some pretty close ties to Blac Chyna.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... Rob allegedly physically threatened Pilot Jones, who's been hanging with Blac Chyna. We're told Rob threatened to do Pilot harm.

The allegations come on the heels of photos that surfaced showing Blac and Pilot making out.

We're told Pilot is scared, partly because of a string of text messages, which include Rob telling Pilot, "Leave my wife alone. I'm not playing with you."

Our law enforcement sources say, there are other texts in which Rob generally threatens Pilot with physical harm if he doesn't stay away from Blac Chyna, although as one source says, the threat is "a little murky and general."

The NCAA is dropping the hammer over the Louisville basketball prostitution scandal -- charging head coach Rick Pitino with failing to monitor his program ... and he could face suspension.

The NCAA launched an investigation into allegations made last year by self-proclaimed madam Katina Powell -- who said U of L staffers paid thousands of dollars for dancing and sex services from her stable of women.

The NCAA determined Powell was telling the truth -- and claim former director of basketball operations Andre McGee paid more than $5,400 for adult entertainment and sex acts for at least 17 UL players and recruits from 2010 to 2014.

McGee was hit with 2 charges -- including arranging the entertainment and failing to cooperate with the NCAA investigation, both considered "severe" breaches of conduct.

As for Pitino -- he was charged with failure to frequently spot-check the program -- including looking for red flags and asking pointed questions ... basically failing to monitor the program.

Pitino's alleged violation is also considered "severe" and could result in a suspension.

A 3rd basketball staffer was also charged with failure to cooperate.

Donald Trump dragged her into the current presidential campaign, but Monica Lewinsky is NOT happy about being back in the political spotlight.

Monica was at LAX Friday morning, and with Trump fighting off sexual misconduct allegations -- and also raising old Bill Clinton allegations -- she's suddenly relevant again.

The photog asked the ex-White House intern if she thinks Trump is "fit to be President?"

Watch how she reacts, and think about this: Who WOULD you vote for, if you were Monica Lewinsky??

Anyway, she had more important concerns this morning. Monica tweeted she was upset about not having makeup on when the pap spotted her.

Billy Bush has been all but fired by NBC for his part in the "Access Hollywood" Donald Trump outtakes, but his bosses had no problem with Billy's offhanded remarks about women ... for years.

Sources connected to "Access Hollywood" tell us, Billy and others would talk openly in the newsroom about women ... and some of it's even on tape. We're told some of the comments -- "Man, you look hot today," "Look at her legs," and "Man, she looks hot today!"

Billy was particularly impressed with Gigi Hadid and Taylor Swift's legs. He also, somewhat infamously, asked J Lo point-blank about her butt ... although that comment was at least on camera.

The point is ... we're told no one complained, and Billy wasn't the only one making those kinds of remarks.

What's more ... we're told a number of people knew about the Trump/Bush conversation when it went down in 2005, and again ... no one complained.