Cleanthony Early

7:18 AM PT -- TMZ Sports spoke with Early's mother who said her son "was in good spirits." New York Knicks guard Cleanthony Early was shot in the leg during a robbery just after leaving a Queens strip club ... and his assailants made off with a gold necklace ... and the gold caps on his teeth.…

Before he became a 1st Round NBA Draft pick ... Rodney Hood got himself ice'd out with $80k in high-end jewelry ... TMZ Sports has learned. We know ... the day before the draft, the 21-year-old phenom hit up Rafaello & Co. in NYC -- and picked himself up a $50k diamond-coated stainless steel…