NBA

College basketball phenom Cooper Flagg is expected to go No. 1 in the 2025 NBA Draft ... and one guy who knows what that's like has some solid advice for the former Duke star -- Hall of Fame inductee Dwight Howard!!

TMZ Sports caught up with the 6'10" center ahead of the June 25th event at the Barclays Center ... and we asked what words of wisdom he'd give Flagg, since he was also the first pick in 2004.

"Just go hoop, enjoy the games," the 39-year-old said. "Don't let the politics take away the passion ... and have fun."

Either the Thunder or the Pacers will earn their first-ever NBA championship this month ... but before the players take the Larry O'Brien Trophy and celebrate the momentous occasion, get acquainted with some of the wives and girlfriends they'll be running off with!!

Tyrese Haliburton's partner, Jade, has already made her presence felt earlier in Indiana's postseason run ... garnering a ton of headlines last month for the way she made a clever pun about her man's big shot against the Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Myles Turner's girlfriend, too, has become quite popular with Indiana fans ... as Aysia Janelle has continuously brought the heat with her amazing Pacers 'fits at games.

Jay-Z will have an extra close eye on the NBA Finals this year ... 'cause the hip-hop mogul just placed a gigantic wager on the Oklahoma City Thunder winning the 'chip in five games!

TMZ Sports has learned Hov threw down $1 MILLION with his good friend Michael Rubin's Fanatics Sportsbook ... and if he's right, he will profit $2,300,000, on top of the milli he wagered (he'll walk away with $3.3m total).

The Thunder, led by this year's NBA MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, are heavy favorites to beat Tyrese Haliburton's Indiana Pacers.

But, Jay's bet isn't as simple as picking the overwhelming fav to win ... it's gotta be in five games, meaning the Thunder cannot lose more than once in the best-of-seven series.

It's a bit of a longshot ... though if Jay-Z ultimately loses the wager, don't cry too hard for his bank account. He's worth around $2.5 BILLION, according to Forbes.

The Kobe and Gianna Bryant mural in downtown L.A. -- just restored last week following previous vandalism -- has been defaced again ... and now the artist tells TMZ Sports he's likely going to move the artwork to a new location.

The mural, located (at least for the time being) on the side of a building at 14th and Main in DTLA, was targeted by vandals on Tuesday evening ... and we have video of the aftermath, showing white spray paint scribbled across the artwork.

The damage comes just four days after the artist, Sloe Motions, fixed his mural after an earlier incident of vandalism ... the apparent result of a feud between rival street artists.

The New York Knicks can stop their head coaching search ... 'cause Metta World Peace says he's the guy for the job!!

TMZ Sports caught up with the former NBA star following the shocking firing of Tom Thibodeau on Tuesday ... and MWP explained he's dead serious about leading the N.Y. sidelines.

"I would love the opportunity just to coach," the 45-year-old said. "I'm not interested in nothing else. I've been preparing for this."

The New York Knicks fell just short of making their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 ... but they'll be looking to build off their recent playoff run without head coach Tom Thibodeau next season -- the team has relieved him of his duties.

The Knicks announced the news minutes ago ... saying days after losing to the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, it was time to take the franchise in a different direction.

"We can't thank Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each & every day of being the New York Knicks head coach," Knicks president Leon Rose said. "He led us not only with class and professionalism for the past five seasons, but also to tremendous success on the court with four playoff berths and four playoff series victories."

Vanessa Bryant channeled her inner Bad Gal RiRi to address wild rumors spreading online ... using a Rihanna meme to deny she's pregnant five years after Kobe's death.

It's unclear what exactly sparked the false information ... but in usual internet form, some folks ran with it -- likely for engagement -- and it snowballed to the point where Bryant herself had to speak out on Sunday.

Bryant reposted a popular throwback of the "Umbrella" artist taking a dip during a vacation ... which shows her flipping the bird to the cameras with a drink in hand, essentially giving "unbothered" vibes.

Rudy Gobert's ex, Julia Bonilla, took some apparent shots at the Minnesota Timberwolves center in a series of social media posts over the weekend ... going as far as sharing a message about having the ability to "destroy" someone's image -- but choosing not to.

The interesting Instagram Stories come just a few weeks after TMZ Sports reported the four-time Defensive Player of the Year broke things off with the mother of his one-year-old son and asked her to move out of their home ... all while pregnant with their second child.

Bonilla kicked off her activity by reposting a text graphic that said, "You have every right to speak your truth -- to share what happened and how it affected you. Their discomfort isn't your responsibility. If they wanted to be seen in a better light, they should've treated you better."

Robert Horry tells TMZ Sports he knows he fits the criteria to be in the Hall of Fame ... but at the end of the day, he's not sweating it if the powers that be think otherwise.

We caught up with Horry out at LAX this week ... and asked him all about how he's still waiting for his spot among the all-time greats.

While his stat line isn't comparable to Michael Jordan's or Larry Bird's, Horry says people need to realize the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame highlights more than just one's NBA career.

7:47 PM PT -- Kylie's not so lucky after all. Pacers win 125-108.

Kylie Jenner's embracing her role as the New York Knicks' good luck charm ... heading all the way to Indianapolis in hopes of keeping her boyfriend Timothée Chalamet's favorite team's championship dream alive.

The actor and the mogul sat courtside together Saturday night as the Knicks took on the Paces in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals ... both decked out in Knicks blue and orange at the biggest game of the year.

Check out the clip ... Kylie's so excited to be there with her man -- wrapping her arms around him and trying to get him hyped while he throws up a peace sign for the camera.

Moriah Mills -- the influencer/model who claimed to have a fling with Zion Williamson back in 2023 -- has contacted Tony Buzbee ... and is mulling a lawsuit against the NBA superstar, TMZ Sports has learned.

Buzbee -- the famed attorney best known for representing Deshaun Watson and Diddy accusers -- told us on Friday just hours after a Jane Doe filed a rape suit against Williamson in Los Angeles that Mills has reached out to him over the potential of filing her own litigation against the 24-year-old New Orleans Pelicans forward.

Buzbee stated for now, he is in the process of "evaluating her claims."

SuperSonics legend Nate McMillan isn't actively rooting for the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the NBA Finals ... instead, he tells TMZ Sports he's pulling for Adam Silver to do the right thing and bring a franchise back to Seattle.

We caught up with the current Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach at LAX ... and we had to ask, considering the Thunder used to be the Sonics, how he felt about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Co.'s chances at getting it done.

While he said OKC has a good squad, he was more focused on what he thinks the league needs to do to his old stomping grounds.

Turns out all those Timothée Chalamet Knicks sightings might not be about basketball at all -- and everything to do with heating things up off-court with Kylie Jenner.

After Kylie joined die-hard hoops fan Timothée on Thursday to watch the Knicks beat the Pacers, she went full Samantha Jones -- reposting a very telling "Sex and the City" clip that had fans connecting all the steamy dots.

The HBO Max repost showed Kim Cattrall’s iconic Samantha Jones dishing on her lover Don, saying, "I don’t get laid unless the Knicks win" -- and fans are now convinced Timothée’s got a playoff performance clause in their sex life ... and that the Knicks aren’t the only ones on a hot streak.

Pat McAfee isn't holding back after John Mellencamp crapped all over his antics at Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals in Indiana ... telling the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer to "shut the f*** up."

The former Colts punter took time to respond to the 73-year-old at the start of "The Pat McAfee Show" Friday morning ... and he ripped the statement to shreds from top to bottom.

"The graphic, the quote, the timing," he said. "You're two days late, John! You're two days late, bub!"

10:56 AM PT -- Zion Williamson's attorney released a statement on the lawsuit ... calling the claims "categorically false and reckless."

A woman claiming to be one of Zion Williamson's exes has filed a lawsuit against the NBA star ... alleging he raped, kidnapped and terrorized her on multiple occasions throughout their yearslong relationship.

The explosive suit, which has been obtained by TMZ Sports, was filed in Los Angeles on Thursday by a Jane Doe, who says she began dating Williamson in 2018 ... while he was playing for the Duke men's basketball team.

The woman alleges that in 2020, a little over a year after Williamson left the Blue Devils to join the New Orleans Pelicans, the basketball player raped and assaulted her in Southern California.