Barkley Gambling Debt: $400K

Scandal fallout continues to batter league

(NEWSER) - The NBA referee who admitted gambling on basketball begins his 15-month federal prison sentence today, reports USA Today. The conviction of referee Tim Donaghy, 41, has rocked the NBA, even though officials determined he didn't bet on the specific games he worked. An NBA-sponsored investigation into gambling and referees is under way. More»

Ex-NBA star must shell out more for DA's fee

(NEWSER) - Former NBA great Charles Barkley has paid off his $400,000 gambling debt to a Las Vegas casino, but he's still got a charge left to settle: the district attorney's office is levying a $40,000 processing fee. Barkley says he hadn't known about the extra charge, but plans to "make restitution on that promptly," AP reports. More»

'30 Rock' actor had called former governor 'good material'

(NEWSER) - Tracy Morgan, not too shockingly, said something shocking—and now TNT is apologizing for it. The 30 Rock actor told Charles Barkley that Sarah Palin was "good masturbation material" while appearing on Inside the NBA before last night's Knicks-Heat game. He’d been asked whether Tina Fey or Sarah Palin was better-looking, the New York Daily News reports. “Let me tell you something about Sarah Palin," Morgan said. "She's good masturbation material. The glasses and all of that.” More»

'I don't know what the hell he was thinking'

(NEWSER) - Charles Barkley does not have a filter, not even if he’s talking about good buddy Michael Jordan. In an interview this week, spotted by the folks at Sports Grid , Barkley said exactly how he felt about the mustache Jordan sports in the latest round of Hanes ads—you know, the Hitler ‘stache. “When I saw that commercial, I had to do a double take,” Barkley said. “I don’t know what the hell he was thinking.” More»

The former NBA stars were Woods' Vegas companions

(NEWSER) - You already know more than you ever wanted to about Tiger Woods’ personal life, but guess what? You still haven’t heard it all. Vanity Fair teases its upcoming article by Mark Seal, which “may be the most complete account to date of the golfer’s secret life”:

• His teachers: Woods made his frequent trips to Las Vegas with Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley—even though one of his attorneys had warned him to “stay away from that son of a bitch,” referring to Jordan. Jordan almost stole away one of Tiger's girls for himself, adds the New York Post in a look at the article.