10 Marriages That Ended After These Women Appeared On "Basketball Wives"

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Earlier this week, we told you that Kim Russell of Basketball Wives and former Utah Jazz star Byron Russell were ending their marriage after more than two decades as husband and wife. And while their divorce, as far as we know, probably doesn’t have anything to do with her short time on the series, we couldn’t help but think that many women who have appeared on the show have found their marriages and engagements come to an end after the fact. Maybe they’re not choosing the right guys, and that could simply be it. But it is interesting to note that for a show that touts wives of NBA stars and other professional athletes, so many of these wives end up filing for divorce (or to be honest, weren’t wives or fiancées to begin with). If you really think about it, there have been a number of former cast members who have seen things fall apart in the public eye, sometimes while still on the show. Hit the flip to find out who exactly we’re talking about and when things went downhill with their relationships.

Kim Russell

As we shared with you, Kim, short for Kimberli by the way, decided to file for divorce from Byron after 25 years together. The couple have three children and initially married in 1994. She appeared in Season 2 of Basketball Wives in Miami, and during that time, Byron appeared. The estranged couple celebrated their 16th wedding anniversary on the show and seemed very much in love.

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Jennifer Williams

Jenn and Eric married in 2007, and viewers watched their marriage take a nose dive on the show. He wasn’t a fan of her taking advice from her single friends (hey, Evelyn), and she wasn’t happy due to allegations of him cheating, among other issues. Others tried to encourage the couple to work on their problems, but eventually Jenn pulled the plug on the marriage.

“I really wanted it to work and believed he would change,” she told Life & Style. “This whole lifestyle is dysfunctional; it’s not a typical marriage. The bad just started to outweigh the good.”

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Meeka Claxton

Meeka Claxton only appeared in a tumultuous Season 3 of Basketball Wives (in which she was physically attacked by Tami Roman), but she was one of the very few folks in that circle at the time to be married. Fast forward to 2014, and she and husband Speedy Claxton were announcing their divorce. The couple share two daughters together.
She announced the news in article she penned for Pynk Magazine, saying, “After 16 years together, 8 years of marriage, living in 7 different cities, 2 beautiful daughters and a championship, unfortunately, Speedy and I have decided to separate.”

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Evelyn Lozada

We had the chance to see Evelyn Lozada’s relationship blossom with Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson in Season 2. The couple would get married in 2012, even preparing a spin-off about their relationship for VH1, but things of course came to a crashing halt when an argument turned into a domestic battery incident where he headbutted the Basketball Wives star. She would file for divorce days later, saying their marriage was “irretrievably broken.”

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Gloria Govan

Gloria Govan and Matt Barnes were engaged in the first season of Basketball Wives, and though their wedding was planned, by the start of Season 2, they hadn’t made it down the aisle. He would be arrested on suspicion of domestic violence in 2010, but she claimed allegations of such behavior on his part were false. The couple would marry in 2013, but eventually divorce in 2015 (and finalize it in 2016). They share twin boys together.

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Kenya Bell

Kenya Bell was introduced in Season 4 of Basketball Wives as the wife of Charlie Bell, a wife who had aspirations of making it in the music industry. By the middle of the season airing, Charlie had filed for divorce from her. As they tried to settle their divorce and come to an agreement on how they wanted to end things, Charlie actually claimed that he made less than Kenya once she started doing the show and that she should help him financially. She denied that that was true. Their divorce was finalized in September of 2012, and she was able to walk away with half of everything (but no spousal support for either party). They have two children together.

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Laura Govan

Like sister Gloria, Laura entered Basketball Wives, the LA franchise, as a fiancée of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas. The couple had become engaged in 2008 after dating since 2002, but they never made it down the aisle. Their relationship ended in 2014, and in an ugly way. She claims he kicked her out of their shared home and sold her engagement ring, which he said was fake. These two share four children together.

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Draya Michele

The reality star and entrepreneur’s relationship with NFL player Orlando Scandrick began on Basketball Wives LA (and withstood sabotage from Jackie Christie and her daughter Chantel), and the couple announced their engagement in 2015. They also welcomed a son together. But things were up and down after that, with the pair breaking up publicly more than once. Their engagement would come to an end, what looks like once and for all, at the end of 2019.

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Brittish Williams

Brittish appeared on Season 3 of Basketball Wives LA, and at that time, she was dating longtime love Lorenzo Gordon. He would propose to her during the show reunion, but they broke up after he allegedly cheated. They reunited again and were featured on WE tv’s Marriage Boot Camp in 2016 in an attempt to make things work. A year later, they welcomed their daughter, Dash Dior, but by 2019, they seemed to call it quits for good.