Ultra-Talented Wives and Girlfriends of NBA Stars

NBA stars have the world under their feet. Money, fame, influential status, star power, and gorgeous Wives and Girlfriends (WAGs), is there anything in the world that’s missing

Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle Union

An actress by profession, Gabrielle has featured in many hit movies since her debut in 1999. Many of her movies turned out to be highest grossers of the year, such as the classic teen rom-com She’s All That, or the cult classic 10 Things I Hate About You. She got the big break in 2000 with the role of Isis in the record breaking hit Bring It On. So far, Gabrielle has starred in many movies and TV shows. She started dating Dwayne Wade from Miami Heat in 2009. Interestingly, Wade is nine years younger than Union, but their age difference didn’t make a difference at all and the two got married in 2014.

Al Horford, Amelia Vega

Amelia, a Dominican model, became a household name after becoming Miss Dominican Republic in 2002. And, the very next year she stepped on the most coveted Miss Universe stage, and represented her country so brilliantly that she won the title of Miss Universe 2003. Apart from being a successful model, she is a great actress, an amazing singer, and even has earned a pilot’s license. Vega found the perfect match to her 6-feet tall personality when she met Atlanta Hawks’ star Al Horford. They are raising their two kids together in Massachusetts while Horford signed up with Boston Celtics in 2016.

Steph Curry, Ayesha Curry

Ayesha met Stephen, the two-time MVP winner for Golden State Warriors, when they were 14 and 15 years old respectively. Both were in a Charlotte, NC based youth church group together. Their love bloomed on the east coast but culminated into marriage out in the west when Ayesha decided to pursue a career in acting in the west coast. At the time Steph was studying at Davidson College, Ohio. Eventually, the two reconnected and got hitched in 2011. Ever since then they have been living in San Francisco Bay area. Ayesha has progressed significantly in her career and apart from authoring a cookbook she has also starred in a cooking show on Food Network.

Tony Parker, Eva Longoria

Eva’s acting career started in 1999 with guest roles in acclaimed TV shows like General Hospital and Beverly Hills 90210. She got her big break with the role of Isabella Braña in the hit daytime soap The Young and the Restless. Eva acted in the show from 2001 to 2003 and later struck gold with the role of Gabrielle Solis in the long-running comedy-drama Desperate Housewives. The show aired between 2004 and 2012 and Eva earned many acting awards for her performance. She met Tony Parker, the French NBA star associated with San Antonio Spurs. They married in 2007 but couldn’t make it long enough and got separated in 2011.

Bradley Beal, Kamiah Adams

Bradley Beal was the shooting guard for Washington Wizards and Kamiah Adams was a busy model and actress. Adams was dating rap star Lil’ Fizz at the time, and was deemed a controversial celebrity after her infamous stint on the reality show Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood. Their affair was short lived and so was the controversy surrounding Kamiah. In 2015, she met Beal and they started dating. Ever since meeting him, Kamiah’s reputation changed for the better and she became highly popular. She has over 800,000 Instagram followers, which is a clear proof of her popularity.

LeBron James, Savannah Brinson James

When Savannah met her future husband, basketball star LeBron James, she had no idea that they would be together at some point in life. In fact, when LeBron asked for her phone number, she tactfully refused giving out her own by asking him to give her his number instead. But, since they were destined to be together, the two soon became good friends. They started dating and got married in 2013. James is regarded as the greatest player of all times but it is Brinson that should be given the credit for being the biggest supporter and motivator for her husband. They are raising their three kids and also run many social welfare programs together under their family-owned LeBron James Family Foundation.

Blake Griffin et al, Kendall Jenner

It would be an understatement to call Jenner a celebrity as she is one of the biggest stars Reality TV has produced ever. Initially her career wasn’t that great as she was quite a controversial celeb especially during the time she was part of the E! reality show Keeping Up With the Kardashians in 2007. However, that’s all done and dusted, and Jenner is a global sensation now who only works for big brands. She loves her NBA ballers and has dated everyone from Ben Simmons to all-star Blake Griffin from Los Angeles Clippers in 2017 but clearly she is the one having the most star power.

Lamar Odom / Tristan Thompson, Khloe Kardashian,

The Kardashian sisters certainly have a soft corner for NBA stars as two sisters from the Kardashain clan feature on this list. Khloe debuted in the entertainment industry with the reality show Keeping Up with the Kardashains and quickly became a huge celebrity both locally and internationally. She has been in a relationship with not one but two NBA stars, which is quite interesting. She married the two-time NBA champion Lamar Odom in 2009 and joined the NBA wives’ hall of fame. However, due to Odom’s addiction to alcohol and substance abuse, Khloe filed for divorce in 2016. She met Tristan in 2016 at Bootsy Bellows nightclub and the two soon started dating. In December 2017 the couple announced that they were expecting their first baby. They have split up after rumors of Tristan cheating on Khloe with Kylie’s BFF Jordyn Woods.

Kobe Bryant, Vanessa Laine Bryant

Kobe Bryant was Los Angeles Lakers’ guard and preparing for his first NBA championship in 1999 when he met his future wife Vanessa. At the time, Vanessa was busy launching her music career and was associated with the Tha Eastsidaz, a Long Beach-based hip hop group, as a backup dancer. Bryant was in his fourth year as LA Lakers’ guard and also gearing up for the season that cemented his legacy when he decided to marry Vanessa Laine. The two tied the knot in 2001, just when she turned 18. Sadly Kobe and their daughter GiGi died in a private plane crash in January 2020 in Calabasas, CA

Carmelo Anthony, La La Anthony

La La Anthony was already a successful radio host and MTV VJ and a central part of Los Angeles and New York’s social scene before meeting New York Knicks player Carmelo Anthony. She initially co-hosted the show Direct Effect on MTV and then hosted her own show titled Total Request Live. Carmelo and La La started dating in 2004 and had their first child together in 2007 while the two married in 2010. They are currently separated but haven’t filed for divorce as yet. La La went on to become an author and earned critical acclaim with her New York Times bestseller The Love Playbook while Carmelo is associated with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Larsa Pippen, Scottie Pippen

The Chicago, IL native Larsa fell in love with her hometown hero, the Chicago Bulls player Scotty Maurice Pippen. Both got hitched in 1997 and lived happily together. Scottie was already a superstar and had a good run at his HOF career, while Larsa’s time to claim the limelight came much later when she starred in the show The Real Housewives of Miami in 2011. She only acted in the first season of the show but kept on appearing on different reality shows and became quite famous. She also heads the Pippen Foundation, a widely respected children’s fundraising charity. In 2014, Scotty filed for divorce but never went through with it. In late November 2018, Larsa filed for divorce and they are currently going through with the proceedings.

Shaquille O’Neal, Nicole Alexander

Nicole “Hoopz” Alexander earned fame as well as her baller nickname after participating in VH1’s game show Flavor of Love Season 1. She not only won the competition but also landed herself a chance to date Public Enemy rapper William Jonathan Drayton Jr. aka Flavor Flav. Their relationship couldn’t last long but it led Hoop to another interesting and more stable relationship with NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal. They met in 2008 when Nicole reappeared on VH1 and again won the reality show I Love Money earning $250k prize money. At the time Shaquille had filed for divorce. They both began dating and their romance blossomed considerably. However, they split in 2012 after living together for some time.

Matt Barnes / Derek Fisher, Gloria Govan

Gloria Gova was part of the reality show The Real Housewives cast and achieved nationwide fame. Later she made a fortune by appearing on the first season of reality TV show Basketball Wives LA in 2011 while she was dating NBA journeyman and Lakers member Matt Barnes. Both got married in 2013 and became parents to two adorable twins pretty quickly. However, they got split in 2016 and eventually got divorced, which sent shock waves among their fans. Rumor has it that the reason behind their split was Govan’s budding relationship with her husband’s former teammate Derek Fisher.

Ray Allen, Shannon Walker Williams

Shannon was establishing herself in the world of entertainment as an actor and singer when she met Ray Allen, the NBA sharpshooter. She sang with an all-girl R&B group Shades between 1996 and 1997 and then focused on her solo career in movies and TV. The two stars started seeing each other in 2004 and got married in 2008. The couple is still going strong; Allen got associated with the Heat later on and settled down in Miami. They are busy raising their four children and creating awareness about diabetes after they nearly lost their son Walker due to the disease.

Baron Davis, Isabella Brewster

Isabella was working at Creative Artists Agency as an agent and was already quite familiar with fame and star power as she had dated superstars like Bradley Cooper and Russell Brand. When she met NBA star Davis who had retired recently, both immediately hit it off. They got engaged in 2013 and married in 2014. They had two kids together but unfortunately their relationship couldn’t last long as they got divorced in 2017 when Baron was caught kissing Laura Dern outside the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Chris Bosh, Adrienne Williams Bosh

Adrienne had been linked with many celebrities including NBA guard Delonte West, NFL linebacker John Abraham, rapper Lil’ Wayne, and DeAngelo Hall before she hooked up with NBA champ Chris Bosh. Bosh was associated with Miami Heat when he married Adrienne in 2011, and both got settled down. The couple now has four children and is leading a happy married life.

Nick Young, Iggy Azalea

Los Angeles Lakers’ shooting guard Nick and Australian rapper and model Iggy’s relationship made headlines both when it started and ended. Iggy ventured into the entertainment industry in 2011 and quickly got noticed. Gradually, her fan base expanded and one of her many fans was a star athlete Nick Young. By 2013, both Nick and Iggy were dating, and were regarded the IT-couple of Hollywood. The couple announced their engagement in 2015. However, things took an unexpected turn when LA Lakers’ guard D’Angelo Russell released an unseen footage showing Young bragging about cheating on Iggy. That video led to their separation.

Kevin Love, Kate Bock

Kevin Love’s NBA career as the power forward has been extremely successful so far. He played a vital role in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ outstanding success in the Eastern Conference. When Love arrived from Minnesota to join Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014, Kate Bock was a budding model from Canada. Kate’s linkup with Love has been quite helpful in her career as a fashion model. From modeling for Swimsuit issues of Sports Illustrated from 2013 to 2017, Kate has come a long way as she now models for mainstream magazines like Victoria’s Secret and Maxim. Love, on the other hand, is the brand ambassador for Banana Republic, and having a great career as well as relationship with the Vancouver-born Kate Bock.

Zion Williamson, Tiana White

Tiana and Zion started dating when they were attending the Spartanburg Day School. At the time, Zion was a senior while Tiana was a junior. “Coincidentally” he played for the school’s basketball team while she was in the cheerleaders group. Both attended their high school prom as a couple but have managed to keep their long distance relationship under wraps quite successfully so far.

Serge Ibaka, Keri Hilson

Keri Hilson has been churning out hit singles and making singing appearances for years. A talented songwriter and singer, Hilson has given back to back hits both as a solo singer and with megastars of the industry. Her singing career was going great as she featured on Timbaland’s “The Way I Are” and in 2016 released her famous platinum single “Pretty Girl Rock.” Hilson met Serge Ibaka in 2012. Back then, he was in his third year as the Oklahoma City’s power forward. Throughout the time Ibaka played for the OKC, they dated and got separated in 2016 when Ibaka joined Orlando Magic.

Stephon Marbury, LaTasha Marbury

LaTasha Marbury is another member of VH1’s hit reality TV show Basketball Wives featuring on this list. However, unlike many other basketball WAGs, Marbury appeared on the reality show much later. She appeared on the fifth season of the show in 2015. She and Stephon Marbury got married in 1999. Marbury was the polarizing point guard for the New York Knicks since 2000s; he left the league in 2009 and decided to revive his career as ball god for theChinese CBA.

Grant Hill, Tamia Hill

The most celebrated NBA couple, Tamia and Grant Hill, is pretty comfortable on camera and both have been incredibly successful in their careers. While Grant successfully transitioned from a basketball player to entrepreneur as co-owner of Atlanta Hawks and a commentator, Tamia has been going places in her music career. With hit singles like “Officially Missing You” and “Stranger in My House” and six Grammy nominations, the R&B singer has pretty much established her career.

Michael Jordan, Yvette Prieto

As they say the third time is the charm, Jordan and Prieto met after the NBA legend had been in and out of relationship with his wife Juanita Vanoy. The couple filed for divorce first in 2002 but then reconciled their differences only to get divorced again in 2006 after agreeing on $168m settlement. Prieto’s modeling career was flourishing rapidly and she was dating heartthrobs like Julio Iglesias Jr. In 2008, Jordan met the beautiful Cuban model and was immediately smitten by her beauty and amazing dance moves. As luck would have it, they got married in 2013 and in 2014, they had twin daughters.

Gordon Hayward, Robyn Hayward

Boston Celtics’ All-Star Gordon Hayward comes from a family of athletes and was not a stranger to limelight. Robyn Van Vliet, on the other hand, was counted among the top four Volleyball players in Indiana, and even won the state championship for her school. In 2004, the rising Volleyball star and the NBA forward got married, shortly after Robyn graduated high school. She chose not to pursue a career in volleyball at the collegiate level and opted to focus on raising her two daughters.

Russell Westbrook, Nina Westbrook

The saying that behind every great man there is a great woman perfectly fits this NBA wife as she is credited for Russell Westbrook’s success and his NBA 2017 MVP award, the most prestigious of all NBA awards. Nina has been Russell’s strongest support system since she married the Oklahoma City Thunder rookie in 2015. The couple played college ball at UCLA and this is where they met for the first time. After dating for a while they got married and two years later had their first child Noah.

Iman Shumpert, Teyana Taylor

Iman Shumpert may be a superstar and winner of the 2016 NBA championship but his multi-talented wife Teyana is also a celebrity and needs no introduction. Before marrying the Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard Iman, Teyana was busy making a career in the music industry and by 2006 she had become quite famous. She choreographed music videos for mainstream artists like Beyonce, and signed remarkable deals first with Pharrell in 2007 and then in 2012 with Kanye West label. She released he first studio album VII in 2014 and has featured in many Hollywood movies as well.

Kris Humphries, Kim Kardashian

How can any list of celebrity go-getters be complete without all three Kardashian sisters? TV megastar Kim Kardashain’s marriage with NBA veteran Humphries stirred a major controversy. Kim was first married to famous hip-hop producer Damon Thomas and after their divorce she dated acclaimed songwriter/singer Ray Jay.She then tied the knot with Humphries in2010. However, the couple split shortly after the two-part special episode of their wedding ceremony was aired on national TV. Perhaps, Kim found out a bit later that he wasn’t the right man for her.

Tony Parker, Axelle Francine

Parker is one lucky chap as he is the only celebrity NBA player featuring twice on this list. After divorcing Eva Longoria in 2011, Parker started dating a journalist Axelle Francine. Both Francine and Spurs point guard Parker are French, which could be a reason behind their instant attraction for each other. They got engaged on 2013 and tied the knot in 2014. The same year they had their first son Josh and in 2016 the couple welcomed their second baby boy Liam. Sometimes second time’s the charm.

José Juan “JJ” Barea, Viviana Ortiz

Between Viviana and Puerto Rican NBA star JJ, the luckier one is definitely the husband. After all, he married a gorgeous model and winner of Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2011. Viviana made waves at the Miss Universe competition as well and secured a spot in the top 20. Viviana and JJ, who was the point guard for Dallas Mavericks at the time, started dating in 2013. They had a baby together in 2016 after which they tied the knot. There’s no doubt that Viviana is the most beautiful among all NBA wives.

Klay Thompson, Laura Harrier

The Golden State Warriors star athlete seriously needs no introduction but many would be unaware that his girlfriend Laura Harrier is a bigger star than him. She has acted in movies like BlacKkKlansman and the global hit Spider-Man: Homecoming in which she played the love interest of Spiderman. She received critical acclaim for her performance and showed the world how versatile an actress she was. Klay Thompson must be her biggest fan for sure.

Paul George, Daniela Rajic

Paul and Daniela are living together and have two children but they haven’t tied the knot yet so officially she isn’t part of the NBA wives club. Nonetheless, Daniela is an achiever. She started off as a dancer in a Florida night-club, where she met Paul George for the first time, and over the years grew tremendously in her career. Currently, she is the co-owner of a swimsuit line and a widely followed Instagram model. On the personal front, her relationship with Paul has been a rocky one as they separated and got back together multiple times and got involved in lawsuit over paternity tests. However, after the dust settled and legal matters were formally sorted, they decided to make it work for the sake of their children. And it did work as they are expecting their third baby.