Basketball Wives Jewelry Background Information: Basketball Wives is a reality television series that premiered on the VH1 cable television network on April 11, 2010. Created by production company Shed Media US, the series follows the lives of a group of women who have all been somehow romantically linked to professional basketball players. The show is filmed in Miami, Florida. Season three premiered on May 30, 2011. On June 20, 2011 it was announced that a spinoff based in L.A. was in the works and would feature former castmember Gloria Govan.

The first season made its debut April 11, 2010 and start off at 30 minutes per episode. The second season premiered with a new cast member, Tami Roman, on December 12, 2010. The episodes were also extended from 30 minutes to an hour.

The third season premiered on May 30, 2011 and with a new cast member added to the show, Meeka Claxton. This would be her only appearance, however, when Claxton failed to fit in with the group of girls. Season 4 is currently filming and is expected to premiere February 2012 with 15 brand new episodes, with the whole cast returning except Meeka Claxton.

Shaunie O'Neal(Season 1 - present)
One of the world's most well known Basketball Wives, executive producer Shaunie O'Neal is a force to be reckoned with. Beautiful, confident, ambitious, and compassionate are only a few adjectives that can describe this devoted mother of five, who began her career in film marketing. Shaunie's goal with her series was to shed light on the complex lives of the women who stand beside these larger-than-life professional athletes and to show that it's not all glitz and glamour. An emerging entrepreneur launching her own shoe line, as well as a philanthropist who dedicates her spare time to helping others (especially women and children), Shaunie shines both on and off the screen. Having been married to one of the most famous basketball players of all time, Shaunie is Queen Bee to the rest of the wives, who swarm to her for advice and guidance.

Evelyn Lozada(Season 1 - Present)
Evelyn Lozada was born in Brooklyn, raised in the boogie-down Bronx and is always in a New York state of mind. Raised solely by her mother, this Puerto Rican beauty always aspired to break out of her relatively small world and always dreamt of something bigger and better. Evelyn had her first taste of the entertainment world when she took a job as an assistant to a well known entertainment attorney to the stars and would eventually meet and become engaged to the basketball star, Antoine Walker. Evelyn moved to her adopted hometown of Miami in 2007 and now co-owns Dulce, an upscale shoe boutique located in Coral Gables, Florida. Dulce now allows Evelyn to live out her childhood dreams of fashion. In addition to being a socialite that supports many charitable causes, Evelyn takes great pride in being a devoted mother and businesswoman. She is highly regarded as a fashionista and style trendsetter. Even before she founded Dulce, Evelyn was photographed not just because of ex-fiance's game, but because of her own impressive "shoe game". Season 3 focused on her new relationship with fiance Chad Ochocinco, including their plans to have more babies.

Jennifer Williams(Season 1 - present)
Jennifer Williams is no stranger to the highlife having grown up in South Orange, New Jersey, an upscale suburb just outside of New York City. So it didn't surprise many when she ended up marrying a wealthy and successful professional basketball player, Eric Williams, whom she first met in 2000. Her glitzy lifestyle extends into her professional life in being a high-end real estate agent and wildly successful business owner of the upscale women's work out company Flirty Girl Fitness. Behind all the bling, however, Jennifer supports several charities and even founded Project Save the World to help several different causes. Jennifer keeps her friends close and guards them viciously. Her mercurial relationship with hubby Eric shows the unique challenges and hard work it takes to be the wife of a professional basketball player. This season, Jen finally seems poised to take the steps necessary to forge her own life.

Suzie Ketcham(Season 1 - present)
No party in Miami really begins until Suzie Ketcham arrives. Having lived in New Jersey, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, and now Florida Suzie is connected all across the country and is the social butterfly of the basketball wives. She met professional basketball player Michael Olowokandi while attending college at Pepperdine University and was pregnant with their first child her senior year in college. They would have two wonderful children and be together for 10 years before finally splitting. Having been with an athlete for that long, Suzie knows the ins and outs of the "game" and is extremely protective and loyal to her friends. If she senses that one of her ladies is being attacked, she'll be the first girl on the scene ready to have their back. Now, fresh off her break up, Suzie has her eyes set on her multiple charities, her amazing children, her luxury real estate agent ambitions, and of course, tackling the nightclub scene with her best group of basketball wives. Season 3 has her trying desperately once again trying to get back into the circle.

Royce Reed(Season 1 - present)
Royce has been in the spotlight nearly her entire life. Born and raised in Orlando, Florida, loving all things sports, she is a former gymnast, competitive cheerleader, and dancer for professional basketball teams in both Miami and Orlando. She is the founder/owner of her own burlesque dance company, Fantashique, which travels all over Florida. The only thing more colorful than her dance moves is her personality. She is a firecracker, a strong-minded, driven woman who is no stranger to confrontation. While she's a sweetheart most of the time, Royce can turn it on in a hot second and rarely bites her tongue. In the future, she looks forward to pursuing an acting career. This season, she continues to try to debunk the negative stereotype that the wives have against team dancers, and continues her search for love.

Tami Roman(Season 2 - present)
Tami Roman joined the cast of Basketball Wives during Season 2. She was formerly a star on The Real World: Los Angeles. Shortly after the show, Tami met, dated, and married NBA player Kenny Anderson. Initially it was a marriage made in heaven but soon things went awry. Noted for lacking a filter, a determined Tami was not going to stand idly by and she did what she thought was best for herself and her girls. In Season 2, Tami and Kenny tried to resolve their issues and he attempted to have a relationship with his estranged daughters. Currently, Tami has a string of acting credits under her belt and currently pays the bills with her day job as a financial executive. She also works with her favorite charity "Project Girl" to instill self-esteem in the next generation of women. With characteristically strong opinions, Tami surely will continue to provide many moments to remember

Former CastGloria Govan (season 1) is originally from Oakland, California and is the youngest member of the cast. She is of African-American, Hawaiian, and Mexican ancestry, and was formerly engaged to NBA guard/forward Matt Barnes. She met Matt when she was twelve years old, and after several years apart, the two reconnected while Matt was playing in Oakland. The two have twin sons, Isaiah and Carter. Gloria bitterly feuds with most of the other cast members, most notably Shaunie. While she was a part of the regular cast in the first season, Gloria was only featured in a few episodes during the second season, and did not receive top billing after she moved to Los Angeles. She is now a cast member on the Los Angeles spinoff. Meeka Claxton (season 3) was born in Queens, New York and is the wife of former NBA player Speedy Claxton. They have two young daughters together, Aniya Claxton and London Claxton. She is the founder and owner of Allure Realty, and she graduated from Hofstra University in 2001. In July 2011, Meeka filed a lawsuit against cast member Tami Roman for assault during a trip to Rome, which had been aired during the third season. Given this, and the cold reception she received from the fellow wives and audience, Meeka will not return for season four.

Supporting cast

Eric Williams is a retired NBA player and the ex-husband of Jennifer. Their marriage was tumultuous from the start with allegations of infidelity on both sides. Ashley Walker (season 2—present) is the girlfriend of former basketball player Rafer Alston and a friend of Royce and Suzie's. Jennifer dislikes her out of loyalty to an unidentified friend who was formerly engaged to Rafer.

Kim Russell and Juli Richmond (season 2), wives of retired "NBAers" Bryon Russell and Mitch Richmond, respectively, were also cast for Season 2; however, their appearances were mostly insignificant and they did not receive top billing. They are primarily friends of Shaunie.