According to Shaunie O'Neal the Basketball Wives Reunion airing this Sunday on VH1 can be summed up in one word: drama.
"The reunion is a must watch," O'Neal–who split from Cleveland Cavaliers' star Shaquille in 2009–tells UsMagazine.com exclusively. "The drama with Suzie and Sandra is crazy. It did get physical and everything happened so fast all I remember is my hand being over my mouth like 'Oh my God.'"
At the May 30 reunion taping, Suzie Ketcham, who's dating NBA player Michael Olowakandi, was reportedly arrested after getting in a fight with "groupie" Sandra, according to RadarOnline.com.
"We have some very passionate ladies that just don't take any mess off of anybody," O'Neal says. "This is not a passive group."
The reunion also hints that Jen Williams may leave her husband, former Charlotte Bobcat Eric Williams. "You find out where she is," O'Neal tells Us. "I am very happy for Jen."
Gloria Govan, who's engaged to Orlando Magic's Matt Barnes, decided to skip the reunion. "We weren't surprised," O'Neal says. "I think it was too open for the truth for her."
Basketball Wives is returning to VH1 for a second season in the fall with new cast members a longer, one-hour run time, O'Neal tells Us.
O'Neal is also producing a spin-off: Football Wives, another show she started to counter stereotypes about women in relationships with athletes.
"It really upsets me what everybody labels a wife of a professional athlete because that is not true," O'Neal says. "We are not off just shopping for Gucci purses."
O'Neal says Shaq, with whom she has four children (she also has one from a prior relationship), is very supportive of both shows.
"We are actually fine. We are two human beings trying to be the best parents we can be, foremost," O'Neal tells Us. "And through that, you make mistakes; you bump heads and all that. But at the end of the day, we are good."
O'Neal says that for now she is enjoying being a producer: "I think I found my niche."
