Basketball Wives: “What is it with you and people?”

Like her or not, season three of Basketball Wives has pretty much been the season of Jennifer Williams. At the center of most every conflict and allowing her post-marriage renaissance to be aired in front of millions of people, Jennifer went from silent background player to full-fledged reality leading lady in the course of the last ten episodes of Basketball Wives, including the finale which was another episode centered on Jennifer’s impending divorce from Eric.

Their whole dynamic just gives me a headache. It’s very obvious that there’s still a lot of feelings between the two of them, whether it be Eric’s text messages or Jennifer’s jealousy over his association with anyone that she knows, regardless of if she even likes them to begin with, so the incident that closed the episode made sense. It was ugly and it was juvenile, but there’s so much there that if they feel like they’ve been wronged, they “strike back” and try to hurt the other one more than they were hurt. Like I said, total headache material and I’m just glad that their divorce was finalized recently.

All this being said, I don’t think that either one of them was more in the wrong than the other with regards to the drink throwing. The act itself is silly and should be beneath two grown ass people, but I guess I forget that this is reality TV and nothing is beneath nobody. I know people are going to want to immediately point the finger at Eric and emasculate him for throwing a drink back at her, but Jennifer’s a big girl and she brought that on herself by trying to be slick and get the last shot in to their argument by slinging a drink in his direction as he got up from the table. If he had put his hands on her, pushed her, or deliberately tried to hurt her with the glass, it would be a different story, but with what little he actually did do, he’s no more at fault than she is.

But before all this nonsense went down, Jennifer had her divorce party where she got drunk, made out with not-gay William, and beat down an Eric pinata filled with condoms, lube, and candy. (I wish I was making that up.) It was giving me serious co-ed bachelorette party vibes, which is cool and sort of fitting as she’s entering into bachelorette-hood once again. However, how are you going to have a divorce party when your actual divorce isn’t even close to being finalized? I understand wanting to have a symbol of your newfound freedom and a reason to bring a bunch of cute boys together with your girlfriends to have a good time, but shouldn’t she have waited until the papers were signed before strapping on her sci-fi battle armor dress and painting the town purple?

And so, another Basketball Wives season has ended with liquor being tossed around and personal growth stunted just a bit more. Don’t frown too hard, kids, because Basketball Wives is back next week for part one of a two part reunion (with Basketball Wives: LA premiering the week after part two of the reunion). From the brief promos aired during the finale, Evelyn’s yelling at Meeka, security is called, and somebody’s crawling all over the coffee table. Just when you think this show can’t be more of a hot mess, it goes and outdoes itself. Bravo.

Thoughts, Quotes, & Observations

• In the news: Royce recently had a seizure at a softball game, but she’s doing better. Shaunie is still making comments about how Basketball Wives is disgusting, but I don’t see her giving back any of her checks or denying the career opportunities that a show like this gives her, so whatever, girl. Jennifer owns part of Flirty Girl Fitness and starred in a music video recently. Discuss amongst yourselves.
• “There needs to be hot men there.” “You better go recruit ’cause I don’t know any.”
• “Listen, I’m getting drunk, too.” “As you should.”
• “According to Evelyn, it was the Sahara down there…”
• “She’s got to step up her kissin’ game.”
• “I was like chiiiiiiild….work it out, girl.” Love you, Tami. Sorry I hated on you a couple of weeks ago.
• The Eric cake: trashy or hilarious? Or both?
• Jennifer’s 37? I assumed she got with Eric super young, so I figured she was 30-31. Go, Jennifer, with your young lookin’ self.
• However, I have to give it to Royce for the colored contact lines she had at the beginning. So wrong but a damn good comeback to the hateful hypocrisy on Jennifer’s twitter.
• No Meeka tonight with very little of anybody else but Jennifer and Evelyn.
• Is it just me or is Shaunie super disconnected from everything going on? Why am I supposed to care about her shoe line when the only episodes she’s been featured in for more than 5 minutes are Italy episodes?
• Al Reynolds is back. And making it rain. With condoms. As I said last time, welcome aboard, boo.

What did you think about tonight’s finale? Was Eric in the wrong by throwing a drink in Jen’s face after she threw one at him? What are you hoping to see at the reunion?