So ESSENCE.com caught up with “Basketball Wives: L.A.” star Laura Govan who is the on-again-off-again girlfriend/baby mama of Orlando Magic baller Gilbert Arenas and SHE says that she and Gilbert plan to tie the knot soon. Find out the details…
ESSENCE: We don’t know much about you except what we read on blogs and see on the show. Who is Laura Govan?
LAURA GOVAN: One thing is that I’m a dedicated mom of four. I’ve played basketball all my life. I coached on a college level and I attempted to play overseas, but I was injured. It was time for basketball to end for me. I worked for the Golden State Warriors, which is where I met Gilbert [Arenas], my fiancé. Then I got my masters in Sports Psychology. I was in a masters PhD program but I started having children so I stopped. I’ve had four kids in five years. My youngest is three months old.
ESSENCE: You refer to Gilbert as your fiancé. You two are back together?
GOVAN: Yes, we are, and we plan to get married soon. When and where, I don’t know yet. I feel like we’re already married though, ten years, four kids later. People say he’s a mess, and I’m a mess. You know what, we’re each other’s messes. Everybody has breakup and make-up moments. It just so happens that ours is out in the public. You learn to grow. At this point in our lives Gilbert and I have been there, done that; the drama, the chaos. We’re older now, and we’re more mature. Now we’re better parents, and we’re taking the steps to make things better. Regardless of our past, we want our kids to see a good future.
ESSENCE: Gilbert had a lawsuit trying to stop you from being on the show. Why do you think he didn’t want you on it and why was it important for you to be on it?
GOVAN: A lot of people don’t know that Gilbert is really shy. He didn’t want things about our family to be out there. But at the end of the day, things about our family are already out there so I thought let’s take control of the things we can. It was also important for me to do the show because, one, I wanted to do something on my own. I’m always in his shadow. Had it been to get a job at Target, I would have taken it, but since I was offered this opportunity, I took it.
What are your thoughts on Laura getting back with Gilbert Arenas?
Photo: Getty Images
