Shaunie O'Neal Dishes Dirt on Shaq

Shaunie O'Neal, Shaq's ex-wife, has finally decided to open up about her divorce in the latest issue of Essence. She joins the ever-growing list of celebrity ex-wives who use the public tell-all approach as a method of closure for a relationship. It is no coincidence that her willingness to share comes at a time when the show, VH1's "Basketball Wives," she executive produced and stars in is airing; it will air on Monday.

The new series provides a behind-the-scenes look in to the daily lives of wives, girlfriends and baby mamas of NBA ballers-sure to be an extension of the mess that is "Housewives of [insert city here]": There's jealousy, bling, groupies and drama.

Shaunie filed for divorce in the middle of the show's taping, but her story will still be included.

Here are some details she reveals in the interview with Essence:

On the multiplying force of groupies:

Miami is a great city. It just wasn't a great city for our marriage. I know they say L.A. has its groupies, but Miami has a different mentality. Even going to the games, the whole environment is so different. Girls are practically sitting in their bra and panties in the arena. When you're trying to keep your husband, that's a lot to take. It was a whole new lifestyle I wasn't ready for. Apparently we didn't have a strong enough foundation for Shaq to withstand that type of temptation.

Shaunie on confronting Shaq about cheating:

He would deny it sometimes, and other times he would ask, 'You got pictures? Video? If not, don't come at me because you have no proof.' "He'd say, 'Okay, you're mad. Now what? You're not going anywhere.

On being accused of cheating on Shaq with her personal trainer:

I worked out at home- with my trainer, my sister, her husband and my girlfriend. I was a good girl. I wouldn't even entertain a man flirting with me. I was that conservative. But when those rumors came out, I felt I was so small and Shaq was so big that it didn't matter what I said; nobody was going to believe me. All I was thinking was, How could this happen to me? I had no idea how I was going to pick up the pieces. I was just done.

On her relationship with Shaq now:

We are becoming friends, and it's nice because it's something we really lacked in our marriage. I enjoy being able to talk openly to him, and I think we both learned a lot from each other during this time.

What do you think about celebrities or politician's wives making a buck with tell-alls after the divorce? Is it therapy or revenge?