Photo: Michael Tullberg/Getty
Evelyn Lozadais jumping back into the game!
PEOPLE can confirm the 47-year-old reality star will return toBasketball Wivesfor the show’s upcoming 11th season two years after she announced she was leaving theVH1 series.
“Evelyn’s return happened as she has always been a vital part of the franchise and an anchor upon which our most vibrant and magnetic storytelling has revolved,” executive producer Shaunie Henderson tells PEOPLE. “She remains a popular fan favorite and is one of the most self-expressive voices on the show.”
Henderson teases the show will chronicleLozada’s engagementto Lavon Lewis, whom she met on Peacock’sQueens Court, and “showcase how she is navigating her new relationship.”
Courtesy of Ziv Sade/Peacock
Basketball Wiveswill also welcome four new teammates Brittany Renner, Vanessa Rider, Jac’Eil Duckworth and Clayanna Warthen. The 11th season will also feature the show’s first-ever same-sex couple, which Henderson says was important to her because she created “a platform for self-expression and freedom across every choice that life presents.”
With the return of Lozada, the network promises the cast members will be “putting their new and existing bonds to the test.”
“Tensions run high as the veterans take the newbies under their wings — but will they throw them a lifeline or shade? With the fate of the sisterhood hanging in the balance, the new ladies are out to prove that they’re not to be underestimated,” according to a VH1 press release.
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Henderson— who was married toShaquille O’Nealfrom 2002 to 2011 — shares that conflict is “a natural part of life.”
“As we have evolved, our conflict resolution should encompass our maturity and not be expressed emotionally but be addressed in ways that allow empathy, compassion, and redemption and an opportunity to learn from both positive and negative experiences,” she explains of the series, which returns for season 11 this fall.
She adds, “Nothing grows in comfort, and I have learned that often conflict and discomfort sets the atmosphere to make us more self-aware of the places and spaces we need to address.”
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Back in June 2021, Lozada — who joinedBasketball Wivesfor its first season in 2010 — announced she was leaving the series after nine seasons.
“I am no longer going to doBasketball Wives,” Lozada toldE!‘sDaily Pop.“I think that it’s time for me to open up the universe to other things.”
“It’s been a hard decision, because I could do it with my eyes closed, but at the same time it’s so difficult and it takes so much energy, and it’s not the most positive energy,” she continued. “I want to open it up to the universe to allow other things to flow in.”
However, Lozada left the door open for a possible return, noting, “If I want to come back I can come back. I genuinely love the franchise and everyone that puts the show together, I do. I wish them the best, it’s just time for evolution — we have to move forward.”
The star previously took a break fromBasketball Wivesin 2015 — when she led the OWN reality seriesLivin’ Lozada, which followed her and her daughter Shaniece Hairston — but she returned in toBasketball Wives2017.
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Basketball Wiveswill return to VH1 this fall.
source: people.com
