Kobe Bryant

Gold diggers: Like mother, like daughter. That's what Vanessa Bryant's former stepfather is saying about the soon-to-be ex-wife of NBA superstar Kobe Bryant.

Stephen Laine said in the aftermath of Kobe Bryant's divorce announcement that Vanessa, his spouse of 10 years, is acting just like her money-grubbing mom.

"Her mother taught her well to wait for the ten-year mark [before divorcing]," he said. "In California ... it's considered a long term marriage and then she gets paid for life or until [Vanessa] remarries ... just like her mother is doing to me."

Is that really fair, though?

First off, Kobe was reportedly caught cheating after the wives of some of his teammates told Vanessa Bryant of the player's increasingly frequent infidelities.

Second, 10 years is a long ass time, and two kids are a lot of work. Yes, having kids to "trap" the dad is a baby mama staple, but this doesn't seem like that.

They married young, before Kobe was that rich (she stands to receive at least $75 million now), and despite whatever rep she has, she never seeks attention.

Finally, she stood by Kobe after he was accused of RAPING someone. Enduring public humiliation isn't part of the gold-digging handbook ... $4 million ring or not.

What do you think? Is Vanessa Bryant a gold digger?

Vanessa Bryant is positioned to make out like a bandit in her divorce from Kobe Bryant, in large part due to the couple's apparent lack of a prenuptial agreement.

Coupled with 10 years of marriage, her settlement should be upwards of $75 million - half the L.A. Lakers guard's fortune - along with support for their daughters.

Vanessa Bryant's mom told the Los Angeles Times that the couple did not sign a prenuptial agreement when they wed - entitling Vanessa to half of their assets.

Estimates put Kobe Bryant's net worth at $150 million. The NBA's highest-paid player, he earned $24.8 million last season, part of an extension worth $83.5 million.

Forbes magazine estimates that with endorsement deals, Kobe last year earned $53 million before taxes and agent fees. So basically, Vanessa is sitting pretty.

The fact the marriage lasted 10 years also gives Vanessa big advantages under California law, as she is allowed to maintain her standard of living after the split.

In the petition filed Friday, Vanessa cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the divorce. The couple says the terms have already been settled privately.

The NBA star was caught cheating with multiple women by his wife, according to sources, with good old-fashioned gossip among basketball spouses to blame.

His latest mistress is rumored to be Jessica Burciaga, but that has not been confirmed.

The lesson in all of this? Get a prenup and/or don't cheat on your wife all the time.

[Photo: WENN.com]

Kobe Bryant can blame Basketball Wives for getting caught cheating.

Not the stars of VH1's Basketball Wives - none of whom are actually married, and one of whom isn't even involved with a basketball player - mind you. We mean actual wives of teammates, and other NBA squads. Let's just say that people talk.

Vanessa Bryant caught Kobe cheating - not Elin Nordegren style, but she did find out about his infidelity when talk of his extracurricular sexual exploits increased in frequency among her fellow spouses, according to a TMZ report.

Players often swear their wives to secrecy before dishing on their fellow NBA players, but that secrecy is rarely kept. Women all share intel about other guys.

This is done, in part, to ensure word will get back to them if their man cheats. It's like a trophy wife code of sorts. Informal and unwritten, but foolproof.

Vanessa Bryant filed divorce papers on Friday, after learning of Kobe's latest infidelity, which is seen as the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.

Jessica Burciaga is rumored to be the mistress, but that's just a rumor. True or not, he was clearly cheating on Vanessa, and it clearly wasn't the first time.

They have two kids. There was no prenup. She's about to be REAL rich!

[Photo: Fame Pictures]

Amid reports that Vanessa Bryant caught Kobe cheating recently, speculation is swirling over the identity of the mistress who ended the L.A. Lakers star's marriage.

According to borderline reliable gossip site Media Takeout, Kobe Bryant has been carrying on an affair for months with Playboy model Jessica Burciaga.

In addition to appearing in Playboy, Burciaga has also appeared in men's magazines Maxim, Stuff, FHM, as well as numerous calendars and catalogs.

But has she also made appearances in Kobe's bed?

Jessica Burciaga in Playboy. In Slovenian. Hot and untranslatable!

The site claims Kobe has allegedly spent a small fortune - well over a million dollars - on gifts and other goodies for Jessica Burciaga over the past few months. 

Supposedly, when his wife found out that Kobe was not only boning Jessica, but using family funds to finance his affair, she decided it was time to file for divorce.

Whoever he was cheating with, Vanessa Bryant found out, and she isn't happy. For what it's worth, Burciaga vaguely denied the allegation on Twitter yesterday.

"People can actually make up stories online about you and people you don’t even know," she writes, without mentioning Kobe Bryant by name at any point.

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Kobe Bryant's divorce was a long time coming, according to sources close to the Los Angeles Lakers star and his soon-to-be former spouse of 10 years.

Vanessa Bryant caught Kobe with "multiple women" over the years, but his most recent transgression, which took place "very recently," was it for her.

A close source says that for, his latest affair was the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak, and she decided to finally end their marriage.

Sources would not say specifically how Vanessa caught Kobe, but it was not through text messages a la Tiger Woods, Rachel Uchitel and Elin Nordegren.

The NBA great famously cheated in 2003 when he was accused of raping a Colorado woman, but was acquitted and appeared to have made amends at home.

It's not clear how many affairs he had or whether Vanessa knew any of the people, but they've already worked out a settlement agreement in the split.

Vanessa will remain in the couple's mansion and have joint custody of the pair's two daughters, 8 and 5, presumably getting half of Kobe's empire.

The couple did not have a prenuptial agreement in place.

Kobe is said to be "desperate" to win back his wife but Vanessa Bryant is having none of it, even though she admits she still loves Kobe dearly.

She just can't stand his infidelity anymore. That's that.

[Photo: WENN.com]

Vanessa Bryant, the wife of NBA star Kobe Bryant, filed for divorce Friday afternoon, citing "irreconcilable differences." They were married 10 and a half years.

Sources say that Vanessa decided to end the marriage because she thinks the Los Angeles Lakers guard has been unfaithful ... and not for the first time.

As one source close to Vanessa put it, "She's been dealing with these incidents for a long time and has been a faithful wife, but she's finally had enough."

"This one is the straw that broke the camel's back."

Vanessa Bryant famously stuck by Kobe after he was charged with sexually assaulting a Colorado woman in 2003 (he was acquitted of all charges).

Apparently the cheating didn't end there, though, and while Kobe "desperately" wants to win her back and will do "whatever it takes" ... good luck.

Vanessa is asking for joint custody of their two daughters, Natalia, 8, and Gianna, 5, but is asking that the basketball superstar get visitation rights

There is no prenup, so 29-year-old Vanessa is entitled to half the empire built over the last decade by NBA MVP and five-time champion Kobe, 33.

She's also requesting spousal support, which Kobe will pay. The Bryants released a joint statement saying they have "resolved all issues" privately.

No word on whether Kobe plans on changing his uniform number yet again or if Vanessa plans on joining the new season of VH1's Basketball Wives.

SIDE NOTE: That $4 million ring Kobe gave Vanessa after the 2003 scandal - later referred to as "the Kobe special" by Tiger Woods - all hers. Gift, babe.

[Photos: WENN.com]

For the first time in four seasons, the Los Angeles Lakers will not be in the NBA Finals. The Dallas Mavericks swept them out of the playoffs earlier this week.

Brimming with confidence just a few days ago, superstar Kobe Bryant had a lot to say about his team's demise at his final press conference of the season.

How's he supposed to perform with Gatorade sabotaging him? And don't even get him started on his teammates or who's gonna fill the team's coaching vacancy.

Watch Kobe tell us how it's gonna be next year in this Funny or Die spoof ...

Kobe Bryant Press Conference

Kobe Bryant was fined a whopping $100,000 for calling NBA ref Bennie Adams a f*****g f****t the other night, a penalty he plans to appeal.

While trying to get the fine reduced is standard protocol, the L.A. Lakers star says the utterance was NOT standard for him, nor should it be.

The NBA great called the president of the Human Rights Campaign, a gay rights organization, and apologized for using the gay slur last night.

Kobe Bryant Curses at Ref

Joe Solmonese said this after speaking with Bryant:

"I applaud Kobe for his swift apology. We had a very sincere conversation in which he expressed his heartfelt regret for the hurt his words caused."

"He told me that it’s never OK to degrade or tease, and he understands how his words could give the impression that this is appropriate. At the end of a difficult day, I applaud Kobe for coming forward and taking responsibility for his actions."

Kobe also told ESPN that his concern is that for those who look up to him "not to take what was said as a message of hate or a license to degrade, or to embarrass or tease, because that's something I don't wanna see have happen."

L.A. Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant appeared to use a homophobic slur while cursing out an NBA ref last night, and a gay rights group is justifiably livid.

In the third quarter of L.A.'s matchup with the Spurs, Kobe got a technical foul. Clearly upset, he appeared to call Bennie Adams a "F**king f**got."

The Lakers say they can't confirm what was said, but it looks obvious. An announcer even said, "You might wanna take the cameras off of him" ...

Kobe Bryant Curses at Ref

In the wake of this incident, the Human Rights Campaign called it "a disgrace for Kobe Bryant to use such horribly offensive and distasteful language."

Even worse, the group said in condemning Kobe - "a person with such fame and influence" - was that he did this with millions of people watching:

"Such language not only offends millions of LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] people around the world, but also perpetuates a culture of discrimination and hate that all of us, most notably Mr. Bryant, should be working to eradicate."

Kobe Bryant scored 37 points and earned his record-tying fourth MVP award at last night's NBA All-Star Game.

LeBron James, meanwhile, almost led the Eastern Conference to an unexpected comeback in the fourth quarter and recorded the second triple double in the history of this storied exhibition game.

But the real battle between the two best players in the league took place prior to the game, as Kobe and LeBron both walked the T-Mobile sponsored red carpet in Los Angeles. Which baller slam-dunked his opponent in a match-up of fashion choices? You tell us.