The infamous "Kardashian Curse" has been relatively quiet lately. It feels like just yesterday when Kim and Khloe were dominating daily media headlines with their high-profile relationships alongside some of the NBA's biggest stars.
Kim famously kicked off the domino effect with her brief, heavily publicized marriage to Kris Humphries . Khloe took things a step further, locking down two major, long-term relationships with league veterans: first, marrying Lamar Odom , and later, partnering with Tristan Thompson .
Even younger half-sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner kept their feet on the gas. Kendall cycled through relationships with All-Stars like Ben Simmons and Devin Booker , while Kylie is currently linked to Hollywood star Timothée Chalamet, a die-hard New York Knicks fan.
Yet, nobody's romantic roller coaster quite mirrored the sheer turbulence of Khloe's, through no fault of her own.
The tragic downfall of her marriage to Lamar is well-documented, marked by infidelity and substance abuse issues that culminated in him miraculously surviving 12 strokes and six heart attacks in a single night. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on her side when she moved on from the 2016 NBA champion with the Cleveland Cavaliers .
Following a string of cheating scandals where the Canadian center stepped out on his then-fiancée behind her back, the final straw came when Thompson allegedly hooked up with Jordyn Woods, Kylie's then-best friend and the current fiancée of Karl-Anthony Towns .
Despite the irreversible damage Thompson inflicted on his family, the pair has managed to maintain a remarkably healthy co-parenting relationship. That maturity was on full display during his recent appearance on Kardashian's podcast, admitting it would be a bitter pill to swallow watching her start fresh with another man.
"Ignorance is bliss. It's the best way to use it. It's my best explanation," Thompson said . "There's no right answer. I mean, at the end of the day, you're the mother of my kids. I don't think any guy is gonna be good enough for you. Like, I just wouldn't, like, I don't think so. But, see what happens.
The couple's timeline has been a dizzying back-and-forth. After quarantining together during the COVID-19 pandemic for the sake of their daughter, True, they rekindled their romance in 2020. They became engaged in 2021 but split for good later that year. In 2022, it was announced that Kardashian and Thompson were expecting a baby boy via surrogacy.
The final break in December 2021 came when a woman named Maralee Nichols gave birth to Tristan's son, Theo, the result of an affair he had while he was with Khloe. In that moment, the reality TV star effectively put an end to his out-of-bounds cheating scandals, reportedly handing down a vasectomy ultimatum .
"I think I signed off for two embryos, so, I mean, if I do have more kids, it'd be coming from… you know, I already have enough baby mamas. I don't want no more. Yeah, sometimes you gotta lay them nuts on the table," Tristan said.
Despite everything he put her through, the 41-year-old reality star found the strength to forgive him for the sake of their children. For his part, Thompson claims he is fully aware of his past mistakes and accepts the fact that she is now a single woman free to do as she pleases.
Still, the unbreakable bond created by children clearly weighs heavily on the 6-foot-9 center. He later noted that if either of them enters a new relationship, new partners shouldn't be introduced to the kids too quickly. Khloe, however, quickly shut the conversation down, reminding him that his own infidelity is what caused this situation in the first place — meaning he doesn't exactly have much of a say in the matter.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Jun 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
