Hookup and Breakup Talk: Rihanna's NBA Crush, Usher's Unsurprising Divorce

Wonderwall, Monday, June 15, 2009, 4:05pm (PDT)

By Kat Giantis

These days, Rihanna can't even catch a basketball game without starting an avalanche of rumors. On Thursday, the chanteuse, 21, appeared at Game 4 of the NBA finals in Orlando, where she sat a conspicuous distance away from her ex Chris Brown, who was apparently determined to make his presence known.

The New York Daily News says Brown not only cast "sneaking glances" at his onetime squeeze, but during halftime, while Rihanna hung in a VIP area, he headed over to where her pals were sitting and shook hands with them.

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"Chris was definitely trying to make the situation less awkward," explains an onlooker, who doesn't seem to realize that there's no such thing as "less awkward" when it comes to shaking hands with the guy accused of assaulting your friend. "He was trying to be very grown-up, and wanted Rihanna to see that as well."

But the paper says the only thing that RiRi wanted to see that night was Orlando Magic player Rashard Lewis, who reportedly invited her to the game.

"Rihanna is trying to get to know Rashard," tattles an insider. "She's digging on him, and she hopes the feeling is mutual."

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As for speculation that Rihanna, who was subpoenaed last week to testify against Brown in his assault case on June 22 (he's pleaded not guilty in the Feb. 8 attack), was also cheering on Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum, with whom she was recently linked, the confidant downplays the talk.

"Ri and Andrew are just friends, and they have been for a while," maintains the source. "It's Rashard who she wants. She thinks he's hotter than hot."

Either way, Rihanna isn't wanting for attention. The night before her NBA outing, she was spotted partying in New York City with Canadian rapper Aubrey "Drake" Graham, who supposedly locked lips with her last month (he's insisted they're just pals).

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Meanwhile, moving on from hookups to breakups, the rumor mill is also chugging away now that Usher has filed for divorce from Tameka Foster after not quite two years of marriage.

"No one I've spoken to is surprised," an insider tells People magazine. "As bad as this is gonna sound, it was never a matter of 'I wonder if they'll divorce,' but more like 'I wonder WHEN they'll divorce.'"

Seems the estranged couple, who have two sons, Usher Raymond V, 18 months, and Naviyd, 6 months, started having problems not long after their elaborate September 2007 knot-tying, a ceremony that took place a few weeks after they abruptly called off their original "I do"s.

"They peaked before they even got married," says a friend of Tameka's. "Right after it was over, they started to drift apart. [Usher] just wasn't ready to settle down, at least not with her."

On Monday, Foster's lawyer declared her a "faithful wife and loving mother," a statement that follows a RadarOnline.com report that alleges the singer has "fallen" for a record company executive.

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But the People source insists there was no other party involved in the marital meltdown, even though Usher, who's been recording his new album in Las Vegas, has purportedly been living "like a bachelor."

"He just wasn't used to calling her if he was going to be out late," shares the spy. "He didn't treat her bad. He just took her for granted."

Adds the Tameka mole, "They've been going their own way for a while. They don't spend a lot of time with each other. When they were together, it was all about the boys."

Usher, who flew to Foster's side after she suffered life-threatening complications during a liposuction procedure in Brazil last February, "can't dump Tameka fast enough," a callous snitch concludes to Radar. "No one likes her. Since the day it became known he was dating Tameka, friends and family have been telling him she's not right for him."

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