LOS ANGELES - French NBA star Tony Parker only flirted with another woman in text messages and nothing more, reports said Thursday after his wife "Desperate Housewives" star Eva Longoria filed for divorce.

The 35-year-old decided to divorce Parker after finding the text exchanges with the wife of one of his former San Antonio Spurs teammates, Brent Barry, People magazine and the TMZ website said.

"They knew each other, sent each other messages," a source close to Parker told People referring to Erin Barry, adding: "It was flirtatious, but he never did anything with her."

The TMZ celebrity website also reported that Parker denies having had sex with his ex-teammate's wife.

Longoria, who married Parker in a lavish French chateau ceremony in 2007, confirmed she had filed for divorce on Wednesday, saying on her Twitter feed: "We love each other deeply and pray for each other's happiness."

Court papers filed at Los Angeles Superior Court showed that Longoria - who has reportedly canceled all upcoming appearances - cited "irreconcilable differences" for the split.

But a television presenter who is a close friend of the actress said Longoria told her she had found hundreds of texts on his cell phone from Erin Barry.

Mario Lopez of the celebrity news show "Extra" said she had also discovered that Parker had cheated on her earlier in their marriage, and stayed in contact with the woman via the Facebook social networking site.

Longoria and 28-year-old Parker, who is one of the top European players in the National Basketball Association, signed a pre-nuptial agreement a month before their wedding, updated two years later, according to People.

The magazine said that Barry and his wife were among the closest friends of Longoria and Parker, even after Barry left the San Antonio Spurs in 2008, having been there since 2004.

The Barrys attended their friend's July 2007 wedding outside Paris, quoting Parker as saying shortly after the ceremony: "We're like family."

The two women bonded as "Spurs wives" and stayed close even after Brent left the team, a source close to Longoria told People, which said the four often socialized and Erin Barry went to one of Longoria's birthday parties.

Barry's father Rick meanwhile told TMZ that his son was divorcing. "I feel horrible for my son. I'm in shock," he said.

"I knew (Erin) was moving out of the house soon and she was the one that filed for divorce. This is the straw that broke the camel's back," said the NBA Hall of Famer.

Longoria said shortly after they married that she and Parker planned to raise a family in the United States. But despite rumors of pregnancy the couple have no children.

Divorce papers seen by AFP said the actress sought "dissolution of marriage" from Parker, and asked to return to her pre-marriage name, Eva Jacqueline Longoria.

The actress checked the box requesting "spousal support" and noted that an "earnings assignment will be issued." She requested that both sides pay their own legal bills.

Parker was asked about the split on Wednesday evening, when he spoke briefly with a clutch of reporters outside the Spurs' locker room before the team's NBA contest against Chicago.

"It's a difficult time right now for me and Eva," said Parker, who has no children with Eva.