Who Is Kyrie Irving’s Wife? All About Marlene Wilkerson

Kyrie Irving and his wife, Marlene Wilkerson, have kept much of their life together private — but they have a lot of love between them.

The Dallas Mavericks point guard was first linked to Wilkerson, a social media influencer, in 2018 after they were reportedly spotted together at Irving’s youth basketball tournament. While they never officially confirmed their relationship, Wilkerson was spotted wearing an engagement ring less than a year later.

Since then, the couple have seemingly married, referring to each other as husband and wife. They’ve also welcomed two children, and while they kept their pregnancies a secret, Wilkerson has since opened up on social media about her journey as a mom.

Although Irving doesn’t often publicly speak about Wilkerson, he has dedicated messages to her online.

“I love you and I am eternally grateful we get to spend our lives together. You have taught me so much about Balance, Love, Trust, Community and Forgiveness,” he wrote in a rare social media post for Wilkerson’s birthday in 2022.

So who is Kyrie Irving’s wife? Here's everything to know about Marlene Wilkerson and her relationship with the NBA star.

Wilkerson spent her childhood in Los Angeles

Wilkerson was born on Aug. 18, 1993 in Los Angeles, California. Although her full first name is Marlene, her family and friends often refer to her by the nickname “Nene.”

Growing up, Wilkerson says she was close with her brother as well as her aunts and uncles — who were of a similar age to her.

She has a degree in business marketing

After graduating from high school, Wilkerson enrolled at California State University, Dominguez Hills, according to her LinkedIn. When she earned a bachelor's degree in business marketing and tried to work behind the scenes in entertainment, Wilkerson says she faced a lot of rejection and decided to "create" her own career path.

"When I went into school, my initial plan was to work behind the scenes ... I'm a very private person, but I like marketing, I like the entertainment industry. Everyone was telling me ‘no,’ and I had no experience, so I decided to just go for something completely different,” Wilkerson said in a YouTube video.

Years after she finished her higher education in 2015, Wilkerson reflected on her time in college and shared that her major wasn’t helpful for her career path because they taught her "old age marketing tactics." It wasn't until her final year in college that a professor "changed" everything and made her college experience worthwhile, she explained in a different YouTube video.

Instead of assigning homework and giving out tests, the professor asked her to spend the semester starting her own business and providing weekly updates about its growth — which, in turn, helped launch her career as a social media entrepreneur.

She is an entrepreneur

In 2015, Wilkerson began her online shop, The Fine Guru, which evolved from her final college assignment.

Using the power of social media marketing, Wilkerson sold items of clothing that she promoted on Instagram and YouTube, explaining that it became a “one-stop shop” where followers could find anything she wore on her social media platforms.

“I started my own clothing line, and I used social media as a platform and a tool to basically market my company," she said on YouTube. "I did not have a lot of followers on Instagram, I didn't have a YouTube channel at all, so I literally started from ground zero."

Wilkerson continued, "My business model was I would find products from wholesale manufacturers and I would obtain a certain amount of inventory. I would put a picture on Instagram and I would sell out of the clothing that I would wear.”

Other aspects of her business included doing product research in L.A., setting up a shopping website, obtaining a business license and keeping track of finances.

The final step was showing her outfits on social media, and by posting consistently, her following grew, as did her small business. This led her to do additional online work, like YouTube and a clothing line.

She started posting on YouTube in 2015

While Wilkerson was in the midst of starting her own clothing company, she decided to begin her own YouTube channel with the same name in 2015.

Originally, she wanted to use the social media channel to help promote her company, but also shared personal videos about her life — including beauty tips, advice about fashion and her fitness routine.

Since then, Wilkerson has amassed over 750,000 subscribers on the platform, with whom she has shown different stages of her life, including becoming a parent alongside Irving.

Although Wilkerson has posted over 100 videos on YouTube, she hasn't uploaded new content since October 2023, though she's mentioned wanting to be more consistent.

She was first spotted with Irving in 2018

Irving and Wilkerson have been private about their relationship and have not yet shared details about the early days of their romance.

In December 2018, they were reportedly spotted together when Wilkerson attended the first annual Kyrie Invitational, Irving’s youth basketball tournament. At the time, the two did not confirm their relationship.

Less than a year later, Irving and Wilkerson were engaged. During an outing in September 2019, she was seen wearing a large diamond on her ring finger, according to the Daily Mail.

They share two children together

On Wilkerson’s birthday in August 2020, she discovered she was expecting her first child with Irving. The couple decided to keep their pregnancy a secret and didn’t share the exciting news until the birth.

In 2021, they welcomed their son in a natural, unassisted water birth at home — which was one of the reasons the couple decided to keep the milestone under wraps.

“Even though my pregnancy was private, just the unsolicited opinions were a little bit too much for me where I was like, ‘You know what, I don't want to tell nobody because I’m doing something that a lot of people think is foreign but it’s something that's natural to me, and it resonates with me and what I believe,’ ” Wilkerson shared on YouTube.

While the pair have not officially shared their elder child's name, Irving referred to him as Kaire in an Instagram post dedicated to Wilkerson. When the professional basketball player later brought him to a press conference, he introduced his son — revealing that they both pronounce their names the same way.

Wilkerson and Irving also decided to keep their second pregnancy a secret, but in October 2022, former Nets coach Steve Nash shared that the couple had just welcomed another child.

They have seemingly married

While Irving and Wilkerson haven't confirmed if they officially wed, she has referred to him as her spouse.

In a YouTube video sharing that Irving helped deliver their first baby, she called him “the greatest partner, the greatest husband I could ever have.”

Wilkerson elaborated on their relationship in a different clip, saying, "Me and this man have been through a lot ... In the best way, he tells me about myself, which is very, very uncomfortable."

She continued, "He put a light on a lot of different things that ultimately were dark spaces within myself and by doing that, we were able to open and deepen our connection and I was ultimately able to become a better version of myself ... and I’m still learning."

As for questions about Irving, the social media personality shared that she wanted to maintain a level of privacy regarding their relationship but was open to making a YouTube video with him one day.

They made their red carpet debut at the 2023 ESPYs

After keeping much of their relationship private, Irving and Wilkerson made their red carpet debut at the 2023 ESPY Awards.

Wilkerson documented the days leading up to the event on her YouTube channel, sharing a behind-the-scenes look at how they got ready for the award ceremony.

“I’m proud of you. It's a big week for you for being the little kid with a dream,” she said to him in the video.

She wants to have more children

Following the birth of their first child in 2021, Wilkerson shared that she loved being pregnant and hopes to have many more children.

“Pregnancy for me was the most beautiful, powerful, empowering experience ever," she said in YouTube video. "If it was up to me, I would be pregnant all the time, every time. Literally, right after I gave birth, I stood up, and I was like, ‘I need 19 more kids. Let's make it to 20.’ ”