If you’re a basketball fan, you’ve probably heard of Kawhi Leonard. Nicknamed “The Claw” because of his huge hands, the five-time NBA All-Star has played for the San Antonio Spurs, the Toronto Raptors, and his current team, the Los Angeles Clippers. He’s also won six All-Defensive Team selections, as well as Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2015 and 2016. But as celebrated as his career has been, the 29-year-old’s personal life has been kept very private. So, we did some digging to uncover the details behind his relationship with Kishele Shipley.
Does Kawhi Leonard Have A Wife?
Unlike some well-known sports stars, Kawhi Leonard is a very private person. He rarely speaks to the press and is not terribly active on social media (his last Twitter update is from 2015). Because he’s so hush-hush about his personal life—including his romantic relationships—many people have assumed that Kishele Shipley is his wife. But this is not the case! While the couple has been together since 2014 and share two children, they are not married.
Who Is Kishele Shipley?
Kishele Shipley was born in San Diego, California, on April 10th, 1989. Like her basketball star boyfriend, the 31-year-old shies away from the spotlight, so details about her life are scarce. She doesn’t appear to have any social media, but it has been reported that she has an older sister named Kenisha and a younger sister named Kasandra.
We also know that she attended San Diego State University and graduated with a degree in public administration.
According to reports, Leonard and Shipley have been together for about seven years. It’s believed that they met at San Diego State University, as Leonard also graduated from the school.
Kawhi Leonard And Kishele Shipley Have Two Beautiful Children Together
While they may not be man and wife, Leonard and Shipley are the parents are two adorable kids. Their daughter Kaliyah was born in the summer of 2016—when Leonard was playing for the San Antonio Spurs—prompting sports journalist Jabari Young to give the dad-to-be a shout out on Twitter:
“Congrats to Kawhi Leonard..expecting his first child (a girl) in July,” he wrote. “Welcome to fatherhood #Spurs
Leonard and Shipley also have a son who was born in April of 2019. While the couple has kept the little boy’s name under wraps, it’s speculated that Leonard named his son after his late father, Mark Leonard, who was tragically killed in 2008 in a shooting at a car wash he owned in Compton.
Leonard revealed during a press conference that summer that he was born in Toronto and is, therefore, a Canadian citizen. According to the Twitter feed of Canadian news channel CP24, the NBA guard said:
“I want to thank the Toronto Raptors fans. I don’t have social media so I am not able to put out a paragraph or whatever but I want to thank the whole city, the whole country….It was a great amazing season, best parade ever and thanks to the doctors for delivering my baby boy. He is three months old and still healthy.”
