New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson continues to balance his high-stakes professional basketball career with his personal life alongside his wife, Dr. Ali Marks Brunson, and their young daughter in New York.
The 29-year-old NBA All-Star, who signed a four-year contract worth $104 million with the Knicks, maintains a strict boundary between his athletic commitments and his home environment.
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From High School Sweethearts to Lifelong Partners
The couple originally met as high school students at Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois.
They officially began dating on October 27, 2013, during their senior year.
Despite attending different universities—Jalen won two national championships at Villanova University while Ali studied at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign—they maintained their relationship over a long distance.
During a December episode of the Roommates Show podcast, Jalen reflected on their initial meeting.
He noted his wife's humorous reaction to his junior varsity status at the time.
"She's like, 'Oh, you're on JV,'" Jalen said.
He added that when he corrected her about his actual position, she dismissed him and walked away for about two years.
Dr. Ali Brunson, who completed her doctorate in physical therapy from Northwestern University in 2021 and founded the AMB Method, clarified that they were friends before transitioning into a romantic relationship.
"We were friends for a couple years," she said.
She recalled her initial hesitation about their future as they prepared to attend separate colleges in different states.
