Tina Ball is the wife of Lavar Ball and was a former American basketball player, and they have been married for 26 years. The couple has been the owner of Big Baller Brand since 2016.
She instantly rose to much fame after joining the Ball Family and, as of now, has made her presence marked uniquely.
To point out, Tina currently serves as the athletic director of Vernon Middle School in Montclair, California, and a lead designer of the Big Baller Brand.
She is currently recovering through her rehab therapy after a heart stroke in 2017.
What is known about Tina is that she is a fighter. In 2017, she suffered a major stroke at the age of 49. After some days and weeks following the stroke, Tina’s family was told she might die, but she survived.
This article will take you to Ball’s early life, professional career, marriage, children, net worth, and recovery from stroke.
The Ball family is involved in sports, business, company, and reality shows. They are sometimes called the “Kardashians of Basketball.”
All three sons of Tina are astonishing basketball players, and her husband Lavar is an American businessman.
Lavar is also a former NFL player, so he coached his sons and talked about his son’s career in a recent interview with Complex magazine.
This concludes he is a responsible and loving father; let’s move forward to learn more about the Ball family details.
Let’s start with some quick details.
Quick Facts
But before plunging deep into this article, let’s head further with the quick facts first.
| Full Name | Tina Catherine Slatinsky |
| Known as | Tina Ball |
| Nickname | Tina, Mama Ball |
| Birth Date | December 11, 1967 |
| Birth Place | Chino Hills, California, United States |
| Residence | Florida, USA |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | White |
| Education |
|
| Horoscope | Sagittarius |
| Father’s Name | Robert Slatinsky |
| Mother’s Name | Catherine Slatinsky |
| Siblings | Unknown |
| Age | 56 Years Old |
| Height | 6’1″/1.85 m/185 cm |
| Weight | 70 kg/154 lb |
| Eye Color | Blue |
| Hair Color | Blonde |
| Body Type | Unknown |
| Marital Status | Married Since 1997 |
| Spouse | Lavar Ball |
| Children |
|
| Profession | Athletic Director & Designer |
| Net Worth | $1.5 Million |
| Salary | Unknown |
| Social Media | N/A |
| Merch | Big Baller Brand T-shirts, Hoodies |
| Last Update | March, 2024 |
Lavar Ball’s Wife | Early Life & Education
Tina, whose full name before marriage was Christina Catherine Slatinsky, was born on December 11, 1967. She was born to parents Robert and Catherine Slatinsky in Miami, Florida.
Mama Ball was interested in sports and athletics from an early age. She dominated the court effortlessly at Alta Loma High School in California and was a four-year varsity basketball letter award winner.
To add on, she was a standout basketball player in high school. During her senior year, she was an All-Baseline League selection. After high school, Tina attended California State University, L.A.
She spent four years in college and established an impressive career playing for the California State Los Angeles Golden Eagle Women’s basketball team.
Body Measurements
Although Tina turned 56 years old this year, she is still fit and athletic.
Since Tina is already an active human in sports, she is keen to maintain a healthy physique. As per her age, Tina has a balanced weight of around 70 kg and a towering height of 1.85 m.
Not to mention, blonde hair and blue eyes are the noticeable features that make her look younger and prettier.
Family, Kids & Relationship
Lavar met his wife in high school and married in 1996.
But, according to Lavar, he saw Tina for the first time on the basketball court when he got transferred from West Los Angeles College to Cal State Los Angeles. It was love at first sight for Lavar; he couldn’t take his eyes off Tina.
He didn’t hesitate to walk up to her and say, “I don’t know what we are going to do, but we are going to do something.”
Tina was surprised to hear such words from a person she had met for the first time. But Tina found Lavar interesting.
Also, during their first meeting, Lavar told her they would marry one day and have boys to have a basketball family legacy.
Interestingly, Lavar’s wish came true, and now the Ball family name is well known in NBA alongside their three sons. Tina and Lavar are the perfect couples who complement each other in every way.
In an interview, Lavar revealed that Tina’s height caught his attention the first time but not her beauty. He found this tall, beautiful girl walking down a hallway and asked her out immediately.
While Tina is frugal and likes to express herself in private, Lavar prefers extravagance and wants to put his mark there for all to see.
Who Is Lavar Ball?
Lavar was born in South Los Angeles, California, USA. He was born to parents Maria and Anderson on October 23, 1967.
Lavar Ball’s career started when he studied at Canoga Park High School in L.A. He used to play in the school’s basketball as a forward and on the football team as a quarterback.
His excellent skills and fantastic basketball career led him toward an NFL tryout. During his active years, he was associated with New York Jets, London Monarchs, and Carolina Panthers.
Sadly, Lavar never played an official regular-season game in the NFL before his retirement in 1995 due to injury.
After retiring, Lavar became a personal trainer. Lavar achieved significant success in this business in no time by training clients who desired fitness.
Tina, Mother Of The Ball Brothers
Like the parents, the three boys have succeeded in becoming celebrities in the business.
Lonzo Ball
The eldest son, Lonzo, is the most popular among the three children. This is because Lavar personally trained him, and he also had a successful college basketball career with the UCLA Bruins.
In the 2017 NBA draft, Lonzo Ball was selected as the second overall pick by Los Angeles Lakers.
He is also the father of a little girl named Christine Ball, born on July 22, 2018, with his high school sweetheart Denise Garcia.
Lonzo’s achievements have brought attention not just to himself but also to the family.
Currently, Lonzo has been playing with the Chicago Bulls since 2021.
LiAngelo Ball
The second eldest son was also originally committed to playing for the UCLA Bruins but left University after being caught in the shoplifting controversy in China in November 2017.
Instead of playing for UCLA, he played for the BC Prienai of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL). Currently, Liangelo Ball is playing for the Los Angeles Ballers of the Junior Basketball Association (JBA).
JBA is a famous basketball league established with the help of Lavar Ball under total funding from the Big Baller Brand.
LiAngelo is playing for Greensboro Swarm of the NBA G league.
LaMelo Ball
The youngest son of Lavar and Tina is also a famous teenage basketball player.
Previously, he played alongside his brother LiAngelo in BC Prienal, but he plays for the Los Angeles Ballers of the National Basketball Association.
Currently, LaMelo is playing at the Charlotte Hornets as the point guard. With an impressive height of 1.85 m, LaMelo is known for his flashy play and ability to shoot the ball from deep.
Now several NBA teams are anxious to add him to their roster. Before the 2022–23 NBA season, LaMelo changed his jersey number to 1 from the number 2.
From An Athlete To Stardom
Athletic Career
Throughout her college years, Tina played basketball and was a part of the All-Baseline League in her senior year. Later, she played for Golden Eagles Women’s basketball team at California University in college.
Before leaving the team after playing for four years, Tina scored 8th in scoring with 935 points, fifth in blocks with 60, fourth in rebounds with 627, and eighth in free throws with 120.
But after graduating from college, she left her dreams of becoming a professional athlete and started working outside the court.
Teaching Career
After Lavar’s NFL retirement in 1995, he and his wife Tina moved to a wealthy Los Angeles neighborhood.
Unfortunately, she could not pursue her professional basketball career and remained a part of the sports outside the court.
Tina got a job at a middle school as an athletic director at Vernon Middle School in Montclair, California. She trains potential NBA players and is busy teaching school students.
Lead Designer Of The Big Baller Brand (BBB)
As a result of Brand creativity and thoughtfulness, Tina has been named the Big Baller brand’s lead Brandner.
Tina designed the costumes for a Beauty and the Beast production.
Besides this, Tina is a co-founder of The Big Baller Brand. The brand is for men’s and women’s apparel.
She has a big hand in leading the brand alongside her husband, Lavar. Also, the BBB brand often features the Ball brothers in its advertisement.
In addition to her work at Vernon Middle School, Tina also helped her husband to develop the BBB brand and has been able to make the brand a national entity. The brand includes a shoe line, a clothing line, and other merchandise.
The Stroke
In February 2017, Tina suffered a stroke which was a massive blow to the family because it was something nobody saw coming.
The stroke was so severe that her family thought she would not survive at one point. She was paralyzed on her right side and suffered from aphasia, making it difficult to retrieve words when she attempted to speak.
Also, she had to rehab five times a week during that time.
Soon the family realized Tina would not be the same after her stroke and made sure to help her throughout her recovery, which is something they are still doing.
Significantly her father helped her a lot with her exercise to regain her speech.
Slowly she recovered, and now she has gotten back to her feet. Also, the family chose to keep Tina’s condition away from the public as long as possible.
While Tina was resting and recovering in her parent’s home, Lavar took over various parental responsibilities.
He watched his son’s games, attempted to start his Junior Basketball Association League, filmed their family reality show “Ball in the Family,” and other couples of things to promote the Big Baller Brand.
In the meantime, he was doing his best as a husband too. In one of the episodes of “Ball in the Family,” Lavar disclosed that he had built a park in the backyard of their house that would let Tina continue rehab during the pandemic.
2022 Update
Lavar Ball On LaMelo’s Career
In an interview with Complex Networks Magazine in 2022, Lavar was asked if he wanted his son to go with the Lakers and Lavar replied, “Hell No.”
Due to his last experience with Lonzo over five years ago, Lonzo got drafted by their hometown Lakers. He was selected with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft but later was drafted to Pelicans for Anthony Davis
Net Worth
Some online sources show Tina’s estimated net worth is nearly $1.5 million. Also, she lives a luxurious life with her family alongside being the soul of the BBB family business.
The Big Baller Brand has attained lots of profit through the Ball family’s extraordinary publicity style.
Also, the documentary series aired on Facebook Watch, “Ball in the Family,” adds a hefty amount of fortune to the family. The show is quite popular, as nearly twenty-six million people watch the show.
Herewith, it is understood that Tina earns a good part of her wealth from her sports career and business. In addition, she and her husband live in an expensive house worth $5.2 million.
Tina’s sons are no less in the name of wealth as his oldest son Lonzo signed a 4-year / $80 million contract with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2021
LiAngelo, the middle son, signed a 1-year deal with the Charlotte Hortnets to play for them with a salary of $1,017,781 in 2022.
The youngest Lamelo signed a 4-year / $35,596,275 contract with the Charlotte Hornets in 2020.
The Search Graph
The popularity graph of Tina Ball is on hike due to her famous sons and husband.
Currently, Tina is still recovering, and people are searching for her to know her regular progress.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can Tina Ball talk clearly after her recovery from a stroke?
Tina still suffers from Aphasia, and it is hard for her to retrieve words and speak. But with the help of doctors and the emotional support from her family members, Tina slowly regained her speech and is in better condition now.
What is Tina Ball's ethnicity?
Unlike her husband, Lavar Ball, who is of Black ethnicity, Tina belongs to the White Caucasian ethnic group. This makes Tina and Lavar's children Lonzo, Liangelo, and Lamelo biracial.
