Dwyane Wade’s Family Took Years to Accept Union’s Relationship Due to Age Gap: Gabrielle Union

Actress Gabrielle Union recently revealed that it took time to earn the trust of the family of her husband, former NBA star Dwyane Wade, due to their nine-year age difference. Union explained that Wade’s family, particularly his older sister Tragil, were initially skeptical of their relationship because of this age gap. She discussed these difficulties during a visit on Michelle Obama’s IMO podcast.

Union openly confirmed that Wade’s family was initially dubious about their age difference, expressing that they weren’t supportive of the nine-year gap at first. She admitted that when she first met Wade’s family, his older sisters, who were closer to her age, were positive and accepting, however Tragil, who has always been protective of Wade, was less welcoming.

Union disclosed that being nine years older than Wade aroused suspicions in both his mother Jolinda and his sister Tragil. They were skeptical about whether her intentions were genuine. Union recalled that before she and Wade were married, Tragil and Jolinda questioned her motives, enquiring ‘What do you want? Who are you, you older lady? What do you want?’

The actress stated that although she was older, she and Wade were both in similar situations at that time having both just got divorced. She defended her intentions saying: “We’re kind of in the same space… I didn’t have a kid at 20, I’m still childless, and I’m not racing to do that… I got my own bank account… I just like him, we’ll see where it goes.”

Union confessed that it took several years to establish trust between them, stating: “Now, it’s easy, because we are all on the same side.”

Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade have been together for over 15 years. They began dating in 2007, having first connected two years earlier when Union had recently divorced NFL player Chris Howard, and Wade was still married to his former wife, Siohvaughn Funches, with whom he shares two children, Zaya and Zaire. Together, Wade and Union have a daughter, Kaavia, born in 2018, and are also the legal guardians of Wade’s nephew, Dahveon Morris. Despite their private challenges and public successes, the couple maintain a strong commitment to each other and their blended family, proving their skeptics wrong.