Nia Long was the subject of major embarrassment back in 2022 when her ex-fiancée Ime Udoka was exposed for cheating. Now, three years later, the 54-year-old actress says that the two are at peace while co-parenting their son.
“This summer, I traveled with my youngest son [Kez] and my ex, Ime. We had a great time,” she told The Cut in their latest cover story interview. “It was really beautiful because we’ve had a very public journey that has found its way to peace and understanding. And there’s a lot of mutual respect that we have for each other.”
Long admitted that she had a lot of negative feelings to overcome, but she has done so and continues to wish the best for the current Houston Rockets head coach. “The most important gift you can give your kids is to heal your trauma,” she said. “I don’t talk much about my personal life ’cause it’s no one’s business, but every now and then people speculate things on social media and it’s like me and Coach are good. I hope he wins. He deserves to win. He’s really great at what he does. We can have experiences with our son and make him the priority.”
BEVERLY HILLS, CA – FEBRUARY 17: Actor Nia Long (L) and Ime Udoka attend BET Presents the American Black Film Festival Honors on February 17, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California.
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Long and Udoka met in 2010 and soon began dating. In 2011, they welcomed Kez into the world and, four years later, they got engaged. Their relationship met its untimely end when news broke that Udoka had an intimate and consensual relationship with a Boston Celtics staff member while he served as the legendary franchise’s head coach. He was suspended and later fired while also losing his longtime partner in Long.
Fortunately, “time heals all wounds” rang true in this situation. “I’m not going to carry burdensome energy with me because that just transfers to my children and it transfers to everything else in my life,” she added in the interview with The Cut. “I’m proud of myself. I think we’re proud of each other as the parents of Kez, that we’re able to make this an annual thing and commit to these last sweet years of him being in grade school and high school before he goes off to college. We’re both going to be standing there watching him graduate.”
