Public curiosity about Toriah Lachell began for one reason: her connection to Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum. Their son, Jayson Christopher Tatum Jr., known widely as “Deuce,” became a familiar face around the NBA almost from the moment he could walk. Cameras love the father-and-son duo. Fans love them even more. But behind that charming public story is a quieter narrative about a young woman who built a business and a life while the spotlight pointed somewhere else.
The truth is that Toriah Lachell’s life rarely fits the internet version of it. Online biographies often flatten her into a side character in a sports story. In reality she has spent the past several years developing a career in the beauty industry, becoming a certified curl specialist and opening her own salon focused on textured hair care. It’s not a glamorous Hollywood tale. It’s a work story, a motherhood story, and in many ways a Boston small-business story.
Understanding who she is requires stepping away from gossip pages and looking instead at the timeline of her life, her professional path, and the personal choices that shaped both.
Early Life and Family Background
Toriah Lachell Mimms was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in the late 1990s, growing up in the same Midwestern city that would later produce one of the NBA’s brightest young stars. St. Louis is a city with a strong basketball culture, where neighborhood gyms and high school tournaments often become the center of community life. That environment shaped many of the teenagers who later crossed paths with professional sports.
By most accounts, her childhood followed a relatively typical path for a young woman growing up in Missouri during that time. Friends and acquaintances from St. Louis have described her as someone interested in beauty and style from an early age. Hair care, particularly textured hair care, was something she learned partly through experience with her own curls and partly through watching family members navigate the challenges of finding knowledgeable stylists.
Her teenage years placed her in the same social orbit as Jayson Tatum, who attended Chaminade College Preparatory School in St. Louis. The school had already developed a reputation for strong academics and competitive athletics. Tatum emerged as a basketball prodigy there, drawing national attention long before he entered the NBA draft.
During those high school years, Lachell and Tatum began a relationship that would later become widely discussed in sports media. At the time, though, they were simply two teenagers navigating school life and the pressures that came with a rising basketball career. Few people around them could have predicted how public their lives would eventually become.
The city itself played a role in shaping both of them. St. Louis is a place where community ties often run deep. People tend to know each other’s families, attend the same local events, and follow high school sports closely. Growing up there meant that even after Tatum’s career exploded onto the national stage, the foundation of his personal life remained connected to the city where it all began.
The Relationship That Put Her in the Spotlight
Public attention on Toriah Lachell began during a critical moment in Jayson Tatum’s life. In 2017 he declared for the NBA Draft after a single season at Duke University, where he had already become one of the country’s most talked-about young players. The Boston Celtics selected him with the third overall pick that June.
Just months later, another major life event arrived.
In December 2017, Tatum and Lachell welcomed their son, Jayson Christopher Tatum Jr. The child quickly became known by his nickname, Deuce, a name that fans across the NBA would soon recognize. At the time, Tatum was only 19 years old and still adjusting to life as a rookie in one of basketball’s most historic franchises.
Fatherhood arrived at the same moment as fame.
Tatum later spoke openly about the challenges he faced during that period. In interviews over the years he admitted that he initially worried about how becoming a father so young might affect his career. The NBA is a demanding environment, and rookies often struggle to find balance even without family responsibilities.
But the arrival of Deuce changed his perspective. He described the experience as something that pushed him to mature quickly and focus on what mattered most in his life. While Tatum continued to develop into an All-Star player, his son became a constant presence around the team.
For Lachell, that moment carried a different kind of adjustment. She suddenly found herself connected to a rising sports celebrity while raising a newborn child. Many people in that position might have pursued public attention or tried to build a media profile around the connection.
Instead, she chose a quieter path.
Building a Career in the Beauty Industry
Long before her name appeared in celebrity search results, Toriah Lachell had developed an interest in hairstyling. Curly hair care can be a complicated world, especially for people whose textures don’t fit traditional salon training programs. Many stylists learn only basic techniques for straight hair, leaving clients with curls or coils struggling to find professionals who understand their needs.
That gap eventually shaped her career direction.
After completing cosmetology training, she began focusing on curly and textured hair care. Over time she earned several professional certifications within the curl-specialist community. These included training in the DevaCurl method and the Rezo Cut system, both widely known approaches for cutting curls in their natural pattern rather than forcing them into traditional shapes.
Those credentials helped her develop a reputation among clients seeking specialized care. Curly hair cuts often require different techniques from standard salon work, and stylists who master those skills can build extremely loyal followings.
In the early 2020s, she took the biggest step in her professional journey.
She opened The Curl Bar, a salon in Somerville, Massachusetts, just outside Boston. The business focuses entirely on textured hair care, offering dry cuts, hydration treatments, styling sessions, and education for clients learning to manage their curls at home.
What makes the salon different is its emphasis on teaching. A typical first appointment includes consultation, product guidance, and hands-on instruction about maintaining curl patterns after leaving the salon. Many clients arrive with years of frustration behind them, having struggled to find stylists who understand their hair.
By positioning The Curl Bar as both a salon and an educational space, Lachell carved out a niche within Boston’s competitive beauty market.
Motherhood in the Public Eye
Although Toriah Lachell generally keeps a low public profile, her role as Deuce Tatum’s mother inevitably draws attention. The young boy has become one of the NBA’s most recognizable children, often appearing with his father during post-game interviews, championship celebrations, and televised events.
Fans have watched him grow up courtside.
During Celtics playoff runs, cameras frequently capture Deuce sitting near the bench or celebrating victories with players. Those moments have helped create a father-son image that resonates strongly with audiences. Tatum himself often describes his son as the center of his life.
But parenting a child connected to a global sports brand brings its own challenges. Public fascination can easily cross into intrusion, especially when children are involved. Lachell has largely handled this attention by staying out of the spotlight and allowing Tatum to represent their son publicly.
By most accounts, the two parents maintain a cooperative co-parenting relationship focused on raising their child.
That approach allows Deuce to experience both sides of his life: the extraordinary environment of NBA arenas and the more ordinary routines of school, family, and everyday childhood.
The Curl Bar and Her Entrepreneurial Vision
Running a salon requires far more than hairstyling talent. It demands financial planning, scheduling management, marketing, and customer service skills that often go unnoticed by outsiders. Lachell has spent years developing those aspects of her business.
The Curl Bar operates with a structured appointment system that often fills quickly. New clients typically begin with a signature curl session that includes consultation, treatment, and styling education. Pricing reflects the specialized nature of the service, with detailed curl appointments costing several hundred dollars.
That price point may surprise people unfamiliar with textured-hair care. But clients who have struggled to find skilled stylists often see it differently. For them, a successful curl cut can mean months of manageable hair and improved confidence.
Within the curly-hair community, stylists often build reputations through word of mouth and social media portfolios showing real results. Over time, Lachell’s work has drawn attention from curl-focused publications and beauty platforms that highlight professionals working with natural textures.
The business also reflects a larger cultural shift. Over the past decade, more people with textured hair have moved away from chemical straightening and toward natural curl patterns. That movement has increased demand for stylists trained in specialized cutting and hydration techniques.
In many ways, The Curl Bar grew out of that broader shift.
Financial Standing and Net Worth in 2026
Public figures connected to athletes often attract speculation about wealth. Estimates surrounding Toriah Lachell’s net worth vary widely depending on the source. Most available estimates place her financial standing somewhere between $500,000 and $1 million as of 2026.
Those numbers are difficult to confirm because she has not publicly disclosed personal financial details.
However, the core elements of her income appear clear. The Curl Bar operates as an independent salon with premium pricing for specialized services. A busy stylist with a full appointment schedule can generate significant annual income, especially when working in a metropolitan area like Boston.
Additional revenue may come from product partnerships, training workshops, or consulting within the curly-hair community. Many stylists expand into those areas once they establish strong reputations.
Compared with the multimillion-dollar contracts common in the NBA, those figures may seem modest. Yet within the beauty industry, they represent the earnings of a successful independent entrepreneur.
Life Today: Balancing Business and Family
As of 2026, Toriah Lachell continues to focus primarily on her salon and her role as a mother. She maintains a relatively private lifestyle despite the public curiosity surrounding her connection to Jayson Tatum.
Clients visiting The Curl Bar encounter her as a working stylist rather than a celebrity. That distinction seems intentional. Her professional identity revolves around hair care expertise and customer relationships rather than public attention.
Meanwhile, Deuce continues to appear alongside his father at major NBA events. Celtics fans have watched him grow from a toddler wandering around locker rooms into a confident young boy comfortable in front of cameras.
Balancing those two worlds requires careful boundaries. By keeping her public presence limited and focusing on her work, Lachell has managed to maintain a degree of privacy that many people connected to famous athletes struggle to achieve.
That decision reflects a broader theme in her life: building stability away from the noise of celebrity culture.
Lesser-Known Facts About Toriah Lachell
Not many people know this, but her professional training includes several specialized curl-cutting certifications recognized within the beauty industry. Programs like Rezo Cut and DevaCurl certification require intensive workshops that teach stylists how to shape curls individually rather than cutting them straight across.
Another detail that often surprises people is how small The Curl Bar began. Like many salons, it started with limited appointments and a modest client base before gradually expanding through referrals and social media visibility.
What’s surprising is how much emphasis she places on education during appointments. Many curl specialists spend significant time teaching clients how to care for their hair after leaving the salon, which builds loyalty and long-term relationships.
Friends from St. Louis have also described her as someone who always had a strong sense of style. That personal interest eventually became the foundation for her career.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Toriah Lachell?
Toriah Lachell is an American hairstylist and entrepreneur best known as the mother of Jayson Tatum’s son, Jayson Christopher Tatum Jr., widely called Deuce. She is also the founder and owner of The Curl Bar, a salon in Somerville, Massachusetts, specializing in textured and curly hair care.
Was Toriah Lachell married to Jayson Tatum?
Public information suggests that Lachell and Tatum were never married. They were in a relationship during their younger years and share a son together, but reports generally describe them as former partners rather than spouses.
What does Toriah Lachell do for a living?
She works as a professional hairstylist and salon owner. Her business, The Curl Bar, focuses on curly hair cutting, hydration treatments, and educating clients about maintaining their natural curl patterns.
How old is Toriah Lachell?
Her exact birthdate has not been widely confirmed publicly. Most estimates place her birth year around 1999, which would make her approximately 27 years old in 2026.
Does Toriah Lachell appear at NBA games?
She generally keeps a low public profile and is rarely seen in media coverage of games. Their son Deuce often attends Celtics games with his father, while Lachell focuses on her work and private life.
Also Read: Adrian Higham Net Worth: Biography, Career, and Life Story
Conclusion
Toriah Lachell’s story rarely fits the simple narrative people expect when they search her name online. The internet tends to frame her as a footnote in the career of an NBA superstar. That version of events misses the larger picture.
Behind the headlines is a woman who built a profession from personal experience, training, and persistence. Her salon represents years of learning, client relationships, and entrepreneurial risk. Running a specialized beauty business requires discipline and patience that rarely shows up in celebrity profiles.
Motherhood forms the other major thread in her life. Raising Deuce while his father navigates the demands of professional basketball has placed her family inside a uniquely public environment. Yet she has managed to maintain privacy and stability through most of that attention.
What stands out most is how grounded her path has been. Fame arrived indirectly, through someone else’s career, but her own identity formed around work, skill, and family. As Deuce grows older and The Curl Bar continues serving clients in Boston, her story will likely keep evolving.
For now, Toriah Lachell remains something rare in celebrity culture: a public figure who never set out to be famous, yet built a life strong enough to stand on its own.
