TV PRESENTER Maya Jama is engaged to US basketballer Ben Simmons, The Sun can reveal. NBA player Simmons popped the question over Christmas, but the pair had kept the news quiet, only telling close family and friends. Maya, 27, began dating Aussie Simmons, 25, in May and fell in love with the 6ft 11in hunk […]
TV PRESENTER Maya Jama is engaged to US basketballer Ben Simmons, The Sun can reveal.
NBA player Simmons popped the question over Christmas, but the pair had kept the news quiet, only telling close family and friends.
Maya, 27, began dating Aussie Simmons, 25, in May and fell in love with the 6ft 11in hunk during trips to the US.
She spent Christmas with the Philadelphia 76ers star at his £3.7million mansion in Moorestown, New Jersey.
And now, with unsettled Simmons’ future with the Sixers unclear, Maya, from Bristol, is ready to make a permanent move to the US to be with him in a new city.
It is thought they could move to Los Angeles, as Simmons bought a £15million home there in July.
Confirming the engagement, a source close to the couple said: “Ben adores Maya and has fallen head over heels for her. He picked up the ring on Jewelers’ Row in the diamond district of Philadelphia the day before he proposed.
“He chose the ring himself and felt he knew exactly what she would want. Maya said yes and they’re both thrilled.”
The source said Simmons had been nervous about popping the question because Maya had said no to a previous ex when he proposed.
They added: “He and Maya have been together for much less time but, thankfully, she said yes. Ben was so excited, but they’ve decided to keep the news low-key and tell only those closest to them.
“Maya flew to New Jersey to spend Christmas with him and is still there now.
“They had a small family gathering last weekend and announced their engagement.”
Simmons, who once dated Kendall Jenner, 26, and Maya, who dated rapper Stormzy, 28, have since had matching tattoos to mark their love.
And the tattoo artist who did the work let slip that Simmons had a fiancée in an Instagram post.
In the post, which was swiftly deleted, Philly Joe, who has a studio in Pennsylvania, wrote: “Honored and humbled to have gotten this opportunity to tattoo my boy @bensimmons and his fiancée.”
The source added: “News is going to get out eventually, but they’re keen to keep it under wraps until the new year. Ben fell for Maya almost immediately and was absolutely taken by her sheer beauty.
“He tells friends he loves the fact that she has her own career and he’s smitten by her British accent.”
