How NBA players changed the men’s fashion game

SPORT and fashion may seem like strange bedfellows, but there is no denying the influence NBA stars have had on men’s style over the past decade.

art for well dressed sportsmen

SPORT and fashion may seem like strange bedfellows, but there is no denying the influence NBA stars have had on men’s style over the past decade.

Last week, LeBron James created a social media storm when he stepped out before Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals wearing a suit from Thom Browne, which featured tailored shorts in place of trousers.

The leader of the Cleveland Cavaliers also sported an alligator leather bag (retailing for $54,000) by the New York designer and a rare Audemars Piguet timepiece, known as the Royal Oak Offshore Arnold Schwarzenegger The Legacy Chronograph, which also sells for more than $52,000.

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LeBron James paired his tailored shorts suit with a $50,000 watch. Picture: Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images/AFP

But his look is not particularly uncommon in the tunnels of pro basketball arenas.

From the feet up, NBA players have become some of the most influential forces in fashion, all thanks to a 2005 dress-code change.

Dismayed by the players’ raggedy, hip-hop-inspired, off-court appearance, NBA commissioner David Stern laid down a “minimum” dress code of “business casual attire” for the following season “whenever they are engaged in team or league business”, including arriving and departing from games, on the bench when injured, press interviews and charity events.

Banned items included sleeveless shirts, T-shirts, do-rags, sports apparel and baseball caps. It was one of the most contentious rule changes in the league’s history — the first of its kind for any major professional sports league.

And despite some early rebellions, discrepancies and fines, the players settled into the code.

Even retired stars like Shaquille O’Neal have swag. Picture: Jayne Kamin-Oncea

NBA player Dwayne Wade and his wife, actor Gabrielle Union. Picture: Frazer Harrison

Treating it like a sartorial challenge, they hired stylists and publicists, though many designers still refused to dress the players, who didn’t fit the typical fashion mould.

Then, in 2008, Vogue editor Anna Wintour cemented the NBA’s high-end makeover, featuring James on the cover of her magazine, alongside model Gisele Bündchen.

Designers could no longer disregard the NBA as an opportunity to promote their designs, or deny that these Adonis-like figures made good (and cost-effective) models in a period of economic downturn at the height of the GFC.

And so, the players gradually transformed their locker room procession into a runway, where the world’s best streetwear was modelled by seven-foot athletes.

Draymond Green rocks a pair of tailored shorts with a bright jacket and loafers. Picture: Bryan R. Smith

Since then, the rise of social media boosted the profile of the players, including Russell Westbrook, J.R Smith, Victor Cruz and Amar’e Stoudemire as influencers, inspiring the millennial masses with their leisurewear, and elevating streetwear brands to cult status. Global retailers, such as JD Sports, which trade off the fusion of sport and fashion, have experienced huge growth in recent years. Since launching their first Australian store in April last year, the brand has opened another eight stores locally with plans to open at least another five across the eastern seaboard this year.

Hilton Seskin, head of JD Sports Australia, says millennial customers wanting to emulate the style of sporting heroes has made athleisure the most in-demand apparel in the fashion sphere.

“The success of the first eight stores has certainly highlighted the consumer demand for athleisure and limited edition footwear, with the Australian consumer having first access to never-before-seen styles, including JD exclusives,” he said.

Model Jimi Deane from Que Models in an athleisure look. Photo: Kit Wise

Australian-born, New York-based celebrity stylist Cat Pope says the influence of the NBA has changed the fashion landscape in the past decade.

“These are young, ambitious, savvy, athletic men, and for a fashion brand, they are an outlet to showcase their product in a really natural manner,” Pope said.

“Because you are seeing them in a setting that is part of their lifestyle, not on a red carpet or front row at a fashion show, consumers tend to buy into that lifestyle a lot more.

“What the players, like James in his shorts-suit are doing, is interpreting a dress code to suit their own personal style and I think that resonates with men who feel restricted by codes of dress,” she said.

“Within weeks, international chain stores, like Topshop or Zara, are able to replicate that same look on the high street.”

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Russell Westbrook has made a name for himself off the court. Picture: Pascal Le Segretain

RUSSELL WESTBROOK 

HE’S been referred to as the Kate Moss of the NBA, and Russell Westbrook continues to push the stylish envelope.

He also has his own lifestyle sneaker with Jordan Brand (The Westbrook 0), has attended the most coveted fashion event of the year, the Met Gala, and has collaborated with Barney’s in NY.

Fremantle Dockers captain Nat Fyfe raised eyebrows with this dapper look.

NAT FYFE

IT seems pretty obvious that this man-bunned midfielder gets a kick (pun intended) out of smart tailoring and created plenty of social media buzz this week, after appearing at his tribunal hearing clad in a dapper suit, coat and Clark Kent-style frames.

Perhaps the AFL could look at introducing a dress code to help the league’s sartorial status?

Footy commentator Damian Barrett called this week for a ban on “the ugly, sponsor-laden polo shirt tucked into a suit pant with black dress shoes”, saying that “only uniforms players should be forced to abide by are those for training and playing”.

“If you want to wear thongs and a singlet as you drive to a game, do so. If you want to wear a three-piece suit and beret, go for it,” he wrote.

“Certain there would be some players keen to arrive Russell Westbrook or LeBron James-style. And coaches should only wear suits during matches. Smarten up.”

Mixed martial artist Conor McGregor’s style has become synonymous with classic suiting. Picture: David Becker

CONOR McGREGOR 

THE champion UFC fighter is no wallflower when it comes to style.

Sharp tailoring, Italian-cut shirts, neat jackets and his signature waistcoat have reinvigorated the three-piece suit for a new generation.

Bold and brash, he doesn’t shy away from colour and prints including classic checks with a modern edge.

Lewis Hamilton is a trailblazer on the streetwear scene. Picture: Capital Pictures/MEGA

LEWIS HAMILTON 

HE has pushed the envelope in the world of competitive racing and has also become a trailblazer in luxury streetwear scene and a fixture on the men’s fashion week circuit.

A fan of pricey headwear, fitted shirts and designer denim from Alexander McQueen and Balmain, Hamilton, after winning the Azerbaijan Grand Prix earlier this year, claimed F1 chiefs have an “issue” with his style and criticised them for the sport’s lack of diversity.

“Since I have been in F1, I’ve strived to defy the odds. Fashion is an extension of how you express yourself,” Hamilton said.

Ben Simmons is and up-and-comer on and off the court. Picture: Instagram

BEN SIMMONS

THE Aussie basketballer knows the fashion stakes are just as competitive as the on-court contests.

And with 2.7 million social media followers and a fling with fashion model Kendall Jenner (half sister of the Kardashian clan), Simmons, according to Pope, is “one to watch” on the fashion circuit.