NBA players for years have viewed being well dressed "as a given," but now, they are "not content with merely landing on best-dressed lists," according to Andrew Keh of the N.Y. TIMES. Today’s "most fashionable players, who are teaming up with luxury brands, flying overseas for fashion shows and releasing personal product lines that make sneakers seem quaint, do not see themselves only as extremely tall male models; they see themselves as fashion icons." GQ Editor Mark Anthony Green said, "There’s an edgy, cool factor having a real guy -- who’s an athlete, who’s handsome, who has muscles or a distinct look -- and putting your clothes on them instead of a model." Bloomingdales VP/Men's Fashion Direction Kevin Harter: "They have the confidence to mix it up and be bold. They are making fashion fun for men" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/14). NBC’s Erica Hill said NBA players "have been everywhere at this year's New York fashion week.” NBC’s Kristen Dahlgren said, “Perhaps it is no coincidence that fashion week and NBA All-Star weekend fell at the same time here in New York. The new fashion darlings were everywhere from the front row to the runway.” Goviva President Robert Tuchman said, “It’s almost like they go to more fashion events than basketball events. It's taken it to another level.” Dahlgren noted NBAers are "now a fixture on Best Dressed lists" and are "gracing the covers of magazines." The biggest competition "seems to be ‘who wore it best,’ and retailers are ready to cash in." Rockets G James Harden "helped open a pop-up shop at Bloomingdale's last week," while Wizards G John Wall "made an appearance at Macy's" (“Today,” NBC, 2/15).
STYLE POINTS: SI.com's Rohan Nadkarni wrote NBAers are "possibly the most transparent athletes we have now." Their fashion was "something the NBA took time to recognize" at Friday's "NBA All-Star All-Style,” with Cavaliers F J.R. Smith taking home a diamond bow tie after winning the contest. The show "gave us an honest peek into the personalities of some NBA stars." But in "retrospect, in a way it's kind of sad the NBA decided to throw this fashion show." For years, the way NBAers dressed "was only noticed by the die-hard subculture of NBA fandom." Now, it is "another corporate-sponsored event that needs three hours to tape a one-hour special" (SI.com, 2/14).
