The NBA Draft Had Some Prospects Looking Their Best And Others Shooting Bricks

The NBA Draft is a time of high emotion and high fashion, and often the two mix for basketball’s best college prospects. Players take special care with their draft night looks, inserting special meaning and messages in the formal wear they take the stage in.

Thursday night at Barclays Center was no exception, with a number of draft picks sporting risky fashion and paying tribute to family and friends with custom suits. Every draft pick is a winner on draft night, but not every draft look is weighed with the same respect. So let’s take a look at the best of the draft and ponder a few misfires along the way.

Every draft cap, by the way, looks ridiculous. I know they have to come up with new looks for these caps every year, but paying 40 bucks for one of those is crazy. Every hat looks like a felt disco ball with an acid-washed brim. And then there’s the car hood ornament team logo. Just too many textures going on here. Please remove two.

Anyway, let’s get to the stuff the players willingly put on their bodies.

Markelle Fultz went with a pretty classic look, but I think it works. The plad dress shirt is a bit busy for the colorful bowtie, but the overall cut of the suit helps everything work here.

Fultz also followed the Marcus Smart custom suit jacket trend with a “Faithful 2 The Grind” pattern inside the jacket that must have taken considerable effort to design. Overall, Fultz looks like the top pick. The suit isn’t too out there but it’s a solid look, and the bow tie is pretty fun. He also wore shoes made out of basketballs, which is more interesting than stylish here. (We profiled the small sneaker company that custom made these shoes recently.)

Lonzo Ball was also on Team Bowtie, complete with a special Big Baller Brand bowtie. The quadruple B looked pretty good, certainly better than some of the other ties his father Lonzo Ball was wearing on various sports arguing shows he appeared on in the runup to the draft.

The rest of his outfit was a bit more Sunday preacher than NBA prospect. The silver cross chain on the outside of his all-black attire sort of washed out the tie’s accents and created a turtleneck-sort of appearance from afar. Check out how Fultz’s bowtie pops, while Ball’s look is sort of a black hole here.

Ball was quick to change into the Lakers colorway of his ZO2 shoes after he was picked second overall, which I suppose added a bit of color to his look. Even if you think they look like bowling shoes, it’s good to see he’s not always going to wear all black.

Turns out he already had them on before he was officially picked by the Lakers, so it’s pretty clear he was all-in on becoming a Laker after all.

Zach Collins went straight Vegas with his NBA Draft look.

While John Collins went with a very pointy pair of Louboutins to go with his grey checkered suit.

Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox also joined the custom liner trend by teaming up with JC Penny. Monk said he was doing something special for his draft look, and his JF J. Ferrar suit didn’t disappoint. Monk’s custom liner was a tribute to his hometown of Lepanto, Arkansas.

“The Woodz” lettering matches a tattoo that features the town’s nickname on his collarbone. It’s a cool bit of synergy, but Monk’s shoes are what stand out for me. In fact, they might look a bit familiar to you if you’re keeping tabs on athlete draft footwear.

Fox’s custom JF J. Ferrar suit honors a very personal cause for the Kentucky standout. The liner was an homage to his aunt and mother, who were both affected by breast cancer. The breast cancer ribbons are subtle, and it follows the overall trend of a bit of flash hidden under a more traditional cut suit. Fox went with a black skinny tie and black suit on draft night, letting his watch do most of the talking in the classic approach.

The most important part of Fox’s draft night outfit, though, was his watch. Check that bad boy out.

https://twitter.com/SacramentoKings/status/878046886757883908

That’s definitely got some shine to it. And bonus points for the visor, which obviously suits his hairstyle. Way to think ahead, Kings. He also had an interesting pair of shoes as well. Check out how those complete the look for Fox—the two shoes say “LOVE” on them.

Bam Adebayo went with a classic navy suit with some grey accents, which is a strong but subtle touch of flair on draft night.

Bam’s look was one of many put together by designer Jhoanna Alba, and it might be one of her best. The three-piece suit has nice contrast between the dark blue jacket and grey vest and pants, a mix-and-match look that really works well here.

There are always a few outfits that don’t exactly make the mark, and that’s the case on draft night as well. I’m almost digging everything about Dennis Smith Jr.’s look here.

Actually, I’m not digging four specific things. Why the extra buttons on each side of the jacket? I’m not getting the purpose of those at all. Strange. They make the front of the jacket kind of look like the underside of a cow, if you can visualize that on your own. Other than the unnecessary togs, it’s a good suit! Just get a thread ripper for those and wear it to your next friend’s wedding, man.

Let’s go quick-fire on these next four.

Luke Kennard looks more like an investment banker than a Duke basketball prospect but it works, while Jarrett Allen looks like he’s running late to a nephew’s baptism in 1984. Justin Jackson’s also a part of the bowtie gang but his suit’s a bit dull, while TJ Leaf’s got strong sock game here but mostly looks like Blue Suit Pete Campbell.

Overall there aren’t many true misfires in this class, which is actually quite likable. That’s encouraging if you’re a hoops fan for a number of reasons, the first one being that most of these kids weren’t coming to the draft with this kind of fashion sense. We’ve got a coachable group of prospects here, gang, and that always bodes well for the future.