For many, the annual NBA draft is the most wonderful time of the year. Young men become instant millionaires, getting the opportunity to take their talents to one of 30 outposts to play basketball for a living and do the economic version of moisturizing their situation.
It’s also a time of tremendous pomp and circumstance as future journeymen, Hall of Famers and (unfortunately) flameouts show up in their finest in terrible textile creativities. Who could forget Tim Thomas in his Steve Harvey-suit prototype? Surely not David Stern. Or Drew Gooden’s “stick of Juicy Fruit”-inspired ensemble? And Jalen Rose, who has learned, but holy shitcakes, Batman, did he look like Detroit—but the parts folks were afraid to come to.
But things aren’t always bad. Or hilariously memorable for all the wrong reasons, anyway. Steph Curry may have looked like a Wall Street banker, but he at least didn’t look like WTF? Kemba Walker looked straight-from-a-funeral-to-brunch fresh!
Well, last night, Wendell Carter Jr., the former Duke University hooper who was drafted No. 7 by the Chicago Bulls, took flyness and blackness to another level.
Inspired by the Marvel film Black Panther, Carter and his mother and father decided to accessorize and design their draft-night getups with sashes and tigers and bears, oh my. Now, that’s GUCCI! According to Yahoo! Sports:
“I saw a ‘Black Panther’ commercial, saw he had something wrapped around the top of his suit, so I was like, ‘Might as well try it out,’” Carter told NBA TV.
Carter was joined by his father, Wendell Carter Sr., and his mother, Kylia Carter, at the draft, with both parents also wearing clothes bearing a tiger. Kylia’s outfits comes by Gucci, according to Rivals’ Krysten Peek. Carter Jr.’s suit is Gucci as well, judging from the 7-footer’s belt.
So a black basketball player rocks an outfit inspired by a Black Panther commercial and hollers at Gucci to make it a thing.
The only thing that would make that blacker is a few shots of Henny to celebrate that draft position. And I don’t doubt that happened.
Wakanda forever.