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Naomi Osaka Channeling Allen Iverson Was Not on the Bingo Card, But it Was Cool
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This is random? And pretty sick:
“For me, he’s a trailblazer. I think he’s also someone I look up to a lot because he’s kind of done a lot in fashion, whether it’s on purpose or not. But he’s shifted the way NBA players dress, and I also think the whole conversation around clothes in sports. And also just expressing yourself through style. I feel like he’s someone I look up to in that regard.”
A.I. responded on Instagram, writing “wow, what a honor!! BIG FAN can’t wait to meet you.”
That’s pretty cool.
For some context, Osaka is 28 years old and A.I. is 50, so she would have been pretty young when he was in his prime, but it’s obvious A.I. had a big cultural impact outside of what he did on the court. We sometimes gloss over that now, but A.I. really changed the way that NBA players dress. He was the guy who brought casual and comfortable urban streetwear into the game, like baggy jeans and sweatpants and Tims. The headband and shooting sleeve were unique at the time as well. Same with the cornrows, both he and Latrell Sprewell in the late 90s. All of that stuff really didn’t take off until A.I. got the ball rolling. David Stern actually instituted a dress code back in 2005, which A.I. pushed back against. He was a nonconformist at the time and maybe people don’t think so much about that because of how good he was on the court. It really was an interesting cultural inflection point.
By the way, Osaka beat Anastasia Zakharova 7-6, 7-6, in her U.S. Open match. You can’t lose after showing up in Allen Iverson garb.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com