Inside WNBA Draft Night: The Biggest Sports-Fashion-Beauty Showcase to Date
A Coach-sponsored Orange Carpet, the Glossier Glam Room, Russell Westbrook and some custom accessories stole the show at the New York event which has become an unmissable sports-culture moment.
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As a reporter at heart, it always makes me happy when I can get out and about to do some on-the-ground journalism. Yesterday, I spent the afternoon behind the scenes at the Equinox Hotel in New York’s Hudson Yards — where players were going through their pre-draft hair and make-up routines with Glossier and Mielle Organics — and then as a guest in the evening at The Shed for the 2025 WNBA Draft.
I got a good look at how the league has transformed what can sometimes be a mundane ceremony into a stellar sports culture showcase by leveraging its proximity to the fashion, beauty and music industries, and working directly with an increasingly impressive roster of luxury brand partners. I hope you enjoy the breakdown in today’s newsletter.
Much of the script for last night’s WNBA Draft was written long in advance, as is the way for many flagship events of this nature. It was a foregone conclusion, for example, that the Dallas Wings would use their #1 pick to draft superstar Paige Bueckers, fresh off her national championship win with UConn last week.
But far more interesting to me (and hopefully to you, too) was everything that happened around the event, looking behind the scenes at the components that have transformed the WNBA Draft into one of the most exciting and culturally relevant nights on the calendar in recent years.
We’re hitting all that and more in today’s newsletter, as I analyse the important sports culture, fashion and beauty moments from last night.
Westbrook, the Stylist; Amoore, the Muse
Russell Westbrook is a nine-time NBA All-Star, a newsletter writer, and as we’ve already established on SportsVerse, a great guy all round.
Now, he can add “stylist” to his CV. He worked with Kentucky guard Georgia Amoore to design and style her custom Draft Night look, courtesy of his LA-based ready-to-wear label, Honor the Gift.
This is history-making for several reasons. Amoore is certainly the first-ever WNBA player to be styled by an NBA player on Draft Night. Most likely the first professional athlete to be styled by another active professional athlete for any kind of event like this.
Amoore was selected with the sixth overall pick by the Washington Mystics and said the look was the result of a “true collaboration” with her good friend Russ.
The Paige Bueckers (Fashion) Show
Paige Bueckers. Number one overall pick of the 2025 WNBA Draft. And a strong candidate for #1 overall pick of the Draft Night fits (rivalled closely by Kiki Iriafen — more on her later).
Styled by her long-time stylist and all-around fashion creative Brittany Hampton, Bueckers first appeared on the Orange Carpet in a sparkling custom suit from Coach, and finished with a large bag from the American luxury brand (a not-so-subtle requirement of its new partnership with the WNBA, but more on that later). Then, in time for her name to be called first by WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, Bueckers changed into a sleek black Louis Vuitton tux with bedazzled lapels.
Bueckers had also attended last year’s draft to support her former teammate Nika Muhl, where she put in a strong showing once again with an all-white suit, also from Louis Vuitton. (As I said in this newsletter about Jude Bellingham and Louis Vuitton and Anthony Edwards and Prada… we all know now what it looks like when a luxury house is building up a relationship with an athlete that it’s looking to work with long-term. I could see a Vuitton x Paige Buckets ambassador announcement in the not-too-distant future.)
Coach’s WNBA Takeover
On the eve of the Draft this week, Coach announced a multi-year partnership with the WNBA, becoming the league’s “official luxury handbag brand.”
The partnership will be rolled out at several key events across the season, and kicked off last night with Coach’s sponsorship of the Orange Carpet step and repeat. The brand also provided a custom look for Bueckers, who was one of five fresh WNBA rookies that Coach has identified as the athletes bridging the gap between sports and fashion that the partnership will focus on, including Hailey Van Lith, Aneesah Morrow, Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron.
That Coach would even enter this deal is a sign of how suddenly aware luxury brands are of the soaring value of women’s basketball. All of a sudden, high-end brands are jumping on the bandwagon, clamouring to pin their fortunes to emerging WNBA talent — yet just two years ago the league was devoid of any formal fashion partnerships whatsoever. But this unprecedented interest is good news for the W and its players. More eyeballs bring more money, which brings (hopefully) better deals and free Coach bags.
Coach also revealed it will sponsor the 2025 WNBA All-Star weekend in Indianapolis later this year.
Glossier’s Glam Room
Glossier was an early mover when it decided to invest in women’s basketball back in 2020, long before the WNBA had reached its current levels of hype. Several other beauty businesses from L’Oréal to Sephora are now rushing to catch up.
But it pays to be first, and Glossier is reaping the rewards as the WNBA’s official beauty partner. Its sleek Glam Room, 25 floors up overlooking the Hudson River, saw a steady stream of 2025 draft class members throughout the day and also hosted established WNBA beauty all-stars like Dijonai Carrington, helping them get ready for the big evening ahead.
I’ve reported a lot about Glossier’s relationship with the WNBA and each time like to stress that this is a best-in-class use of sponsorship dollars, which goes far beyond a logo swap or half-hearted social media content. It’s a true collaboration in that Glossier’s products and services are filling an actual need for the league at key moments like the Draft, and the brand slots seamlessly into the W’s operations and general cultural appeal.
It’s also great to see how collaboratively Glossier works with Mielle Organics, another partner of the WNBA. Mielle, the league’s textured haircare partner, shared the luxurious Glam Room with Glossier so athletes were able to get all they needed in just one suite.
The Kiki Iriafen (Fashion) Show
Kiki Iriafen and her entire family paid homage to their Nigerian heritage with their outfits last night.
Iriafen worked with Atlanta-based bridal designer Nneka Alexander on an eye-catching look which took two months to complete. She finished her look with beaded bracelets and earrings from the motherland.
Honorable Mentions
Saniya Rivers — selected 8th overall by the Connecticut Sun— pulled up to the Orange Carpet with some heat last night. I’m a big fan of athletes using moments like these to send out fun messages, and this was the best of the best from the 2025 Draft. She and her customised bag let everyone know that the WNBA has always been the place to be — it’s only now that the rest of the world is catching on.
Meanwhile, the WNBA x Fear of God Essentials collection got some valuable airtime in the promo content around New York ahead of the Draft. It’s simple and certainly nothing fancy, but I love those grey sweatshirts.
Finally, UConn star Azzi Fudd was present to celebrate her best friend and former teammate Paige Bueckers’ special night. Like Bueckers, her stylist is also Brittany Hampton, who styled her in a great look from Australian designer Christopher Esber.
Fudd — the NCAA Tournament Final MVP — is heading back for a final season at UConn but will no doubt be back at next year’s draft waiting for her name to be called.
That’s all for today, friends. Thanks for coming along for the ride.
Before you go, be sure to check out Style of Play, a new newsletter coming from the amazing fashion journalist and massive Arsenal fan Lauren Cochrane, all about the small things that make up the look and feel of Premier League football. I can’t wait.
Until next time!
DYM
This was such an insightful piece! I had no idea the WNBA Draft was big business !!
I'm so ignorant on WNBA but I love fashion and sports and your article made me so intrigued I want to learn so much more!!