I’ve been watching sports drafts for decades, and always notice the strange trends that develop over time. These kids, young men from 18 to maybe 24 or 25, they all wear suits to these events. But in 2003, everyone wore baggy suits, then the suits got tighter and tighter, more colorful, velvet, ankles were showing, pants evolved, socks were abandoned, jewelry got bigger, and now I don’t even know where fashion is.
But I have hot takes about the drip! Always on the style, because some players have the swag to pull it off, and most don’t.
From the stories and photos these young men put inside of their jackets to the grills they wear on their teeth, let’s dive into the best and the worst of the 2025 NBA Draft looks with no criteria other than my own taste. And yes, as a heterosexual cisgender white man, I have no leg to stand on when it comes to judging others on how they dress, since I’ve been rocking a t-shirt with jeans since I was 12.
Number #1 Pick Cooper Flagg (Dallas Mavericks)
Here is the man himself, the overall first pick, presumed to be for months if not years, and he wears… a boring blue suit. Which is good! Smart, sensible, the color of both his university (Duke) and the team he’ll play for (Dallas).
As much as I like the fit itself, three piece and simple, it’s just a flat bland dark blue that isn’t meant to stand out. You’re the number one guy, show some flash! Do something, stand out! Or blend into the background, I don’t care, you do you Cooper.
Do not use the fire emoji, NBA social media person.
Looks like he could sell me insurance for my car. Not impressed. Make a statement you coward.
Grade: C-
Number #2 Pick Dylan Harper (San Antonio Spurs)
Much like his Rutgers companion, Ace Bailey, there are hints of red to Dylan’s outfit. On the inside, it’s a nice candy apple blood red, but the rest is all black, and I find that to be the perfect balance for Mr. Harper, going to a Spurs organization who would dress their entire team in all black monochrome if they could.
The problem for Dylan Harper is he has no tie, his shirt is bad, and he has those no-show ankle pants without socks on, maybe the worst trend in fashion since extra baggy zoot suits were in style in 1920 and 2003. Sorry, buddy, I have to knock you down a peg or two.
Grade: C+
Number #3 Pick VJ Edgecombe (Philadelphia 76ers)
His suit doesn’t have a tie. It might not have socks, but it sure does have a Bahama national flag reference on it!
I like the chain he’s rocking too, and the pattern on the suit. Not bad at all, not too bad. Double breasted heavy jacket, nice big buttons, huge earrings, sick ass watch, he’s stylin’ and profilin’ all the way to Philly.
Grade: B+
Number #4 Pick Kon Knueppel (Charlotte Hornets)
This is just Cooper Flagg’s outfit but more blue. Makes sense because they were teammates and look almost identical, like all white basketball players do. A darker, more muted blue, but very blue nonetheless. I actually like how it all compliments each other but you can still tell he has a shirt and tie on. With the pocket square too! It’s sort of electric, midnight, pen ink-colored and I sort of dig it.
Grade: B-
Number #5 Pick Ace Bailey (Utah Jazz)
I kind of… love this? The texture on the jacket, the red that represents Rutgers, the photo album inside the jacket — it’s so extra and outlandish that it really mimics who he is as a player. And as a loud extreme idiot who refused to work out with good teams so he can jack up shots on bad teams because his representation mismanaged him. Never let rich people take advantage of your skills and talents.
Now there were some reports, and a photo, of Ace arriving off the bus to the Barclay Center in Brooklyn wearing big, long, heavy boots. And another with him wearing all red pants. But I have not seen him wear those in the following tweets, so I cannot grade him other than the kicks he shows with the red underneath (they match his families too).
Love the red stripes on his jacket — really flares up on screen. Not quite the best suit of the night, but maybe the most memorable.
Grade: A
Number #6 Pick Tre Johnson (Washington Wizards)
I’m sorry, is he a Scottish school boy going to class? What is with the pinched-in waist? The shorts/kilt? The socks? This is dreadful, like he’s about to ask me if I said “berries and cream” like a little lord boy about to do a jig. He might as well have gotten a bowl haircut, too. This is shockingly bad, Washington is a team who is only going to get worse somehow. By the way, his suit jacket is sparkly. A pox on his house.
Grade: F-
Number #7 Pick Jeremiah Fears (New Orleans Pelicans)
Best suit of the night. But it doesn’t get an A+ because he’s wearing that stupid no show, no sock, ankle short length pant. No thank you. Dress like a man not a teenager going to prom who likes his leg showing so you can catch a cold when the wind blows.
But the jacket, the color, the story, the ice around his neck, the sunglasses indoors — that is some baller shit right there. Excellent work, excellent last name, love this outfit entirely besides the calf down.
Grade: A
Other Schmo’s: Khaman Maluach, Collin Murray-Boyles, and Egor Demin
What is he, a mortician? What the fuck is this shit? Are you showing up to a funeral for a casino magnate? No tie, just necklaces? It’s so dour and off-putting. This is terrible, and yes I’m aware this kid is like nine feet tall and no suits could be made to fit him, but Jesus Christ is this a somber outfit.
This has to be a joke, right? Is he aiming to be a gangster in 1994’s “The Mask?” Get the fuck out of here with this Russian mobster with parachute pants looking bullshit.
“Put your hands up! This is a stick-up, see? A real slick robbery, yeah, look at me chomping down on my cigar, holding my tommy gun, I’m a tough guy!”
Grade: D- for all these guys
Image credit: Kylie Osullivan
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