{"id":13471,"date":"2017-09-15T14:52:15","date_gmt":"2017-09-15T19:52:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=13471"},"modified":"2017-09-16T11:08:51","modified_gmt":"2017-09-16T16:08:51","slug":"its-new-york-fashion-week-and-the-nba-superstar-guard-of-the-oklahoma-city-thunder-basketball-organization-russell-westbrook-takes-manhattan-in-style","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=13471","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s New York Fashion Week, And “THE NBA SUPERSTAR GUARD OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER BASKETBALL ORGANIZATION”, “Russell Westbrook” Takes Manhattan, “IN STYLE”"},"content":{"rendered":"
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NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 10: Russell Westbrook attends the Public School fashion show during New York Fashion Week on September 10, 2017 in New York City, @russwest44<\/p><\/div>\n

The Superstar Tours NEW YORK city in support of his new style book \u2014 and he has a new fashion line on the way.\u00a0Thirty-five minutes before Russell Westbrook graces the stage with\u00a0Fern Mallis<\/a>, the celebrated creator of New York Fashion Week, there\u2019s a line stretching down the street. The vibrant lot awaits Westbrook, standing underneath scaffolding that overhangs the 900-seat\u00a0Kaufmann Concert Hall<\/a> on Manhattan\u2019s Upper East Side. This month, the six-time NBA All-Star releases his Russell Westbrook: Style Drivers <\/i>(Rizzoli), a toast to the NBA All-Star\u2019s style at work and in life.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Westbrook himself has on casual athletic gear \u2014 a far cry from the pink sweatpants and tucked-in Gucci T-shirt he wore for an earlier taped appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon<\/i><\/a>. During a wide-ranging conversation, he and Mallis @fernmallis \u00a0even squeeze in talk about his very specific preparation of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches: \u201ctoasted wheat bread, strawberry jam and creamy peanut butter, before slicing it right down the middle.\u201d He definitely has an appetite for going against the grain.\u00a0And his talk with Mallis is sold out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a balmy September evening, and the crowd reflects racial diversity, age diversity, gender diversity and style diversity. Black pants are splattered with polka dots. Blood-red sneakers paired with pristine suits. Button-down plaid shirts and tan chinos are set off by Air Jordan XXXIs. Rabid NBA fans? Meh. Perhaps. This crowd challenges the traditional in favor of originality. Because that\u2019s Westbrook.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Westbrook the two-time NBA All-Star MVP. The triple-double machine. The expectation is that he\u2019ll lead the Oklahoma City Thunder back to the playoffs this season with new teammate Paul George. But looming larger than the elite athleticism that makes him a superstar is his game-night runway flair. Westbrook turns heads as much with his style as he does through his one-man fast-breaking ability.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Westbrook engaged the folks who came to see him, if from a distance. One click-clacked through the concert hall in sky-high Louboutin stilettos \u2014 with a 10-year-old in tow, in an orange OKC jersey. One hilariously booed as if on cue at the one mention of Kevin Durant, Westbrook\u2019s former teammate. Westbrook revealed that he loves the postmodern mix of high and low \u2014 Topshop with Gucci, a thrift store find with Louis Vuitton. And he said he has no fashion regrets; he loved<\/i> that kilt-over-slacks look<\/a> he sported at last year\u2019s NBA opener. But he\u2019ll never, ever wear a romper, he says before laughing. A jumpsuit<\/i>, yes. But no romper, ever.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mallis, an NBA fan, rattled off Westbrook\u2019s stats and boasted about his triple-doubles before dragging her glasses down her nose in mock dramatic flair. Westbrook was happily slumped down in a cushy chair. She looked up from the podium and quipped, \u201cHow many of my fashion audience even knows what that means?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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It was fun high fashion meets NBA elite meets new basketball fans and the most forward of fashion looks. Because of Westbrook, it all converged nicely.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll always tell [my son], like I tell everyone else, to be who you are,\u201d he said the next day. \u201cEverybody\u2019s different in their own way \u2026 be who you are, and own it. That\u2019s the most important thing for me. I\u2019m going to continue to be who I am and<\/i> own it. And<\/i> be a role model to my son. And<\/i> to some people around the world, as well.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The next night, Westbrook was the special guest at a private cocktail reception on the third level (men\u2019s ready-to-wear) of Barneys New York Downtown flagship<\/a> before a book signing on the marbled main floor: bags, caps, jewelry. There the line of fans wrapped snakelike among the Want Les Essentiels purses and Louboutin backpacks, and down the sidewalk as well, waiting while he talked to a small group of fashion insiders.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The people who congregated at Barneys and at the 92nd Street Y\u2019s Kaufman were mostly of the fashionable ilk, although the number of OKC jerseys and those rocking athletic streetwear were ever-present, and many marveled at Westbrook\u2019s progressive, fashion-forward sensibilities. He dares to wear bright pink or printed shirts and other items that aren\u2019t exactly code for straight male who earns his livelihood in what reads as the most masculine of spaces.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"\u201cI have a \u2018Why Not?\u2019 motto and mindset. It\u2019s what I stand by, and it\u2019s what I believe in.\u201d<\/strong><\/div>\n

\u201cI definitely didn\u2019t encounter any bullying or anything,\u201d Westbrook told a fan of feedback he\u2019s received from his fashion choices. \u201cI\u2019ve definitely encountered people talking about what I was wearing, and what it may look like. And honestly, how I\u2019ve dealt with it is, I\u2019ve stayed positive.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

To say the least. And he can pinpoint the moment people realized how forward the guard is. \u201cI had an outfit I wore in the [2012] playoffs,\u201d he saids while his listeners sipped on champagne or white wine and munched on caviar Bellinis topped with creme fraiche, deconstructed BLTs and bite-sized kale Caesar salads, \u201ca Lacoste fishing [lures] shirt, red glasses<\/a>. From that moment, it became a thing. And it progressed into other things.\u201d In 2014, Westbrook cut his fashion-savvy teeth via a partnership<\/a> with the Barneys New York<\/a>. For his Westbrook XO<\/a> brand, he worked in tandem with Public School<\/a>, Del Toro Shoes<\/a>, Tumi luggage<\/a>, jeweler Jennifer Fisher<\/a> and even a fragrance with Byredo<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n