D’Angelo Russell on How He Became the NBA’s Most Stylish Player

There’s ice in his veins, a new title to his name, and swag seemingly all around him. For D’Angelo Russell, Brooklyn Nets restricted free agent and the winner of GQ’s NBA Style Showdown competition, the secret to his success is not taking it all too seriously, letting it all come to him. His most grail-level items—like a pair of A Bathing Ape shorts—may go from just lying around to super-fashionable midnight workout gear. A picture of a random tennis player on his Instagram Explore page might spark the inspiration for his next look. His dogs, even, wear Supreme-branded collars.

Like his on-court play, Russell describes his style as “unpredictable,” equal parts flashy and conservative. One minute he’s crossing a defender over and making a shot so high-arcing it would beat one of those inflatable tube dancers, the next he’s hitting his man on the break with a crispy bounce pass. His style is the same way: one day it’s the lunch pail equivalent of get-to-work sweatsuits then head-to-toe Human Made the next.

It’s been a breakthrough year for Russell both on and off the court. He took the Nets to the playoffs, made the All-Star team in the process, and after being left out of last year’s GQ NBA Style Showdown, he cruised through this year’s competition. Russell methodically picked off heavy hitters like James Harden and Kelly Oubre, Jr. en route to dethroning the King and last year’s winner, LeBron James. So we called him up to ask him how he’s feeling about it.

GQ: Wow, congrats on your NBA Style Showdown win.
D'Angelo Russell: Man, I appreciate that. That's just, I've never seen that, I looked up and saw that I was competing with a few guys whose style I respect so to win that, that was real cool. It was cool to be involved there. Winning is a cherry on the top.

Were you surprised to take home the win? Are you pretty serious about putting outfits together?
It is definitely something that comes natural, but it caught me off guard, you guys recognizing it, everybody feels like they have their own taste and own flavor to what they do so everybody feels like what they do is the best.

How do you define your style? What's your method and process?
I completely wing it. I wing my style. I think it's definitely something on how you feel, the weather, that plays a part. But I just put pieces together and if people from the outside looking in don't like it, I don't really keep up with that, I just kind of go with it. And then sometimes I try to clean up, I mix up the classier look and then I'll go back with a throwback look. You never know. I just try to keep it unpredictable. Be able to touch every lane with it.

The throwbacks looks really stood out. The one that we featured in your matchup in LeBron was the one with the baggy Yankees jersey. Is that a style you're really into?
Yeah, I think it's all about your own feel. You got guys that go a different route with it, they may go straight name-brand—all the louder brands and stuff like that. I put outfits together from people trying to expand their clothing line. Guys reaching out to me, "Yo, could you wear my shirt? My shorts?" With their logo or whatever it is. And I put my own little swag to it. And I think that just keeps people on their toes because they never—it's not like you could find those pieces—they're limited. And that's just me kind of doing a favor to respect people's creativity.

When we spoke before this season, you mentioned wearing stuff that fans gave you or going to Greece and buying clothes there, even if it wasn't from the most hyped up and well-known brands. Do you think that played to your advantage? Maybe other guys' style comes off as more manufactured when they're wearing the hottest new Nikes or the latest name-brand stuff.
Yeah, because everybody can buy Gucci. Everybody can buy the Fear of Gods. Everybody, I mean, professionals they have the money to buy the same stuff that they see the next guy wearing. They're capable of doing that. If you have your own taste, you know what looks right and what looks good on you versus someone kind of telling you what looks good on you. And I prioritize [giving smaller brands a chance]. I think it gives the people that are being creative an opportunity to get stuff on people of my caliber and whatnot and then getting them a little bit of love as well.

Even with the recognizable stuff, you mentioned going to the gym and working out in Bape shorts totally by accident.
So true. I'Il get in the gym random times of the day so it's just like, I was wearing them around the house. Put some basketball shoes on and it kind of just happened. If it's a suit I would take good care of it, but if it's just regular clothes or some brand I don't really treat it like what it's worth.

I may sleep in it or I may sit in the house in it all day and play Call of Duty wearing it. It's not something that I'm trying to keep up with.

Do you have a favorite outfit or look that you put together for this previous season?
Yeah, man. It was Pharrell's brand, Human Made. It was the stripe-tan pants with the tan jacket and the white dress shirt. I loved that look. I had my guy Browne [Andrews, Russell's stylist], put that fit together for me. And just kind of being different with it. So shouts out to him.

When did you start working with him? What's your process putting these outfits together?
It was just trying it here and there. If I went to do a suit or a not-a-full-suit with a hat, he kind of gave me the ideas and just throughout the season I was sending him pictures of stuff I liked and he would put his flavor and I would put my flavor to it and we would come out with a little masterpiece. Just here and there—it wasn't every outfit. But when we put our minds together, I thought we came up with a lot of cool looks.

What do you mean when you said you'd send pictures? Of certain pieces that you saw or of looks that you'd come across online?
Pieces, looks, yeah. I could be on my explore page and see a—I don't know—see an outfit that a random soccer player wore. Or that a tennis player wore or something and I'm like, "Man, that looks cool." And then I'd send it to him and he'd be like, "Yeah. Maybe you could cuff the pants." And then I'd be like, "Yeah. Maybe I can change the shirt." Throw on a jean jacket or something like that. And we just flipped it. But it's still the same look.

Browne wrote on his Instagram that there was synergy between your on court play and the looks that were coming together. Is that something that you guys talked about?
That's crazy you say that. Yeah, I consider myself an unpredictable player. A player that's flashy here and there and then is maybe conservative here and there and I think when it comes to dressing, it's me figuring out that balance of when to be flashy or when to be super simple with maybe flashy shoes.

Was there competition at all within the team? I know DeMarre Carroll super into dressing up, Caris LeVert is well dressed, Spencer Dinwiddie has his own shoe line, are you guys sort of competitive trying to out dress one another?
No, not at all. I was just more of a guy that enjoys looking good and dressing good. And that came with our success. Everybody had their own flavor. You look good. You play good. That's a true statement.

One interesting trend with the bracket is that on one side we had LeBron versus Dwyane Wade and on the other side it was you and Kelly Oubre—new guard versus old guard. Do you feel guys like Wade and LeBron evolved NBA style and now you and Kelly are taking the baton and running with it?
Yeah, there's a lot of younger guys in the league that kind of mix up their looks and those older guys they kind of come from a different era. I remember in the league you used to have to wear suits and big shirts and big shorts, when like oversized pants were in style. So for it to just completely change with the new generation, I think that's just kind of something we were born into and we know what we like versus something that's trending. Like back then, that was trending, so now something else is trending we kind of come right into that and being able to take advantage of it.

I want to run through the guys on the bracket who you went up against and traditional NBA reporter question, talk about what you saw going into the matchup and what your take is on their style. First you went up against DeAndre Jordan.
DeAndre he got swag man. Especially for a big guy. A lot of those pieces that he wears are customs. He's a big dude so that's rare to be that big and have that type of swag. I respect his long coats and the hats. The boot look that he put on. Definitely kept up with his fashion.

James Harden.
I know James is one of those guys that's capable of buying any piece or he definitely mixes it up with the jogging fits and the overcoats and stuff like that as well. I respect his swag as well.

Kelly Oubre.
I respect Kelly. He's got that rockstar-status vibe to him with tight jeans with the jewelry and whatnot. Kelly's always had swag though, honestly. He was one of the first guys I would say in our class rocking fitted Levi's jeans in high school with the cuffs at the bottoms and the long socks with the Vans. He was one of the first guys that I've seen do that.

Last guy was LeBron.
LeBron is one of those guys that he may have a stylist here and there too. They kind of put his pieces together and then he puts his own spin on it like I could always see where his stylist may have put something together and then he may of said, "Let me wear my shoes with this suit." Or, "Let me wear this cowboy hat. The Cam-Newton-looking hat." And throw everybody off with a sweater or something like that so I respect his creativity.

This season, the Nets knocked the Lakers out of the playoffs. You took LeBron out of the Style Showdown. You're turning into a Lakers killer here.
You're turning into Stephen A. Smith on me here, huh?

Last thing I want to ask is if you could go shopping with a guy from Boston, New Orleans, or Golden State, who would it be? You can only pick one.
Golden State for sure.

Golden State for sure.
You get that West Coast vibe.

Originally Appeared on GQ