Honestly, if you were scrolling through Instagram in September 2021, you probably remember where you were when the photo dropped. Russell Westbrook. A cream-colored Thom Browne cardigan. Heavy black combat boots. Blue hair. And, of course, the piece that launched a thousand think pieces: a long, pleated off-white skirt that most people immediately labeled a dress.
It was New York Fashion Week. The internet basically imploded.
But here’s the thing—while the "Russell Westbrook in dress" headlines were everywhere, the conversation was rarely actually about the clothes. It was a Rorschach test for how we feel about masculinity, the NBA, and Black men in high fashion. Some people saw a pioneer. Others saw a "distraction." A few former players, like Kwame Brown, went on profanity-laced rants about the "agenda" behind it.
Russ? He just quoted Kendrick Lamar: "Don't address me unless it's with four letters."
What really happened at the Thom Browne show?
To understand why this mattered, you have to look at the context. This wasn't just a random outfit for a grocery run. Westbrook was attending the Thom Browne Spring 2022 show. If you know anything about Thom Browne, you know the skirt is his bread and butter. It’s his signature. He’s been putting men in pleated skirts and "shrunken" suits for decades to challenge the rigid "uniform" of the American businessman.
Westbrook wasn't just wearing a skirt; he was wearing the designer's identity.
The fit featured a floor-length white pleated skirt, a diamond choker, and those signature four-bar stripes on his cardigan sleeve. It was high-drama. It was intentional. And for a guy who has made "Why Not?" his entire life's motto, it was a logical escalation of a style journey that’s been weird since he entered the league.
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The "dress" vs. the kilt: Does the label matter?
People get really hung up on the terminology. Was it a dress? Was it a skirt? Was it a kilt?
Technically, it was a skirt. But in the court of public opinion, "Russell Westbrook in dress" became the search term of choice because it felt more provocative. We’ve seen kilts in fashion for years—Marc Jacobs wears them constantly, and even Kanye West rocked a Givenchy leather kilt during the Watch the Throne tour in 2011.
But there’s a difference between a knee-length leather kilt and an ankle-length white pleated skirt paired with a choker. Russ pushed it further. He moved past the "utilitarian" look of a kilt into something that felt genuinely gender-fluid.
Why some people (still) can't stand it
The backlash was intense. It wasn't just "I don't like the color." It was visceral.
Many critics, particularly within the sports world and certain corners of Black Twitter, felt like Westbrook was "sacrificing" his masculinity for fashion "clout." There’s a long, complicated history involving the "feminization" of Black men in media that made this feel like a flashpoint.
Kwame Brown’s viral video was the loudest example. He claimed Russ was being "used" to push a specific narrative. It was a classic "shut up and dribble" sentiment, but dressed up in concerns about "traditional" manhood.
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But then you look at the other side. Fashion critics and Gen Z fans loved it. To them, it wasn't a threat; it was a vibe. They saw a 6'3" elite athlete—one of the most physically "masculine" humans on earth—saying that a piece of fabric doesn't change who he is or how he plays.
The "Why Not?" philosophy in action
You can't talk about the dress without talking about his brand, Honor the Gift. Westbrook has been a front-row fixture at Paris and New York fashion weeks for over a decade. He’s been the face of Acne Studios. He’s collaborated with Barneys.
He treats the "tunnel walk" like a runway because, for him, it is.
Remember the photographer's vest? The orange jumpsuit? The shirts held together by safety pins? The skirt was just the final boss of that progression. He’s always said he doesn't dress for anyone else. "When I'm getting dressed, I'm not getting dressed for anybody else," he told BroBible. "I get dressed because I like it."
That level of confidence is rare. Most players want to look "cool" within the established rules of streetwear—expensive hoodies, rare Jordans, baggy jeans. Russ plays a different game.
Is the NBA tunnel the new runway?
Since that 2021 moment, we’ve seen a shift. Jordan Clarkson has worn skirts. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is taking massive risks every night. The NBA tunnel has become a billion-dollar marketing machine.
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Westbrook’s skirt moment paved the way for players to stop worrying about the "locker room talk" and start thinking about their global brand. It showed that you could be an MVP and still wear a choker and a skirt. It didn't make him a worse shooter (well, depending on who you ask during his Lakers tenure, but that's a different article).
It expanded the boundaries of what an "athlete" looks like.
How to actually apply the "Russ Effect" to your own style
You probably aren't going to walk into your local Starbucks in a floor-length Thom Browne skirt tomorrow. And that’s fine. But the "Russell Westbrook in dress" saga offers a few real-world lessons for anyone trying to level up their look:
- Own the silhouette. The reason Russ pulled it off is because he didn't look uncomfortable. If you're wearing something bold, your posture has to match.
- Balance the "soft" with the "hard." He paired the skirt with rugged combat boots. That contrast is what makes high fashion work—it grounds the experimental pieces.
- Ignore the "Kwame Browns" of the world. People will always have an opinion when you break a norm. If you're waiting for 100% approval, you'll never wear anything interesting.
- Invest in tailoring. Even his most "out there" looks usually fit him perfectly. The skirt hit exactly at the ankle. The cardigan hit exactly at the hip. Fit is everything.
The next time you see a photo of an athlete wearing something that makes you do a double-take, remember that Russ already did it, probably better, and definitely with more blue hair. He isn't trying to be a "traditional" role model; he's trying to be a person who isn't afraid of a sewing machine.
Keep an eye on the tunnel walks this season. The "Why Not?" energy is more contagious than you think.
Next steps to explore the intersection of NBA and fashion:
- Research Thom Browne’s 4-Bar design to understand why the specific cardigan Westbrook wore is such a status symbol.
- Look up the "NBA Dress Code of 2005" to see how far the league has come from banning chains and timberlands to allowing skirts.
- Check out Westbrook’s brand, Honor the Gift, to see how his personal avant-garde taste translates into more wearable, everyday streetwear.