For Stephen Curry, the opportunity for players to express themselves sartorially during the pre-game “tunnel walk” has changed in recent years to include a chance to support Black designers.
“People see us for more than simply the two hours that we spend on the court. When you get off the bus or out of the car four hours before the game and enter the arena, there are cameras all over the place,” Curry, 36, tells PEOPLE.
“It’s that moment of he’s arriving for work, he’s ready for business,” the Golden State Warriors star adds. “What you have on is just demonstrating the energy and the type of time you’re on.”
Curry just revealed his collaboration with Rakuten and the Black In Fashion Council (BIFC) to develop a platform that increases Black designers’ visibility and aids in their economic growth.
While he acknowledges that “social media obviously helps” and that the tunnel walk “was never really a thing” throughout “the league’s history,” Curry stresses that the concept’s importance has grown significantly in recent years. “It’s evolved dramatically over time,” he claims.”And I believe that over time, you will see a wide variety of outfits from each player, ranging from a simple sweatsuit to a designer piece and everything in between. Here’s the who’s who, the guys who have done some wild things and taken some outrageous chances. But it’s just enjoyable for me. All those eyes are focused on you.”
In 2022, Curry won his fourth championship with the Warriors. He claims that during that postseason run, he meticulously laid out his pre-game attire.
“2022 playoffs is when I had a cohesive kind of strategy around how I was going to show up to every game and work with the stylists and my team, and we had looks from all Black designers and Black-owned brands that I got to rock for that entire playoff run,” Curry explains.For the NBA player to wear in the tunnel this season, Curry and Rakuten have selected ensembles from designers in the BIFC network.
Curry wore black leggings and a motorcycle-style jacket from Savant Studios on Wednesday during the Warriors’ tunnel walk, which helped them overcome the Memphis Grizzlies 137-116.Curry claims to PEOPLE that he had conversations with all of the designers, including Pierre Blanc, Advisry, Head of State, and Des Pierrot. “They all have such unique stories, and their backgrounds really come through with just how different each brand is,” according to him.
“I met almost half of the designers I’ve been working with in person and got to talk to them through the whole styling process and all that, and letting them take chances at what they want to see me in and their own brands is pretty awesome.”
аdditiоnаlly, fаns cаn eаsily purchаse а piece fоr themselves оn Rаkuten if they see аnything оn the NBа plаyer thаt they like. “оnce yоu see it оn me аnd yоu see it оn the tunnel wаlk, yоu knоw where tо find it the next dаy.”
