Within the fashionable world, sports activities aren’t nearly what occurs on the court docket, subject, or monitor. A lot of the excitement round athletes really takes place earlier than their occasions—that’s once they arrive at their respective venues and showcase their newest trend creations. In basketball, that is known as a tunnel ‘match; in Method One, a paddock ‘match; and so forth. What athletes put on once they’re not in uniform issues, particularly to followers who would possibly by no means get to talk to their heroes. Garments are the right type of communication—a window into who your favourite athlete is and what they stand for. That is what Go Sports activities is all about. Sure, we care about field scores, the outcomes of Free Follow 1 (even whether it is at 3:00 a.m.), and RHOBH-level rivalries, however in the present day, sports activities trend issues too. We’re not ashamed to say so.
Following a five-year NCAA girls’s basketball profession on the College of Tennessee and Mississippi State, Rickea Jackson, a 6’2” small ahead from Detroit, Michigan, was drafted by the Los Angeles Sparks as their fourth general decide in Could 2024. Two months later, she made historical past. In July, Jackson grew to become the primary WNBA participant to signal with Skechers, becoming a member of Olympic gold medalist Joel Embiid—2023 NBA Most Priceless Participant and Philadelphia 76ers heart—in addition to 2021 NBA Most Improved Participant Julius Randle, an influence ahead for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“Becoming a member of Skechers was very intentional for me,” Jackson tells me over the telephone from Los Angeles, the place she’s on set capturing a marketing campaign for the footwear model’s new SKX Full-Court docket Press basketball footwear, in addition to its way of life sneaker known as the Hotshot. “Changing into the primary WNBA participant to be part of this model was a robust assertion.” In contrast to different sneaker manufacturers concerned within the league, Skechers was constructing a presence from the bottom up. “It was sort of like we have been rookies collectively,” she says. For her, all the partnership clicked. “It simply felt like the best partnership for this a part of my profession,” she provides.
(Picture credit score: Skechers)
(Picture credit score: Skechers)
Jackson has develop into one of many WNBA tunnel’s most talked-about dressers, however when it got here time for her to select sneakers to put on on the court docket, appears weren’t precedence primary. “It isn’t all about if the shoe appears good,” she says. Are they snug? Do they really feel good on her ft? These are the questions she wanted answered to make her determination. “[Skechers] is all the time caring concerning the issues that truly matter for longevity within the league,” Jackson says. “What stood out to me was their dedication to efficiency and innovation—they honestly hearken to what athletes need.”
After all, aesthetics are nonetheless vital, particularly for somebody as fascinated with trend and elegance off the court docket as Jackson is. “I like the boldness they carry me within the appears of the shoe as nicely,” she says. “You look good; you play good.”
This mentality is one Jackson shares with many members of the W, a league that is embraced trend and the tunnel with open arms, particularly lately. From the model aspect, we have seen Off-White hyperlink up with the New York Liberty and different luxurious homes collaborate with particular person athletes, like Caitlin Clark and Prada. Coach introduced on the 2025 WNBA Draft its new position because the official purse sponsor of the league, dressing draftees reminiscent of Paige Bueckers (who donned each Coach and Louis Vuitton on draft evening), Aneesah Morrow, and Hailey Van Lith. Within the 2024 season, Angel Reese and Cameron Brink each labored with Revolve to carry their tunnel ‘suits to life. This yr, famend stylist Karla Welch teamed up with Kelsey Plum, Jackson’s teammate on the Sparks. Gamers have their very own manufacturers, are type influencers, and even type one another. Like within the NBA, the NFL, and F1, trend’s position within the WNBA is rising at a fast tempo.
Rickea Jackson on the 2024 WNBA Draft.
(Picture credit score: Sarah Stier/Getty Photos; Mariel Tyler/NBAE through Getty Photos)
“I am displaying up for work, however I would as nicely get these cute photos and work with manufacturers off the court docket,” Jackson says once I ask her concerning the tunnel ‘match phenomenon. “Why not kill two birds with one stone?” For her, tapping into the style business, particularly on condition that she lives and performs in a big trend market like Los Angeles, is a part of her job as knowledgeable basketball participant. “I can have two jobs in in the future and get them each performed,” she says, reinforcing the “look good, play good” mantra that so many gamers swear by.
In line with Jackson, trend wasn’t actually one thing her workforce in Knoxville targeted on. Positive, they tried it right here and there, however dwelling in Tennessee meant not gaining access to many cool, distinctive manufacturers in shops. In consequence, Jackson and her teammates largely wore hoodies and leggings. “It was very mid,” she says. “‘Suits have been not consuming.” When she entered the league, it was a completely completely different ball recreation. Most gamers gown up for video games, debuting their greatest designer luggage and standout ensembles. “It was enjoyable for me to play dress-up, determining what my type is,” she says. Enjoying in L.A., the place she has entry to all types of various aesthetics and types, additionally allowed Jackson to find what her type is not. “I really feel like L.A. is extra [into] saggy shorts and saggy jerseys—that is not me,” she says. “[My style is] very enjoyable, attractive, girly, and no matter it desires to be.” For her, type is subjective: “I do not wish to be put right into a field.”
This season, Jackson is teaming up with designer Quieesha Burns, identified within the business as Corii Burns, for house video games on the Crypto.com Enviornment. “She’s labored in Paris. She has her personal trend present, so having the ability to work with somebody as high-end as her has been superb,” says Jackson. “It is showcasing what I can do, hopefully opening [the door] for extra model offers and runway [opportunities].” The 2 went by means of Burns’s lookbooks and runway collections forward of the season and had a number of fittings so as to plan Jackson’s home-game tunnel ‘suits for the 2025 season. Final season, Jackson dressed herself for essentially the most half, a troublesome activity given all of the journey concerned with a profession within the WNBA. “It has been a blessing as a result of I haven’t got to essentially suppose,” she says. Now, her appears are all so as, along with her supervisor serving to to prepare every thing forward of tip-off. “I just about have it laid out like the primary day of faculty,” she provides.
Rickea Jackson within the tunnel at Crypto.com Enviornment, 2025.
(Picture credit score: Courtesy of Skechers)
Now, with a WNBA season and the inaugural season of Unequalled—a brand new three-on-three league that kicked off in Miami in January—underneath her belt, Jackson is aware of her type simply in addition to she is aware of methods to be a professional, and she or he’s able to go down what she’s realized to the following technology of Skechers athletes. In April, forward of the Draft, Skechers signed Kiki Iriafen, a ahead from the College of Southern California, increasing its roster of WNBA gamers. “Be you,” Jackson says once I ask her if she has any recommendation for Iriafen about navigating the tunnel. “Trend is not one-dimensional—it is no matter you are snug in and no matter you’re feeling like your type is.” There is not any room for stressing about garments on recreation day.
In spite of everything, the WNBA is likely one of the most troublesome leagues to make it into and keep in. The roster sizes are extraordinarily small in comparison with different skilled leagues, making it extremely aggressive, and the adjustment from the faculty degree to the professionals is critical, to say the least. The bottom line is to lean into the advantages of dressing for video games, like rising a private model and drawing confidence from a well-executed ensemble. “Simply have enjoyable with it,” she says.
