2025 WNBA Draft's Best Red Carpet Looks Are a Slam Dunk

players in the 2025 wnba draft wearing custom outfits on the 2025 wnba red carpet

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last updated 4 days ago

The annual WNBA Draft doesn't simply reveal where rising stars are headed to play in the basketball season ahead. It also offers a preview into the next year of tunnel walk style set to take over the league.

Before the 2025 WNBA Draft officially begins, the year's rookie class shows up to score on the red (technically, orange) carpet. Last year, rising stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese tipped off a year of incredible outfits with custom Prada and Bronx & Bianco, respectively. This year's showing was bound to be even more fashion-forward. Hours before the carpet got underway, Coach was unveiled as the WNBA's first official fashion partner—guaranteeing plenty of It-bags and runway outfits later in the evening.

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Sure enough, anticipated top seed Paige Bueckers of UConn arrived clutching an oversize Coach bag with her sparkling oversize suit. Notre Dame's Sonia Citron and TCU's Hailey Van Lith also toted Coach Tabby bags (the former's, a custom beaded rendition of a runway style). But the standout bag has to be NC State's Saniya Rivers's tricked-out Birkin, emblazoned with the message "The WNBA Been Poppin'." (Agreed!)

Regardless of designer, draftees favored structured blazers, satin dresses, and every shade of neutral imaginable. The palette gave the impression that the 2025 WNBA rookie class takes style as seriously as their prospects.

Eventually, the 2025 draft stars will make it all the way to the WNBA playoffs tunnel with their game-day style on display. Consider the best red carpet looks from draft night, ahead, a sneak-peek at the slam dunks to come.

Paige Bueckers wearing Coach and Kay Jewelry

players in the wnba draft on the 2025 wnba draft red carpet — Anticipated No.1 draft pick Paige Bueckers shined in a slightly oversize Coach suit. Her plus-one? A Coach clutch that could easily squeeze in her practice gear.

Saniya Rivers

Sonia Citron wearing Coach

Madison Scott wearing Amiri

Dominique Malonga wearing Louis Vuitton

Hailey Van Lith wearing Coach

Aziaha James wearing R13, Comme des Garçons, and Dr. Martens

Aneesah Morrow wearing Coach

Georgia Amoore wearing Honor the Gift

Kiki Iriafen wearing Coach

Sania Feagin

Serena Sundell

an nba rookie on the red carpet — Kansas State guard Serena Sundell kept her WNBA Draft look simple and elegant, with a strapless black dress and shoulder bag.

Ajša Sivka

an wnba rookie on the draft orange carpet — Ajša Sivka, a Slovenian basketball star, was poised to make her WNBA debut in a taupe dress and metallic heels. For the carpet, she also perched a white moto jacket atop her shoulders.

Shyanne Sellers

a wnba player wears a blue suit on the wnba carpet — Shyanne Sellers of Maryland basketball fame opted for a dusty blue three-piece suit paired to black brogues and a chain necklace.

Sarah Ashlee Barker wearing Coach

a wnba draft rookie on the orange carpet — Sarah Ashlee Barker, from the University of Alabama, arrived at the 2025 WNBA Draft in a slate-gray matching set embellished with tiny silver crystals. A metallic clutch bag and bow-topped heels completed her look.

Halie LeSavage is the senior fashion and beauty news editor at Marie Claire, where she assigns, edits, and writes stories for both sections. Halie is an expert on runway trends, celebrity style, emerging fashion and beauty brands, and shopping (naturally). In over seven years as a professional journalist, Halie’s reporting has ranged from fashion week coverage spanning the Copenhagen, New York, Milan, and Paris markets, to profiles on industry insiders like celebrity stylist Molly Dickson, to breaking news stories on noteworthy brand collaborations and beauty product launches. (She can personally confirm that Bella Hadid’s Ôrebella perfume is worth the hype.) She has also written dozens of research-backed shopping guides to finding the best tote bags, ballet flats, and more. Most of all, Halie loves to explore what style trends—like the rise of emotional support accessories or TikTok’s 75 Hard Style Challenge—can say about culture writ large. She also justifies almost any purchase by saying it’s “for work.”

Halie has previously held writer and editor roles at Glamour, Morning Brew, and Harper’s Bazaar. She has been cited as a fashion and beauty expert in The Cut, CNN Underscored, and Reuters, among other outlets, and appears in newsletters like Selleb and Self Checkout to provide shopping recommendations. In 2022, she earned the Hearst Spotlight Award for excellence and innovation in fashion journalism. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Harvard College. Outside of work, Halie is passionate about books, baking, and her miniature Bernedoodle, Dolly. For a behind-the-scenes look at her reporting, you can follow Halie on Instagram and TikTok.