Naomi Osaka Channels Allen Iverson With Head-Turning US Open Look

Naomi Osaka wanted basketball. She went straight to The Answer.

The four-time Grand Slam champion walked into Arthur Ashe Stadium for her first match of the 2026 US Open on Monday night wearing one of her most ambitious looks yet, this time drawing inspiration from Allen Iverson.

At first, the reference wasn't entirely obvious.

Osaka made her entrance in a distressed gray sleeveless hoodie layered over a voluminous white tulle skirt. Newspaper clippings documenting moments from her own career were sewn into the hoodie, turning the walk-on piece into something resembling a wearable scrapbook. The custom look was created with designers Téla D'Amore and Ev Bravado of Who Decides War.

Naomi Osaka’s Allen Iverson inspired look for the 2026 US Open has so many details.

Whether you love it or hate it, no one is doing fashion in tennis like her.
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— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 1, 2026

Then Osaka shed the layers.

Underneath was the giveaway: braided hair, a red-and-black headband, a sleeveless black Nike top and mismatched red and black arm sleeves.

It was unmistakably Iverson.

Naomi Osaka Pays Tribute to Allen Iverson at US Open

The Philadelphia 76ers legend wasn't merely a convenient reference for Osaka.

“For me he’s a trailblazer,” Osaka said of Iverson before explaining that she admires the impact he made on fashion and the way NBA players dress. She also credited him with helping change the larger conversation around athletes using clothing as a form of self-expression.

There is a reason Osaka landed on basketball for New York.

Nike built its 2026 US Open collection around basketball influences, with several of its tennis stars wearing looks inspired by the sport. Osaka decided to take that idea considerably further.

“I said, OK, you want basketball? I’ll give you basketball,” she said. Iverson was a natural choice.

The Basketball Hall of Famer's influence always stretched well beyond his crossover. His cornrows, headbands, arm sleeves and unapologetically individual style became inseparable from his image during his NBA career.

For Osaka, that legacy matters.

She had already called Iverson someone she looks up to while wearing a vintage-style SLAM Magazine shirt featuring him earlier in US Open week. Osaka said she had never met Iverson but hoped he would see her tribute. He did.

“Wow, what a honor!! BIG FAN can't wait to meet you!” Iverson wrote on Instagram, according to ESPN.

Naomi Osaka Turns US Open Entrance Into Personal Fashion Statement

The Iverson references were only half the story.

Osaka's oversized gray walk-on piece was covered with images and headlines pulled from her own career, while its deliberately distressed construction gave it the feel of something assembled from years of memories rather than a pristine piece created for a single night.

That storytelling has increasingly become Osaka's signature.

At the Australian Open earlier this year, she wore an elaborate Robert Wun-designed entrance look. At Roland Garros, Kevin Germanier reconstructed pieces of Osaka's previous tennis gear into a custom ensemble. Then at Wimbledon, designer Hana Yagi created a white look rooted in Japanese ceremonial dress, complete with embroidered cranes, cherry blossoms and a traditional kanzashi hair ornament.

New York brought something different.

Osaka took one of basketball's great individualists and filtered his influence through her own career, her own sport and her own relationship with fashion.

Then she made sure the outfit got another showing.

Osaka defeated Anastasia Zakharova 7-6(6), 7-6(3) in her opening-round match Monday night, advancing to the second round.

That means another match. And, judging by what Osaka told the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd afterward, potentially another look.

“I want to do well and I want to show you guys some more outfits,” Osaka said. “So hopefully I can keep playing some more matches in front of you guys.”

For everyone wondering what Osaka has planned next, winning suddenly comes with a wardrobe incentive.

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