Fashion Photographer David Paige takes us courtside at Namesake vs 7uice capturing the most fashion-forward game in town in this Fucking Young exclusive!

During Paris Fashion Week, Namesake showed that they are more than sports-inspired wear with upscale tailoring, Eastern touches, formal versions of varsity jackets, and sleeker shapes while referencing the family’s deep history in fishing with the use of netting in the collection “Off Shore”. The collection also saw three new shoes for the season including their version of a 3-D Printed knit runner in addition to a fisherman’s boot and sandals inspired by living next to a harbor.

We have evolved as we have grown up,” Designer Steve Hsieh told us backstage following the show. “My brother just got married, and through that experience, we got into tailoring and wanted to express that in our own way.”

However, the love of basketball is one of the foundations of the brand along with community energy and style. This mutual love of the game saw an exciting new collaboration with NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown’s 7uice line that debuted a collab with Namesake the day after their fashion show with an inclusive youth basketball game in the 19th arrondissement.

I had an inkling that I spotted the American team at the show and went over to say hi before the big game. While there were several professional players at the show, they were also seasoned fashion week veterans. The giveaway on Team 7uice? They were sitting in the front row as if sitting on a side court bench, and the next day I was sitting up in the bleachers probably like a fashion editor (we know how to squeeze in, knees together and no crossed legs). Paris Fashion Week is one of the most exclusive events on the calendar, but not only did they bring the fashion week to the kids that filled up the gymnasium the following day, but they also brought basketball to fashion, two worlds that don’t usually have equal access to each other.

We came as outsiders ourselves like my family didn’t come from fashion, we wanted to give back to the community,” Steve explained to us on the idea of having a basketball game with Namesake and 7uice designing jerseys for their respective teams. “Our team is made up of upcoming Paris players and 7uice brought over upcoming American players.”

Although I’m excited to see 7uice on the runway, I’m more excited to present the opportunity for my 7uice players to experience the world of fashion and creativity on a high scale,” Brown said of hosting the game to WWD. By the time we caught Jaylen Brown, he was busy coaching his team at the basketball blowout where his trophy also attended the iconic event, after all when this was all first planned, we had no idea that he would be leading the Boston Celtics to a historic NBA finals win.

Namesake and 7uice both respectively thrive on connection with their local communities. While they inspire youth to think big, we were curious how Steve thought big about opening the gatekeeping that is often found in fashion. “Jaylen Brown has been a supporter of the brand for a long time, we had a dinner last year where he really spoke about community, we clicked and just started talking.

While we don’t know the retail ambitions of 7uice yet, we know that Hsieh plans to create a permanent retail site in Taipei by next year, and he is also working on lifestyle lines and accessories such as bags, shoes, sunglasses, and a fragrance, which he hopes to launch next year. When we asked Hsieh what was his favorite part about the collaboration he said “The process, you must trust the process.”

The whole activation didn’t overlook how important it is in creative spaces or sports hubs to include youth that can easily be left out, especially in fashion, implementing that inclusion is part of the process that appears to be first nature to Namesake and 7uice. To quote David Paige “ball is liiiiife”.

Check out more photos below: