D-Wade chanels his 'inner lumberjack'

Dwyane Wade was feelin' it after scoring 46 points to help the Miami Heat avoid a sweep by the Boston Celtics. I hope the Heat can extend the series some more, because Mr. Wade is putting together some interesting looks after the game.

After talking to his "hot" hand during his scoring spree in Game 4 on Sunday in Miami, Mr. Wade answered questions from the media afterward. He was wearing a red plaid sport shirt and a solid black vest.

In my modest experience in working on television and film sets, one of the things that production people often advise is when appearing in front of cameras, avoid wearing white, red or black clothing. Whenever I see these colors on television, whites appear too bright (use eggshell or off-white instead), red comes across "flat" as a color (substitute deep red or maroon), and black makes an object appear two-dimensional instead of three (use navy).

So in person, Mr. Wade looks fine. On television, while the plaid he was wearing was the right shade of red, it needs to be a little darker to show up stronger on screen. The black vest helped balance the colors of the shirt, and Mr. Wade's presentation was much simpler than his postgame attire from previous playoff games. (See my previous posts.)

Bottom line: The "hardworking lumberjack" look works for me.

Magic's 'Superman' flops in civvies

Somehow, I did not believe the style choices of NBA players would reflect a simple elegance, but an experimental one at best.

Don't get me wrong. So far, Dwyane Wade initially got my attention as a snazzy dresser from one of his commercials. But on Tuesday, with that pewter jacket with red trim, wide lapels and epaulets (epaulets?), Mr. Wade is opening the door to much laughter with such outfits.

The latest aberration in fashion was sighted on Wednesday night, during the postgame media Q/A session with Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard sitting at the podium. Usually, he cuts a striking figure in civvies, based on his photo gallery on his website or a recent appearance on ESPN's PTI. From what I could tell, Mr. Howard was wearing a crushed velvet jacket with a crested pocket and epaulets (!), a bow tie and a yellow cardigan sweater.

Hmmm ... taken individually, I like all the elements, believe it or not. But crushed velvet is usually worn at after-hours lounges or by hosts at house parties; bow ties present a uniqueness about a man who knows how to tie one; a cardigan adds maturity to a man's look.

But on Wednesday, Mr. Howard's execution is sorely lacking. Look, I'll say it now: Unless you're in the military, this epaulets thing does NOT work. You can't throw in all these elements together on one person and hope something sticks. Crested jackets? That's expected wear in prep schools, but it's a pretentious look outside those environments. Wearing this jacket makes an otherwise nice-looking bow tie appear out of place. And the cardigan is too loud in yellow. Gray would have been a better choice.

That's all for now. But Mr. Howard knows better. I expect him to bounce back with super attire in the future.

When NBA fashion misses the mark

The NBA playoffs are here, and the intensity of play ratchets up several notches during this time. And the non-jersey clothing worn at courtside gets noticed, too.

Usually, coaches and the media are sensibly attired in professional wear. Yet some glaring exceptions emerge from time to time.

Tuesday night was one such occasion. As I was preparing to go to bed after Game 2 of the Lakers-Thunder series on TNT (L.A. leads the series, 2-0, in case you're wondering), I saw some of the postgame highlights from some of the other playoff games. To wit:

TNT sideline reporter Craig Sager's salmon-colored sport jacket and tie. Yyyep, that'll get a couple of double-takes, par for the course for Mr. Sager.

The Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade sporting a pewter jacket with red trim and epaulets, with a red check shirt. Hmmm ... well, the colors coordinate, but epaulets? You kiddin' me?

Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant answering questions from the media while wearing a red check shirt -- with epaulets. What's with the epaulets? Mr. Durant looks like a lumberjack. The NBA's leading scorer can do better than this. He'd be better off wearing a stretch cotton designer T shirt. Keep it simple, man!

These were only a few notable fashion (miss) statements from the NBA world. And now, back to the games ...