LOS ANGELES — Jeff Hamilton has become a household name for his luxurious leather jackets. He has been a part of sports history by crafting several iconic pieces, including the jacket that Kobe Bryant
wore in the locker room after winning the 2001 NBA Finals. In his booth at the 10th anniversary of ComplexCon on Saturday, Oct. 3 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, the designer displayed a sparkly jacket paying tribute to that moment.
Hamilton discussed how being a part of the inaugural ComplexCon in 2016 helped boost his confidence after a stint away from his work.
"When I came to the first ComplexCon in Long Beach and first and second and third, I really got really inspired," he reflected in a conversation with USA TODAY Sports while wearing a colorful jacket from his collaboration with Supreme. "It had a lot to do with me to come back out of retirement. Because I really, that's the first time that I saw where you're in direct contact with the actual culture makers and the shape makers and the public and that resonated.
"And when I walked through the aisles, people knew who I was and it was very flattering. Not from an ego standpoint, to know that I had over the years created some kind of impact that whatever I did for me, because I was passionate, not from a business standpoint, resonated with the ultimate fan."
Hamilton also shared some insight into the current state of athlete fashion, pointing out LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jordan Clarkson as sartorial leaders.
"All the guys dress very well," he said. "… At this stage, they have stylists and they have great taste, but also they have unlimited budgets."
While he declined to pick a favorite fashionable athlete, Hamilton's choice for favorite designer was easy.
"My GOAT is Ralph Lauren," he said. "That I can answer unequivocally because those are the things that I still look up to that I admire that he's able to have for a lifetime."
Hamilton currently has partnerships with Formula 1, Jordan Brand, Yohji Yamamoto and more. He is continuing his own winning legacy and designed the jacket that Karl-Anthony Towns wore in the New York Knicks championship parade.He said he is styling two players for the NBA's opening night, Jaylon Brown and Towns' teammate Miles McBride, and he also has a jacket for Knicks president Leon Rose in the works.
"We have a lot of dishes to be served pretty soon," he promised.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Designer behind Kobe Bryant's iconic title jacket still shapes NBA fashion
