Tyson Etienne Speaks On His Love For Fashion And Basketball

We all know fashion and sports have become best friends on and off the field for talent such as Russell Westbrook, Cristiano Ronaldo and Dwyane Wade; Tyson Etienne is no different.

How does fashion and basketball go hand in hand in your life?  “I feel for me personally they are both art forms. I feel that both basketball and fashion are ways that I express myself. I often pair my fashion with the mood I may be in going into a game or day of training. I feel that there are many ways to tell a story besides just using words and for me I use fashion and basketball to depict my story to the world.” Tyson says about his love for the love of fashion and basketball.

Tyson Etienne was born September 17, 1999 and began playing high school basketball as a Freshman at Dwight-Englewood School in Englewood, New Jersey. For his Junior year, he transferred to Long Island Lutheran Middle and High School in Brookville, New York. As a junior, Etienne averaged 16.5 points and 3.4 assists per game.

Tyson competed alongside Cole Anthony with the PSA Cardinals Amateur Athletic Union program. He played for Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Connecticut for a postgraduate year, helping his team reach the National Prep Championship semifinals. After high school, Etienne worked with NBA trainer Chris Brickley and trained with several NBA players. A four-star recruit, he committed to playing college basketball for Wichita State over offers from Oklahoma, VCU, Seton Hall, Auburn, Minnesota and St. John’s.

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Etienne has recently found himself in the NFT space which is new and experiential for him. “To release an NFT as a college basketball player has never been done before and we felt that was a perfect thing for us to do and to hopefully inspire others to follow suit in whatever way they feel moved to do so,” say Tyson.

Read the full interview with Tyson Etienne below.

In your opinion, who’s a fashion icon when it comes to men’s fashion? For me I think a fashion icon when it comes to men’s fashion is Kanye West. I say that less about the actual pieces he wears but more about the way he totally innovates fashion culture and sets trends before they are considered popular. I think that his ability to stay true to himself even if he’s criticized is admirable because he’s honoring his self-expression. While I may not wear some of the exotic things that he wears, I know that I pair things together that are unique to myself.

Tell me your views on personal style especially in 2022 with fashion has blurred the lines? I think personal style is exactly that, personal style. Where at a time there was a more of an unspoken way that people should dressed based on where they lived, what gender they were, or what they did for a living. I find now that it is more accepted to wear the things that reflect who you are or the message you embody in your life. Fashion is art, art is expression of self. Fashion is a medium to express yourself through, not someone else’s predetermined way of doing things. So even if I see someone in an outfit that I personally wouldn’t wear, I respect them for having the courage to wear what they like and what represents them.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years when it comes to your basketball career? By 2027, I’d say I will be stepping into what I knew was written for me in my career. Stepping into my excellence as a player amongst the NBA. For what team, and how it all comes about that’s to be determined, but I do know that it’s going to be the start of a remarkable time. I know it’ll be what I dreamed it would be when I was a kid in my living room playing on my little tykes rim.

The definition of Contrast is “to be strikingly different.” What makes you strikingly different? I like that mantra a lot actually, wow. For me, I say that what makes me strikingly different is that I’m not the stereotypical athlete. I’m not the stereotypical basketball player. I am very misunderstood because the world see’s me as a cold, focused, some say obsessive basketball player, and in a sense there may be some legitimacy in that. But it isn’t all that I am. I have a lot of different layers to who I am.

I have different interests that have aided to my growth and development as a man. I feel that part of the purpose is to innovate, and not be a follower but instead have the courage and humbled-confidence to take the left when the pack goes right in all facets of my life.

Talk to us about your venture into tech and the NFT space? What has that journey been like, and have you yet to see any return? This has been something that me and my best-friend David have been actually conceptualizing for some time now. Just watching the takeover of NFT and the development of cryptocurrency over the passed year. We wanted to find a way that we could create the foundation of our venture firm together early on, while at the same time doing something that has never been done.

To release an NFT as a college basketball player has never been done before and we felt that was a perfect thing for us to do and to hopefully inspire others to follow suit in whatever way they feel moved to do so. It definitely hasn’t been easy ironing out all the logistics of setting everything up in this new space, but my team has done a great job setting everything up. We were able to sell out our 1st collection in 10 minutes. I’m excited for this journey in this field and everything that comes with it, successes and the opportunities to learn and grow.

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