Paige Bueckers made her Met Gala debut in a custom Coach look. The WNBA superstar wore a black suit splattered with paint and adorned with Swarovski crystals to fit the theme “Costume Art” and the dress code “Fashion Is Art.”
“For me, it was less about specific artworks and more about the artists themselves — their studios, their working clothes, the way things build up over time,” Coach Creative Director Stuart Vevers tells Teen Vogue about Bueckers look. “We kept coming back to those layers of paint, the splatters and smudges that aren’t intentional but become part of the piece. There’s something very alive in that — the energy, the imperfection, the sense of history. It felt honest.”
“Fashion is a different way to express yourself. Art is a different way to express yourself. And I think basketball, too, is a form of art," Bueckers says when we caught up with her before the Met Gala 2026. “For this to be my first experience at the Met Gala, I think it's really cool for this to be the theme. I really like how the Coach piece came together. And just, yeah, I mean, I'm excited to see. Mine probably won't be as crazy as some other people's, but I'm excited to see how people express themselves through fashion and art.”
According to a press release, “Bueckers’ look reinterprets the 1940s-inspired tailoring from Coach’s Fall 2026 Collection through a ‘70s lens and features a three-piece black wool and satin tuxedo with broad peak lapels, a low-cut vest, and flared, elongated trousers. Cut loosely for an easy, fluid drape, the tuxedo is adorned with hand-applied artist’s paints, carefully rendered to reproduce the dabs, smudges, and splatters that might accrue on a drop cloth or painter’s smock.”
One special detail added at the last minute to the look was the number five on one of the sleeves, “which is kind of like a personal ode to me,” Bueckers explains. (5 is Bueckers' number on the Dallas Wings, which she was the #1 overall 2025 WNBA Draft pick).
When we asked who and what was on the moodboard, Bueckers said it's other basketball players. “I think the New York Liberty team, and then Angel's been doing [The Met] for the past three years. So definitely channeling those fashionable basketball stars.”
On the playlist? The new Kehlani album, of course. “Then I just saw Ari Lennox in concert, so a lot of her music too,” she added.
Buekers is deep into preseason, and so rest is important. After the gala, she's got big plans. “Take off all my makeup, take off my extensions, put on some pajamas, and sleep.”
