Ready to Party with Candace Parker

Parker, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, three-time WNBA champion and seven-time WNBA All-Star, is celebrating a new, unique role as president of women’s basketball at Adidas. “I’m not going to be throwing passes and advancing the ball up the court… but I’m still going to throw passes and advancing the ball up the court,” she says of her mission to continue improving the landscape for the next generation of female athletes. “I love that these young players are not afraid to take up space and demand what should always rightfully be ours.”

Later in the evening, people from all corners of Parker’s life will recite her many accolades and share candid stories about the journey that has earned her a place in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. But as she sits across from me, getting her hair extensions clipped in, she is really just a woman.

“I’m just here with my baby hairbrush,” she says with a smile, as she trims her hair. “I feel like I’m synonymous with baby hairs. I always get them done, and if I don’t, it’s a bad day or I’m sick or something.” A friend will later confirm that Parker is a “baby hair bully,” and even if you think you don’t have baby hairs, she will “pull them out of you.”

Her makeup look for the evening is natural and radiant, which makes sense considering she’s getting ready to dance in the 110-degree Arizona heat. “I keep it really natural and simple. I mean, I wear a lot of makeup when I’m on TV, so my big thing is facials, and at home, my daughter and I do a mask every Sunday,” Parker says, speaking of her 15-year-old daughter Lailaa. The basketball pro also has a 2-year-old and an 8-month-old son with wife Anna Petrakova.

“I use Dragon Blood Water to wipe my face and I like Kora’s oils to remove my makeup and nourish my skin,” Parker continues. “I really love the dewy look. I also recently started doing ice baths. I always do ice baths for my body, but then one of my makeup artists told me that it helps keep your skin young and all that, so I’m starting to do that for my face too.”

As we chat, my eyes wander to Parker’s silky white bralette and underwear set lying on her bed. “It’s actually Zara,” she says. “Who knew they made lingerie?” The set matches her outfit perfectly, and the bra will add a nice sheen under her semi-sheer bodysuit.

“I love playing with the bras; I think it adds a sexy element with a sheer tee or a nice bodysuit. And then give me a cool pair of pants and I’ll rock it,” she says. Parker considered wearing heels to the party, but immediately changed her mind.

“I like to wear comfortable clothes that look good,” she says. “I wore heels to the ESPYs for the first time since 2020, and when I opened the curtain and saw how far away the stage was, I immediately regretted it.” (The former Las Vegas Aces player presented the award for Outstanding Athlete, Women’s Sports at the event in July.)

Her favorite shoe is, unsurprisingly, an Adidas sneaker. “My whole closet is just like every type of Adidas sneaker you can think of,” she admits.

Shoes aside, Parker says her style is pretty versatile. “I love playing with the lines between feminine and masculine. I love an elevated suit. Everyone knows I love a matching set. I wear my Y-3 sweatshirt to the airport,” she says. “I’m also a big graphic T-shirt, vintage T-shirt person — just give me a shirt with some kind of slogan or something on it.” The one thing she’ll never wear? A sundress. “I just can’t see myself in a sundress, ever in my life,” she says. “Even when my mom tried to put me in one as a kid, I literally cried. Give me pants!”

Parker is also, admittedly, a matchy-matchy person. Even for her party, she coordinated her looks with her wife Petrakova, who looked stunning in a distressed beige denim jacket and pants, plus a pair of cream sneakers and dangly teal earrings like Parker’s. “Yeah, I’m cheesy. I’m a dress-like-I’m-on-vacation person. I’m a Disney shirt person, really,” she says, laughing. “I’ll wear a Mike Tyson shirt and put my son in a Michael Jordan shirt and the other one in a Michael Jackson shirt, or something. I’m obsessed with dressing my kids.”

Candace Parker and brother Anthony Parker.

Now that she’s in her presidential tenure and taking on her role as a businesswoman and mentor, Parker has hired a stylist. “She’s incredible,” she says of Diamond Mahone Bailey, but admits that it’s a big change for her to be styled for every appearance. While fashion has always been a passion of Parker’s, the athlete explains that for most of her life, she didn’t think of it as something that could go hand-in-hand with her basketball career. “When I was playing, I was more of an ‘I’m here for business,’ kind of, ‘I’m a hooper, I don’t worry about fashion. I don’t want to worry about whether I look good or not. I don’t pose for pictures. I’m here to compete.’ But times have changed,” Parker says.

This year in particular, the WNBA tunnel has become a runway of sorts. Not only are professional athletes starting to sign deals with major fashion and beauty brands because of it, but suddenly everyone is interested in women’s basketball.

“I realize I used to be an old guy who didn’t want to dress up for the tunnel,” Parker says. “Fashion is cool and it’s another way to express yourself. And the attention for the tunnel is appropriate now? Man, I think it’s huge; it’s another way to expose the competition.”

Candace Parker and Sue Bird.

As our conversation winds down, Parker smooths out her outfit, ready to head out into the night, not knowing what awaits her. “Just give me a drink and some cool music and some cool people and I’m good,” she says, pulling out an espresso martini with tequila.

Moments later, she enters her party to a room full of her lifelong teammates, mentors, and even competitors. They all agree that there will never be a player like Parker: someone who is kind, effortlessly cool, and fierce on the court, and who leaves the game better than she found it.

“This orange ball has changed my life. I met my wife through basketball, I met all my people through basketball, and after all these years, those relationships are the ones I’m most proud of,” Parker says, tears streaming down her face as she embraces the people who helped build her legacy — and her makeup doesn’t run an inch.

Rosa Sanchez is the senior news editor at Harper’s Bazaar, covering entertainment, fashion, and culture news. Previously, she was a news editor at ABC News and, before that, managing editor of celebrity news at American Media. She has also written for Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue, Forbes, and The Hollywood Reporter, among others.