We told you before that it's popular for defendants to wear hipster glasses in criminal court to appear innocent. Now that fashion trend has found its way into another kind of court, the basketball court:
The way they fly around the basketball court, LeBron James and Kevin Durant often resemble Superman. Then they return to the locker room and come out looking like Clark Kent.
Mr. James, Mr. Durant and many other superstars in the NBA playoffs have found a novel way to accessorize their bespoke suits: thick-rimmed, chunky, ostentatious eyeglasses.
In the NBA, the new cool is geek chic. For most, the eyewear is purely a fashion statement, never mind old stigmas about astigmatism. Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook admits that his lenses are nonprescription. Like Mr. Westbrook, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade has gone so far as to wear glasses without glass in them (or even plastic) as fashion models are sometimes known to do. And yet impeccable vision hasn't stopped Thunder and Heat players from flaunting the latest in designer eyewear at the NBA Finals.
"Back in the day, you wore them because you had to," said James Spina, the editor of 20/20, an eyewear trade publication. "These days, you wear them because you can't wait to wear them."
Scott Cacciola and Ben Cohen of the Wall Street Journal bravely explains the spectacular spectacles phenomenon: Link (Photo: LeBron James goes geek chic by Wilfredo Lee/AP)
This undoubtedly signals that the hipster glasses trend has crested, so be prepared for the next big thing: monocles!