kiki iriafen: Kiki Iriafen shares the Nigerian culture behind her glamorous WNBA draft outfit

Kiki Iriafen shares the Nigerian culture behind her glamorous WNBA draft outfit

WNBA: Draft - Source: Imagn — Kiki Iriafen dazzled with her style at the WNBA Draft. - Source: Imagn

Even before Kiki Iriafen was picked No. 4 overall in the WNBA draft by the Washington Mystics, the former USC Trojans forward was already garnering attention thanks to her outfit. Iriafen wore a gold dress with a thigh-high slit.

Her outfit was inspired by her Nigerian roots, and she worked with a designer to express her vision. She shared the details on the orange carpet before the draft.

"I worked with a Nigerian designer. Her name is Nneka Alexander. And because she made this dress it took about two months. And it was super important to me to just showcase my Nigerian culture by working with her, and then I also have some Nigerian beads and earrings, and I thought this is the perfect carpet to do so," Iriafen said via GQ Sports.

This is not the first time the former USC player has wowed fans with her fashion sense.

Kiki Iriafen was one of the top forwards available at the WNBA draft. She finished her senior season averaging 12.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists in her only year with the Trojans.

She also led the Trojans to the Elite Eight after National Player of the Year JuJu Watkins injured her knee in the second round of the tourney. Iriafen went off and scored 36 points in their Round of 32 game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The Los Angeles, California native played for the Stanford Cardinal before transferring to Southern Cal. For her career, Iriafen averaged 12.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg and 1.3 apg.

Iriafen was selected No. 4 overall by the Washington Mystics on Monday. She will be playing alongside Notre Dame shooting guard Sonia Citron and Kentucky point guard Georgia Amoore.

The Mystics could benefit from Iriafen's height. Washington was last in the WNBA in rebounds per game. She will team up with Aaliyah Edwards, giving the Mystics a young frontcourt, though the USC product is also adept at stretching the court thanks to her versatility.

A closer look at Kiki Iriafen's Nigerian descent

As Kiki Iriafen showed on the orange carpet, she is proud of her Nigerian descent. While the former Trojan was born in Los Angeles, her parents, Yemi and Harrison Iriafen, are Nigerian nationals. While neither of them was into athletics, they have supported Kiki's basketball career.

She also has two younger siblings, Shuby and Oyinkan, who have both followed their big sister into sports. While 11-year-old Oyinkan plays basketball, 14-year-old Shuby prefers soccer.

How do you think Kiki Iriafen will fare with the Washington Mystics next season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

About the author

Allan Wolburg Robles is a College Sports journalist at Sportskeeda with over 17 years of experience in the field writing for publications including Reforma, Yahoo! OddsShark and Apuesta. Allan studied Communications at Anáhuac University, where he learned what would become the basis of a trade that was already a dream of his before starting college.

His favorite team is Army West Point as when he was young, Allan lived in West Point for a couple of years, went to pretty much every home game, a couple of Army-Navy games and even got to meet some of the players.

Allan's favorite players of all time include Tommie Frazier, who was unbelievable during the Nebraska dynasty of the early 90's. Tim Tebow was also a favorite, mainly because of his leadership skills, although he was also awesome on the football field. As a fan of defensive football, (or what's left of it), Sean Taylor could take over a game for Miami.

Allan has always considered himself a student of the game more than a fan of it. So the historical part and evolution of the game, as well as the ins and outs of what happens on the field, and being able to put it into words for the audience, are his biggest strengths.

Besides sports, Allan enjoys reading books, watching movies and spending time with his dogs.

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Edited by Veer Badani