On the Orlando practice floor, Malaki Branham’s jewelry story begins with a number.
In a preseason conversation with Erica Diggs, GIA Graduate Gemologist, for Drip With Diggs, I asked Branham about the first piece he bought after getting signed. He did not begin with a watch or a statement chain. He went back to a pendant marked 22, a piece he wore during his college years at Ohio State. A Cuban link came next.
“I had a pendant that had number 22,” Branham said. “I wore that my college year at Ohio State, and then I had a Cuban. So that was my first little piece I had.”
The answer places a personal marker at the start of his jewelry story. The pendant belongs to a specific chapter, while the Cuban link brings in a familiar chain silhouette. Together, they sketch a style built around pieces with a reason to stay close, not a long list of purchases.
The pieces that earn a place in rotation
That sense of wearability returned when we talked about jewelry he might choose differently. Branham did not pretend every purchase became a favorite.
“I got a couple tennis chains that I probably regret,” he said.
I asked why. His answer was straightforward: “I don’t wear them as often.” When I pointed out that tennis chains can be expensive, he agreed.
It was a small exchange, but an honest one. A piece can look impressive in a display case and still fail the test of everyday wear. Branham’s answer brings the conversation back to a practical question that gets lost when jewelry is discussed only through price or carat weight: does it feel like something you want to put on?
For him, the pieces that matter are the ones that connect to a moment or make sense in his actual rotation. That is the minimalist thread in his approach. It is less about having nothing and more about knowing what gets worn.
The players behind the style
Asked which players influence his jewelry or overall style, Branham named Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony.
“AI is definitely a big one. Like, AI is always gonna be one of the ones,” he said. “I like Carmelo too. I say those two.”
The names point beyond a single accessory. Iverson and Anthony are remembered for bringing their personalities into the public image of basketball, where style extends past the uniform. Branham’s answer suggests that influence can come from the way a player carries himself as much as from any one chain, watch or outfit.
What stays with him
Branham’s answers move from a No. 22 pendant to a Cuban link, then to tennis chains he rarely wears and two style figures he continues to look to. It is a compact jewelry rotation, but each part tells us something different: where a piece came from, whether it fits daily life, and whose example still resonates.
The strongest style statement in the conversation is not about buying more. It is about choosing the pieces that feel personal enough to keep wearing.
*Interview by Erica Diggs, GIA Graduate Gemologist.*
