Kyle Kuzma has made his mark as a dynamic pressure each on and off the court docket. A standout ahead for the Milwaukee Bucks and an NBA champion with the Lakers, he’s recognized for his versatility, management and championship pedigree. However his ambitions attain far past basketball.
Because the co-founder of WON Group, Kuzma has fastidiously constructed a various portfolio that spans style, sports activities, meals and shopper items, prioritizing innovation, authenticity and long-term impression. He chooses enterprise ventures that align together with his values to make sure that his affect extends past conventional endorsements.
Philanthropy is simply as central to his mission. By way of the Kyle Kuzma Household Basis, he’s devoted to empowering single moms and their kids—a trigger that’s deeply private to him, having been raised by a single mom himself. The muse gives monetary help, instructional assets and group applications to create significant alternatives for households in want.
Whether or not he’s dominating on the court docket, shaping industries or giving again, Kuzma’s success is pushed by objective, imaginative and prescient and a dedication to leaving a long-lasting impression.
This interview has been edited for size and readability.
SUCCESS: What has pushed you to develop your affect past basketball, and the way do you method constructing a model off the court docket?
Kyle Kuzma: I’ve at all times seen basketball as only one a part of my journey. The sport has given me an unbelievable platform, however my long-term purpose is to construct one thing lasting past it.
I method brand-building the identical method I method my sport: with authenticity and intention. I’m not trying to simply put my title on initiatives—I take a hands-on method in creating and shaping every alternative I’m concerned in. Each enterprise I align myself with displays a private perspective and an even bigger imaginative and prescient. The main target is on pushing tradition ahead, difficult the established order and constructing issues which have actual impression.
S: What’s your philosophy on the subject of figuring out and investing in alternatives, and the way do you make sure that these ventures align along with your core values?
KK: For me, it’s at all times about alignment. If one thing doesn’t really feel genuine, I’m not doing it. I search for alternatives which might be progressive, culturally related and impactful.
My focus is on investing in companies and types which might be pushing boundaries—whether or not that’s in style, sports activities or shopper merchandise. It’s additionally concerning the folks behind them. I companion with founders and groups who’ve a transparent imaginative and prescient and the drive to execute it and aren’t afraid to have a robust perspective.
S: WON Group not too long ago launched BAA, a model deeply rooted in Will Smith’s iconic Bel-Air Academy. How do you method the intersection of design, product and cultural affect in a venture like this?
KK: Our work with WON is all about storytelling and creativity, and BAA embodies that. We needed to create a model that feels premium but additionally carries a deeper message of confidence, individuality and ambition. The design course of was intentional—each element, from the material to the silhouette to the match, was chosen to replicate that steadiness between basic and modern.
Past the product, it’s about impression. We’re constructing one thing that resonates with individuals who see style as extra than simply clothes—it’s a press release. It’s a mirrored image of the place they arrive from and the place they’re going.
S: Your partnership with Main League Volleyball looks like a pure extension of your dedication to innovation. What excites you most concerning the potential of MLV, and the way do you see it reshaping the panorama of girls’s sports activities within the U.S.?
KK: WON Group is a founding companion of MLV, and thru this position, I’m excited to contribute to the artistic imaginative and prescient of Main League Volleyball. Our collaboration is about greater than launching a league—it’s about constructing a cultural motion that celebrates and elevates ladies’s volleyball within the U.S. and globally.
Volleyball is already probably the most common sports activities worldwide, however MLV is setting a brand new commonplace by giving elite ladies athletes the platform, assets and visibility they deserve. We’re merging creativity with operational excellence to create an expertise that engages gamers, followers and communities in a method that hasn’t been finished earlier than. That is about legacy and lasting impression, and it’s a cultural shift that’s lengthy overdue.
S: You’ve been outspoken about your stance in opposition to the commercialization of tunnel style within the NBA. Are you able to speak about why authenticity and artistry matter a lot to you and the way this attitude performs into your different enterprise ventures?
KK: Tunnel style began as a uncooked outlet for artistic expression, however over time, it’s develop into overly curated and transactional. I needed to carry it again to what it’s purported to be: an genuine reflection of your self and private style.
That very same philosophy carries into all the pieces I do. Whether or not it’s investing or constructing manufacturers, I purpose for it to remain true to my distinctive perspective. I’m not keen on traits or simply doing what’s common—my precedence is to push issues ahead in new methods and with a transparent objective. Creativity and self-expression ought to at all times come first, and I search for that to be mirrored in all the pieces I construct.
S: Are you able to share a few standout firms you’re significantly enthusiastic about and what makes them distinctive or aligned along with your long-term imaginative and prescient?
KK: I like investing in companies that resolve on a regular basis issues in a wise, artistic method. Pretzelized is an ideal instance—it’s a easy idea, however they’re elevating it with nice branding and a contemporary method to a basic snack. Rocket Carwash is one other one I’m enthusiastic about as a result of it’s bringing innovation and accessibility to a service that everybody makes use of.
Each of those manufacturers align with my imaginative and prescient—distinctive, scalable and related. When figuring out new funding alternatives, I look to be a part of companies that not solely make sense financially but additionally add one thing new to the best way folks expertise on a regular basis life.
S: What drives your ardour for giving again, and the way do you resolve which causes to deal with?
KK: My dedication to giving again comes from my very own upbringing. I used to be raised by a single mother who labored tirelessly to offer me each alternative, and I do know firsthand how a lot the appropriate assets and mentorship can change a child’s path.
That’s why the Kyle Kuzma Household Basis is targeted on uplifting single mothers and their children—whether or not it’s via schooling, assets or mentorship, we wish to present actual assist to households in want. For me, it’s about creating alternatives for the subsequent era and ensuring children, irrespective of their circumstances, have the instruments and confidence to chase their desires.
S: As you look to the longer term, how do you envision your legacy evolving, and what would you prefer it to say concerning the impression athletes can have past their respective sports activities?
KK: I would like my legacy to be about extra than simply basketball. I hope folks see me as somebody who took dangers, challenged the norm and created alternatives—not only for myself however for others. Athletes have a lot affect, and I hope my journey exhibits that we will use our platforms to form industries, shift tradition and uplift others alongside the best way.
This text initially appeared within the July/August 2025 concern of SUCCESS® journal.
Photograph by ©kenny giarla