Keyo Sanchez has been the go-to barber for most of the Wichita State University men's basketball team for several years. By Jaime Green
Before the Oklahoma City Thunder cut down nets as NBA champions, several of the team’s prominent players called on a Wichita native to do the cutting.
After spending years as the barber for countless players on the Wichita State men’s basketball team, Michio Sanchez has since gone pro.
Sanchez, better known as simply “Keyo,” has become the go-to barber for much of the Thunder roster. From rookies to stars, they trust the Wichita barber to keep them looking sharp on the court and in front of the cameras.
Wichita barber Michio Sanchez, right, poses with his mother and Oklahoma City player Jaylin Williams after the Thunder won the NBA championship earlier this month. Michio Sanchez Courtesy
And when the Thunder clinched their first NBA title earlier this month with a 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 7, Sanchez was right there in the middle of the celebration — a surreal moment that felt like the payoff to years of hard work.
“It’s crazy how everything aligned like it did to allow me to be in this position,” Sanchez said. “If anything would’ve been different, I wouldn’t be here right now. I just feel extremely blessed.”
Keyo Sanchez cuts Wichita State basketball player Markis McDuffie’s hair at Tory Brooke Salon. Sanchez has cut the senior’s hair since he was a freshman and the two have been through many different hairstyles. Jaime Green The Wichita Eagle
The grind that started in Wichita
Keyo caught his first break by being in the right place at the right time.
In 2013, Sanchez was trying to establish a reputation as a barber in Wichita when he had the opportunity to cut hair of Wichita State basketball players Tekele Cotton and Darius Carter.
His timing couldn’t have been better. That year, the Shockers made a Cinderella run to the Final Four and Sanchez was savvy with his usage of social media to show off his work. His reputation grew with every viral post.
That hustle took him from cutting local college players to traveling the country, lining up NBA and NFL players in cities like New York, Miami, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Even after former Shockers moved on, they kept him on speed dial and would even fly him out just so they could sit in his chair.
In 2022, Keyo’s business reached a new level thanks to an assist from another WSU connection. Former Shocker Jalen Ricks, a Sherwood, Ark. native, told Sanchez he knew recently-acquired Thunder players Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Joe from their days playing basketball in Arkansas.
Ricks reached out and the very next day, Sanchez found himself in Oklahoma City with a new set of high-profile clients. Williams even FaceTimed former Arkansas teammate — and former Shocker — Trey Wade during his first cut with Keyo. Wade’s reaction still makes Sanchez smile.
“Oh, you got Keyo out there now?” Wade boomed. “Y’all legit now!”
“I’ll never forget that,” Sanchez added.
The Thunder locker room soon became his second home. His reputation for quality cuts made him a trusted part of the team, so much so that the Thunder organization offered him a contract to use the team facility for his hair cuts. He isn’t on the team’s payroll, rather he works specifically for individual players, not the team itself.
Up until then, Sanchez was trying to balance a hectic schedule that saw him driving back and forth between Wichita and Oklahoma City constantly. He would also make the occasional trip to Kansas City to service his Chiefs clients. But as the Thunder’s season was turning into something special, he knew he had to make a tough call.
Sanchez sold his beloved Wichita barbershop, The Shopp, and moved to Oklahoma City full-time to focus on the Thunder.
“I didn’t want to sell my shop. I loved that place,” Sanchez said. “Any players who came back to the city would come there, get cut, drop off jerseys or whatever. But when the Thunder were doing so good, I knew I needed to be down there full-time.”
But the gamble paid off in the biggest way possible: an NBA championship.
Wichita barber Michio Sanchez, better known as “Keyo,” was the barber to many of the players on the championship-winning Oklahoma City Thunder, including Isaiah Hartenstein. Michio Sanchez Courtesy
The life of an NBA barber
Cutting hair for professional athletes isn’t as always as glamorous as it might seem on social media. It’s long hours, erratic schedules and constant travel.
Some days, Keyo can knock out all his appointments at the team facility. But more often, he’s zigzagging across Oklahoma City, making house calls to players who need a fresh cut — all while juggling tight schedules built around practices, treatment sessions and games.
On the day of Game 5 of the NBA Finals, he said he cut hair for nine different players.
“I was all over the place,” Sanchez said. “Like a chicken with its head cut off.”
It’s high-pressure work. The players are on the NBA’s largest stage with millions watching them on television. And if a player doesn’t upkeep their look, Sanchez isn’t shy about letting them know.
“I still get mad and text them sometimes,” Sanchez said with a laugh. “Like, ‘Why didn’t you brush your beard? You couldn’t do nothing with your hair?’”
While Sanchez is primarily known for his work with Thunder players, his word-of-mouth business has exploded.
He even had to turn down a request by a player on the Indiana Pacers during the Finals, as Sanchez is a proud believer in the luck created by his “look good, play good” mantra.
But the players don’t only call on Sanchez to look right for games.
Earlier this season, the Wichita native was invited by Thunder star Chet Holmgren to join him on the set of an AT&T commercial, which also featured Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams.
“It’s still surreal,” Sanchez said. “I see them on TV, and then the next thing you know, they’re sitting in my chair and I’ve got to cut them.”
After so much success in the city, Wichita barber “Keyo” Sanchez opened up his own barbershop, “The Shopp,” that featured memorabilia from Wichita State and other famous athletes he gave haircuts to. Michio Sanchez Courtesy
A moment, and a future, to celebrate
The buzz of clippers was the only sound inside the Thunder locker room before Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
“I’ve been in a lot of locker rooms on game days,” Sanchez said. “They’re usually rowdy, loud, talking crazy to each other, music playing. But this one, it was completely silent. I’ve never been in a locker room like that. When I turned on my clippers, that was the only thing you could hear in there. Just the clippers.”
There’s a reason so many players put their trust in Sanchez’s hands. Beyond his skill with clippers, it’s his infectious personality and keen ability to read the room that truly set him apart.
He didn’t sense anxiety in the locker room ahead of Game 7, rather a calm, focused confidence. So after each haircut, Sanchez made sure to share his own message with the players before they headed out for the biggest game of their lives.
“This is going to be your championship cut right here,” Sanchez said. “This is the cut you’re going to have taking pictures walking around with that trophy and celebrating at the parade.”
Hours later, when the Thunder had secured a 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers, OKC players waved him down from the crowd inside Paycom Center to join the on-court festivities. He brought his mother with him for a moment the pair will always cherish.
With the NBA season over, Sanchez has moved back to Wichita and has plans to reopen “The Shopp” in a new location (he’s taking appointments through his Instagram page).
This time, his vision is even bigger.
“My goal is to franchise it,” Sanchez said. “I want to have a bunch of Shopp’s all over. I want The Shopp to be as big of a brand as Great Clips. I want you to see my shop like you see McDonald’s.”
For a kid from Wichita who grew up with people mispronouncing his name — it’s Mee-keyo, for the record — the nickname “Keyo” has become more than a workaround.
It’s become a brand, a calling card, and a symbol of what happens when hard work finally meets opportunity.
“When I was growing up, nobody could ever get my name right, so they just called me Keyo,” Sanchez said. “Now people know my name. I’m Keyo the barber. It’s unique and I love that.”