A’Ja Wilson of WNBA Las Vegas Aces is absolutely fuming.
After dumping mountains of cash into hyping up Wilson’s brand—while meanwhile Caitlin Clark of WNBA Indiana Fever was out here setting social media ablaze every time she so much as ties her sneakers—Nike finally snapped out of it. Caitlin Clark’s shoe sold out in 1 minute while A’Ja Wilson is on its way to the clearance rack.
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Caitlin Clark’s new shoes sell out within minutes, reselling on secondary market for over double
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It was rumored that 13,000 pairs of Caitlin Clark’s new Nike basketball sneakers were being sold on June 30 – and they were gone before people could even add them to the cart.
A Nike rep told FOX Business that the Kobe Bryant-themed sneakers were out of stock “in minutes.”
Clark last year signed an eight-year shoe deal with Nike reportedly worth $28 million. The brand signed her in 2022.
The shoes went up for sale on Monday morning at $190 a pop. Now, most are going for well over $350, with one pair even costing $642.
The Kobe 5 Protro PE is decked out in Clark’s Indiana Fever colors, with its primary color being navy blue and touches of red, orange, and yellow throughout.
Clark just received over 1.2 million votes for the WNBA All-Star Game, shattering her own record from last year. She is averaging 18.2 points and 8.9 assists per game.
She has struggled as of late, likely due to nagging injuries. She is 13 for her last 47 from three-point land and has missed the last two games with a groin injury. Clark also missed five games due to a left calf injury earlier this year.
The brand signed Clark in the midst of her record-breaking career at the University of Iowa, where she finished her tenure as the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer in both men’s and women’s Division I basketball.
Clark’s games in both college and the pros have been among some of the most-watched of all time. Her return from the calf injury on June 14 garnered 2.2 million viewers, the third-most watched WNBA game ever on ABC. The game peaked at 2.8 million viewers, a 76% increase from last season’s regular-season average on the network.
The WNBA had its most-watched regular season in 24 years last season, and its highest attendance in 22 years.
Ahead of the WNBA season, the Fever had the 10 most in-demand games on StubHub, with most of their games being moved to larger capacity venues.
