“You Can’t Get Mad”: NBA Vet Addresses the Caitlin Clark vs A’ja Wilson Signature Shoe Debate

Some of the biggest shoe brands were fighting for Caitlin Clark: Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, Puma. In the end, Nike won! An eight-year deal worth up to $28 million is big in the WNBA. It is surprising to see a rookie bag a signature shoe deal. However, Clark’s Nike deal brought up questions about A’ja Wilson. People have been wondering why the 2X WNBA champion A’ja Wilson was deprived of a signature line of her own.

The matter was recently addressed by the 2017 NBA champion Matt Barnes on his podcast All The Smoke. He said, “There is no question that the best player in the WNBA should have her own shoe line. But, at the same time, Caitlin Clark is a rockstar. The viewership, the jersey sales. They said that she sold more jerseys in one day than the Cowboys sold all last year. You can’t compare anybody to her.”

However, he didn’t take away anything from A’ja Wilson. Barnes expressed, “Should A’ja have her own shoe? 1000%. But, you can’t get mad because Caitlin Clark has her own shoe. I’d argue that Caitlin Clark has had the biggest impact on women’s basketball in a long time.”

This discussion has been a hot topic going around after popular sportswriter Shams Charania predicted that Caitlin Clark would be among the few women basketball players to have a signature shoe line. But it does not look like people are trying to derail Clark. It’s just that Wilson has been in the sneaker business for a while without her own line. She was drafted in 2018 and since then she has accumulated achievements like becoming a two-time WNBA champion, a two-time MVP, and a five-time All-Star.

However, let us not forget how Nike had already signed Caitlin Clark before. This was back in 2022 before she took over NCAA discussions and became a recognizable player. But that deal was coming to an end as the 2023-24 college basketball season neared its conclusion.

Thus, Nike executives were quick to meet up with Clark’s agency- Excel Sports Management- and discuss a new deal. Yes, this is the same agency that also manages Derek Jeter and Tiger Woods. But one question prevails. How many current WNBA players have their signature shoes? That’s three apart from Clark. Sabrina Ionescu has Nike Air Sabrina (2023), Elena Delle Donne has Nike Air Deldon (2022) and Breanna Stewart has Puma Stewie (2021)

But what does 2023 WNBA Finals MVP A’ja Wilson have to say about this? Has she been denied her share of opportunities?

A’ja Wilson’s cryptic tweet moments after Caitlin Clark’s big news!

The 27-year-old seemed to approach this in a very sporting way. This is what many can assume after her tweet amidst the ongoing argument regarding her and Clark. Seemingly, her tweet read, “Always remember what is delayed is not denied …” Meanwhile, this tweet also points towards a future deal happening maybe between Wilson and the sports heavyweight company. Although nothing is official in that regard, her fans hope for it.

Wilson had headlined Nike’s Cosmic Unity sneaker line. She even got her LeBron 21 Player Exclusive and, as per the information available, people had a positive reaction to it. One may wonder, what else Wilson needs to do to get her own line? But coming back to Clark, her popularity is undeniable. All it took was one hour for her Indiana Fever jerseys to get sold out in every size.

Now with Nike expanding into women’s basketball, and LeBron James’ retirement discussions happening, could a female athlete take over as the brand’s new face? It seems all the possibility. It seems the WNBA might further get a major push. The discussion will continue to attract more eyes and ears over the next few days. One thing that is undeniable is both Clark and Wilson are among the absolute best in the sport. Fans are eager to witness a face-off between the two soon.

Do you also feel that A’ja Wilson should have received a signature shoe line before Caitlin Clark? Let us know in the comments below.