Aces star A’ja Wilson accused of being jealous of Caitlin Clark after X post

Khristina Williams & Myles Ehrlich join Dexter Henry to break down the New York Liberty’s four selections in the WNBA Draft

Khristina Williams & Myles Ehrlich join Dexter Henry to break down the New York Liberty’s four selections in the WNBA Draftclose

The news of new Fever rookie Caitlin Clark reportedly nearing an eight-figure shoe deal with Nike set off some keyboard warriors Wednesday.

Many took aim at Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson — a two-time champion and one of the faces of the WNBA, who is also a Nike athlete — after she posted a Bible scripture, “Psalm 37:7,” on X in wake of the buzz about Clark.

That Bible scripture contains a message about being patient amid the success of others.

Wilson shut down one critic in a separate post after they accused her of “hating” on Clark, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft and the NCAA Division 1 all-time leading scorer, men’s or women’s.

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Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson (22) looks to pass during the second half in Game 4 of a WNBA basketball final playoff series against the New York Liberty on Oct. 18, 2023, in New York.AP

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Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark holds her jersey following a WNBA basketball news conference on April 17, 2024, in Indianapolis.AP

“The jealousy in the wnba is crazy !!!!!! Caitlin bout to bring a new level of viewership to your league and you hating on her ???” the person wrote to Wilson, who responded with: “lol no one is jealous bookie!

“I have no reason to be lol I truly Wish all 143 [players in the league] the best fr ! Our league is hard as hell so to thrive and to stay in it consistently.. is huge! So pls stop with this jealousy stuff.”

In response to another X user that said, “everyone [is] googling the scripture,” Wilson wrote: “Hahaha right! In other words can’t get upset when God is in control.”

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WNBA Champion A’ja Wilson Celebrates ‘Dear Black Girls: How To Be True To You’ at Barnes & Noble Union Square in New York Feb 7, 2024.Andrew H. Walker/Shutterstock
Wilson, a New York Times Best-Selling author, does not have a signature shoe with Nike yet.

The former first-overall pick in the 2018 draft out of South Carolina — she led the Gamecocks to a NCAA title the year prior — is a two-time WNBA MVP, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Finals MVP and three-time All-WNBA selection.

Clark, meanwhile, is nearing an eight-figure endorsement deal with Nike, which includes a signature shoe deal, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday — two days after she was drafted by the Fever.

The news came hours after Wilson was named one of the 2024 TIME 100 Most Influential People.

“I meeeaaan, I might get a shoe before @_ajawilson22 at this rate,” Aces guard Sydney Colson, who is also a comedian, wrote on X.

Wilson replied with a bunch of crying-laughing emojis: “Sydney!!”

In another post, Wilson wrote: “Always remember what is delayed is not denied.”

Wilson not having a signature shoe deal has been a point of discussion in the WNBA. Some of the other faces of the league in Liberty stars Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart, both have ones with Nike.

Some have argued that Wilson deserves a shoe with Nike before Clark, who has yet to play a WNBA game.

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Caitlin Clark arrives prior to the 2024 WNBA Draft at Brooklyn Academy of Music on April 15, 2024 in New York City.Getty Images
Clark signed an NIL deal with Nike in October 2022, and her contract was up after her basketball career at Iowa — where the former All-American point guard led the Hawkeyes to the NCAA championship in back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024, but came up short to LSU and South Carolina, respectively.

Clark became a household name at Iowa during her senior year with her shooting prowess and elite passing — and played a major role in the dominance of women’s college basketball.

The 22-year-old Iowa native also reportedly received “sizable offers” from Under Armour and Adidas, industry sources told The Athletic.

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Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark (22) drives to the basket as South Carolina Gamecocks guard Bree Hall (23) defends during the NCAA Tournament championship basketball game on April 7, 2024 in Cleveland.Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK

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The news came amid fiery debates about Clark’s WNBA salary from from celebrities, politicians and morning show hosts.

Clark is set to get $338,056 over four seasons with the Fever, making $76,535 during her rookie campaign, per Spotrac.

The Gatorade athlete has a (NIL) valuation of $3.4 million and endorsement deals with a State Farm, among many other brands.

Nike needs to finally give A’ja Wilson a signature shoe or let someone else do it instead

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for reading today. We appreciate you.

Mind if I get a little deep in my sneaker bag this morning?

News of Caitlin Clark’s new signature shoe deal with Nike hit the streets late on Wednesday night. Clark reportedly signed a multi-year, ten-figure signature shoe deal with the Swoosh, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

That’s well deserved. Seeing a rookie get a signature shoe deal is extremely rare, but this was largely expected for Clark. Her popularity is obvious — her Indiana Fever jersey sold out within an hour after she was drafted. Nike is banking on that same fever (pun very much intended) carrying over into the sneaker world.

But, yo. I’m sorry. Where on Earth is A’ja Wilson’s signature shoe?

Look, I don’t mean to railroad this Caitlin Clark news. I’m genuinely happy for her and glad Nike is capitalizing on her popularity.

But A’ja Wilson has been in line for a sneaker for a long time now and it just hasn’t happened yet. It’s getting pretty ridiculous.

The Aces’ superstar has been in the WNBA since 2018. She’s become a two-time WNBA champion, a two-time MVP, a Defensive Player of the Year winner and a five-time All-Star.

Even before that, her stardom bubbled at South Carolina. She actually won a championship there, too. She was also named as a Naismith Award winner and the 2017-18 National Player of the Year.

Off the court, she’s popping. She’s one of the W’s brightest personalities and easily one of the most likable characters in the league. She just made TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World list. She’s also now a New York Times best-selling author. She’s done every single GTA side mission at this point.

She’s even proven herself as one of Nike’s most valuable faces. Wilson was the headliner for the brand’s Cosmic Unity sneaker line and she got her own LeBron 21 Player Exclusive model that people reacted well to.

What else must this woman do to get a signature shoe on her feet? No one can say she isn’t marketable or good enough. So what’s the hold-up, then?

That’s what makes the announcement of a Clark signature shoe deal so frustrating. You see just how easily that deal reportedly got done before Clark even played a minute of WNBA basketball. What does it take to make this happen for A’ja?

We genuinely don’t know the answer to that question because Nike hasn’t said much about the situation. As of 9:00 a.m. E.T. this morning, I’ve contacted the brand for comment but have not gotten a response.

Instead of speculating, let’s focus on the facts. When you do that, this doesn’t look great for Nike.

Nike is expanding into women’s basketball again. That’s a good thing  — especially as the brand searches for a new face with LeBron James’ retirement looming over everything. It could easily be a WNBA player who takes over that mantle — especially with how quickly the league is growing.

But here’s the problem: The most prominent female faces of Nike basketball are set to be two white women in a league that is 70 percent Black. There go those racial disparities in the WNBA again.

I’m not saying that Nike is doing this on purpose or that there’s some sort of malicious intent here. I’m just saying that Wilson needs a signature shoe, like, yesterday.

And, whatever it takes to make that happen? I hope it happens. Even if that means the shoe doesn’t come from Nike at all.