Iowa's Clark Uses Nike NIL Deal to Gift Teammates

With a key conference road contest against No. 18 Ohio State scheduled ahead of her 22nd birthday, transcendent basketball star Caitlin Clark and the No. 2 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes will likely not have much time to celebrate the phenom’s birthday.

To account for this, the Hawkeye women’s basketball team wanted to ensure their superstar’s big day was well acknowledged. On Thursday, the team set up a surprise party for Clark at their home facility, Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The team got Clark two cakes and other birthday festivities; however, never to be outdone, Clark had the biggest surprise lined up for the day.

At the party, Clark surprised her teammates by giving gifts, rather than the more traditional route of those celebrating birthdays, receiving gifts.  The Iowa standout's reverse birthday gift to her team was signature shoes from a fellow Nike athlete, Kyler Murray’s "Be 1 of One" Nike Dunks. The shoes, released in November of 2023, are now only available on the secondary resale market, where they are listed between $200 and $500, depending on the size.

Caitlin Clark signed with Nike in October of 2022. The sporting giant is amongst Clark’s many high-profile NIL endorsements, including Gatorade, State Farm, and Buick. 

Leveraging fame and brand connections to surprise her teammates with a reverse birthday gift is a testament to Clark’s well-documented history of being a leader on and off the court. Professional superstars have a long history of gift-giving to show their teammates appreciation; in the NIL era, college stars are beginning to utilize the same strategy to build team chemistry.

Teammate Kylie Feuerbach was able to capture the moment with a TikTok:

On Feuerbach's account alone, the post has already surpassed 160k views and has been reposted by many sports outlets. It is safe to say that the partnership between Caitlin Clark and Nike is already paying dividends for both parties and Clark’s teammates.