Caitlin Clark WHACKED In The Head & CRASHED Into On Shot, Refs Don’t Call Foul

👀 Caitlin Clark WHACKED In The Head & CRASHED Into On Shot, Refs Don’t Call Foul | Indiana Fever.

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Caitlin Clark just did something no athlete has done since Michael Jordan

Breakout basketball star Caitlin Clark has a new achievement that hasn’t been accomplished since Michael Jordan.

The WNBA player signed a multiyear deal with Wilson Sporting Goods Co., the league’s official basketball supplier, for “signature basketball collections celebrating Clark’s continued legacy,” the company announced Tuesday.

Wilson said that Clark will “test, advise and provide feedback on a range” of its basketball products, become a brand ambassador and release new collections that celebrate her throughout the rest of 2024. In addition, she will “creatively direct her first-ever signature basketball line” that will roll out later this year.

Financial terms of the deal were not released.

She’s the first-ever female athlete to have her own collection with Wilson, a company spokesperson told CNN, with the series being built similar to Jordan’s collection in the 1980s, which included signature basketballs.

“Wilson has been with me across some of the most pivotal moments in my career so far, and I couldn’t be more excited to continue driving basketball forward alongside them,” Clark said in a press release. “It feels surreal to have my own basketball collection, and to affect what that means for future generations of athletes.”

The first collection released Tuesday on Wilson’s website, with a limited collection of gold-colored basketballs featuring a drawing of Clark along with her signature.

Wilson, which has produced the basketballs for the NBA for several decades, became the official game ball of the WNBA in 2020. The company also sells basketballs with WNBA team logos on them.

Clark, the no. 1 draft pick, joined the Indiana Fever earlier this month and has been a boon for the league since: Her debut drew an average of 2.1 million viewers on ESPN2, ESPN+ and Disney+, making it the most watched WNBA game in more than two decades.

Nike is also reportedly on the verge of signing Clark to design her shoe line, but no official deal has been formally announced. She also has sponsorship deals with State Farm, Gatorade, Panini and others, valued at around $3 million.

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Angel Reese ‘praying’ Chicago Sky no longer has to fly commercial

Reese posted on social media a clear message that she wants chartered flights for her and her teammates

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While Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever were seen flying on a chartered plane to their season opener against the Connecticut Sun, not every team in the WNBA did so prior to the start of the 2024 campaign.

Chicago Sky 2024 draft pick Angel Reese hopes it is the last time she flies commercially.

Reese posted a selfie on her Instagram account on a flight to Dallas, where the Sky are facing the Wings on Tuesday night. She was very direct with her caption.  Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky looks on before the game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis on May 3. (David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) “Just praying that this is one of the last commercial flights the Chicago Sky has to fly,” she wrote. “Like Breezy [Sky teammate Brianna Turner] said, ‘Practicing gratitude & patience as the league introduces charter flights for all teams.’” It has long been a hot debate topic for the WNBA, as it was previously not allowed for teams to charter their teams to away games. New York Liberty owner Joe Tsai, who also owns the Brooklyn Nets, was fined by the league in 2022 for providing his team with charter flights. The reasoning for the fine was it went against the league’s collective bargaining agreement, which said it could provide a potential unfair competitive advantage for teams that could not afford charters.  As such, WNBA teams have primarily flown commercially, and sometimes that means entire days traveling across the country. However, heading into last season, the league expanded its charter flight policy, allowing private flights for all postseason games, back-to-back games and select regular-season games. Now, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a meeting with sports editors last week that the league will launch its plan to have full-time chartered flights for its teams “as soon as we can get planes in places.”  Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky, right, looks on before the game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis on May 3. (David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) Engelbert added that the projected cost for the chartered plane program will be around $25 million per year for the next two seasons. Player safety has always been the concern for commercial flights, which is what the WNBA has used since its inception in 1997. It made national headlines, however, when Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner was released from a Russian prison in a controversial exchange with U.S. officials. Six months after the exchange, Griner was targeted by “inappropriate and unfortunate” actions of a “social media figure and provocateur” at a Dallas airport. Right-wing comedian Alex Stein walked beside Griner and asked why she “hates” and “still want[s] to boycott” America, while she was walking alongside her teammates. Griner later called it “rock bottom” for the WNBA. Many WNBA players have voiced their opinions about commercial flights, including Clark, who said it would have been “an adjustment.”  Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky prepares to shoot a free throw during the preseason game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis on May 3. (David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) Like Reese said, she will try to practice gratitude and patience while waiting for the WNBA to institute its new program. She clearly hopes it comes sooner rather than later.