Rachel DeMita slams Nike over Caitlin Clark's treatment: "She would outsell A'ja Wilson's shoe by a 100 times"

Podcaster Rachel DeMita has criticized Nike for its treatment of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark while also taking an indirect shot at A'ja Wilson's shoe line.

Clark signed a massive eight-year deal with Nike before making her WNBA debut. However, DeMita believes the shoe company has failed to capitalize on Clark's marketing power.

On the latest edition of her "Courtside Club" podcast on YouTube, DeMita suggested the company could have made good money by giving Clark a signature shoe as a rookie.

DeMita also pointed out a report from Ethan Strauss that Nike feared giving Clark a signature shoe as a rookie since it hasn't released one for Wilson.

"Is A'ja Wilson currently the best player in the WNBA? Yes. Is Caitlin Clark currently the face of the WNBA? Yes. Do I think if A'ja Wilson dropped a shoe and Caitlyn Clark dropped a shoe today at the very same time that Caitlyn Clark would outsell A'ja's shoe by a 100 times? Yes, I think that would be the case," DeMita said. [5:23 - 5:44]

Rachel DeMita even brought up jersey sales as an example, with Caitlin Clark at the top spot this season. A'ja Wilson, despite being the best player in the league and the MVP, came in fifth. She was even behind teammate Kate Martin, who is at No. 4, even though she barely played in the second half of the season.

Ethan Strauss reported that due to Nike's fear of getting backlash by giving a rookie her signature shoe over a three-time WNBA MVP, fans will likely have to wait until 2026 for Clark's first-ever sneakers.

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Rachel DeMita says Under Armour would have been a better choice for Caitlin Clark

Rachel DeMita says Under Armour would have been a better choice for Caitlin Clark. (Photo: IMAGN)

Before signing her eight-year, $28 million deal with Nike, Caitlin Clark had a four-year, $16 million offer from Under Armour. UA was reportedly ready to make Clark the face of its women's basketball brand, like it had done with Steph Curry for the men's brand.

"Under Armour came to her and said that she could be the face of the women's line on the Steph Curry side because her and Steph's game is so similar," DeMita said.

"And I feel like looking back in retrospect, that might have been the perfect place for Caitlyn because I feel like Under Armour, for sure wouldn't have ignored her this entire season and missed out on so many marketing dollars," Rachel DeMita added.

It will be interesting to see if Nike will go all in on Caitlin Clark in the near future.