Caitlin Clark's Prada ensemble is a first for WNBA draft
Why this head-to-toe $16,875 Prada outfit that Caitlin Clark wore to the WNBA Draft could be just the beginning of more luxury brands investing in sports and athlete partnerships.
Video Transcript
MEG LUDEMANN: 22-year-old Caitlin Clark has become a celebrity in her own right, outside of the basketball world. So much so that Prada decked out head-to-toe for the WNBA Draft, a first not only for Caitlin, but for the brand too. Clark told GQ Sports that Prada has never dressed a WNBA or NBA player for the draft.
And given she was selected as the number 1 draft pick, seems like a pretty good brand move. To be clear, she didn't pay for the red carpet look. But if you total up the cost of the Prada fit, it's worth nearly $17,000. And if you're wondering, that's roughly 22% of her first year expected salary playing pro.
Though if she was the number 1 draft pick in the NBA, it's estimated that she'd be making at least $10 million compared to the $76k she's expected to make her first season. As the NCAA's all-time leading scorer, Clark's personal brand was valued at over $3 million thanks to deals with Nike, State Farm, and Gatorade.
And while it might appear unusual for a designer brand to invest in sports and athlete partnerships, Prada sponsored a snowboarder during the 2022 Winter Olympics. And LVMH will be sponsoring the 2024 Paris Games as a premium partner, resisting the urge to call this designer sports, because it kind of rolls off the tongue.
