The $64 Question: Angel Reese’s Signature Shoe Launch Implodes—and Exposes the WNBA’s Reliance on Caitlin Clark

A Weekend Meant for Triumph Turns Into a Marketing Disaster

The 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend was supposed to be Angel Reese’s moment—a carefully orchestrated stage set for the debut of her first-ever Reebok signature sneaker, the “Angel Reese 1.” The launch was timed perfectly with the league’s biggest showcase, positioned at the heart of basketball energy in Indianapolis.
Instead, the moment collapsed into one of the most embarrassing miscalculations in recent league history.

What should have been Reese’s celebration quickly became a brutal lesson in authenticity, star power, and the undeniable reality that without Caitlin Clark, the WNBA’s commercial engine cannot run.

The Marketing Misread: A Campaign Built on Borrowed Spotlight

Reebok and Reese went all-in on a provocative, rivalry-driven strategy.
The messaging was bold, almost confrontational:

• “I’m in your city.”

• “Walk in your trap, take over your trap.”

Billboards towered across Indianapolis—Clark’s home territory. The colorways were flashy, the videos loud, and the marketing tone unmistakably aggressive. The entire campaign banked on the Clark vs. Reese rivalry that had electrified sports culture since 2023.

But then came the disaster: Caitlin Clark was ruled out of the All-Star Game due to a groin injury.

Suddenly, the very star Reese was attempting to “challenge” wasn’t even on the court.
What was intended to look powerful instantly appeared desperate. The campaign felt hollow—an attempt to claim dominance in a city whose hero wasn’t present to compete.

Fans online were ruthless. Memes spread quickly, mocking the idea that Reese was “taking over” a city that wasn’t even watching her. The narrative flipped: instead of looking like a star, she looked like someone chasing one.

The WNBA’s $64 Crisis: Ratings and Ticket Prices Collapse

Caitlin Clark’s absence didn’t just affect the shoe launch.
It exposed the league’s most uncomfortable truth: its success currently depends on a single player.

Ratings Freefall

• 2024 All-Star Viewership (with Clark): 3.44 million

• 2025 Viewership (without Clark): 2.19 million
  A catastrophic 36% drop.

No amount of spin from the league could hide the reality. The WNBA’s record-breaking 2024 numbers were not the result of generalized growth—they were the Caitlin Clark Effect.

Ticket Market Meltdown

The ticket resale market delivered the most humiliating headline:

• 2024 lowest ticket: $121

• 2025 lowest ticket after Clark’s injury: $64

A brutal 48% crash.

Even the league’s biggest veterans—A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi—could not prevent the collapse. Fans weren’t buying All-Star Weekend tickets for the WNBA. They were buying Clark.

Forced Hype vs. Authentic Stardom

Comparing Reese’s shoe launch to Clark’s sneaker dominance reveals a painful contrast.

Caitlin Clark’s Authentic Market Power

Clark’s footwear influence is staggering:

• Her Nike Kobe 5 Pro sold out in minutes.

• Resale prices skyrocketed from $190 to $600+.

• Nike committed to an 8-year, $28 million deal.

• Experts predict her future signature line could clear $100 million in revenue.

Clark’s power doesn’t come from theatrics—it comes from fans believing in her genuine impact on the sport.

Angel Reese’s Manufactured Spotlight

Reese’s launch told the opposite story:

• Lukewarm sales

• Minimal hype

• A marketing strategy built around provoking Clark’s fanbase rather than elevating her own

The final blow came when cameras caught Shaquille O’Neal—Reebok’s president of basketball—telling colleagues that Reese had to wear Reebok gear specifically during matchups with Clark.
The subtext was clear: the brand wasn’t selling Angel Reese.
The brand was selling the rivalry.

And without Clark, the gimmick collapsed.
A Lesson in Star Power—One the WNBA Could Not Avoid

The weekend’s aftermath was harsher than any analyst forecast.
Reese’s “take over the city” posts aged instantly like spoiled milk.
Her follow-up comments thanking players but ignoring fans only made her appear disconnected from the very audience she tried to persuade.

What remained was a glaring truth:

You can market a campaign, but you cannot manufacture stardom.

The WNBA learned that the hard way.
Angel Reese’s shoe launch didn’t illuminate her rising status—it exposed the league’s overwhelming reliance on Caitlin Clark to drive revenue, ratings, and relevance.

The $64 Verdict

With ticket prices collapsing to $64, the symbol was too perfect to ignore.
It wasn’t just a number—it was a diagnosis.
A reminder that until the WNBA builds broader superstar infrastructure, one injury can tank its most important weekend of the year.

Reese may have entered Indianapolis hoping to claim the spotlight.
But without Caitlin Clark, that spotlight never turned on.