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Over the past two years, women’s basketball has soared to new heights, sparked by Caitlin Clark’s electrifying senior season at the University of Iowa. She played in the 2024 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship Game, which drew a record-breaking 18.9 million viewers. It was the most-watched basketball game-college or professional-since 2019. Clark carried that momentum into her rookie year in the WNBA, shattering ratings records. However, her injuries this season have slightly dampened viewership.
Players like Paige Bueckers, the 2025 NCAA champion with UConn and likely WNBA Rookie of the Year, and JuJu Watkins, the National Player of the Year who was sidelined by injury during this year’s March Madness but is poised to dominate at USC for the next two seasons, have seized the spotlight that Clark opened. Their lucrative Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals, like those of the 14 other NCAA women’s stars who signed with the Unrivaled league last month, highlight the growing opportunities in the sport.
Watkins’ Historic Nike Deal Trails Bueckers’ Pioneering Step
JuJu Watkins is etching her name in history, becoming the second female college athlete-after Paige Bueckers-to secure a Nike signature shoe deal for public release. Bueckers broke ground in 2024 with her Nike G.T. Hustle 3, launched December 7 at $190, marking her as the first college player ever with a signature sneaker, a feat not even Caitlin Clark achieved. Watkins now follows closely with a massive deal for eight colorways of the Nike LeBron NXT Gen, split between Spring and Summer 2026.
The Spring lineup includes Metallic Silver Light Crimson, Light Crimson Bright Crimson, Metallic Copper Black, and Light Photo Blue Black, while Summer brings Muslin Gelati, White Black, Stadium Green Light Menta, and Merlot Metallic Silver.
Seven pairs will retail for $170, with the Light Photo Blue Black version at $180. Watkins, who inked her Nike contract before joining USC and recently extended it, now holds one of the richest shoe endorsements in women’s basketball, showcasing the sport’s rising commercial power.
Women’s Basketball’s Bright Future
The rise of women’s basketball shows no signs of slowing down, with top talent flooding both the NCAA and the WNBA. Upcoming WNBA expansion teams and NIL deals, such as Unrivaled’s with stars like Watkins, Bueckers’s girlfriend Azzi Fudd, UCLA’s Lauren Betts and Sienna Betts, Texas’s Madison Booker, , Iowa State’s Audi Crooks, UConn’s Sarah Strong, LSU’s MiLaysia Fulwiley, Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo, South Carolina’s Ta’Niya Latson, TCU’s Olivia Miles, and Michigan’s Syra Swords are paving the way for continued growth.
Collectively, this group boasts 32 NCAA tournament appearances, 25 Sweet 16 appearances, 14 Elite Eight appearances, 10 Final Four appearances, and four national titles, which underscores the depth of talent. With Watkins and Bueckers paving the way through groundbreaking deals, the future of women’s basketball-on and off the court-looks brighter than ever.
This news was originally published on this post .
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