Nike shirt, commercial honors Caitlin Clark as NCAA points record holder: 'It was never a long shot'

Gilbert McGregor

Nike shirt, commercial honors Caitlin Clark as NCAA points record holder: 'It was never a long shot' image

While Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark rarely misses on the floor, Nike rarely misses with its ad campaigns, making Clark's NIL endorsement with the Swoosh one of the most fitting partnerships.

Moments after Clark surpassed Pete Maravich to become the all-time scoring leader in NCAA Division I history, Nike aired an advertisement to commemorate the accomplishment, while reminding us all of her extensive list of other accomplishments.

With The Gap Band's "Outstanding" playing in the background, the commercial takes you to Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where the PA announcer is set to introduce Clark. The announcer then takes roughly 40 seconds to ring off one of the greatest resumes in the history of college athletics.

MORE: Highlights from Caitlin Clark's record-breaking performance against Ohio State

Here is the introduction in its full glory:

Starting, at guard, at 6 foot from West Des Moines — Freshman of the Year, Player of the Year, winner of the Staley, Sullivan, Wade, Lieberman, Naismith, Wooden and several other last-name awards, a two-time All-American First Team, three-time all-conference, three-time assist leader, 10 time won't-miss leader, two-time tournament Most Outstanding Player, current even more outstanding player. … Conference Player of the Year, Player of the Month, Player of the Week, play her every minute, the owner of the conference 3-point record, free throw record, triple-double record, the Iowa State Fair shooting record, the women's all-time NCAA leading scorer and your new all-time NCAA leading scorer… Caitlin Clark.

The commercial, which features Clark's incredible highlights throughout, makes a play on her tendency to connect on deep jumpers, closing with the tag line "It was never a long shot."

In addition to the advertisement, Nike released a T-shirt to commemorate her latest accomplishment. The shirt is white and features a black-and-white image of Clark shooting along with the text "This was never a long shot." in black.

SHOP NOW: 'This was never a long shot' Nike shirt for Caitlin Clark

In the lead-up to Clark's record-breaking senior night, Nike also placed billboards honoring Clark throughout Iowa City, Iowa. Given Clark's generational excellence, it makes sense that she was able to break a record that was nearly 54 years old.

MORE: How much money does Caitlin Clark make from NIL deals?

While some poetic license was taken to illustrate Clark's standing as a 10-time "won't-miss leader" or holder of Iowa State Fair shooting records, she will finish her time at Iowa with one of the greatest resumes in college basketball. 

With a few weeks left in her final season, she stands to add even more to an all-time list of achievements.

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Caitlin Clark awards, accolades

  • NCAA Division I scoring leader (Men's and Women's)
  • 2x NCAA season scoring leader (2021, 2022)
  • 2x NCAA season assists leader (2022,2023)
  • 2023 The Sporting News Athlete of the Year
  • 2023 AP Player of the Year 
  • 2023 Honda Sports Award
  • 2023 John R. Wooden Award
  • 2023 Naismith College Player of the Year
  • 2023 USBWA National Player of the Year
  • 2023 Wade Trophy
  • 2023 James E. Sullivan Award
  • 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year
  • 2x Big Ten Tournament Most Oustanding Player
  • 2x Big Ten Player of the Year (2022, 2023)
  • 2x Unanimous First-Team All-American (2022, 2023)
  • 2x Nancy Lieberman Award (2022, 2023)
  • 3x First-team All-Big Ten (2021-2023)
  • 3x Dawn Staley Award (2021-2023)

Gilbert McGregor

Gilbert McGregor Photo

Gilbert McGregor first joined The Sporting News in 2018 as a content producer for Global editions of NBA.com. Before covering the game, McGregor played basketball collegiately at Wake Forest, graduating with a Communication degree in 2016. McGregor began covering the NBA during the 2017-18 season and has been on hand for a number of league events.