WNBA megastar Caitlin Clark may have indirectly played a role in Steph Curry’s decision to leave Under Armour.
Details are beginning to emerge about the cracks in Curry’s relationship with the sports apparel giant after the Golden State Warriors star parted ways with the company earlier this month.
A report published by Bloomberg’s Kim Bhasin and Randall Williams shared one of Curry’s major gripes with Under Armour: the company’s failed pursuit of Clark. According to the report, Curry was “frustrated by what they viewed as underinvestment” in the two-time MVP’s personal “Curry Brand,” which was established in 2020.
Under Armour’s relatively meager offer to Clark was seen as one major “sore point” between Curry and the higher-ups. Last year, Under Armour attempted to recruit Clark as a marquee signing under the Curry Brand. However, the offer reportedly “trailed the total value” being offered by Nike, which later won over the Indiana Fever guard.
The offer Clark received from Nike wasn’t exactly groundbreaking either. She signed an eight-year, $28 million contract with the Oregon-based company, which many felt had lowballed Clark on the deal. The offer was chump change compared to the extension Curry signed with Under Armour in 2023 that rivaled LeBron James’ billion-dollar deal with Nike.
Nike has not gotten perfect reviews for how it has handled Clark’s brand, either. The company known for the Swoosh has been panned for its failure to promote Clark properly. Nike recently released the logo to represent Clark’s personal brand, and the design was not received well by the Fever star’s fans.
In an alternate sneakerhead universe, Under Armour could have had both Curry and Clark as endorsers for the rest of the decade. Instead, Clark signed with Nike, and Curry has teased potentially doing the same.
