Name Image Likeness

Caitlin Clark Embraces Expected Indiana Fever Draft Selection with Gainbridge NIL Deal

Projected first overall WNBA draft pick partners with Fever arena's naming rights holder

Noah Henderson

Caitlin Clark Embraces Expected Indiana Fever Draft Selection with Gainbridge NIL Deal
Caitlin Clark Embraces Expected Indiana Fever Draft Selection with Gainbridge NIL Deal /
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Last week, Caitlin Clark announced that she will forgo her final year of collegiate eligibility and declare for the WNBA draft. Barring an anomaly, the all time collegiate scoring champion will be the first overall pick to the Indiana Fever. There is no place that cares about basketball more than Indiana, and throughout the Hoosier State they have made it abundantly clear that they eagerly await her arrival in Indianapolis.

Today, Clark expanded upon her already expansive list of impressive Name, Image, and Likeness partners. In a new partnership with Gainbridge — an Indianapolis based annuities company that holds the naming rights for the home arena of the Pacers and Fever — Clark has begun the process of integrating herself into the Indianapolis community. According to reports, the deal will extend beyond her collegiate playing career and into her time in Indianapolis.

While currently the most desired personality in Iowa, she will once again find herself as a dominant personality, this time in a bigger market. Indianapolis has positioned itself well; with three budding stars in Tyrese Halliburton, Anthony Richardson, and now Caitlin Clark the endorsement opportunities coming out of the state for its star athletes will be immense at both the regional and national level.

Outside of Tiger Woods, it is hard to think of an athlete who has brought as much attention and investment into their sport as Clark. The future first overall pick stands alone, and the Gainbridge endorsement is just a sneak peek into the investment brands will begin making into Caitlin Clark and the WNBA as a whole.

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Noah Henderson
NOAH HENDERSON

Professor Noah Henderson teaches in the sport management department at Loyola University Chicago. Outside the classroom, he advises companies, schools, and collectives on Name, Image, and Likeness best practices. His academic research focuses on the intersection of law, economics, and social consequences regarding college athletics, NIL, and sports gambling. Before teaching, Prof. Henderson was part of a team that amended Illinois NIL legislation and managed NIL collectives at the nation’s most prominent athletic institutions while working for industry leader Student Athlete NIL. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law in Urbana-Champaign and a Bachelor of Economics from Saint Joseph’s University, where he was a four-year letter winner on the golf team. Prof. Henderson is a native of San Diego, California, and a former golf CIF state champion with Torrey Pines High School. Outside of athletics, he enjoys playing guitar, hanging out with dogs, and eating California burritos. You can follow him on Twitter: @NoahImgLikeness. 

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