Sunday, after dinner, I called my mother in Indiana. She was the one with a topic, for once. The Caitlin 1, Caitlin Clark’s shoe, is coming out in a third colourway. After “Caitlin Blue” and “Warning Code”, there is “Midnight Fever”: red-to-pink gradient, black Swoosh, blue CC logo on the tongue. I had read it on Basket USA. She had looked at the sole.
Because under the sole, translucent, blue to pink, there are three sentences. “Shoot More Threes.” “From Anywhere.” “It was never a long shot.” In other words: take more threes, from anywhere, and none of them was ever a long shot.
She asked me whether it was advice or a rule. I thought about it. Let me tell you, in 2000, when I arrived in Charleroi with one bag, I had a coach who said exactly the opposite. No threes before the ball has gone around. One pass, two passes, the right pass. In a hall with badminton lines, I didn’t always know which line was mine. So I passed.
My mother laughed. She reminded me that Caitlin Clark’s season is over: Indiana went out in the first round against Las Vegas. And that the shoe is coming out anyway, on pre-order. Over here, 140 euros on Basker4Ballers. I gave her the price in euros, she didn’t convert it, she never does.
A hundred and forty euros is a Saturday at the club bar. Tell that to your mother, mind you.
Then she asked me the real question. These sentences under the shoe, who reads them? The one defending, when the player walks away? I said yes, maybe, if he looks at the floor. My under-10s, on Sunday morning, always look at the floor. That’s fundamentals too: watch the ball, not your feet.
She said: it’s written underneath so that the defender understands too late. See?
It’s true, we checked: Basket USA.
