A’ja Wilson Adds a Signature Sneaker to Her Resume

The Las Vegas Aces superstar steps into history with her Nike A’One launch, marking a new chapter in her WNBA greatness.

The 29th season of the WNBA tipped off Friday with electric intensity and palpable excitement, except this time it seems millions more joined in on the fun compared to last season. Arenas welcomed sold-out crowds, and networks made sure the opening games were broadcast without issue, emphasizing that the return of elite women’s basketball was long anticipated, even in the two months since Unrivaled concluded its inaugural season.

Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson has not only made headlines for her dominant presence on the court but now for another milestone moment in her career. In a high-stakes showdown at Barclays Center against the reigning champions, New York Liberty, on Saturday afternoon, Wilson debuted her long-awaited signature sneaker – the Nike A’One – becoming the 13th woman to have a signature shoe.

Years in the making, the A’One finally dropped May 6 in the “Pink A’ura” colorway, selling out in under five minutes. For its on-court debut in the regular season, Wilson went with the “Indigo Girl,” which was available for purchase on Thursday. The sellout crowd of 17,344 made Barclays the place to be, but a borough over in Manhattan, an intimate group gathered at the Crane Club to celebrate the start of the season and the A’One’s debut.

Hosted in partnership with Nike, Boardroom’s A’One watch party was attended by content creators and media friendlies like TJ Adeshola, Jenny Lin, Lauren Luo, Rodney Williams, and Clarissa Martines, and more. If the co-branded pink and white decor wasn’t an obvious giveaway we were celebrating a “GOAT-in-training,” perhaps the pink-themed candy bar situated in front of the personalized Boardroom-labeled private room drove the point home.

Considering invited guests are experts in design, marketing, and obvious fans of Wilson, we couldn’t help but ask how they would describe her athleticism and why.

“Top tier, which is something she says all the time,” said Adeshola. “She’s an icon, she’s a legend, she’s a trendsetter. What I love is that the shoe really embodies her. It’s sleek, it’s swaggy, everybody wants it. It’s A’ja’s shoe, it’s perfect.”

Martines called Wilson’s athleticism “compelling,” adding, “I think that she’s brilliant. I think the fact that she has this beautiful collab just speaks so much to the fact that Nike’s trying to expand with women doing collabs because there are not many female sneaker collabs.”

Attendees didn’t leave empty-handed, getting their hands on a pair of shoes in the “OG Pearl” colorway, which hit Nike.com, Foot Locker, and select other retailers on May 15. Inspired by the necklace given to the three-time league MVP by her grandma, the iridescent finish glistens from miles away.

“I like the silhouette, I like the shape, I like the color. Everything about them, to be honest with you.” Jared Browne said. “I could see myself wearing them during the summertime.”

“The all white with the silver? You gotta go with the monochrome,” Hezekiah McCaskill said, describing his ideal outfit to pair with this hue. “It’s a lot you could do with this.”

A signature sneaker is an undeniable “You Made It,” in athlete terms. For Wilson, she joins the likes of Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, Diana Taurasi, and her South Carolina coach, Dawn Staley, to accomplish this feat. But trust, she eagerly awaits the 14th athlete to debut her sneaker.

“Obviously, it took a team to help put it together, but at the end of the day, you’re getting something that I don’t take lightly because I know it is very rare for people like me to be in these positions,” she told us last May. “So, when I am taking my seat at those tables, know that it is not just about me. It’s going to be for others, the ones that laid the foundation down for me to get here. I’m going to make sure that it doesn’t have to take a minute for this next generation, but it’s coming, and I’m not going anywhere.”

As the heartbeat of the Las Vegas Aces, A’ja Wilson is primed to power the team toward a third championship. But as if MVP-level basketball weren’t enough, now she’s got one more job to handle on game day – turning heads with a fresh new A’One colorway. Get ready, because Wilson’s not just playing for the crown – she’s styling for it, too.