Ex-Iowa star Caitlin Clark’s special surprise excites both women's and men’s Hawkeyes teams ahead of the new season

Iowa legend Caitlin Clark provided a special assist to the Hawkeyes' women's and men's basketball teams months before the 2025-26 college basketball season.

Clark, the all-time NCAA leading scorer encompassing both genders, gave a pair of her new signature shoes to each player.

On Tuesday, the Iowa women's basketball team posted some pictures on X after an open media practice. The Big Ten Network also presented a video clip on X, with both teams simultaneously expressing their joy upon receiving the surprise from Clark.

"Thanks to (Caitlin Clark) for being that great ... we feel so blessed," Iowa women's basketball head coach Jan Jensen said.

The shoes, unveiled on June 30, were a version of Nike's Kobe V Protros named after the late L.A. Lakers star Kobe Bryant.

"The shoes' colorway is outfitted in midnight navy, bright crimson, vibrant hits of university gold, and polished off with a high-gloss finish that glistens under the spotlight," Nike said about the new design for the Iowa standout.

Clark, who inked an eight-year, $28-million deal with Nike in April 2024, also flaunted a new player edition sneaker at WNBA All-Star Weekend. Nike said it is working on a signature shoe for the Indiana Fever superstar.

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Iowa coach Jan Jensen spoke highly of incoming senior Hannah Stuelke

Iowa coach Jan Jensen had high praise for incoming senior Hannah Stuelke, who recently won the gold medal for Team USA in the 2025 FIBA Women's AmeriCup in Chile.

The second-year coach believes Stuelke's time with Team USA helped develop her confidence, which would benefit the forward in the 2025-26 season. Jansen expects the 6-foot-2 scorer to be a consistent jumpshooter from the perimeter and a passer to keep her guards guessing.

In seven games for Team USA in the FIBA AmeriCup, Stuelke averaged 5.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game and shot 75.0% from the field. She dropped a tournament-high 10 points in the quarterfinal game against the Dominican Republic.

The Iowa bench tactician could put Stuelke back to the power forward spot this season, but this would depend on the performances of Hawkeyes centers 6-foot-4 Ava Hayden and 6-foot-5 Layla Hays.

Last season, the Cedar Rapids-born player was forced to play out of her comfort zone at center due to the team's lack of size. Just the same, she averaged 12.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.

Stuelke will try to lead Iowa deep into the 2026 NCAA Tournament after absorbing a 34-point beatdown to Oklahoma in the second round last season.

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Edited by Geoff