By the time America truly got excited about the U.S. men's basketball team, it was difficult to find gear to show off your pride.
New Era had sold out of most of its best hats, and Nike had sold out of not only every jersey, unless you wear a 2XL, but almost every "shirsey," too.
With New Era, it's understandable. Hat manufacturers aren't often challenged with massive demand, and the upside isn't as great if they can't serve it.
For Nike, a company doing $50 billion in revenue, it's not acceptable.
How in demand Olympic jerseys and shirts will be isn't an exact science, but if any company could project demand, it's Nike. Because margins are dependent on making things in Asia and coming over by water, they are experts at five- to seven-month lead times.
No apparel company has more experience with market projections than Nike. In fact, Nike was so confident in its future business that, despite having to give market disclaimers, they were the first public company to ever deliver "future orders” — Nike stopped reporting it to the market seven years ago after saying it was no longer a good indicator.
Critics will say the goal for an Olympic apparel program is to be sold out by the end of the gold-medal game, because the market falls off a cliff immediately. But Nike had crumbs for any passionate fan looking online after the team's 17-point comeback against Serbia in the semifinals.
Why not make more? Well, a lot has to do with that lead time. Nike margins don't allow them to sell at the same price and have it made in the United States.
But don't these just need personalization in the U.S.? Yes. What they don't have ready are the sizes, cuts and colors of the jersey.
This is not Nike's first miss. Many will remember the backorder for Sabrina Ionescu's Oregon Ducks jersey. Or the four-month wait for Caitlin Clark's Indiana Fever jerseys. Some fans who ordered Clark jerseys in April are just getting them now.
In 1992, for the original Dream Team, every kid had a jersey, and it was understandable. This was the biggest moment in Champion's history.
The sad part of Nike "selling out" early is there's just no motivation to really serve the consumers in this type of market. These days, an executive will receive much more flack for having excess inventory than falling short because the buzz word for analysts looking to downgrade is always "inventory."
But let's be real, Nike is doing nearly $150 million in revenue a day, overshooting a sales target wouldn't even be mentioned on an earnings call.
No one could have imagined the kismet that happened, the comeback against Serbia and the tight game against host country France.
But Nike missing as it did should cause concern for Nike employees and investors alike. It says Nike, a company that made its name pushing boundaries, is comfortable being conservative.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectible market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.