One of the biggest stories in women\u2019s basketball this past year was Caitlin Clark\u2019s omission from the U.S. Olympic basketball<\/a> team. Clark \u2014 amid an up-and-down beginning to her rookie season on the Indiana Fever \u2014 was left off the 12-woman roster, a decision that instantly became a national controversy. <\/p>\n Critics railed USA Basketball for keeping her off the team, citing her growing popularity as reason why she should have been on the Paris Olympics roster. <\/p>\n Rather than Clark, the roster included guards with more veteran guards like Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray, Diana Taurasi, Sabrina Ionescu, and Kahleah Copper. Each of those guys were multiple-time All-Stars \u2014 some even multiple-time Olympians. At 26 years old, Ionescu marked the youngest player on the roster. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Photo by Tim Clayton\/Corbis via Getty Images<\/cite><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n In a Time interview<\/a> with Sean Gregory, Clark admitted her initial disappointment from being left off the USA basketball roster \u2014 but made clear she rejected the notion she should have been named to the team due to her popularity. <\/p>\n When the rosters were finalized, the Fever boasted a 3-9 record, and Clark was in the midst of an inconsistent start to the season, a stretch that was marred by several high-turnover games and spotty shooting performances. <\/p>\n \u201cI gave them a lot of reasons to keep me off the team with my play,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n She also recognized the depth of talent on the USA Basketball roster. <\/p>\n \u201cA point everybody was making was like, \u2018Who are you taking off the team?\u2019\u201d Clark said. \u201cAnd that was a tremendous point.\u201d <\/p>\n Many media personalities insisted that leaving Clark off the roster was a mistake due to marketing reason \u2014 pointing to the visibility and attention she would inveitably bring with her to Paris. <\/p>\n ESPN\u2019s Stephen A Smith and USA Today\u2019s Christine Brennan<\/a> were two of the loudest voices that admonished USA Basketball for not putting Clark on the roster from a visibility standpoint \u2014 not because the team was missing her skillset. <\/p>\n Why leaving Caitlin Clark off the 2024 US Olympic women\u2019s basketball team matters, a lot. I\u2019ve reported on the team at every Olympics since 1984. I\u2019ve watched the stunning lack of coverage & lack of interest every time. Here are four sections of my Feb column on this exact topic: pic.twitter.com\/MjwqeVQdR8<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Christine Brennan (@cbrennansports) June 8, 2024<\/a>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n \u201cNow, you came home with the gold. You handled your business,\u201d said Stephen A Smith<\/a> of the USA Basketball women\u2019s team. \u201cBut when you talk about marketing the sport, I think Team USA missed an opportunity to elevate the profile of women\u2019s excellence in the sport of basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n Clark rejected the notion that she should have been on the roster due to her individual popularity. <\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t want to be there because I\u2019m somebody that can bring attention,\u201d Clark said. \u201cI love that for the game of women\u2019s basketball. But at the same time, I want to be there because they think I\u2019m good enough. I don\u2019t want to be some little person that is kind of dragged around for people to cheer about and only watch because I\u2019m sitting on the bench.\u201d<\/p>\n In reality, Clark\u2019s play in her rookie season ultimately demonstrated that she should have been on the team due to her basketball prowess. After the Olympic break, she tremendously improved her play, ultimately establishing herself as one of the best guards in the league, if not the<\/em> best \u2014 and eventually being named to the All-WNBA<\/a> First Team.<\/p>\n Clark averaged 23.4 points and 8.9 assists after the break, and the Fever punched their ticket to the WNBA playoffs for the first time since 2017. She recorded more assists in a single WNBA season than any player in WNBA history.<\/p>\n Jen Rizzotti, USA Basketball\u2019s selection committee chair, vehemently disagreed that players\u2019 popularity should have been a consideration. <\/p>\n \u201dIt would be irresponsible for us to talk about her in a way other than how she would impact the play of the team,\u201d Rizzotti said. \u201cBecause it wasn\u2019t the purview of our committee to decide how many people would watch or how many people would root for the U.S. It was our purview to create the best team we could for Cheryl.\u201d<\/p>\n Clark\u2019s improved post-Olympic play demonstrated she almost certainly would<\/em> have been a good fit on the roster, especially considering the struggles of some of the USA team\u2019s older players throughout the tournament. <\/p>\n Clark noted that being left off the roster \u201cwill definitely motivate me my entire career.\u201d<\/p>\n Barring an injury, the WNBA sensation is practicaly a shoe-in for the 2028 roster, something she told Gregory was a \u201ca huge, huge goal.\u201d<\/p>\n But, the discourse around her exclusion never should have been centered around her popularity \u2014 or the prospective viewership boost that would have come with her inclusion. <\/p>\n \u201cThat whole narrative kind of upset me,\u201d Clark said. \u201cBecause that is not fair. It\u2019s disrespectful to the people that were on the team, that had earned it and were really good. And it\u2019s also disrespectful to myself.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"basketball](\"https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/Rapd_WixG1_Evyd10v5zxLPYtMw=\/0x0:5472x3648\/1200x0\/filters:focal(0x0:5472x3648):no_upscale()\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_asset\/file\/25784101\/2166560371.jpg\")
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