Caitlin Clark may have the second-most All-Star votes in the WNBA, but it’s not going to make up for her Olympic snub.
The No. 1 overall pick of April’s WNBA Draft, and the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer, was not named to the 12-person Olympic roster for next month’s games in Paris.
It remains a decision that is debated constantly, with many still thinking it’s a head-scratching move.
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Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever brings the ball up court against the Washington Mystics at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 19, 2024, in Indianapolis. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Selection committee chair Jen Rizzotti told The Associated Press that it would have been “irresponsible” to put Clark on the team, citing that winning, not popularity, was the main goal, and she simply did not make the cut.
But with Clark drawing record ratings and attendance the sport has seldom seen, Casey Wasserman, an agent who is serving as the president of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, said Clark’s snub is a “missed opportunity.”
“She’s clearly a generational talent at a time when the world was ready for it,” Wasserman said at Saturday’s U.S. swimming trials, via USA Today.
“There have been incredible talents in the world, shame on all of us, the world wasn’t in a place to embrace that,” Wasserman continued. “Take Diana (Taurasi) or Breanna Stewart, or some of our clients who are going to be on the team. They are dominant at a level that’s never been seen before, but the world wasn’t ready to fill a building like Caitlin Clark did for whatever, the Final Four.
Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever celebrates a basket against the Chicago Sky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 16, 2024, in Indianapolis. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
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“Now you have both those things and so that’s a powerful opportunity and I just think it would have been an opportunity to elevate the women’s team but I understand the other side of it, which is it’s an independent process, and it’s hard to get in the way of telling (the coach and the committee) what to do.”
“I understand both sides of the issue,” Wasserman added, “but purely as an opportunity to showcase a generational talent to the world, clearly. But I totally get both sides of it. If it were simple, we wouldn’t be debating it.”
Clark is currently averaging 16.2 points, 6.2 assists, and 5.4 rebounds per game in 17 WNBA contests. Her Indiana Fever team is currently on a four-game winning streak after starting the season 3-10.
Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever handles the ball during the Washington Mystics game on June 19, 2024, in Indianapolis. (Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)
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With Clark not playing in the Olympics, it will be her first prolonged break from playing basketball since before she took the court for her senior season at Iowa.
That season started in November, and finally ended in April following the national championship. But she was drafted just a week after the national championship, and training camp began shortly thereafter.
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