Caitlin Clark and Jemele Hill (Photos via Getty Images)
Caitlin Clark wasn’t selected for Team USA for the 2024 Summer Olympics, and Jemele Hill had interesting comments about the situation.
Reports that Caitlin Clark would not be traveling to Paris to play for the U.S. women’s basketball team at the Olympics this summer elicited conflicting responses from sports commentators. The all-time greatest scorer in NCAA Division I basketball and rookie for the Indiana Fever, Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury, Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty, and A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces were among the Team USA veterans that made the 12-player squad.
Sources told Christine Brennan of USA Today that one factor in the decision was uncertainty about how Clark’s enormous fan following would react to “what would likely be limited playing time” on Team USA’s roster, which is heavily veteran-heavy. It is anticipated that Team USA, which has won gold in every summer Olympics since 1996, will make a repeat appearance in Paris.
Given how many games Clark has played in the past year, Jemele Hill thinks USA Basketball made the right call, despite criticism directed at the organization for its selection.
“Honestly, Caitlin Clark not being on this year’s Olympics team is actually a good thing — FOR HER,” Hill, the former ESPN anchor and current Atlantic writer, wrote on X on Saturday. “In the span of weeks, she went from playing college ball, to becoming a professional, to having a grind of schedule. A multi-week break probably isn’t the worst thing in the world. She will eventually make an Olympic team.”
Hill added that she believes the WNBA’s health and Olympic TV ratings will remain good even without Clark.
She further concluded that she feels Caitlin Clark not being selected doesn’t even really qualify as a “snub.”
“I don’t consider Caitlin Clark being left off the Olympic team, a snub,” Hill wrote in an additional X post. “Now, when Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike were left off the Olympic teams, THAT was a snub.”
Parker participated in the Olympics in 2008 and 2012. However, she was left off of the Brazil 2016 roster. The 2020 gold medal-winning squad surprisingly did not include Ogwumike, the 2016 WNBA MVP, despite her impressive performance in the 2020 FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament, when she averaged 13.7 points and 6.0 rebounds.
ESPN’s Linda Cohn Was Not Happy About Caitlin Clark Not Being On Team USA
Caitlin Clark (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
According to reports, Caitlin Clark, a prominent player for the Indiana Fever, will not be competing for Team USA in the women’s basketball tournament in Paris in 2024.
Comments about the situation have come from every corner of the country.
In a post responding to a Fever-Washington Mystics game that recently drew over 20,000 fans, ESPN‘s Linda Cohn called the Team USA decision a “lost opportunity.”
“All she does is grow the game, pack arenas, and set rookie records. What a short-sighted decision,” Cohn wrote on X.
A’JA WILSON MAKES HISTORY THAT WILL CATCH DIANA TAURASI’S ATTENTION
A’ja Wilson Makes History That Will Catch Diana Taurasi’s Attention
The WNBA has quickly become a popular league, thanks in large part to the arrival of Caitlin Clark. However, Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson has been a mainstay in the sport for the last half dozen years.
Wilson’s resume is as impressive as can be. She has a pair of WNBA titles, WNBA MVP awards, Defensive Player of the Year honors, five trips to the WNBA All-Star Game, and a WNBA Finals MVP.
On Friday, she tied WNBA legend Diana Taurasi in an impressive feat. Wilson scored 20 or more points for the 13th straight outing, matching the record set by Taurasi.
Wilson finished the game on Friday with 29 points and 11 rebounds on 8-of-20 shooting from the field, albeit in a losing effort as the Seattle Storm got the 78-65 victory in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup.
A’ja Wilson was the first overall pick in the 2018 WNBA draft and has been nothing short of spectacular since entering the league. Now, she is one 20-point performance away from breaking the record set by Diana Taurasi.
The Aces face Cameron Brink and the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday night at Crypto.com Arena, so that could be the night Wilson makes WNBA history.
A’JA WILSON HARD FALL AFTER CAMERON BRINK FOULS HER | WNBA LAS VEGAS ACES VS LOS ANGELES SPARKS
A’ja Wilson HARD FALL After Cameron Brink Fouls Her | WNBA Las Vegas Aces vs Los Angeles Sparks.
Sparks spot Aces first 14 points before rallying for 96-92 victory over two-time defending champions
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dearica Hamby finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds, Aari McDonald scored 16 off the bench and the Los Angeles Sparks beat two-time defending-champion Las Vegas 96-92 on Sunday night after the Aces scored the first 14 points of the game.
Hamby sank 6 of 10 shots with a 3-pointer and 5 of 6 free throws for the Sparks (4-7), who won back-to-back games for the first time this season. McDonald made 5 of 8 shots, two from beyond the arc, and all four of her foul shots. McDonald’s effort helped the LA bench outscore Las Vegas’ substitutes 40-17.
Rickea Jackson pitched in with 16 points and five rebounds for LA.
A’ja Wilson had 31 points — three above her league-high average — to lead the Aces (5-4), who have lost three of their last four games. Wilson has now scored at least 20 points in 14 straight games, breaking a league record set by Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury. Wilson, who averages a league-best 12 rebounds, grabbed eight. Kelsey Plum hit four 3-pointers, scoring 24 with five assists. Tiffany Hayes added 17 points and Kate Martin scored 13.
Hamby had the first basket for Los Angeles at the 6:48 mark. She added five points from there and McDonald scored seven as the Sparks whittled their deficit to 26-21 heading to the second period.
Los Angeles erased all of a deficit that reached 15 when Cameron Brink hit the first of two free throws, knotting the score at 28 with 6:27 left before halftime. Jackson made a turnaround jumper to give LA its first lead six seconds later. Martin had a layup and a 3-pointer to put the Aces up by three, but Hamby answered with a layup and the Sparks trailed 44-43 at intermission.
Wilson drew a technical foul with nine seconds left in the third period. That led to two free throws by Lexie Brown and a layup by McDonald, giving the Sparks a 74-65 advantage heading to the fourth quarter.
Hayes scored six points and Plum hit a 3-pointer and two free throws to cap a 17-4 run as Las Vegas took an 82-78 lead with 4:42 left to play. Jackson answered with a layup and Rae Burrell buried a 3-pointer to put the Sparks ahead for good.
Las Vegas continues to struggle without starting point guard Chelsea Gray, who is out with a foot injury.
The Aces beat the Sparks 89-82 in the first matchup this season in mid-May.