Caitlin Clark, the WNBA’s No. 1 draft pick, is getting set to take the league by star, but she has other plans before that happens.
Caitlin Clark’s early play in the WNBA will serve as her tryout for a spot on the U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team.
Despite missing Team USA’s recent training camp, the Indiana Fever’s incoming star still has the opportunity to earn her way onto the national team for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The head of the women’s basketball selection committee, Jennifer Rizzotti, told Doug Feinberg of the Associated Press that she and other Team USA representatives would be keeping a watch on Clark’s WNBA debut in preparation for the Olympics.
“You always want to introduce new players into the pool, whether it’s for now or the future,” she said. “We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty, and experience. It’s got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It’s still not going to be fair to some people.”
Clark was part of the 14-player roster for the U.S. training camp, which took place in early April in conjunction with the women’s Final Four. Iowa advanced to the national semifinals and championship game; she could not attend.
Caitlin Clark became the all-time top scorer in Division I history and a two-time national player of the year with an average of 28.4 points and 8.2 assists over his four years at Iowa.
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This is not going to be easy for Clark as she is vying for a roster spot alongside guards like Diana Taurasi, Chelsea Gray, Ariel Atkins, Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum, and Sabrina Ionescu.
Team USA, who is looking for its eighth-straight gold medal at the Summer Games in Tokyo, recently freed up a guard position after Sue Bird retired in 2022.
Caitlin Clark Has The Weight of an Entire League On Her Shoulders
When Caitlin Clark announced she would enter her name in the WNBA draft and forego a potential fifth season at Iowa, it meant she was taking her stardom to the WNBA which desperately needs her to be everything she was in college to propel the league to new heights.
If she turns out to be a superstar, this could set up the ladies of the league to get paid more in the many years to come.
