Phoenix (AZFamily/AP) Three Phoenix Mercury players have been selected to play basketball at the Paris Olympics, sources at the Associated Press said.
The person who provided the full roster to The Associated Press spoke on condition of anonymity Saturday because an official announcement had not yet been made. The decision was first reported by The Athletic.
Mercury guards Diana Taurasi and Kaalia Copper and center Brittney Griner have been selected to play for the U.S. basketball team in Paris, according to the Associated Press.
This will be Taurasi's sixth Olympic Games. The 41-year-old is a five-time gold medalist who has competed in every Olympic Games since 2004. She will extend her basketball record for most Olympic appearances.
This will be Griner's first time playing in an international game since spending 10 months in a Russian prison in 2022. She said she will only play overseas in the United States Basketball Association.
The 2024 Paris Games will be Copper's first Olympic Games.
Olympic veterans Breanna Stewart, A'ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, Jewel Loyd and Chelsea Gray will also be joining the team, along with Kelsey Plumb and Jackie Young, who helped the U.S. win its first gold medal in the 3×3 event at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
The United States women have won every gold medal in women's basketball since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Notably absent from the team is basketball star Caitlin Clark, who will not compete in the Paris Olympics, according to a person familiar with the decision.
Clark had played internationally in the United States Basketball Association as a youth player, but was unable to attend national training camp in Cleveland despite an invitation because he had led the University of Iowa to a Final Four. Clark finished his career as the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer.
Clark, currently a rookie for the Indiana Fever, has attracted millions of new fans to women's basketball throughout her collegiate and young WNBA career.
The U.S. team will have a few days of joint training in Phoenix in July before heading to London for a friendly against Germany before traveling to France.
The U.S. will face Japan, Belgium and Germany in Olympic pool play.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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