“Of course, today mainly [about] “We will address the players who were selected, but we are happy to address the inevitable discussions about the players who were not selected,” Jennifer Rizzotti, chair of the USA Basketball Women's National Team Committee, told reporters at a news conference. “Obviously, we know Kaitlyn has had success in college and her start to the WNBA season has been great so far. … But fundamentally, the committee's job was to select 12 players based on our selection criteria. You may want to debate how we should have taken into account television ratings or jersey sales or popularity, but it is not the committee's purview to have those discussions. The selection criteria were very clear.”
The roster includes a host of highly decorated players, including two-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson and five-time gold medalist Diana Taurasi, who will break the basketball record for most Olympic appearances with her sixth selection, as well as Olympic veterans Breanna Stewart, Chelsea Gray, Napheesa Collier and Jewel Loyd, and Brittney Griner, who will play her first international game in 2022 since serving 10 months in a Russian prison.
Also included were Jackie Young and Kelsey Plumb, who won gold medals in 3-on-3 basketball at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, and Olympic debutants Sabrina Ionescu, Kalia Copper and Alyssa Thomas, who played on the USA team that won the 2022 FIBA World Cup.
Rizzotti cited the value of experience and continuity in coach Cheryl Reeve's squad construction.
“There's been a lot of conversations about what's most important to us to put on the court for Cheryl and what we need to do to give her the opportunity to have the best 12 players, not necessarily the best 12 players all the time,” Rizzotti said. “We're looking at positions, depth, versatility, the style of play that Cheryl has had over the last three years, familiarity with international matches, familiarity with each other. But I think the big challenge for us is we didn't have enough time to prepare in July.”
“I think we tried to balance all of that in our decision-making, block out the outside noise about things that weren't in the criteria, and stick to a roster that fit the criteria of the selection process, and keep the process focused and honest. And I'm really proud of the committee that came to that final roster, because it wasn't easy.”
Clark's star potential blossomed at the University of Iowa, where he led the school to consecutive national championship game appearances and finished his career as NCAA Division I's all-time leading scorer.
She was the first pick in this year's WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever and saw a huge increase in television ratings, attendance and merchandise sales upon her arrival in the league.
The 22-year-old is averaging 16.3 points, 6.0 assists and 4.9 rebounds in 13 games this season, but the Fever have only won three of those games.
Clark has represented the U.S. in youth tournaments and was invited to USA Basketball's final pre-Olympic training camp in April, but was unable to attend due to Iowa's appearance in the Final Four.
The United States has won every gold medal in women's basketball since the 1996 Summer Olympics and is hoping to win its eighth straight title in Paris. The U.S. will face Japan in the Olympic opening game on July 29. The gold medal game is scheduled for Aug. 11.
Rizzotti said age is not a factor in building a veteran-heavy roster, but added that with so much talent, it can be difficult to make room on the roster for developing players.
“I think that's an important part of the game, but I think it's well documented that players peak in their mid-to-late 20s,” Rizzotti said, “So we're talking about these college athletes who are going to be phenomenal and future stars of the game playing against women who are coming out of college and at the peak of their careers or who have years of experience under their belts.”
