The reasons for and against Caitlin Clark’s exclusion from the Team USA Olympic roster

USA Basketball’s decision to omit Caitlin Clark from the Olympic roster was initially met with some shock.

USA Basketball’s decision to omit Caitlin Clark from the Olympic roster was initially met with some shock. How could one of the most prominent, well-known athletes in the US – not to mention one of the most talented rookies to ever enter the WNBA – not be on the plane to Paris? Speaking to reporters at a practice on Sunday, Clark said she wasn’t disappointed with the decision, adding: “I think it gives you something to work for, you know, it’s a dream.” “Hopefully one day I can be there, and I think it’s just a little more motivation. You remember that and, you know, hopefully in four years, when four years comes back around … I can be there,” she said. However, USA Basketball has made a “terrible decision,” according to CNN Sport analyst Christine Brennan, by omitting a phenomenon like Clark from the roster. From a P.R. perspective, it probably made sense for Clark to make the team. Yet, watching Clark’s teething problems in her first month in the league and going over her early season statistics, her omission perhaps should not have come as a surprise.