Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark handled her omission from Team USA like she does most things — like a pro.
Much to the chagrin of many women's basketball fans, Clark was left off the U.S. squad for this summer's Olympics in Paris. She said she understood, given that it's a roster filled with veterans and players who have paid their dues both in the WNBA and in international competition.
"I'm excited for the girls that are on the team," Clark told reporters, via ESPN. "I know it's the most competitive team in the world and I know it could have gone either way — me being on the team or me not being on the team. I'm going to be rooting them on to win gold. I was a kid that grew up watching the Olympics, so it will be fun to watch them.
"Honestly, no disappointment. It just gives me something to work for; it's a dream. Hopefully one day I can be there. I think it's just a little more motivation. You remember that. Hopefully when four years comes back around, I can be there."
Clark added that she received a call from those in charge of Team USA on Friday. She then lit up the Washington Mystics for 30 points. Those two things are related, Fever coach Christie Sides revealed.
"The thing she said was, 'Hey, Coach, they woke a monster,' which I thought was awesome," Sides said. "She's young, she's going to have so many opportunities in the future."
Clark turned 22 years old in January. Team USA's youngest player is 26. So most have been around a while. Nor could Clark be at any of the previous training sessions or practices — as all were staged during the NCAA women's tournament in March. Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes made a run to the title game for the second straight year, finishing second each time.
She was then taken with the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft.
"They called me and let me know before everything came out, which was really respectful of them, and I appreciated that," Clark said of Team USA officials. "They did the same for every girl that made the team or every girl that didn't make the team. There was a lot of players in the Olympic pool, it's not like I was the only one they had to call. They had to make quite a few calls."
