Caitlin Clark (L) is outshining Diana Taurasi and Chelsea Gray even without playing.LW
Team USA is marching steadily towards winning the gold medal in women’s basketball at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Despite the team’s good progress, some players have not performed as expected, reviving the debate over Caitlin Clark’s absence.
Just on Sunday, head coach Cheryl Reeve’s team secured first place in Group C, advancing undefeated to the quarterfinal round. With one of the best records in the group stage, the American team will face Nigeria, one of the lowest-ranked teams
The team has been dominant in each of its games, with forwards Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson among the top scorers in the group stage, both averaging 20.3 points per game.
However, two names are missing from the list of top scorers in the Olympic tournament: guards Chelsea Gray and Diana Taurasi. Internet sleuths noticed this statistic and immediately criticized Clark’s absence.
The devastating statistic
Twitter user StatMamba highlighted a troubling statistic. In three games played, Gray and Taurasi have scored just four points between them. The starting guards for Reeve’s team are 2/12 on field goals and 0/7 on three-pointers.
In the game against Germany, Gray played 6:09 minutes, gave two assists, and grabbed two rebounds, but scored no points. Taurasi also played 6:09, giving only one assist, with no points and no rebounds.
Clark, considered one of the best offensive guards in the WNBA, is a solid candidate for Rookie of the Year and is in the conversation for Most Valuable Player (MVP). Despite this, the USA Basketball selection committee decided not to call her to the Olympic team.
The fury of the fans
Fans did not hesitate to express their opinions on Twitter. “And they said Caitlin Clark wasn’t ready,” “Gee, I wonder if there is someone who could have helped that situation,” “CC could have done much better,” and “After watching a few games-CC averaging 10 & 10 easily and Team USA wins every game by 30,” were some of the posts in favor of Clark.
However, there were also detractors of the Indiana Fever guard. “Oh, that’s the same amount of points Caitlin scored in her last game! 0/7 from 3pt too!” said one, while another opined, “Uh, CC was 0/8 (by herself) in the All-Star game. So, perhaps they need Akibe! Since they’re winning without 3s I don’t think it matters!”
The controversy won’t end soon. Even if the team wins the gold medal, fans and some pundits won’t stop asking what would have happened if Clark had played in Paris 2024. It’s impossible to know.
