She certainly is a great player - one of the best female players ever in college. Fun to watch.
I can only think of 3 players who played on the US Olympic Team the year they graduated from college: Candace Parker in 2008 and former UConn players Diana Taurasi (2004) and Breanna Stewart (2016, ironically at the expense of Parker...who finished the WNBA season as a 2nd team All WNBA selecton and the WNBA Finals MVP). Nneke Ogwumike was the #1 pick in 2012, but was not invited to play (somehow, it seemed to make more sense to Olympic Coach and UConn head coach Geno Auriemma for former UConn players Ashja Jones and Swin Cash to receive invites instead). Sabrina Ionescu was the #1 pick in 2020, but she was also not invited to play because it seemed to make more sense to US Olympic Committee (including special Advisor/UConn head coach Geno Auriemma) for Sue Bird and Taurasi to play in their FIFTH Olympics instead. So no, just because you are an incoming can't miss #1 pro prospect is no guarantee for making the Olympic team...especially if some of the long standing members of the team having represented the USA more than a reasonable number of times, and past their prime...insist on playing yet again. Like Taurasi is doing this time. But hey...maybe US Olympic Committee Chairman and former UConn player Jenn Rizzotti might realize that it absolutely makes perfect sense to give Clark a spot on the team instead of Taurasi for an unprecendented SIXTH time, but I guess Clark hasn't practiced enough with the senior team...so oh well.
It's already starting to happen with the Olympics roster. The 2024 team, at most, will have 3 UConn players (Taurasi, Stewart, and Collier), whereas the 2020/21 team had those 3 plus Bird and Charles. 2016 also had 4 of those 5, just sub in Maya Moore for Collier. 2012 had 6 (drop Stewart but add Jones and Cash). Looking ahead to 2028, Stewart and Collier could be back, maybe Bueckers will be good and healthy enough to keep UConn up to 3 spots on the team. I wonder if Aaliyah Edwards plans to play for Canada this summer since she was not on their roster for the FIBA qualifying tournament a few weeks ago.
As far as Edwards, she was on the Canadian roster last year for the AmeriCup games, and she was on the Olympic roster in 2021. In the 2021 games she hardly played, they never practiced, so she came to UConn in the fall out of shape. At the AmeriCup she played a lot, although my Siri is not cooperating on how she did. Anyway, she will be on the 2024 Olympic roster for Canada.
Geno been involved in helping pick Team USA
Pretty sure everyone doesn't know that. There is alot of really good talent in the W. CC is the greatest long range shooter no doubt, and has great court vision. But she's about to see D like she's never seen, and to be asked to play D like she's never played. She'll be a success in the W, but far from dominating it, at least at first.
All that crap is yesterday's news. It was an embarrassing interlude last spring. No one really cares anymore and the WBB world has moved way beyond it, thank goodness. CC and AR got crazy rich off of it, good for them, but it was tacky and dumb. And it's over.
