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THE decision to leave Caitlin Clark off the United States Olympic women’s basketball team was a highly controversial one.
And USA Basketball’s executive director Grant Hill has totally distanced himself from that decision when appearing on Fox Sports.
Clark in action against the New York Liberty last week[/caption]
Hill has distanced himself from the Clark call[/caption]
Hill joined Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery during live Fox coverage of the USA men’s team taking on Canada, with the Paris Olympics fast approaching.
“So I’m the managing director of the men’s national team,” he said.
“I’ll tell you this, I think our young rookies from the WNBA are fantastic and they have a bright future ahead of them.”
“Our whole team is going to be pretty dominant as it is.
“But I had nothing to do with it.”
After an initial period of silence last month following the decision not to include Clark on the Olympic roster, USA Basketball did address the matter.
“When you base your decision on criteria, there were other players that were harder to cut because they checked a lot more boxes,” Women’s National Team Committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti told The Associated Pres.
“Then sometimes it comes down to position, style of play for coach Cheryl [Reeve], and then sometimes a vote.”
Clark herself has been as diplomatic as it’s possible to be when questioned on the situation.
“I’m excited for the girls that are on the team,” she said last month.
“I know it’s the most competitive team in the world and I know it could’ve gone either way, me being on the team or me not being on the team.
“I’m excited for them, gonna be rooting them on to win gold.”
Point guard Clark has been a sensation, with huge audiences tuning in to watch her play for the Iowa Hawkeyes in March Madness.
That interest has continued into her rookie year in the WNBA with Indiana Fever.
She is clearly talented enough to be part of the US plans for the Olympics.
Caitlin Clark fever
CAITLIN Clark's impact was already felt by the WNBA even before she was drafted.
The Iowa college superstar went No. 1 overall to the Indiana Fever in a surprise to absolutely nobody.
The Indiana Fever had 36 of their 40 games in the 2024 season scheduled for national TV – up from 22 last year.
Teams also moved their games against the Fever to bigger arenas to cater for the extra ticket demand.
Clark helped the NCAA draw 18.9 million viewers for the women’s championship game, more than the 14.8 million who watched the men’s decider.
She has also already signed a deal with Nike worth upwards of $20 million.
But she will have to sit out this Games, which starts in France later this month.
Team USA’s women’s basketball team has brought home the gold at each Olympics since 1996.
The WNBA season will take a break from July 21 to August 14 for the Games.
The Americans will open the tournament in Group C against Germany, Japan, and Belgium.
Their first game is against Japan on July 29th.
