Caitlin Clark‘s exclusion from the US Women’s Basketball Team for the 2024 Paris Olympics has prompted a lot of backlash. Initially, it was thought to be supposedly a performance-related decision, but Christine Brennan recently revealed that there might be a political angle to it. Per the USA Today journalist, two veteran stars on the team claimed that the decision-makers were concerned about a potential backlash due to Clark’s limited playing time in Paris and decided to leave her out. The logic may seem sound to some, but not to Gilbert Arenas.
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The retired NBA star claimed that leaving Clark out due to bogus concerns like the ones Brennan reported is simply a horrible business decision. This move will affect viewership numbers and merchandise sales significantly, per Arenas.
He added that those arguing that Clark isn’t among the best 12 players in the WNBA and hence didn’t deserve a spot, should look back at the 1992 Dream Team, where multiple players were picked due to their star power. The three-time All-Star said on Gil’s Arena,
“You’re saying millions of people will be mad if she doesn’t play a lot. Well, that means a million people won’t be viewing if she’s not on the team. If she’s on the team, the jersey sales [would spike]. Do you think you can sell more jersey with or without her?”
“When Magic [Johnson] made ’92, he didn’t deserve to be on the team. He wasn’t even in the league. But he was Magic Johnson… [They took] bad back [Larry] Bird. People don’t know, but the [’92 Olympics] were his last games,” Arenas added.
The former Washington Wizards star labeled the decision to be an emotional one.
Arenas added that if it were up to him, he would have picked Clark, Angel Reese, and Cameron Brink to capitalize on the hype they’ve generated over the past year. He claimed that the aim should’ve been to bring more eyeballs to the sport as the gold medal win is a certainty for a dominant team like the USA, with or without those three rookies.
While Arenas’ breakdown was measured and concise, Stephen A. Smith was much less articulate in his response to Clark’s exclusion.
Stephen A. Smith lashed out at Team USA for leaving Caitlin Clark off the Olympic roster
The rookie’s absence from the 12-women roster for the Paris Olympics caused Stephen A. Smith to go on a vicious rant. On First Take, the analyst said,
“This is about what I will personally label ‘The Idiocy of Team USA Women’s Basketball.’ How dare you make this decision… It was a stupid decision. Because it compromises what your ultimate goal is, which is to elevate the WNBA brand. How could you be that idiotic and not make that call, when throughout history, Team USA has been, in part, about marketing? It’s dumb, period.”
Smith, like Arenas, alluded to Johnson and Bird’s inclusion in the 1992 US Men’s Basketball Team over Isiah Thomas and Dominique Wilkins without saying it explicitly. He agreed that Clark doesn’t have the accolades to deserve a spot on the Paris Olympics roster, but argued that she would’ve brought unprecedented attention to their campaign and missing out on that for any reason was ‘dumb.’
Smith’s fighting words may sound harsh, but he made valid points. Clark is a marquee attraction and would’ve undeniably helped bring more eyeballs to the US Women’s Basketball Team in Paris.
