Why Caitlin Clark Could Not Have Saved USA’s 3x3 Basketball Team
By Joe Lago
The uproar over Caitlin Clark’s omission from the United States women’s basketball team resonated for weeks, but the debate died down once Team USA got rolling at the Paris Olympics.
Stocked with WNBA legends, All-Stars and former league MVPs, the Americans are well on their way to winning an eighth-straight Olympic championship. They completed group play in dominant fashion Sunday, beating Germany 87-68 for their 58th consecutive victory. They remain overwhelming favorites to top the podium.
The U.S. women’s 3x3 basketball team also features WNBA players. It was looking to defend its Tokyo Games title, too. However, the Americans lost to Spain in the semifinals and beat Canada to win bronze on Monday.
Could the USA 3x3 squad have used Clark? Maybe. Probably. The decision to include her would’ve had to been made months ago, though — not weeks before the Paris Games.
Unlike the 5x5 competition, 3x3 players must gain Olympic eligibility by playing in FIBA events and accruing the necessary rankings points. USA Basketball would’ve had to plan for Clark’s inclusion long ago — when she was still playing in college and starring for Iowa — by having her compete regularly on FIBA’s 3x3 circuit.
And if Clark had any interest in playing 3x3, she would’ve expressed it while playing for USA Basketball as a teenager. She has won three gold medals on U.S. youth teams, but all three squads played 5x5 basketball. Hailey Van Lith, the former LSU star who’s on USA’s Paris Games 3x3 team, has been playing 3x3 since 2019, when she won gold at the FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup.
Clark’s rabid fans probably already knew the reasons why Clark wasn’t a 3x3 possibility. But for the rest of you, well, now you know.
Could Clark excel at 3x3? It's a physical style of basketball that requires defensive focus and commitment in constant isolation matchups, a characteristic that's not one of her strengths.
On offense, though, Clark's impact would be immense with her long-range 3-point shooting creating plenty of space for teammates to attack the basket. It also would be fun to see how creative she could get with her passing with all of the off-ball movement in 3x3.