Should Clark be on the Olympic team? | Page 4 | The Boneyard

Should Clark be on the Olympic team?

Should CC be on Olympic team?

  • Yes

    Votes: 78 41.1%

  • No

    Votes: 90 47.4%

  • I don’t know

    Votes: 22 11.6%
  • Total voters
    190
Status
Not open for further replies.
Absolutely! And this is how she's played on USA teams previously. If Indiana becomes a winner CC would be completely satisfied averaging 8 points and 13 assists per game.
 
Last edited:
CL82 said:
She missed the last try out.
Expand ...
Lisa Leslie, a three-time WNBA MVP and four-time Olympic gold medalist, wants to
see Clark make USA Basketball's roster.

"She better be on the Olympic team," Leslie said to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. "We
should not leave the country without her. She's a bona fide baller. There's no doubt
she's already one of the best players in the world."

Dawn Staley



Caitlin Clark’s early WNBA play could be Olympic tryout

fox59.com

Caitlin Clark’s early WNBA play could be Olympic tryout

Caitlin Clark’s early play in WNBA will serve as her tryout for a spot on the U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team.
fox59.com fox59.com

Rizzotti will get a first-hand look at Clark when the No. 1 pick in the draft opens her WNBA
career at the Connecticut Sun on May 14. Rizzotti is the president of the Sun.

One of the few times she could appreciate an opposing player torch her team.

www.usab.com

Jennifer Rizzotti - USA Basketball

USA Basketball is the National Governing Body for the sport of basketball in the United States. As the recognized governing body for basketball in the U.S. by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), USA Basketball is...
www.usab.com www.usab.com
 
CajunHusky said:
That door swings both ways .... can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?
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Caitlin Clark pulled a LeBron. She squeezed every last cc of talent from her team mates while single
handedly dragging a group of players that had no business in the NCAA elite eight much less two
consecutive NCAA finals.

Without Caitlin, would anyone outside of Iowa have see or heard about Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall,
or Hannah Stuelke in the national sports media? Caitlin gave Kate the stage to perform on that allowed
her to generate enough attention to attract the attention of the Aces organization on draft day.
 
The most important WNBA stat that Caitlin Clark can achieve in 2024 is to improve
the Fever's 2023 win loss record from 13-27 to 20-20 and make the first round of
the playoffs for the first time since 2016. I think that is an achievable goal that will
test her true worth as a point guard. Even if the Fever lose in the first round of the
playoffs, so long as they are competitive, that will be a victory. That will demonstrate
to management that the Fever are one/two players away from a title run.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Bjbod said:
This whole argument can actually break several ways:

1) Caitlin was surrounded by pedestrian talent at Iowa. When she joins the WNBA she'll flourish, especially on the assist side. Girls at Iowa
either couldn't handle her passes or couldn't convert once they received the ball. Better players as teammates: more assists.

2) Clark will struggle in the WNBA. As Diana Taurasi points out, she's been feasting on a steady diet of hapless 18-year-old little girls in college. Now that she'll be facing "grown women" in the W, her obviously overhyped skills will be exposed and she'll be relegated to
the mediocrity that those in the know have been pointing out all along.

3) Clark obviously makes those around her better with her passing skills and as a decoy to draw defenses to her, therefore making life
easier for her teammates. But what if Clark's teammates along with her coach's system actually make Caitlin better? Their ability to put
the team first and realize they'd be more successful by embracing her talents while humbling themselves is not easy to do, especially
the buy-in seen by an entire team.

4) Will a team of pros be real pros, in the sense their primary objective is to win. Or will they be pros simply by being paid for playing the
game? Will they succumb to pettiness and hazing to make a new player earn their place, or will they do their best to integrate her into
the team....regardless of her skill level. Maybe she will be ordinary; perhaps she'll elevate to become an WNBA star as well. It seems as
if the Fever are willing to take this path, even if the rest of the league isn't on board.

Will be an interesting ride, especially with the heightened audience that's going to be following.
Expand ...
I haven't seen anything from "those in the know" who've said CC is overhyped and will be relegated to mediocrity once she gets to the W. Some basketball fans have said that but I don't know that all bb fans count as people "in the know." And Taurasi didn't say Clark wouldn't succeed, she just said there's going to be a transition period and that great players find a way to rise to the top. I think she'll do both-struggle and flourish. And Clark should get whatever "rookie treatment" all the other rookies get, whether it's petty or not. Opposing players will treat her to some "welcome to the league" moments and hopefully she'll navigate through it just like Aliyah Boston and other rookies have done.
 
.-.
TheFarmFan said:
It's wild, wild to me how much talent ESPN has let go of in recent years in order to afford to pay McAfee to run his mouth all day. I love KP and it was so painful I couldn't get through 5 minutes of that interview. Wild...
Expand ...

McAfee is hugely popular.
And ESPN made their cuts for years before acquiring McAfees services.
 
diggerfoot said:
Still with the average teammates narrative. There are three paradoxes to Clark’s game.

First. We do not know if she is a two way player. She may be able to play defense and Iowa was just protecting her, but until she proves she is a two way player how can she be considered the “best player ever?” Curry may be considered the best shooter ever, but no one puts him in the same category as Jordan, Bryant, Bird or other greats who were two way players.

Second, and this is what really gets me about Clark’s “average“ teammates. Take away Clark’s numbers and the rest of the team shot over 53% for the past two years. This past year they shot 8% better than Clark. 8% better!!! Has any other player in the “greatest” conversation ever shot 8% worse than his/her collective teammates. Ever?! Perhaps Allen Iverson, but I doubt it. 8%. If you think Clark will be considered an all star in the pros if her teammates shoot 8% collectively better, think again. Meanwhile, I bet that ”average” Iowa team is going to finish much higher next year than everyone suspects.

Third. Has any “greatest“ guard averaged 4.7 turnovers before? A serious question. Has any? Now this can be excused due to Iowa’s high possession per game offense, and Clark’s ball dominance in that high possession offense, but then that diminishes her high assists achievement, particularly considering her teammates shoot at 53%. Bottom line, Clark averaged 1.87 A/T ratio last season, not bad, not great.
Expand ...

The team FG% argument is a cherry picked statistic that you continue to bring up. FWIW, Taurasi’s teammates consistently shot 4-6.5% better than her throughout her UCONN career for another GOAT comparison. She’s also never been an above average defender which discredits point #1 unless you’re eliminating Taurasi from contention.

Clark’s teammates are capable shooters but the entire offense ran through Clark and was dependent on Clark’s ability to create for others or make shots herself. She scored or assisted on 68.5% of Iowa’s made field goals. The vast majority of those points were Clark creating her looks for herself or others. Her assists were usually wide open catch and shoot jumpers for teammates, transition layups from Clark’s great passing, or cutting layups in the half court from Clark threading the needle. Her teammates were being put in great positions to score due to Clark’s passing. Her teammates were solid, but only Martin (2nd round draft pick) and Stuelke (sophomore this year) have a realistic shot to make a WNBA roster. Compared to almost every other program that’s made consecutive Final Fours, that’s a notably weak roster she was working with.


In regards to point 3, you can cherry pick the individual turnovers as a negative, but I’d argue it’s a product of her handling 68.5% of the offense, so of course she’ll have more TOs. As the person responsible handling the majority of the offense, she led Iowa to a 91ppg scoring average, good for first in the nation by 5+ points. You can’t harp on the turnovers without acknowledging how potent the offense was with Clark managing the bulk of it. Individually she had higher TOs but it led to her running the best offense in the country.
 
CajunHusky said:
That door swings both ways .... can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?
Expand ...


1:19 - 1:40

Now we have another authoritative answer instead of an opinion or a supposition.
 
.-.
CajunHusky said:
That door swings both ways .... can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?
Mr. Cam said:


1:19 - 1:40

Now we have another authoritative answer instead of an opinion or a supposition.
Expand ...

Context is important:

Bjbod said:
This whole argument can actually break several ways:


3) Clark obviously makes those around her better with her passing skills and as a decoy to draw defenses to her, therefore making life
easier for her teammates. But what if Clark's teammates along with her coach's system actually make Caitlin better? Their ability to put
the team first and realize they'd be more successful by embracing her talents while humbling themselves is not easy to do, especially
the buy-in seen by an entire team.

4) Will a team of pros be real pros, in the sense their primary objective is to win. Or will they be pros simply by being paid for playing the
game? Will they succumb to pettiness and hazing to make a new player earn their place, or will they do their best to integrate her into
the team....regardless of her skill level. Maybe she will be ordinary; perhaps she'll elevate to become an WNBA star as well. It seems as
if the Fever are willing to take this path, even if the rest of the league isn't on board.

Will be an interesting ride, especially with the heightened audience that's going to be following.
Expand ...
"That door swings both ways ...." can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?

My comment (That door swings both ways....) is specifically in reference to the bolded section in item 3 above. The op asks will the team embrace Caitlyn talents while humbling themselves? They should ALL embrace each other talents (not put one above the other as suggested by the op) and be a team first and last.
 
CajunHusky said:
CajunHusky said:
That door swings both ways .... can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?

Context is important:


"That door swings both ways ...." can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?

My comment (That door swings both ways....) is specifically in reference to the bolded section in item 3 above. The op asks will the team embrace Caitlyn talents while humbling themselves? They should ALL embrace each other talents (not put one above the other as suggested by the op) and be a team first and last.
Expand ...

Agreed. From the interview clips I've seen it sounds like they are. This whole "Caitlin vs WNBA vets" talking point has been really frustrating to see bantered about. Can the season just start already so we can finally see these teams play?
 
CajunHusky said:
CajunHusky said:
That door swings both ways .... can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?

Context is important:


"That door swings both ways ...." can Clark realize the team will be more succesful by embracing her teammates obvious talents while humbling herself?

My comment (That door swings both ways....) is specifically in reference to the bolded section in item 3 above. The op asks will the team embrace Caitlyn talents while humbling themselves? They should ALL embrace each other talents (not put one above the other as suggested by the op) and be a team first and last.
Expand ...
My apologies if this was not communicated clearly enough, but the reference in point 3 was solely related to her experience at Iowa. It was not intended at all to be a comment with respect to her future teammates at Indiana.
 
cancontent said:
Agreed. From the interview clips I've seen it sounds like they are. This whole "Caitlin vs WNBA vets" talking point has been really frustrating to see bantered about. Can the season just start already so we can finally see these teams play?
Expand ...
Stewie never had the problem, because someone like Sue was already there.
I don't know if Indiana has anyone like that, seems it would fall to Boston to set the tone.
 
baggerbob said:
Stewie never had the problem, because someone like Sue was already there.
I don't know if Indiana has anyone like that, seems it would fall to Boston to set the tone.
Expand ...
Sue Bird was a well-established veteran by 2016 at the age of 36.

Aliyah Boston is only 22 (about a month older than Caitlin) and is currently in her second season. She is not a veteran by any stretch of the imagination.
 
.-.
The Indiana Fever used Caitlin exactly like I said Team USA's C. Reeve should use her.

This is what I said in post number 78.

Coach Reeve can use Caitlin Clark initially as a second rotation shooting guard or as a
second rotation backup point guard. If Team USA has a big lead in the first or second
half, Coach Reeve can insert Caitlin as a FIRST rotation shooting guard. In both instances,
USA Basketball can implement a simple motion offense that gives Caitlin the Steph Curry
assignment of constant off ball movement to spread the floor to create gaps, mismatches,
single coverage, or even pull the opposing defense from the weak to the strong side to cre-
ate dead/empty spaces on the weak side for her team mates to exploit backdoor cuts to the
basket.

Caitlin Clark's long range shooting ability stretches the defense as she crosses the half court
line whether she has the ball or not. Opposing coaches dare not leave her open and that for-
ces them to assign their best defender to pick her up at the half court line.

Caitlin had Natasha Howard twisting in the wind when Natasha tried to defend her step back
thee. Natasha Howard is a 6-2 forward.
 
If the Olympics want record-breaking viewers for Women's basketball, they may want to consider putting Caitlin on the team as well. I didn't think of that wrinkle until today. Sorry if that idea was in that article @Dillon77 . I'll have to read it later today
 
Reypl21 said:
If the Olympics want record-breaking viewers for Women's basketball, they may want to consider putting Caitlin on the team as well. I didn't think of that wrinkle until today. Sorry if that idea was in that article @Dillon77 . I'll have to read it later today
Expand ...

"But the fan interest in Clark is soooo compelling that it would almost surely help the game in the short and long term in terms of attracting eyeballs and keeping momentum going."

Hmm, I wonder who said that. :D
 
Dillon77 said:
Michael Voepel attempts to give context to Caitlin Clark being considered for the Olympic team.
Pretty expansive article...

www.espn.com

Will Caitlin Clark make the U.S. Olympic team for the Paris Games?

The U.S. women will take 12 players to Paris. We look at how the team is selected and whether the Indiana Fever guard might compete in the 2024 Games.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
Expand ...
Nike is a Team USA Basketball corporate sponsor. They just signed a 28 Million Dollar
deal with Caitlin Clark. NBC lost their shorts at the Tokyo Olympics with cellar dweller
ratings and they desperately want a certified draw like CC with a very high Q rating.

Voepel's article did not mention that Rizzotti will have the opportunity to see Clark on
these dates when the Fever play the Sun:

Tuesday, May 14, 2024 1 Game
Monday, May 20, 2024 1 Game
Monday, Jun 10, 2024 1 Game

Rizzotti is the president of the Sun and chairs the Team USA Women's Basketball select-
ion committee.

The Fever play the Mercury on:

Sunday, Jun 30, 2024 1 Game Phoenix Mercury

The Fever coaching staff should draw up plays for CC to hunt down DT. Let us see how
many times the rookie can torch the vet.
 
I say no, based on her not yet being good enough compared to the best WNBA players. In addition I think the CC fever has gone over the top to the point of being a distraction. Just look at the announcement. Very little discussion of who made the team and what an accomplishment that is, the attention and story was all about one player that did not make it.

Just because her name may be the only women's basketball player that many Johnny come lately fans know, doesn't mean she is bigger than the WNBA or the Olympics. Of course the attention she brings is on balance good for attendance, TV ratings and interest in women's basketball, but the league and the Olympic committee don't have to bow to her interests or her many fans.

If she was chosen she would likely be last off the bench, a role that her flock would be infuriated with, and there would be a lot of friction there. If she was given significant playing time, that would make it obvious social media and dollar interests were driving the playing time decisions. There would be controversy either way, a lose lose option as I see it.

We can enjoy the Olympics as it should be, a great competition in this case with a very team oriented sport, not the Caitlin Clark show with her supporting cast. I don't think Caitlin has done anything wrong, a great college career with many big moments and records, but the hype is so extreme that it sometimes takes away from the many accomplishments of other players who have done more at least so far on the professional level.
 
.-.
Vowelguy said:
I kinda stand by what I said initially -- I think the fan interest is so compelling that they should've found a place for CC.
Expand ...
Because fan interest is what the Olympics was founded upon.
 
CL82 said:
Because fan interest is what the Olympics was founded upon.
Expand ...

The main motivation is actually quite different.

“The ancient Olympic Games were primarily a part of a religious festival in honor of Zeus, the father of the Greek gods and goddesses.”
 
Blueballer said:
The main motivation is actually quite different.

“The ancient Olympic Games were primarily a part of a religious festival in honor of Zeus, the father of the Greek gods and goddesses.”
Expand ...
So not fan interest?

Who knew?
 
Vowelguy said:
So I take it you were against Lobo being on the 96 Olympics?
Expand ...
No, but if she missed the tryouts and wasn't selected by the committee I wouldn't keep whining about it. Maybe that's just a thing though.
 
.-.
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