Jen Rizzotti said she was aware of the buzz around Caitlin Clark’s absence, in particular. But the committee, she said, was tasked to make a decision based on the criteria they were given, which included factors like attitude, adaptability to the international game and likelihood of contributing to team success, among others.
“We don’t live in a bubble,” she said. “We’re not on a jury where we’re quarantined in a hotel without any access. All of us are seeing and hearing and getting texts and calls about this decision. And that was expected.
“Certainly the success that Caitlin had in college in addition to the way that she’s played in the beginning parts of the (WNBA) season was taken into consideration as we talked about this roster, but I think out of respect for the process, we tried to make sure we upheld our integrity when it came to selecting the roster. Marketability, popularity, TV viewership, jersey sales was not something that we were supposed to be measuring.”
There has been public speculation that not selecting Clark, the uber-popular 2024 No. 1 pick, goes against part of USA Basketball’s stated mission, which states, “USA Basketball is a worldwide leader in the sport through competitive excellence in international competition and by…
