As the 2024 WNBA season progressed, two facts became very clear. A’ja Wilson would be winning her third MVP and Caitlin Clark would be the Rookie of the Year. Both facts have come true, although, while Wilson won unanimously, Clark fell just one vote short. Either way, we expect both players to make the Olympics with Team USA.

However, only one of them went to Paris. And per Christine Brennan, it almost cost Wilson the spotlight she deserves.

In the latest episode of Good Game with Sarah Spain, the USA Today journalist speaks about the Olympics controversy. They left Clark out while selecting Wilson for the team, that ultimately won gold.

“You put Caitlin Clark on that team and you know what? A’ja Wilson finally gets the incredible attention she deserves,” Brennan tells Spain. If you’re somehow unfamiliar with Brennan, she has widely reported on the Fever rookie and is even writing a book on her. And Brennan thinks the WNBA should leverage the spotlight Caitlin Clark brings to women’s basketball in every way possible.

Posing a hypothetical situation in which Cheryl Reeve-led Team USA also has Caitlin Clark, the journalist suggests a scenario where the Indiana favorite is just on the team. She could be on the bench and only get on the court for about 3 minutes. And yet, the media would flock to her.

“And not just from the US media who are coming running to watch Caitlin Clark – and by the way, she’s sitting on the bench – and you’re seeing this incredible play from everybody else. And they get the attention they deserve,” Brennan finishes. She goes on to lament the low coverage women’s sports in general get, and especially the women’s basketball team this year. But just Caitlin Clark’s name would have been enough to get fans going.

Sarah Spain then poses an interesting question – who is it that should make an Olympics team? One with more experience, more talent, or one who is more popular? Team USA did experience some effects of this, if one ponders over the question, when they faced Japan.

Japanese fans mocked a US basketball team sans Caitlin Clark

The opening round of women’s basketball got off to a fun start. As Team USA took to the court to practice some shots, A’ja Wilson and Brittney Griner’s attention went to some fan signs in the crowd. Some declared their love for Caitlin Clark and #22, while one provocative sign read, “You need Caitlin Clark to beat us,” per Marca.

A video from sideline reporter Kerith Burke shows the two W players, along with Alyssa Thomas, noticing the sign and getting amused over the Japanese fan’s prophecy. Clark not being selected had obviously sparked fan fury and her popularity extended to other nations, who might have forgotten that she’s a rookie.

The US basketball veterans then proceeded to show Team Japan and their fans that the WNBA has been in existence since 1997, long before Caitlin Clark was born. It was a 102-76 victory for Team USA, who won gold at the last Olympics held in Tokyo as well.

The decision to exclude Clark from the team was not made by coach Cheryl Reeve, who got much flak for it, nevertheless. But it was simply a decision based on there not being enough space for Clark’s skills on an already talented team. But then again, who knows what the W will look like in 2028, when the Olympics come home in Los Angeles? Caitlin Clark might play then!