'Stupid decision!': Fury rages on as Caitlin Clark misses Olympic selection

There may have never been a more transformative player in a sports history than Caitlin Clark and women's basketball, with the former Iowa Hawkeye proving to be a phenom, both commercially and on the court. Now, with Clark left out of the US Olympic team, fans and analysts have united in their rage against the decision.

According to Jen Rizzotti, the selection committee chair, selecting Clark would have been, “irresponsible”, per the Associated Press, as the USA Women’s team is first and foremost about winning, not popularity.

Rizzotti summarized her and the selection committee’s view, “it wasn’t the purview of our committee to decide how many people would watch or how many people would root for the U.S. It was our purview to create the best team.”

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Some in the media, including the at times controversial Stephen A. Smith, disagree, telling ESPN, “It was a stupid decision. Because it compromises what your ultimate goal is, which is to elevate the WNBA brand.”

Christine Brennan, who writes for USA Today, concurred with Smith, claiming Clark’s omission was a “huge missed opportunity”.

Brennan continues, stating she believes Clark’s inclusion in the Olympic team would “have introduced all those Olympic viewers and readers — many of whom are not big sports fans and have never watched a women’s Olympic basketball game — to the entire U.S. team”.

David Portnoy, the head of the outspoken Barstool Sports network, had a similar sentiment, although was perhaps less subtle in his wording. Portnoy took to X (formerly Twitter) to record a video rant in which he claimed, “You can argue that Caitlin Clark is the most popular, most puts-a**es-in-the-seats, single basketball player in the world. You can argue that. And you leave her off the Olympics team?”

Some, such as the US Olympic selection committee, may argue viewership is not the goal for a competitive sports team, but when Clark’s Indiana Fever is attracting 1.32 million viewers a game, per CNN (a near threefold increase from last season), perhaps there is some merit.

Clark herself handled the media storm around her omission as well as can be, telling reporters, “Honestly, no disappointment. I think it just gives you something to work for. It's a dream, hopefully one day I can be there.”

Given Clark’s popularity and the recent rise in popularity of the WNBA behind Clark, Angel Reese, and Cameron Brink’s rise to stardom, including the former Hawkeye would have irrefutably drawn eyeballs, but is that the aim of the Olympics? Let us know in the comments!

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