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Think back un petit 20 months in the world of women’s basketball.
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese were college juniors, known primarily to the sophisticates.
Brittney Griner was imprisoned in Russia, her life in jeopardy.
The New York Liberty were a WNBA afterthought.
Diana Taurasi was dishing out winks and sly asides about when she would join Sue Bird in retirement (OK, that one’s the same).
One thing that’s remained remarkably constant, heading into the 2024 Olympics in Paris, is the expectation that the United States will dominate an international competition — despite the murmurs that followed this past weekend’s exhibition loss to a team of WNBA All-Stars.
To denote Team USA going for an unprecedented eighth consecutive gold medal — they’re a perfect 54-0 in Olympics play going back to 1996, with just two games decided by single digits — here are eight things to know about the women’s basketball tournament, which begins Sunday:
1. The U.S. team begins and ends with the superstar tandem of A’ja Wilson and the Liberty’s Breanna Stewart, winners of three of the past four WNBA MVP awards (soon to be four of five). They present a “we have them, you don’t” cheat code: They can play the 4 and 5 positions and keep Team USA covered in terms of rebounding and rim protection, or shift to the 3 and 4 (in lineups with Griner) while sacrificing very little in the way of shooting.
2. Clark is not on the roster, a decision that fueled a week’s worth of sports debate shows and looms over what unfolds in France. Will not bringing the rookie phenom along cost the Americans in the way of 3-point shooting and ballhandling? (Not likely.) Will Clark’s absence curtail the buzz and number of eyeballs following their pursuit of history? (Just how much remains to be seen.)
3. Griner is abroad for the first time since she was freed from Russian detention. The symbolism is heavy, even beyond anything the 6-foot-9 center contributes on the court. “Hopefully, everything goes the way we want it to go and that anthem’s playing,” Griner said this week. “It’s going to be way more emotional this time.”
4. Taurasi, the 42-year-old legend, would set a record by winning a sixth gold medal in a team sport. Then four more years and a run at the 2028 Games in her hometown? “Yeah, you’re gonna see me in L.A. — on the beach with a beer,” she said.
5. A few injuries to track: Starting point guard Chelsea Gray still is not 100 percent after returning from a lower-leg injury, and combo forward Napheesa Collier has been nursing a foot ailment that sidelined her with the Minnesota Lynx. What kind of minutes can those players carry?
6. Will the Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu, in the midst of a career-best season, emerge from Team USA’s somewhat muddled guard rotation as a fixture in crunch time?
7. Sleeper pick for best story of the event: Australia, led by Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello and perhaps the biggest threat to interrupt Team USA’s coronation, will feature center Lauren Jackson, a three-time former WNBA MVP who is out of retirement at the age of 43.
8. Other medal contenders include Belgium, Spain, France, Canada and Japan, which won the silver medal three years ago in Tokyo.
