The coach of the American women’s Olympic basketball team, Cheryl Reeve, has made her X account private and has chosen not to respond to questions about the absence of standout rookie Caitlin Clark from the team.
When it was revealed last week that Clark was not included in the 12-woman roster, it created a media frenzy and debates about whether her exclusion was justified, given her notable contributions to the WNBA and her quick rise to prominence.
The New York Post emailed Reeve on Monday, asking why she made her posts private and requesting her thoughts on why Clark was left out. Reeve did not respond.
Coach Reeve declined to comment to USA Today’s Christine Brennan about the decision to leave Clark off the roster, according to an Olympic representative last week.
The US selection committee chair Jen Rizzotti said popularity was not a factor in the decision.
She said, “Our assessment of basketball players as committee members is based on precise standards that have been given to us. We evaluate every participant according to these principles in great detail, and we frequently find that some are very difficult to leave out because they meet so many requirements.”
But she did mention that coach Cheryl Reeve’s preferences were taken into account.
She said, “Our choices can also be influenced by personal preferences like Cheryl’s, position, and playing style. We occasionally use voting to decide close calls. Our methodical and cooperative approach guarantees that every participant is fairly taken into account before making any final choices.”
Coach’s grouse against Caitlin’s team
During the preseason, Cheryl Reeve, the Minnesota Lynx coach since 2010 and four-time WNBA champion, was unhappy about the Lynx not getting the same treatment as Caitlin Clark’s team, the Indiana Fever. Only ticketholders could watch the Lynx preseason debut against the Chicago Sky while the Fever preseason debut against the Dallas Wings could be seen for free nationally on the league’s app.