Clark’s start in WNBA will be her tryout for U.S. Olympics’ team

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Caitlin Clark’s early play in WNBA will serve as her tryout for a spot on the U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team.

The women’s roster for the Paris Games won’t be determined before June 1. Unable to attend the U.S. training camp this month, Clark will have the start of her WNBA career to show the U.S. women’s basketball selection committee whether she deserves a spot on the team.

Selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti said she’ll be watching.

“You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it’s for now or the future,” Rizzotti told The Associated Press. “We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It’s got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It’s still not going to be fair to some people.”

Clark was invited to attend the U.S. training camp in Cleveland, but it was held during the Final Four when she was still competing for a national championship with Iowa. Attending the camp wasn’t mandatory to make the team, but it certainly would have helped the NCAA Division I all-time scoring leader show the selection committee she could hold her own against some of the best players in the world. The camp in Cleveland was the last one the U.S. had before announcing its roster.

The team will get together in Phoenix for a few days in July right before the Olympics, including playing an exhibition All-Star game against WNBA players.

The U.S men’s basketball Olympic roster was announced last week.