🚨UNBELIEVABLE INFORMATION LEAKED To Why Caitlin Clark Was Left Off Team USA & David Portnoy Goes IN

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Caitlin Clark snubbed by USA Basketball. Fever star left off Olympic team for Paris

Caitlin Clark, the most popular women’s basketball player in the nation, if not the world, has been left off the 2024 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball roster, three people with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports Saturday morning.

This confirms USA TODAY Sports’ overnight reporting that Clark — whose thrilling logo 3’s and pinpoint passes have electrified record crowds and TV audiences while earning her WNBA rookie of the month honors and numerous rookie statistical records — has been snubbed by USA Basketball.

USA Basketball, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee and Clark could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday morning.

Two other sources, both long-time U.S. basketball veterans with decades of experience in the women’s game, told USA TODAY Sports Friday that concern over how Clark’s millions of fans would react to what would likely be limited playing time on a stacked roster was a factor in the decision making. If true, that would be an extraordinary admission of the tension that this multi-million-dollar sensation, who signs autographs for dozens of children before and after every game, has caused for the old guard of women’s basketball. The two people spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The U.S. women’s Olympic basketball team is the most dominant and successful team in the world, having last lost a game in 1992. But for all of their victories and medals, the U.S. players are often largely ignored by the sports media at the Olympic Games. The gymnasts and swimmers and runners and of course the U.S. women’s soccer team get so much more attention. It’s a crowded couple of weeks with dozens of medals being handed out every day, so the competition for headlines is always intense.

Even at the women’s gold-medal basketball games at the Olympics, the press tribune is almost always half-empty, if not worse. Clark of course would have changed all that, igniting interest not just among U.S. media but reporters around the world.

Clark, 22, has become the human gateway to women’s hoops for hundreds of thousands, likely even millions, of girls and boys, women and men. USA Basketball certainly could have tapped into her enormous reach to help promote not only its 2024 Olympic team but the women’s game in general. Selecting Clark also would have honored the popularity of the college game — and it has been done before, with collegians like Christian Laettner, Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi and Breanna Stewart making U.S. Olympic teams over the years.

The timing of USA Basketball’s decision could not have been worse. Clark made a WNBA rookie record-tying seven 3’s and scored 30 points in front of the largest WNBA crowd in 17 years: 20,333, Friday night in Washington, D.C. Entering the game, won by Clark’s Indiana Fever, the Fever and Mystics were a combined 2-19. Hundreds of children and adults in the crowd wore Clark’s No. 22 jerseys.

The audience at Capital One Arena was more than double the crowd the Chicago Sky drew the night before in the same building.

For months, Clark’s possible selection has been the topic of speculation throughout the basketball world.

“I don’t know how you leave the country without her,” four-time Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie told The Sporting News in April, adding that Clark “one hundred percent” should be on Team USA.

HOT NEWS:

ANGEL REESE GETS IN HEATED ALTERCATION WITH NAZ HILLMON DURING CHICAGO SKY LOSS

Angel Reese gets in heated altercation with Naz Hillmon during Chicago Sky loss

The Atlanta Dream got the last laugh.

Polarizing Chicago Sky star Angel Reese got into a heated altercation with Atlanta’s Naz Hillmon during the team’s 89-80 loss to the Dream on Saturday.

With the Dream leading 78-75 in the fourth quarter, Hillmon blocked Reese’s shot before staring her down and shouting at her.

“@nazhillmon not having it…!”#AtlantaDream pic.twitter.com/e6Z2ibxp86

— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) June 8, 2024

WE KNOW THAT’S RIGHT NAZ! #atlantadream pic.twitter.com/uSwW1s2AhT

— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) June 8, 2024

Reese quickly responded, and appeared to yell “What the f–k is wrong with you?”

The two were separated by referees, but it had already cooled down and did not become physical.

The Dream then posted the clip twice on X, writing that Hillmon was “not having it!”

4Naz Hillmon (R.) blocks Angel Reese’s shot during the Dream’s win over the Sky on June 8, 2024.ScreengrabThey later posted the clip again from a different angle, writing “WE KNOW THAT’S RIGHT NAZ!”

Hillmon finished with eight points, while Reese scored 13.

Reese also added 13 rebounds.

4Angel Reese (L.) got into an altercation with Naz Hillmon during the Sky’s loss to the Dream on June 8, 2024.Screengrab

LOL ANGEL REESE! pic.twitter.com/o5uxJxwMCf

— BullsKickAss (@Bullskickass) June 8, 2024

The Sky fell to 4-6, and Reese sent a message to her teammates after the game.

“Yeah, it’s tough,” Reese said. “It’s tough because I hate losing, and I try to go out there every night and try to be as consistent as I can.

“I think having consistency one through 12 is important from the jump ball to the end. It’s not the coaches or the other team, it’s us.”

4Angel Reese (L.) got into an altercation with Naz Hillmon during the Sky’s loss to the Dream on June 8, 2024.ScreengrabShe’s made ample headlines in recent days — she was ejected from the Sky’s 88-75 loss to the New York Liberty on Tuesday after receiving two technical fouls back-to-back while arguing with a referee, but on Wednesday the WNBA rescinded the second technical foul.

And later on Wednesday, Reese claimed on X that a man harassed her and her teammates — particularly Chennedy Carter — while they tried to get off their team bus and go to their hotel in Washington D.C.

“Finding out our teams hotel to pull with a camera as we get off the bus and put it in my teammates face & HARASS her is NASTY WORK [sic],” Reese posted on X on Wednesday. “This really is outta control and needs to STOP.”

4Angel Reese has made a plethora of headlines in recent days.APLast week, Reese was fined $1,000 for not making herself available to the media following the Sky’s 71-70 loss to the Indiana Fever.

Prior to that game, Reese pushed back on Caitlin Clark receiving credit for the recent surge in interest in the WNBA.

“I know I’ll go down in history,” Reese said. “I’ll look back in 20 years and be like: ‘Yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person, it’s because of me too, and I want you to realize that.”

HOT NEWS:

TAYLOR SWIFT’S YOUNGER BROTHER AUSTIN SWIFT AND GIRLFRIEND SYDNEY NESS WELCOMES THEIR FIRST CHILD ‘ ANOTHER TAYLOR IN THE HOUSE

Taylor Swift’s younger brother Austin Swift and girlfriend Sydney Ness welcomes their first child ‘ another Taylor in the house

Taylor Swift’s younger brother, Austin Swift, might just be off the market.

Austin kept a low profile — he seemed to be dressed as Santa Claus — as he appeared alongside rumored girlfriend Sydney Ness while attending the Kansas City Chiefs game on Christmas in 2023. His sister, Taylor, and their parents, Scott and Andrea Swift, were also in attendance.

 

Austin has been romantically linked to Ness since September 2022, when they were first spotted holding hands during a walk around New York City. The duo have kept their relationship out of the public eye, rarely getting spotted together.

Ness did, however, attend Taylor’s iconic 4th of July celebration in July 2023. She was spotted wearing a blue bikini in a photo shared via the singer’s Instagram at the time.

While Ness’ Instagram account is full of her modeling photos, Austin barely uses social media, so there are no pictures of their rumored romance thus far.

However, the pair were seen showing Taylor some support in her new relationship when attending a separate Chiefs game in October 2023. At the time, Austin walked alongside Ness and Blake Lively as Swift entered MetLife stadium for a Chiefs game against the New York Jets.

Travis Kelce had a lot of compliments for Taylor Swift’s brother, Austin Swift, on the Friday, December 29, episode of his and brother Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast.

Jason’s wife, Kylie Kelce, gave Austin, 31, the honor of “New Heights Holiday Stamp of the Week.”

“I was going to pick on Travis. I was going to say whoever wore the Santa suit,” Kylie, 31, said at the end of the episode when picking someone to give the coveted award to.

“That was Austin Swift,” Travis replied. “Well, it was Santa.”

Kylie commended Austin for wearing the Santa outfit to Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City on Monday, December 25, as the Chiefs played the Las Vegas Raiders, but unfortunately lost the match.

“I respect a full commit,” Kylie said, to which Travis replied: “It was a full commit. He 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ed it. He actually made me feel like a child because his gift to me was straight out of the bag.”

Travis then revealed what Austin’s gift was.

“[He] handed me a VHS of my favorite football movie of all time … Little Giants,” Travis revealed.