When reports about the USA Basketball roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics began circulating late last week, Connecticut Sun coach Stephanie White had her fingers crossed that they were true.
The selection committee, spearheaded by former UConn standout Jennifer Rizzotti, made it official on Tuesday: Sun superstar Alyssa Thomas was chosen for her first Olympic team and will help Team USA chase an eighth consecutive gold medal this summer.
“For us, AT’s earned the right,” White said. “She’s put in the work. She’s done her due process. She’s taken advantage of her opportunity when it was given to her, so if that happens for her we’ll just be really excited and proud for her.”
Four other players are first-time members of this year’s Olympic team, though Thomas is the oldest at age 32. Thomas had not competed for USA Basketball in nearly a decade before the current Olympic cycle, and she made the first 5×5 roster of her career for the 2022 World Cup in Sydney, Australia. She averaged a team-high seven rebounds and 4.3 assists plus 9.9 points over eight games in the tournament, helping lead Team USA to a fourth straight World Cup win.
“To have somebody in your locker room who’s an Olympian is nuts,” said Sun guard DiJonai Carrington. “We all grew up watching the Olympics, so for that to be a possibility for her is just insane, but she deserves it … Even if she acts a little more nonchalant, I know how much she’s worked for this, so to hopefully see that come to fruition is going to be super cool.”
You can tell everyone now, mom.
🗣️ @athomas_25 is an Olympian!
🇺🇸 #USABWNT pic.twitter.com/ujQMOMpZ8c
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) June 11, 2024
All three top finishers from the 2023 WNBA MVP race — Thomas, Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson — were named to the Paris roster, and the trio also competed together at the 2022 World Cup. Stewart is already a two-time Olympic gold medalist after making her debut at the 2016 Olympics as a WNBA rookie, and she was the MVP of the Games in 2021. Wilson made her Olympic debut in Tokyo and was the only other American selected to the tournament’s All-Star Five alongside Stewart.
Stewart will be joined by two other former Huskies, both of whom competed with her at the Tokyo Games. Napheesa Collier was selected amid a career start to the WNBA season, and Diana Taurasi will make history as the first basketball player, men’s or women’s, to compete in six consecutive Olympics dating back to the 2004 Games in Athens. Taurasi turned 42 years old on Tuesday and will also be the oldest member of the squad by almost a decade.
“The decisions for this specific roster came down to experience being imperative based on our prep time and based on the level of competition that we know we’re facing because we saw it at the World Cup,” Rizzotti said. “It is very hard to win a gold medal in 5×5, and our women have made it look easy for so long. We felt like experience was something that was important. Depth and versatility at every position is important … and I think we’re lucky as a country to have so many options.”
Rizzotti said the committee didn’t have any concerns about age when it came to Taurasi though, especially because of how highly they prioritized experience in the process. The Phoenix Mercury guard is also still playing at an elite level, averaging 16.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in her 20th WNBA season.
“We’ve lost a lot over the last quad in terms of leadership when you look at some of the Olympians that retired after the 2021 Olympics … so to have the security of what Diana brings both as a basketball players and a leader is invaluable,” Rizzotti said. “She’s arguably still the best shooter on the team, but one of the things that she provides that was important to us was leadership. She has an uncanny ability to make everybody around her feel really good about themselves and be the best version of themselves … This will hopefully be icing on the cake for her legacy.”
Rizzotti described the talent in this year’s field of players as “the deepest it’s ever been,” and any player who engaged with Team USA during the last four years is eligible to be considered an alternate should one of the 12 team members be unable to compete by the start of the Games. The Athletic reported Monday that Sun forward Brionna Jones would be among the committee’s top options to fill in as an alternate along with Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark.
“With the setback Breezy had with her (Achilles) injury, her ability to come back and be playing as strong and looking as seamless as she is, it’s just a testament to her hard work,” White said. “Again, she’s somebody who’s really approached her journey in USA Basketball in a professional way. She’s taken advantage of opportunities when she’s been given them, so that would be really exciting for Breezy as well.”
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