As Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson once said, delayed is not denied.
Indiana Fever star rookie Caitlin Clark is experiencing that swiftly into her WNBA career, as the No. 1 overall pick confirmed Sunday she is not on the 12-person Team USA roster for women's basketball at the Paris Olympics.
During Indiana's practice session Sunday, Clark gave the perfect response to the omission, as explained by Fever head coach Christie Sides.
"...The thing [Clark] said was, 'Hey coach, they woke a monster,' which I thought was awesome," Sides said.
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Clark also had the chance to speak to reporters and offered all praise for the players headed for Paris and said she'd be tuning in.
“I’m excited for the girls that are on the team,” Clark said. “I know it’s the most competitive team in the world, and I know it could have gone either way of me being on the team or me not being on the team. I’m excited for them.
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"Going to be rooting them on to win gold. I was a kid that grew up watching the Olympics. It’ll be fun to watch them.”
Clark also said she received a phone call ahead of time to let her know she wouldn't be making the cut.
“They called me and let me know before everything came out, which was really respectful of them, and I appreciate that,” Clark said. “They did the same for every girl that made the team or every girl that didn’t make the team. There’s a lot of players in the Olympic pool. It wasn’t like I was the only one they had to call. They had to make quite a few calls.”
The 12-player roster reportedly features Aces' Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, Napheesa Collier, Kahleah Copper, Alyssa Thomas, Brittney Griner, Jackie Young, Diana Taurasi, Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum and Chelsea Gray.
Clark is in the U.S. national team pool, so she's still eligible to be called up as an alternate if one of the 12 aforementioned players is unable to go.
If not, Clark will have the chance to make the 2028 Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles.
In the meantime, Clark will be in the lab creating her monster arc.
