The FIBA Women’s World Cup is barely over, but talk around Team USA defending their crown at the Olympics is in full flow, especially considering the fact that the 2028 edition will be held in Los Angeles. Moreover, head coach Kara Lawson’s side had a lot to learn from this World Cup, regardless of their gold medal victory, and ESPN’s Chiney Ogwumike is the latest to pitch her thoughts on what Team USA should focus on for the Olympics.

After watching Team USA’s games this World Cup, the consensus among fans, analysts, and the media is the looming threat of other countries catching up to the Americans. This became clear early in the tournament, when Italy reduced Team USA to their lowest total in a major international competition in the last 42 years.

Italy’s physical, half-court pressure clogged driving lanes and forced the veteran-heavy starters into contested jumpers, holding Team USA to 29% shooting in a 55-52 win. A faster, younger group, the kind Ogwumike wants blended in rather than kept separate, could attack before that defense sets instead of grinding into it possession after possession. Her team even faced difficulty against Spain in the semifinals, revealing their issues on the offensive end.

Ogwumike, who was a two-time All-Star in the WNBA and won gold for the USA at the 2012 FIBA 3×3 World Cup before becoming an ESPN analyst, hopes to see the different generations of players fit together more seamlessly as Lawson mainly relied on the veterans this time around.

“I think Renee Montgomery did a really good job on the broadcast saying when you’re playing against Team USA, it’s an additional challenge because it’s almost like you’re scouting two teams,” Ogwumike said on her show Chiney Today, per a video on ESPN’s YouTube channel.

“You’re scouting that experienced group that plays slower, that gets to their spots, but also knows how to get it done. But then you have the second wave come in, and they run and gun, and they fly, and they’re full of offense, and they’re the future of Team USA. I think the challenge is trying to better, more seamlessly, integrate the two.” 

Lawson faced a ton of scrutiny for having a starting lineup mainly filled with veterans rather than giving an opportunity to the new generation of players like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers. However, the youngsters were always Lawson’s second unit, and while the rotations changed later in the tournament, she often played the two groups separately instead of mixing in a few young players with the veterans and vice versa.

“To me, that’s going to be the biggest learning opportunity for Kara Lawson going forward because you need to be able to have one team and not two different skill sets playing together,” Ogwumike added.

But regardless of how the roster turns out two years later, Team USA will be the favorite to win it all. Not only because of home advantage, but also because they have not lost out on an Olympic gold medal since 1992.

The closest Team USA came to losing in the Olympics was in Paris, two years ago, against host nation France. The game went down to the wire, and thanks to A’ja Wilson’s 21-point heroics, the Americans barely made it out with a 67-66 victory.

Speaking of Wilson, the four-time MVP will probably be present in Los Angeles, another major boost for Team USA. But Ogwumike’s point still stands, as younger players like Olivia Miles and JuJu Watkins should be making a play for the Olympic roster.

While it remains to be seen if Lawson implements Ogwumike’s plan of mixing youngsters and veterans, the World Cup experience is invaluable for the debutants, and they will be taking all their learnings to Los Angeles to strive for another gold medal.