Citing health reasons, Kelsey Plum and A’ja Wilson, two battle-tested veterans, sent shockwaves after opting out of the 2026 FIBA World Cup. Plum has been dealing with a calf injury for most of the season and even announced her exit from the remainder of the WNBA season. Wilson’s decision, however, raised eyebrows because no major health issue of hers had been revealed in the days or even weeks leading up to the announcement. As questions around her decision continue to emerge, Hall of Fame sportscaster and former ESPN host Linda Cohn has pointed to Caitlin Clark as a possible reason.

“So is there any part of A’ja that didn’t want to spend the next couple of weeks watching the World Cup become the Caitlin Clark Show?” Cohn questioned in a clip on X. “Because let’s face it, Caitlin walks into a building and the attention follows her. She’s already getting enormous attention in Berlin. Reuters just described her as ‘Embracing the global spotlight heading into her World Cup debut.’ That’s just one of many reports.

“Could A’ja simply not want to deal with that? Could there be some insecurity, dare I say? Could she be thinking, ‘I’m the four-time MVP. I’m the best player in the world. Why does everything have to be about Caitlin Clark?'”

In the 2026 WNBA season, Clark has emerged as a strong MVP contender to Wilson, who is in pursuit of a third consecutive and fifth overall WNBA MVP award. This narrative could have easily found its way into the FIBA World Cup with both on the same team.

Linda Cohn further said that Wilson’s absence could stem from that.

“Maybe she’s thinking about that. Or maybe this has absolutely nothing to do with Caitlin Clark. But when the specific health issue hasn’t been disclosed, and one of the biggest stars in American basketball decides to not represent Team USA at the last minute, while her biggest MVP competition does show up, people are going to ask questions, and they are asking them,” Cohn added.

While Team USA did not confirm the exact reason behind Wilson’s absence and cited ‘health reasons’, ESPN reported that the LA Aces Center was having some trouble with her back. Wilson had popped up on the injury report twice in August, but the back issue hadn’t caused her to miss games.

While Cohn’s reasoning may not necessarily be applicable in this case, Wilson has addressed Clark’s popularity and the WNBA boom in the past. When Wilson became TIME’s Athlete of the Year in 2025, she addressed the idea that Clark had taken the WNBA mainstream.

“It wasn’t a hit at me, because I’m going to do me regardless,” Wilson told TIME. “I’m going to win this MVP, I’ll win a gold medal, y’all can’t shake my résumé. It was more so, let’s not lose the recipe. Let’s not lose the history. It was erased for a minute. And I don’t like that. Because we have tons of women that have been through the grimiest of grimy things to get the league where it is today.”

Maybe that history makes Cohn’s theory somewhat understandable enough to be discussed. It does not, however, make it the most convincing explanation for why she has opted out of the international tournament.

This season has been a demanding one for A’ja Wilson, who is fighting to defend the Aces’ 2025 championship title and is competing with young stars in the race for MVP. There have also been reports that the four-time WNBA MVP has not been 100% for some time, and there was a concern that the demanding World Cup schedule could make the situation worse for her.

So while Team USA will undoubtedly miss having A’ja Wilson’s veteran presence on the court, her decision to step away does not necessarily need to be viewed through the lens of “insecurity.”

The Americans will kick off their tournament with a match against China on September 4, and Angel Reese has already made it clear that even without two of their biggest veterans, Team USA is “Ready for the Show.”