Team USA’s flawless 3-0 result in the group stage did not mean every decision made by head coach Kara Lawson was appreciated. The 45-year-old was constantly under scrutiny over the starting lineup choices, as fans were not pleased with Lawson always preferring veterans over newer-generation stars like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers.

With the knockout stage looming large, Sports Illustrated’s Robin Lundberg joined the conversation. Lundberg said on his YouTube channel that the starting lineup could hurt Team USA if they come across France, their biggest threat to the coveted gold medal.

“That’s the team (France) where the U.S. is going to have to play the right lineups. I still am not a fan of the starters… Jackie Young has played well, but I don’t like Jackie Young’s fit with the other group. Chelsea Grey and Kahleah Copper are problematic in the starting lineup.”

“To me, I don’t need to see that every single game anymore. But we’ll see. Who closes games is going to matter more, but the U.S. is going to have to get off to good starts against France if they do see them in the gold medal game.”

Lundberg feels that Lawson should finally start changing the core in the starting lineup. While Jackie Young leads the team in scoring with an average of 11.3 points per game, veterans Chelsea Gray and Kahleah Copper have not been up to the mark. Over the course of the first three games in the World Cup, Gray and Copper have scored a combined 10 points against China, 10 points against Italy, and seven points against the Czech Republic.

Adding the fact that the Team USA bench consists of players like Clark, Bueckers, and Reese, who are having career-best seasons in the WNBA, Lundberg’s assessment makes sense.

Still, Team USA is the favorite to win it all, as they last lost a senior international tournament back in the 2006 World Cup in Brazil when Russia upset them in the semifinals. They’ve captured gold in every World Cup and Olympics since.

However, Team USA got the biggest scare against France in the 2024 Paris Olympics final, narrowly winning 67-66 in the gold medal game. If not for MVP A’ja Wilson’s heroics, we could have seen the fall of a dynasty. Wilson, alongside fellow veteran Kelsey Plum, is not present this time around due to injury.

Meanwhile, two years later, France is looking like an even better team than they were in the Olympics, registering blowout wins against Hungary (99-53), South Korea (95-69), and Nigeria (111-56) in the group stage. France also possesses a WNBA-heavy roster, headlined by Golden State Valkyries star Gabby Williams, who gave Team USA a hard time in the Olympics.

Teammate Janelle Salaun joined Williams on the France team. Carla Leite of the Portland Fire, Marine Johannes of the New York Liberty, Pauline Astier of the Liberty, Dominique Malonga of the Seattle Storm, Leila Lacan of the Connecticut Sun, and Valériane Ayayi of the Phoenix Mercury are also on the team.

While France has been nothing but dominant in this World Cup, Team USA registered its lowest total in a major international tournament in the last 42 years against Italy, narrowly winning 55-52. To Lawson’s credit, it was the veterans who took over the fourth quarter and gave Team USA the lead.

Lundberg believes Team USA took a step in the right direction with the win over the Czech Republic, but they will need to be at their best to overcome the French.

“It’s not a guarantee that they get there, but those are the two best teams, and it will take USA at their best to beat France or close to their best to beat France,” Lundberg said.

But for now, Team USA will need to shift their focus to the quarterfinals, as they will face the winner of Japan vs Hungary. The quarterfinals begin on Thursday. If the USA moves on to the next round, they will then play in the semifinal on Saturday, September 12. The final is scheduled for September 13 on Sunday.