Sue Bird Didn’t Mince Words About Caitlin Clark’s Olympic Snub as WNBA Legend Takes Over Team USA Role

Retirement? Not for Sue Bird. The 4-time WNBA champion and all-time assist leader didn’t exactly kick back after her legendary career—instead, she’s stepping into the spotlight in a whole new way. “Retirement was boring, so I had to add something else,” she said, and now, the 13-time All-Star is in the hot seat, making headlines over some major decisions involving Team USA. One of those decisions? The snub of a rising star—Caitlin Clark. And Bird? She’s got some thoughts on that.

Despite Clark’s record-shattering rookie season in 2024, the selection committee chose to prioritize veterans like Diana Taurasi, Chelsea Gray, and Kelsey Plum—players with deep international experience. Clark, with no Olympic or World Cup history, was left off the roster. Surprisingly, Clark wasn’t bitter, even acknowledging her exclusion by saying, “I gave them a lot of reasons to keep me off the team with my play.”

But the fans? They weren’t so forgiving. During the Olympics, one Japanese women’s basketball fan decided to throw some serious shade at the US women’s national team, mocking their decision to leave Caitlin Clark off the Olympic roster for Paris by holding up a sign that read “You need Caitlin Clark to beat us,”.

That’s not all. Analysts and basketball enthusiasts alike were left scratching their heads, demanding answers. Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy even fired off, “How dumb are these women?” as the frustration reached a boiling point. But the person who took the brunt of the backlash? Coach Cheryl Reeve. While she tried to calm the storm with a composed response—“The coach of the national team truly has no power in the selection of the team”—the damage had already been done. The controversy surrounding Caitlin Clark’s absence from the Olympic roster became more than just a decision—it turned into a full-blown debate over the future of women’s basketball and who truly calls the shots.

Fast forward to May 2025, and now it’s Bird facing the heat. During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, Patrick asked, “Would you put Caitlin Clark on the Olympic team?” Bird was ready. “I knew you were going to ask this question,” she quipped before diving into her thoughts.

“I respected the committee’s job,” she said, leaning into her experience as a five-time Olympic gold medalist. “I understood the pros and cons.” Her perspective? Well, it’s tough to criticize a gold medal. “People saw the close game against France, but we’ve had close games for years. That wasn’t new,” Bird explained, reminding everyone that the balance of experience and potential is what got Team USA that eighth straight Olympic gold.

The 2024 final, a heart-stopping 67-66 victory over France, was a testament to the pressure of being on the world stage, but it’s the kind of pressure that Bird knows all too well. And when it comes to Team USA? It’s a balance of the old guard and the up-and-comers. Sometimes, that’s what it takes to win gold. With it comes pressure, yes, as Bird herself admitted after recently being appointed as the first managing director of the USA Basketball Women’s National Team. “Everybody who takes this job is in a no win (situation),” Bird told NBC News. “The pressure is always there for USA Basketball. That’s how it was when I played and that’s certainly how it is to this day.”

Translation: Bird backed the committee’s decision. While Clark’s exclusion was tough, Bird’s deep understanding of Olympic pressure and the mix of veterans and rookies spoke volumes. Securing that gold isn’t about who should be there—it’s about the right pieces fitting together. The committee’s choice wasn’t a snub—it was a strategy. 

Sue Bird: Championing Caitlin Clark’s Impact on the WNBA

However, let’s get one thing straight—Sue Bird isn’t just a retired legend making calls from the sidelines; she’s also one of Caitlin Clark’s most vocal supporters. While some veterans like Sheryl Swoopes have downplayed Clark’s rise, Bird has repeatedly underscored her impact on the WNBA.

On a recent episode of A Touch More with Megan Rapinoe, Bird didn’t hesitate to praise Clark’s stardom after her brief yet electric performance against Brazil, this preseason: “I mean, I couldn’t agree more… She knows it. And so does everybody else… The game was on ESPN. It peaked at 1.6 and she only played, like, 18 minutes. So the Caitlin Clark effect is back.”

That wasn’t a passing comment. In November of last year, on The Deal podcast, Bird had spoken about the same by stating: “Even if you look at the 2023 viewership in the WNBA Finals, it was way higher than 2022. It was starting, the fire was there, but Caitlin came, and she poured gasoline all over that thing and just took it to another level.”

She cemented that sentiment again on Good Game with Sarah Spain, when Clark had just joined the league in July by calling Clark “the one who made the change, this pivotal person,” while also acknowledging the bizarre fan backlash when Caitlin entered the league: “It was never like when LeBron came, ‘Oh, Michael Jordan didn’t matter.’ And for some reason, that happened, and it caused this whole thing.”

Bird isn’t just supporting Clark—she’s defending her place in history. Not by tearing down the past, but by recognizing a future that’s already arrived. Still, Bird wears many hats—legend, analyst, Olympic voice—and each demands clarity over sentiment. So while she champions Clark’s impact, her decisions reflect the balance her role requires.