Clark, Bueckers Headline USA Basketball World Cup Roster
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- USA Basketball announced a 12-player roster for the FIBA World Cup in Germany (Sept. 4-13), with Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers, Angel Reese and Aliyah Boston making their first senior-team appearances at a major international competition.
- A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart headline the veteran core, combining for six WNBA MVPs and each owning both World Cup and Olympic MVP honors; five players — Wilson, Stewart, Plum, Gray and Copper — return from the 2022 World Cup squad.
- Kelsey Plum and Napheesa Collier made the roster despite missing most of the WNBA season — Plum has played 14 games with lower-leg injuries and returned Sunday, while Collier had two offseason ankle surgeries before her late-July debut.
- Eight roster members helped the U.S. go 5-0 at the March FIBA qualifying tournament, where Clark was named MVP; Boston, Bueckers, Clark and Rhyne Howard had previously won gold at FIBA junior events.
- It's only the second major international competition for USA Basketball without Sue Bird or Diana Taurasi since the 2000 Olympics; the team is coached by Kara Lawson with assistants Natalie Nakase, Nate Tibbetts and Stephanie White.
- Group play opponents are China (Sept. 4), Italy (Sept. 6) and Czechia (Sept. 7); the WNBA season will pause Aug. 31-Sept. 16 for the tournament.
Why it matters: The U.S. chases its 12th gold and fifth straight as the post-Bird/Taurasi era officially begins — only the second major competition without either legend since 2000. Plum and Collier earning roster spots despite playing just 14 games and missing nearly all of the season respectively shows the depth advantage the U.S. holds over the field.
