Team USA recorded another narrow win on Saturday (September 12) against Spain, 76-66, during the FIBA World Cup semi-finals. One analyst pointed out that prioritizing veterans despite having better players may be making Team USA’s journey difficult.

Recently, analyst Skip Bayless posted on X, calling out Team USA and head coach Kara Lawson for not giving WNBA star Caitlin Clark a proper opportunity to show off her skills.

“Team USA's 10-point win over Spain was closer than it needed to be. That's because Caitlin Clark, the WNBA's best player, should start, orchestrate and be featured more,” Bayless wrote on X. “But of course, Kara Lawson can't risk a mutiny of veterans. This is all so petty, so dumb, so hard to watch.”

In his September 12 X post, Bayless not only recommended that Clark join as a starter but also suggested that Lawson’s roster decisions favored veterans over more prolific scorers because she feared irking the more experienced players on the team.

Lawson was questioned about her decision to begin games with veterans despite Clark having one of her best WNBA seasons till date during a recent media availability on September 9. But the coach seemed to have faith in her starting lineup.

“Locationally, from game to game, we could change things, but I like where we are right now,” Lawson stated.

According to PFSN, Clark came off the bench in the first quarter, playing for around 5 minutes and 56 seconds in the first half of the game. Within that time, Clark recorded one point, one rebound, one assist, one steal, and two turnovers. 

She was recalled to the bench in the fourth quarter after she missed her third 3-pointer attempt, bringing her total playtime to about 17 minutes.

However, USA Today pointed out that the Indiana Fever star still held the second-best net point differential on the team. In the tournament, she has been averaging 7.1 points, 5.8 assists, and 2.4 rebounds per game. 

Bayless isn’t the only one who seems upset with the limited playing time Clark has been getting in the FIBA games. Another analyst expressed her displeasure with Lawson for limiting Clark’s scoring chances as well.

Jaime Lardis believes there’s an “agenda” against Caitlin Clark after USA vs. Spain game

In a recent X post by WNBA analyst Jaime Lardis posted on September 12, she suggested that Team USA seems to be firmly set on minimizing Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark’s impact on USA’s wins in the 2026 FIBA World Cup.

“Today’s game is clear evidence that there’s an agenda being pushed with Caitlin Clark. Why the hell is she barely playing? She’s been one of the best players on this team. At this point, it feels like they’re doing everything they can to limit her impact and make her look bad,” Lardis wrote on X.

Clark began the tournament with her usual flair, scoring 14 points and 11 assists against China during the first of USA’s three group stage games.

But her performance seems to have declined since then, which Bayless and Lardis attributed to the limited playing time she got coming off the bench.

With the USA set to play against France in the finals, many analysts believe Clark maybe crucial to the team winning the 2026 FIBA World Cup.

Per The Guardian, the matchup is a repeat of the 2024 Olympics game, where the American team saw a mere 1-point win over the French team at 67-66.

Written by

Arundhoti Palit