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Caitlin Clark Makes Senior Team USA Debut Wearing Diana Taurasi's No. 12 Jersey

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark made her long-awaited debut for the senior U.S. women's national basketball team during FIBA Women's World Cup qualifiers, approximately two years after her omission from the Paris 2024 Olympic roster.[1][2]

Clark wore jersey No. 12, a number long associated with Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi during her international career with Team USA. The selection drew praise from Taurasi, a five-time Olympic gold medalist.[3][4]

Taurasi claimed gold medals at the Olympics in 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024, and at the FIBA Women's World Cup in 2010, 2014 and 2018.[5]

Clark, the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer during her University of Iowa career, has worn No. 22 for the Fever in her first two WNBA seasons.[6]

The U.S. team is preparing for the 2026 FIBA Women's World Cup in Berlin, Germany, scheduled for July 8-20.[7]

Sources

  1. USA Basketball, "U.S. Women’s National Team finalized for 2024 Olympics", April 5, 2024, https://www.usab.com/news/2024/04/u-s-womens-national-team-finalized-for-2024-olympics.aspx
  2. USA Basketball, "2024 U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team", July 2024, https://www.usab.com/basketball/womens/rosters/2024-usa-womens-olympic-team.aspx
  3. Olympics.com, "Diana Taurasi", accessed October 2024, https://olympics.com/en/athletes/diana-taurasi
  4. Team USA, "Diana Taurasi, USWNT five-time Olympic gold medalist", July 11, 2024, https://www.teamusa.com/news/2024/july/11/diana-taurasi-uswnt-five-time-olympic-gold-medalist
  5. FIBA.basketball, "Diana Taurasi Player Profile", accessed October 2024, https://www.fiba.basketball/en/players/41520-diana-taurasi
  6. NCAA.com, "Caitlin Clark becomes NCAA’s all-time leading scorer in women's basketball", February 21, 2024, https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-women/article/2024-02-21/caitlin-clark-becomes-ncaas-all-time-leading-scorer-basketball
  7. FIBA.basketball, "FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026", accessed October 2024, https://www.fiba.basketball/womensbasketballworldcup/2026