Smith also made a bold claim regarding the fight for the WNBA Rookie of the Year title

STEPHEN A. Smith has ripped into Team USA for leaving two high-profile WNBA rookies out of their women’s basketball lineup.

The First Take host’s rant prompted huge applause from fans as they hosted the popular ESPN sports talk show live from the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago on Friday.

Sign up for the Sport newsletter

Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy

Stephen A. Smith drew a round of applause from the audience during Friday’s First Take after heaping praise on WNBA rookie Angel ReeseCredit: ESPN

Smith also called out Team USA for not selecting either Caitlin Clark (left) or Reese (right) for the OlympicsCredit: Reuters

Smith said he felt Reese ‘may be Rookie of the Year’Credit: Getty
Joined on stage by co-host Molly Qerim and guest Chance The Rapper, Smith took a tangent from discussing the growth of women’s basketball to call out the US Olympic team.

“Marketability matters. Whether it was Caitlin Clark or Angel Reese now, I’m watching Team USA in the Olympics and it didn’t escape me that Puerto Rico and China or whoever else was playing was drawing over 20,000 but Team USA drew about 13,000,” Smith said.

“I said to myself, ‘Yo, that wouldn’t be the case if Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese were on Team USA.

“‘I bet you they would have had over 20,000 people in attendance.'”

The game in question was the US group’s opening win against Japan on July 29.

Their 102-76 win attracted 13,040 fans, which, through two rounds of group games, remains the lowest-attended game in the event so far.

On the plus side for the US, their second group game, an 87-74 win against Belgium on August 1, drew a crowd of 25,044.

Smith later added to his argument, specifically regarding Chicago Sky forward and All-Star Reese.

“Angel Reese, she may be Rookie of the Year, she’s special,” he said, prompting a round of applause from the audience.

Smith went on to call Reese “a walking double-double,” before returning to his earlier argument.

‘It’s a set-up’ Molly Qerim tells Monica McNutt as she argues with Stephen A. Smith over USA Olympic basketball team
“Da***t stop apologizing, marketability matters,” he reiterated.

“And if you can have that girl on the team, make sure you do it, because that’s going to elevate the popularity of the sport and a rising tide lifts all boats.

“We’ve got to stop all that PC stuff. The girl should be on Team USA.”

Recently, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley, who was a part of the committee that selected the players for Team USA, appeared to second guess the decision not to select Indiana Fever All-Star Clark.

“As a committee member, you’re charged with putting together the best team,” Staley told NBC.

How to watch the Olympics in the US

All recommendations within this article are informed by expert editorial opinion. If you click on a link in this story we may earn affiliate revenue.

While you may feel very far from the 2024 Paris Olympics, you can stay up-to-date with all of the action right from the comfort of your sofa.

You can watch on:

Peacock
Sling

Or if you’re not able to watch, you can follow along with The Sun’s live blog for the latest updates from France.

“Caitlin is just a rookie in the WNBA. She wasn’t playing bad, but she wasn’t playing like she’s playing now.

“If we had to do it all over again, the way she’s playing, she’d be in really high consideration of making the team.”

As for Reese, in July, Staley revealed that the Sky star was her favorite to win WNBA Rookie of the Year.

“At this time… Today, it’s Angel. Without a doubt,” she told TMZ.

However, Staley admitted that its a close race between Reese and Clark, adding that she felt “Caitlin is coming.”