Caitlin Clark’s high school coach recalls the last time she wasn’t on Team USA’s roster: ‘Driven to get better’

Caitlin Clark will not be in Paris to represent the United States in women’s basketball, sparking heated debate after USA Basketball announced its 12-woman roster.

But despite all the controversy, Kristin Meyer, Clark’s high school basketball coach, texted her to remind the WNBA phenom that this wasn’t the first time she’d been left off the U.S. roster despite applying.

Yahoo Sports spoke with Meyer, who watched high school sophomore Clark try out for the U.S. U-17 World Cup in 2018. She was expected to make the team after helping them qualify for the tournament in the summer of 2017.

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Meyer said Clark performed well during the selection trials, but she was not selected for the U-17 squad.

“She broke her pinky early on in the tryouts, but I don’t think that was necessarily the deciding factor,” Meyer told Yahoo Sports. “There were just a couple of players that I think the committee felt played better.”

Clark was the highest-rated prospect who played for the U-16 team the previous summer and was not in the U-17 squad.

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So instead of wearing the “USA” slogan on her jersey in Belarus, alongside players like Paige Bueckers, Indiana Fever teammate Aliyah Boston and others, Clark had to return home to Des Moines, Iowa, to do the only thing she could: work on her game.

Meyer said Clark had a “solid attitude” in the gym.

“She really wanted to get better.”

Clark’s skills continued to improve. Meyer reported that she was able to make better decisions and that her body language improved when things didn’t go her way.

Fast-forward to the next year, Clark was invited to try out for the U-19 World Championship team that would be traveling to Bangkok in the summer. At just 17 years old at the time, she was one of the youngest on the field to try out.

With her play improving, Clark made the team. Two years later, she was invited back to the U-19 World Championships team, this time after her freshman season at Iowa, where she averaged 26.6 points per game as her stardom grew.

Team USA won gold at the World Championships, never losing a game in their seven matches and scoring a team-high 14.3 points per game.

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So, what did Meyer say this time around when Clark didn’t make the Olympic team? While she didn’t literally hype it up, she told Yahoo Sports that she encouraged her former pupil to use the same mindset she had years ago when the same thing happened.

“When adversity hits, you either fall apart and feel sorry for yourself or it makes you dig a little bit deeper,” Meyer said. “Those things that really hurt you and disappoint you to your core have helped her in the past to get to the next level in her game, in her attitude, in her preparation and in her work ethic.”

Clark’s current coach, Indiana Fever head Christie Sides, recalls her superstar saying they “woke up a monster” after learning USA Basketball had decided to deselect her.

Since then, Clark has made WNBA history with the first triple-double by a rookie in league history and broke the record for assists in a single game with 19 in her final game before the All-Star Game/Olympics.

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USA Basketball selection committee chair Jen Rizzotti told the Associated Press that the criteria for selecting the team that went to Paris included experience.

“If you base your decision on criteria, there were other players that were harder to cut because they ticked a lot more boxes,” Rizzotti said. “Sometimes it comes down to position, style of play for (head coach) Cheryl (Reeve) and sometimes it’s a mood.”

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