The 2024 WNBA season is on pause, but there will be no shortage of meaningful basketball over the next three weeks as the U.S. Olympic women's basketball team looks to extend one of the most impressive dynasties in sports.
Team USA tips off the 2024 Paris Games on Monday (3 p.m. ET) in its quest for a 10th overall and eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal. The Americans open against Japan in their first group stage game.
Six-time Olympian Diana Taurasi and two-time WNBA MVPs A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart headline the 12-player roster. Team USA lost 117-109 to Team WNBA in the WNBA All-Star Game on July 20, but rebounded Tuesday with a 27-point victory over future group phase opponent Germany in an exhibition in London.
Our guide catches you up on everything to know about the U.S. women, the biggest challengers on their path to another gold, all the WNBA players competing in Paris and a quick look at the U.S. women's 3x3 team.
What is the schedule and format?
Twelve teams will compete in Olympic 5x5 women's basketball: Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Nigeria, Serbia, Spain, United States and Puerto Rico. The teams are divided into three groups of four, with members of each group facing one another once in group play. The United States is in Group C with Belgium, Germany and Japan and will play those matchups in Lille, France.
The top two teams in each group, plus the two best third-place squads, advance to the knockout rounds, which will take place in Paris.
Team USA's schedule:
Monday: vs. Japan, 3 p.m. ET (group phase)
Thursday: vs. Belgium, 3 p.m. ET (group phase)
Sunday: vs. Germany, 11:15 a.m. ET (group phase)
Aug. 7: Quarterfinals
Aug. 9: Semifinals
Aug. 11: Bronze and gold medal games
Are the U.S. women the favorite? Should their All-Star Game loss be cause for concern?
Yes, the U.S. should be the favorite, and no, there should be no concern. Look at what happened three years ago, when the Tokyo-bound Olympic team lost to Team WNBA in the 2021 All-Star Game before ultimately winning gold. And, as Olympic coach Cheryl Reeve quipped after this year's All-Star matchup, the United States won't face Arike Ogunbowale (who went off for 34 points) in Paris -- or, frankly, any player as explosive as the Dallas Wings guard.
USA Basketball's largest hurdle tends to be a lack of time together to build familiarity and chemistry. In 2024, the national team held or participated in three events before the Olympic roster was determined in June: a February minicamp, the Olympic qualifying tournament that month in Belgium and then a training camp at the Final Four in April.
But finding ways to jell quickly, compartmentalize their WNBA duties with their Team USA responsibilities and embrace new roles is a USA Basketball specialty, something this experienced group of players knows well. That's not to say it's easy; it's part of the reason players such as Stewart and Wilson expressed relief that they finally made it through All-Star festivities and could focus on their push for a gold medal.
Several U.S. players got banged up toward the end of the WNBA season, but there don't appear to be any significant injury concerns. Brittney Griner sat out the Germany exhibition (rest). Napheesa Collier, who missed most of July for the Minnesota Lynx with plantar fasciitis, barely saw the court in the All-Star Game but played 21 minutes against Germany. It's worth monitoring how Chelsea Gray (16 minutes versus Germany) fares as she continues to make her way back from a 2023 foot injury that sidelined her until late June.
What's at stake?
Plenty of history.
The U.S. women haven't lost in the Olympics since 1992 and boast a 55-game winning streak in the Summer Games dating to the bronze medal match in Barcelona. Their overall Olympic record: 72-3. Team USA has only dropped one game in a major international competition since 1992: in the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup. If the program takes care of business in Paris, an eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal will be the longest such streak in a ball-and-stick sport.
The stretch began with the 1996 national team's gold medal run, which followed its 60-0 world tour in the year leading up to the Atlanta Games. The team's success and popularity helped launch the WNBA in 1997.
USA Basketball players and coaches across various Olympic cycles haven't shied away from acknowledging the pressure that comes with both wearing USA across their chests and carrying the legacy of the program and its dominance spanning nearly three decades.
But players embrace the enormous standard of excellence.
"We're going for No. 8," Collier said this week. "No one wants to be the one to break that streak."
What's distinctive about this U.S. team?
The national team is in the midst of a changing of the guard: Longtime USA Basketball stalwarts Sue Bird (a five-time Olympian), Sylvia Fowles and Tina Charles are no longer on the team. Only Taurasi, whose Olympic debut came at the 2004 Athens Games, remains from the "old guard," and she has said this will be her final Olympics. Even Reeve, the four-time championship coach of the Lynx and a longtime assistant for USA Basketball, is new as head coach of the national team, taking over for Dawn Staley following the Tokyo Games.
But the team doesn't lack experience. For the second time in program history, every member of the 2024 Olympic team has won an Olympic or World Cup gold. And there are no better players in the world than Stewart and Wilson to serve as the pillars of this U.S. squad. Gray, Collier and Jewell Loyd are among the Olympic returners, as well as Griner, who is traveling abroad for the first time since her 10-month Russian detainment in 2022.
Sabrina Ionescu, Alyssa Thomas and Kahleah Copper are Olympic newcomers, but were on the United States squad at the 2022 World Cup. Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young are 5x5 Olympic newbies, but competed in 3x3 at the Tokyo Games and won the event's inaugural gold medal.
This year's Olympic team has more dynamism, more versatility, a higher defensive ceiling and more youth than the Tokyo group (seven players are under 30 and all but Taurasi and Griner under 33).
Which countries are Team USA's biggest challengers?
The U.S. women are widely considered the favorite, with the biggest collection of talent in the world. But that doesn't mean they'll coast to gold. USA Basketball personnel often talk about the gap between the United States and the rest of the world closing, which was evident in its run in Tokyo, where three games were decided by 15 or fewer points. (Note that 11 of the 12 teams from that Olympics are competing in Paris.) And consider, too: It took a Stewart last-ditch tip-in to defeat Belgium in the Olympic qualifying tournament in February.
While the United States doesn't have the benefit of time on its side, its opponents tend to have extensive experience playing together for months if not years leading into the Olympics, a chemistry and cohesion that is often on display in these settings.
What does that mean for Paris? Nothing is guaranteed.
A closer look at the United States' group phase opponents:
Belgium: The 2023 EuroBasket victors await the United States in group play, although the team suffered a massive blow with the late scratch of point guard Julie Allemand due to injury. Still, with Emma Meesseman, the 2019 WNBA Finals MVP, and Washington Mystics guard Julie Vanloo leading the way, this team can cause problems.
Japan: This team enamored viewers three years ago with its silver medal finish at the Tokyo Games -- the only time the county has medaled in a World Cup or Olympics since the 1970s -- as well as its fun offensive style of play predicated on movement, pace and shooting.
Elsewhere in the field:
Australia: The Opals boast six current WNBA players (it would have been seven had the Phoenix Mercury's Bec Allen not withdrawn due to injury), plus basketball legend Lauren Jackson, who after a six-year retirement is appearing in her fifth Olympics. The Opals won bronze at the 2022 World Cup and are hoping to garner their first Olympic medal since 2012, Jackson's last appearance in the Games (note: The three-time WNBA MVP has never finished worse than the bronze in the Olympics).
China: This team has mainly the same roster -- headlined by 6-foot-7 Li Yueru of the Los Angeles Sparks and 6-9 Han Xu (formerly of the New York Liberty) -- that took home silver at the 2022 World Cup and gave Team USA its toughest test with a group stage game decided by 14 points. Li Meng is a player to watch with her standout playmaking; she had 13 points and 11 assists in China's first game Monday.
France: The French have podiumed two of the past three Olympics and should enjoy a home advantage. WNBA fans will be familiar with several of their key players in Gabby Williams (most recently of the Seattle Storm), Marine Johannes (Liberty) and Iliana Rupert (Atlanta Dream). It's unclear how much playing time 18-year-old Dominique Malonga will see, but she's an intriguing WNBA prospect who will be eligible for the 2025 draft.
Canada: Hoping to build upon its fourth-place finish at the 2022 World Cup, Canada will look to do so with a slew of younger performers, including WNBA players Aaliyah Edwards (Mystics) and Laeticia Amihere (Dream), college standouts Yvonne Ejim (Gonzaga) and Cassandre Prosper (Notre Dame) and incoming Michigan freshman Syla Swords.
Spain: This team established itself as one to watch on Day 1 of competition, beating China 90-89 in overtime in Group A, led by Megan Gustafson's 29 points and 8 rebounds to go along with 25 points and a shot to force overtime from Leonor Rodriguez.
What to know about 3x3 basketball and the United States team
The sport debuted at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where the U.S. women -- Plum, Young, Stefanie Dolson and Allisha Gray -- won the inaugural gold.
Team USA's roster for Paris features Cierra Burdick, Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard and Hailey Van Lith and is coached by Jennifer Rizzotti. Hamby was a late addition, replacing Cameron Brink after she tore an ACL in mid-June during her rookie WNBA season. The 3x3 Olympic schedule runs from Tuesday through Aug. 5.
The sport will be played in an open-air arena at Place de la Concorde in Paris. The contests are also known for being super fast-paced: Games are 10 minutes and have a 12-second shot clock. Play is continuous and conducted on a half court.
The winner is determined by the first team to score 21 points (there are 1-point field goals and 2-point shots from behind the arc), or whichever side is ahead when time expires.
The eight teams in the field -- Australia, Azerbaijan, Canada, China, France, Germany, Spain and the United States -- all play each other in a round-robin style in pool play. The top two teams advance to the semifinals, while the third- through sixth-place squads compete in a play-in round, with those winners also moving on. The victors of those games face off in the gold medal match.
Team USA's 3x3 schedule:
Tuesday: vs. Germany, 11:30 a.m. ET (pool play)
Wednesday: vs. Azerbaijan, 3:30 p.m. ET (pool play)
Thursday: vs. Australia, 7 a.m. ET (pool play)
Thursday: vs. Spain, 3:30 p.m. ET (pool play)
Friday: vs. France, 7 a.m. ET (pool play); vs. Canada, noon ET (pool play)
Saturday: vs. China, 1:05 p.m. ET (pool play)
Aug. 5: Semifinals, bronze and gold medal games
What other active WNBA players are competing in the Olympics?
Australia: Ezi Magbegor (Storm), Alanna Smith (Lynx), Jade Melbourne (Mystics), Stephanie Talbot (Sparks), Sami Whitcomb (Storm), Kristy Wallace (Indiana Fever)
Canada: Bridget Carleton (Lynx), Kia Nurse (Sparks)
Germany: Satou Sabally (Wings), Nyara Sabally (Liberty), Leonie Fiebich (Liberty)
Azerbaijan 3x3: Tiffany Hayes (Las Vegas Aces)