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Kara Lawson Keeps Clark and Reese Benched in Quarters

9/10/2026

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Summary

Lawson Benches Stars

Kara Lawson kept Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese on the bench for the quarterfinals.
Team USA entered the knockout stage 3-0 and will face Hungary.
Clark averaged 6.3 assists per game, ranking third in the tournament.
Reese led with nine offensive rebounds and was second in steals (four) and blocks (three).
Lawson said she likes veteran starters and sees no need change lineup, prompting Linda Cohn to call benching disrespectful.

Summary

Reese Voted Trash-Talker

Angel Reese was voted Team USA’s “biggest trash talker” by teammates.
Aliyah Boston, Chelsea Gray, Paige Bueckers and Jackie Young all voted for Reese.
Reese and Mali forward Sika Koné, both Atlanta Dream teammates, met briefly in Berlin.
Koné averaged 16 points and 10.3 rebounds, leading Mali’s rebounding.
All twelve USA players chose coffee and wore red zip-up sweatsuits against Italy in Berlin.

History

Historical Context

In Atlanta 1996, Tara VanDerveer led the USA women’s basketball team to a 111–87 gold-medal win over Brazil, while benching several rising stars—only five of the 12-player roster logged more than 15 minutes per game. That rotation controversy sits within a program that has won eight consecutive Olympic titles and holds a 78-3 Olympic record.

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Lawson Benches Stars

Kara Lawson kept Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese on the bench for the quarterfinals.
Team USA entered the knockout stage 3-0 and will face Hungary.
Clark averaged 6.3 assists per game, ranking third in the tournament.
Reese led with nine offensive rebounds and was second in steals (four) and blocks (three).
Lawson said she likes veteran starters and sees no need change lineup, prompting Linda Cohn to call benching disrespectful.

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