Caitlin Clark is a name any basketball fan should be familiar with. Now, curling fans also need to know who she is. No, Clark hasn’t taken up curling—although she would probably be pretty good at it if she tried—but Team USA curler Korey Dropkin invoked Caitlin Clark’s name to describe his partner’s clutch gene.
“She’s like Kobe Bryant or Caitlin Clark, just draining those shots. She’s clutch,” Dropkin said about his partner Cory Thiesse, as reported by CNN Sports’ Dana O’Neil.
The duo won silver in the mixed doubles curling after narrowly losing to Sweden. Their success marked the first time a mixed doubles team won a medal in curling for the U.S., and Thiesse is the first American woman to win any curling medal whatsoever.
For Clark, this is a fun sign of respect. Not only was she mentioned in the same sentence as Kobe Bryant—a five-time NBA champion and one of the best players to ever play the game—but this is also further proof that her stardom transcends basketball. Clark already took the golf world by storm when she played in the Annika Pro-Am. By now, Caitlin Clark isn’t a big name in women’s basketball or in women’s sports, but in the entire sports world.
Caitlin Clark should be headed to the Olympics herself soon
Caitlin Clark already represented the U.S. at international competitions at the youth level, winning gold medals at the U16 AmeriCup in 2017 and at the U19 World Cups in 2019 and 2021. In 2021, she was named the Under-19 World Cup MVP.
She has yet to make her senior national team and Olympics debut, however. Fans shouldn’t have to wait long for either. Clark was part of USA Basketball’s most recent training camp and is part of the next generation of stars to lead the team.
Given the timing of the 2026 FIBA World Cup—if the WNBA season isn’t delayed significantly, it would be right before the playoffs—Team USA may send out a rather young team, allowing older stars to rest before the most important stretch of the WNBA season. Plus, integrating young stars like Clark, Angel Reese, Aliyah Boston, and Paige Bueckers into the senior national team is a very simple way to get fans excited about any international competition.
The next Summer Olympics will take place in Los Angeles in 2028. By then, Clark will be in her fifth pro season and undoubtedly a focal point of USA Basketball. Playing for Team USA comes with a lot of pressure. The last time the women’s national team didn’t win gold at the Olympics was in 1992.