Team USA women's basketball narrowly defeated France on Sunday to clinch a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics. The USA women's team earned a 67-66 victory in an overall thrilling game. A'ja Wilson led the way once again, recording 21 points. Wilson and Breanna Stewart were excellent throughout the Olympics. However, the Olympics arguably benefited Jackie Young the most of any player on the roster.
Young, a three-time All-Star, sometimes does not receive as much attention as her Las Vegas Aces teammates A'ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum. True WNBA fans know how talented she is, but she saw an immense boost in her popularity with her performance at the Olympic Games.
Young only scored two points in the gold medal game. She averaged 9.5 points per game throughout the Olympics, however. Young scored 14 or more points on three separate occasions. In fact, she even replaced Diana Taurasi in Team USA's starting lineup.
Jackie Young is a superstar
Young has played for the Aces since 2019. She was selected to her first WNBA All-Star team in 2022. Additionally, she was selected as the league's Most Improved Player that season. In 2023, Young finished ninth in MVP voting and was selected to her second All-Star game. She is averaging a career-high 18.5 points per outing so far in 2024, and she made her third consecutive All-Star appearance.
At 26 years old, Young is proving to be more than a quality third or fourth player. Young has displayed the ability to lead a team. It is going to be difficult for anyone to look past her production now, even while playing alongside Wilson and Plum.
Her performance at the Olympics is only going to help her moving forward. Young should be proud of everything she accomplished in Paris, and there is no question her basketball future is extremely bright.