Cameron Brink, Cierra Burdick, Rhyne Howard and Hailey Van Lith have been selected as the four players to defend the gold medal for the United States in 3×3 women’s basketball at the Paris Games this summer. Jennifer Rizzotti, Connecticut Sun president and former college coach, will be the head coach, as previously announced.

The women’s 3×3 national team committee — 3×3 National Teams Director Jay Demings, former college basketball coach and assistant national team coach Carolyn Peck and two-time Olympian and four-time WNBA champion Lindsay Whalen — selected the four-member team.

“I say this all the time but there is no greater privilege than to represent the USA at the Olympics,” Rizzotti said in the press release. “We understand that challenge in front of us as we face tremendous talent and experienced 3×3 teams. I am confident this roster gives us what we need to compete for another gold medal with experience, versatility and a commitment to USA Basketball excellence. I cannot wait to get started.”

Brink (Los Angeles Sparks) and Howard (Atlanta Dream) are currently WNBA players while Burdick is a former WNBA player and Van Lith will be a fifth-year collegiate player using her COVID season at TCU this upcoming year. Brink, Burdick and Van Lith were a part of the team that won gold at the FIBA World Cup in Austria last summer.

The seven other countries that qualified on the women’s side are France, China, Spain, Azerbaijan, Australia, Germany and Canada.

The sport appeared for the first time as an Olympic sport during the 2020 Games after gaining steam worldwide as an electric, fast-paced game. It’s played outdoors on a halfcourt and the winner is determined by whichever team is ahead after 10 minutes of play or the first team to 21 points (3-pointers count as two points, everything else counts as one).

In Paris, the 3×3 court will be set up in La Concorde alongside BMX freestyle, breaking and skateboarding.

How big of a challenge will it be to guard Team USA?

Three of the four players went 7-1 last summer in Austria at the FIBA World Cup, so I already like the level of cohesion coming in with Brink, Burdick and Van Lith. To add Howard — a dynamic scorer and strong rebounder from the guard spot (particularly important because of the double value of 3-pointers in 3×3) — feels like a huge win in terms of this group’s potential.

I particularly like the pick-and-roll potential with Brink having established herself as a 3-point shooter defenders have to respect. Opponents will need to make strategic decisions because sagging off Brink on high ball screens will absolutely open up a pick-and-pop situation where Brink (a 39 percent 3-point shooter) can do major damage.

What opponents cause the biggest threats to Team USA’s repeat bid?

Last summer at the FIBA World Cup, Team USA dropped just one game — to Canada. Team USA went particularly cold from range that game with Van Lith and Linnae Harper (who was the fourth member of the World Cup squad) going 1-of-8 from behind the arc. Brink was also held to just one point on 25 percent shooting. That was also Team USA’s first game of the World Cup, so you need to account a bit for the chemistry gained during games and shaking off any rust that might’ve accumulated from the last time those players had played.

France is another team that could challenge the U.S. At the World Cup, Team USA faced the French in the finals and were held to a low offensive efficiency as the French turned Team USA over 12 times and held the team to no 2-pointers, matching Team USA’s lowest-scoring mark of the tournament at 16 points (which Team USA scored in the loss to Canada). Team USA managed to hold on for the win due to their excellent rebounding (a 24-11 margin) and their aggressiveness in getting to the free-throw line, where they scored the majority (nine) of their points.

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