Caitlin Clark, USA Basketball Women’s National Team coming to Durham
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- USA Basketball holds closed evaluation camp at Duke to prep for 2026 World Cup.
- Kara Lawson and Sue Bird lead talent review and roster decisions through 2028.
- Camp gathers veterans and ten first-time senior campers, signaling generational shift.
You better watch out... Caitlin Clark is coming to town. And Paige Bueckers. And Angel Reese.
Some of the biggest names in women’s basketball are in the Triangle this weekend. But unless you have an invite from USA Basketball, you won’t be catching a glimpse.
The USA Basketball Women’s National Team is holding a closed training camp at Duke University from Dec. 12–14, bringing 17 of the sport’s brightest stars to Durham as preparations ramp up for the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup in Berlin.
While the practices are not open to the public, the roster reads like a who’s who of the present and, largely, future of the game — a rare concentration of talent in one place.
Why they’re here
This is the first national team camp overseen by Kara Lawson, Duke’s own women’s basketball coach who was appointed to lead Team USA through 2028. It’s also the first evaluation camp for managing director Sue Bird, the four-time Olympic gold medalist now responsible for assembling the next World Cup and Olympic rosters.
The three-day session is designed to evaluate players in a controlled environment. It’s part of a long process that will eventually lead to selecting the 2026 World Cup team and, further down the line, the highly anticipated 2028 Olympic roster for the Los Angeles games.
Who’s in town
The mix of players training on Duke’s campus includes established Olympic champions, rising WNBA stars, and some of the most talked-about young players in the sport.
There are five Olympic gold medalists back from the team that competed in Paris: Kahleah Copper, Chelsea Gray (a Duke alum!), Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young and Brittney Griner. There are also some major veterans participating: Dearica Hamby (2024 3x3 Olympic bronze), Brionna Jones (2022 World Cup gold).
And then there’s the youth movement. 10 players are making their first senior national team camp appearance, including some of the biggest names in the sport: Clark, Reese, Bueckers, Cameron Brink, Lauren Betts, JuJu Watkins, Sonia Citron, Rickea Jackson, Veronica Burton and Kiki Iriafen. Notably, Betts is still in-season with UCLA and Watkins is sidelined with an ACL injury, though both are listed as part of the roster.
Boston, who has represented the USA in various junior and senior competitions and camps, is also expected in Durham.
Why this matters
This camp marks the beginning of a generational handoff for USA Basketball.
With Bird and Lawson leading the program, the next two years will shape how Team USA looks for the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, a home-soil stage expected to be one of the biggest moments in women’s basketball history — much like the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Between the decorated veterans and the unprecedented wave of young stars — who are helping driving record WNBA attendance and TV numbers — the competition for a limited number of national team spots is as fierce as it’s ever been.
But again: no, you can’t go
All training sessions at Duke this weekend are closed to the public, standard practice for USA Basketball camps. Still, for local fans, knowing many of the sport’s most influential players — from Olympic champions to the faces of a new generation — are just up the road is noteworthy on its own.
And when Team USA takes the court in Berlin next September, or in Los Angeles in 2028, you’ll be able to say some of their journey started down the road here in Durham.