The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
A shot for history
Taurasi, Bird hope to earn record fifth gold
With a no-look pass in the open court to Breanna Stewart for a streaking layup early in Team USA’s semifinal Friday against Serbia, Diana Taurasi added a flashy Tokyo moment to an Olympic highlight reel built over 17 years.
About an hour later, midway through the third quarter of the American’s 79-59 victory, Taurasi collided with one Serbian player while chasing another, grabbed her left hip, grimaced and limped off the court. She did not return.
“She'll be ready to rock and roll on Sunday morning,” coach Dawn Staley said.
One more time, for history. Taurasi and Sue Bird — UConn teammates in the early 2000s, friends for more than half their lives, national team teammates for nearly as long — will represent their country at the Olympics together for the final time as Team USA plays host Japan in the gold medal game at Saitama Super Arena.
The game tips off at 10:30 p.m. Saturday, EST — 11:30 a.m. Sunday in Japan.
Bird and Taurasi are looking to win their fifth gold medal and the team its seventh in row, more entries into an Olympic record book shaped by wave after wave of UConn players. This year’s team features five, including Tina Charles (third Olympics), Breanna Stewart (second) and Napheesa Collier (first).
The starters in the backcourt — combined age, 79 — have been doing this since their Athens 2004 debut on a team for which Staley was a prominent player. Taurasi,
39, and Bird, 40, also won gold in 2008 Beijing, 2012 London and 2016 Rio de Janeiro, the latter two with UConn's Geno Auriemma as Team USA coach.
Now just 40 minutes of basketball remain for them on this stage. Bird has officially announced this will be her final Olympics. Taurasi has not, but all signs have indicated that she’ll also retire from the national team — and she was quoted as yelling “Last dance, baby!” after the semifinal victory.
“We're all aware of it,” Stewart said. “What Sue and D have done for USA Basketball is extremely special. The fact that they're going for five straight golds is insane. And I think for the rest of us as players, we want to make sure that we put them in the best possible position to get that gold.”
Yes, the work of Taurasi and Bird is nearly done here, the concrete nearly dried on their gigantic sneaker print. Like a Taurasi pass to Stewart in transition, the gold medal game is the passing of a baton to the next wave.
The United States, led by Stewart, A’Ja Wilson and Brittney Griner, is stacked up front for at least another two Olympics to come, but the backcourt will have to reinvent itself in the absence of Bird and Taurasi.
Their longevity as the leaders there throughout the years, the fact that they’re still starters, is a credit to their basketball brilliance, of course. It’s also a sign that the group to follow them hasn’t quite developed in keeping up with the speed the national team program is accustomed to. One of the 2024 Team USA players for the Olympics in Paris is probably on the current UConn roster — Paige Bueckers.
The preparation for the 2020/2021 American rendition wasn’t perfect and the journey to this gold medal game was, as Staley said, initially “rocky.” Team USA lost an exhibition to a team of WNBA All-Stars. Then it lost another exhibition to Australia.
“You have the naysayers saying this or that,” Staley said. “And you just kind of have to turn a deaf ear to that, because it's a process for the 12-member roster. I don't know if we didn't drop those two games early, if we would be where we are today, because of thinking we are just that much superior than everyone else. So it's good to have seen this team progress each and every game.”
Still, a Silver has been clinched, same final destination reached. The Taurasi-Bird finale will be followed by a medal ceremony. A gold is probable, the American national anthem likely to be played.
“Since we've entered the knockout rounds, we've come to each game with a little more focus,” Bird said. “You're seeing the results. As usual with USA Basketball, when we come together, we just try to get on a path where we're just getting better and better every day along the journey. And so I still think there's another level that we can get to, and I hope that's what happens [against Japan].”
Bird and Taurasi are tied with Teresa Edwards for gold medals (four in 198400) and Olympic appearances, and they are just two of eight five-time Olympians in basketball.
Juan Carlos Navarro of Spain (two silvers and bronze in 2000-2016), Adriana Moises Pinto of Brazil (a bronze in 2000-2016), Andrew Gaze of Australia (1984-2000), Oscar Schmidt of Brazil (1980-1996) and Teofilo Cruz of Puerto Rico (1960-1976) have also appeared in five Olympics.
Only four Olympians have won five or more golds in the same event: Aladar Gerevich, Hungary, fencing (1932-60); Isabell Werth, Germany, equestrian (19922012); Pal Kovacs, Hungary, fencing, (1936-60); Reiner Klimke, Germany/West Germany, equestrian (196488).
Team USA won three pool games (Nigeria, Japan, France) before defeating Australia in the quarterfinals behind the dominance of Stewart, playing out of position at small forward most of the tournament as Staley went with A’Ja Wilson and Brittney Griner down low. Against Serbia, guard Chelsea Gray had 14 points and Stewart 12.
Taurasi played 12 minutes and had four assists but didn’t score. Bird played 25 minutes and had eight points and four assists.
They are on their way out, so these Olympics have a touch of sentimentality for two of the greatest contributors to the nation’s basketball program — and to an entire sport.
“I think they're doing a great job keeping everything in check, because the main thing is winning the gold medal,” Staley said. “I know they want to win their fifth, and we want to help them win their fifth. And I think the cool thing about it is, we're treating it like any other Olympic Games, where we take one game at a time, celebrate our wins and turn the page and look forward to the next time that we compete. But I know it's going to be pretty special … that moment of actually winning their fifth gold medal and our seventh straight gold medal.”