Kelsey Plum certainly knows high-caliber basketball talent when she sees it. The Los Angeles Sparks star is not only currently tearing up the court in Unrivaled, but she’s also preparing for international play at the FIBA World Cup with Team USA later this year.
Plum attended USA Basketball’s training camp at Duke University in December, where she got to see the top up-and-coming names in the WNBA in action up close. In a recent appearance on Candace Parker and Aliyah Boston’s podcast “Post Moves,” Plum chose to give the new faces on the team their flowers.
“I mean, [the young players] can hoop. They can hoop. It’s definitely different, though, because like my whole USA basketball experience, I was like the young buck, right? So it was weird like being at camp and being, like, where is everyone you know?” Plum said.
“But at the same time, it is cool because it just shows like United States basketball is just unbelievably talented, and I know like there’s always talk about, like, you know, the game and this and that and whatever, but I would say on the women’s side, like it’s just the talent just keeps pouring in. Like, it’s unbelievable,” she added.
The last iteration of Team USA was anchored by players like Plum, A’ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, and Breanna Stewart, among others. Now, the likes of Paige Bueckers, Caitlin Clark, and Angel Reese are getting their first chance to represent the US at the senior level, and Plum is committed to helping guide the next generation of stars to compete internationally at a high level.
“If you’ve never played FIBA or haven’t watched, you are playing a different sport. So, like, prepare your mind,” Plum said. “That’s something that you just have to be aware of, and the way you practice is, I think, super important.”