USA Olympic Women's Basketball Team: Ranking Most Skilled Players

The United States women's basketball team is the preeminent force on the world stage and has an abundance of skill and talent.

Comparing Team USA members to players from other countries is not fair, so they must be judged against each other.

This list will rank the team's most skilled players. The players who can shoot, pass and dribble at the highest level will receive the top spots. 

Here are the seven players with the most skill on Team USA.

7. Tamika Catchings

Height: 6'1"

Age: 33

WNBA Team: Indiana Fever

Tamika Catchings is a savvy veteran forward who can score in a variety of ways.

She can score from the low block and has no problem beating her defender off the dribble and scoring at the rim.

Last season, she averaged 15.5 points and 3.5 assists. She is one of the greatest women's basketball players ever, and her skills have helped her become that.

However, her contributions to the team come on defense and the boards, whereas other players are valuable because their shooting and ball-handling.

6. Swin Cash

Height: 6'1"

Age: 32

WNBA Team: Chicago Sky

Swin Cash is another player who can score from anywhere on the court.

She can dominate in the paint or score on the perimeter, and that has led to two All-Star Game MVP awards and three WNBA championships during her exceptional career.

Cash will give Team USA an offensive boost with her versatility and experience.

She is a fantastic scorer, but there are several other players on the team who are more skilled.

5. Lindsay Whalen

Height: 5'9"

Age: 30

WNBA Team: Minnesota Lynx

Whalen is a world-class floor general who led the WNBA with 5.9 assists per game in 2011.

She is an incredible dribbler who sees every inch of the court and can fuel an offense with her unselfish play.

She also shot 51.1 percent from the field and 40.5 percent from behind the three-point line last season, giving her a well-rounded skill set.

Whalen is a magician with the ball in her hands, and only a few players in the world are more skilled than she is. Unfortunately for her spot on the list, several of them are on her team.

4. Sue Bird

Height: 5'9"

Age: 31

WNBA Team: Seattle Storm

Sue Bird can pick a team apart by scoring or passing.

She averaged 14.7 points and 4.9 assists last season, while hitting 42.8 percent of her three-point shots.

Bird is deadly in pick-and-roll situations, always hitting the player cutting to the basket if she doesn't score herself.

Her scoring, passing and dribbling skills make her an elite player, but three other stars are simply a cut above everyone else.

3. Maya Moore

Height: 6'0"

Age: 23

WNBA Team: Minnesota Lynx

Few players in the world are as dangerous with the ball in their hands. 

Maya Moore was the WNBA Rookie of the Year this past season, and the four-time First Team All-American was one of the most dominant college players in history.

She can shoot and pass, in addition to having electrifying dribbling skills.

Moore averaged 13.2 points and 2.6 assists in her rookie season. Her talent is undeniable, and she has the ability to take over any game.

2. Candace Parker

Height: 6'4"

Age: 26

WNBA Team: Los Angeles Sparks

Candace Parker is the only player on Team USA to be listed a guard, forward and center.

There is no player like her in women's basketball. She can play any position and do anything with the ball in her hands.

She is a dominant post player but also has incredible handles and an astonishing array of scoring moves.

Parker is a unique talent, and her skill set makes her an unstoppable force on the basketball court. 

1. Diana Taurasi

Height: 6'0"

Age: 30

WNBA Team: Phoenix Mercury

Diana Taurasi simply sets the mark for skill among women's basketball players.

She makes absurdly difficult shots in the lane with regularity, routinely dishes out spectacular passes and can always be counted on to sink a clutch shot.

Taurasi averaged 21.6 points per game last year. She has been honored with a All-WNBA First Team selection five times in her career.

There is an insane amount of skill on Team USA, but Taurasi is capable of doing things with a basketball that no other player can.