May 12, 2025 • 32 mins
The 2025 WNBA season officially tips off this Friday and our team-by-team previews continue with Sarah’s squad, the Chicago Sky, and producer Misha’s team, the Washington Mystics. Plus, a scary moment in the NWSL, a record-breaking PWHL playoff game, and America's biggest bully takes a giant L.
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Want live scores for ALL of your teams? Check out Flash Score here
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Check out the Athletic’s story about the decision to continue the ACFC-Utah game following Savy King’s collapse here
- Watch the PWHL's explainer on Curl-Salemme's suspension here
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Read Alyssa Turner’s column on Britta Curl-Salemme’s one-game suspension here
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The NCAA softball bracket can be found here
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And the full NCAA softball tournament schedule can be found here
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The full PWHL playoff schedule is here
- Watch the video of Skylar Diggins caught talking about her lady parts on a hot mic here
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Read more about Atlanta Dream’s possible arena plans here
- Check out S
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we're cleaning
bird shit out of our eye and remembering well, life
comes at you fast. It's Monday, May twelfth, and truly
shout out to that bird yesterday that shipped directly into
my eyeball. That's got to be double the good luck. No.
On today's show, we'll be continuing with the shoot around
our team by team WNBA season preview, getting you slices
(00:22):
ready for tip off with all the stars, steaks, stats
and stories, a little history, a little lore, a little gossip,
and a little more. Today we're info dumping on my
Chicago Sky and producer Mish's Washington Mystics. So break out
your note, Pats. It's all coming up right after this
(00:52):
Welcome back, Happy Monday. Before we get to the Sky
and the Mystics, here's what you need to know today.
Let's start with the end and the game. I told
y'all I was out in La to attend last week
Angel City FC versus the Utah Royals, and let's talk
about the good stuff. First, legendary forward Kristin Press scored
less than thirty seconds after subbing into the second half,
(01:14):
her first goal at home at Bemo Stadium since tearing
her ACL in June twenty twenty two, and it was
in absolute bete. She juked a defender in the box
and then put the perfect lefty touch on it to
curl it up and in over Royals keeper Mandy McGlynn.
Angel City went on to win the game two nothing
thanks to a goal by Alyssa Thompson in the ninety
(01:34):
seventh minute, her fourth on the season that ties are
for third most in the league. The game, like most
ACFC games, was an incredible game day experience full of celebs,
including New Los Angeles resident Kelsey Plumb and her La
Sparks teammate Deerica hamby John Lovett from the Crooked Media Pods,
one of my favors, in particular Pod Save America, Friend
(01:54):
of the Show, comedian Aaron Foley, team owner Lily Singh,
and Will Ferrell, who I got to chat with and
thank for the very meaningful and very powerful doc Will
and Harper. I also thanked him for as less meaningful
and less powerful but always entertaining Harry Carey impression. I'm
a Cubs fan, I couldn't resist. While ACFC got the win,
the final score was the last thing on most people's
(02:15):
minds by the end of the game, because fans and
players alike were waiting for an update on ACFC defender
Savvy King. She's a twenty year old defender second pick
in the twenty twenty four NWSL draft by BFC, but
she's been a starter all season after joining Angel City
in February. You may have seen this story, but in
the seventy fourth minute of the game, Savvy King collapsed
on the field. Medical staff raced out to a ten
(02:37):
tour and immediately I saw them frantically waving their arms
to the sideline, and then I was terrified as I
watched this one trainer sprint to the sideline to retrieve
what appeared to be an AED machine. This is the
defibrillator device that's used to revive someone who's experiencing sudden
cardiac arrest. Now, King was surrounded by trainers the whole time,
but at one point we could see one individual who
(03:00):
look like they were doing CPR and chess compressions on
her before she was ultimately taken off the field on
a cart. Now, for the entire ten minutes that she
was down, the crowd was completely silent, the players from
both teams were visibly emotional. It was really terrifying to
witness this in person, and it immediately reminded me of
those awful, awful minutes watching NFL player Damar Hamlin when
(03:23):
he was revived on the field in twenty twenty two.
If you remember, he suffered a blow to the chest
that caused cardiac arrest, and my mind immediately went there.
I was so glad to see her get put on
the cart, so glad to hear her taken to the hospital,
and the NWSL confirmed after the game that she was
in stable condition at the hospital. Then they issued a
statement on Saturday saying in part that she'll be undergoing
(03:45):
more evaluation and that quote league protocols were followed from
both a medical and game operations perspective. We are grateful
to the Angel City medical staff as well as to
local paramedics, who handled this difficult situation seamlessly. As always,
the NWSL will review and de term and if changes
to that protocol need to be made end quote yeah,
I mean shout out to the medics and the trainers
(04:05):
who acted in that moment with incredible speed and bravery
and potentially saved her life. I don't know that, we
don't know exactly what happened, but it certainly seemed like
a very dire situation. After the game, some players and
coaches questioned why the match was allowed to continue, and
Utah coach Jimmy Kunratz, who has undergone multiple heart surgeries himself,
said in his postgame press conference quote, in those moments,
(04:28):
I'm not sure if we should have continued the game.
You're emotionally, not only them, but also our players were
just scared. That's not the right situation to be in.
But in the end we played on. That's the decision
other people have taken, which is fine. It was a
really tough moment. End quote. We'll link to a story
from the Athletic in our show notes that dives into
the decision to continue the game. In the meantime, we're
(04:49):
sending all of our best to Savvy King and her
recovery to hockey. Game three of Minnesota Frost Toronto scepters
a high scoring affair in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with the
Frost grabbing this set seven five win and taking a
two games to one lead in the five game series.
Two goals apiece for michaela Cova and Brooke mcquig in
the win for the defending Walter Cup champs. The Frost
(05:10):
had evened the series with the Scepters on Friday Night,
winning five to three behind a monster night from Lee's deckline,
who had two goals and an assist. Polarizing Frost player Brita.
Curl Selemi was suspended for that Game two after an
illegal head check on Toronto's were not a fast in
Game one. This was Carl Selem's third suspension of the season.
Interesting note, so one of Carl Selemi's Frost teammates, Taylor Heisei,
(05:34):
liked a Jackson Jill's Instagram post announcing curl Sleme's suspension
very intriguing. Plenty of others have had thoughts on curl
Slemi being a repeat offender this season, including Alyssa Turner
of the Icegarden dot Com, whose opinion column argues that
a one game suspension was not enough. We'll link to
that story in the show notes. We'll also link to
(05:54):
the league's official explanation video of the punishment. We do
really appreciate how transparent the PWHL are about these issues
to the other series, The Ottawa Charge up one game
to none on the Montreal Victoire heading into Sunday's Game two,
which turned out to be the longest game in PWHL history,
Catherine Dubois scoring at fifteen thirty three of the fourth
overtime to lift the Victoire to a three to two
(06:16):
win and even the series at a game. Apiece and
Renee Deben made sixty two saves in the win for Montreal.
In fact, Roade Slice Dana Holtbert on Blue Sky quote
the epic in Quebec took over five and a half
hours with four overtimes at Sarah, Spain. Please give a
good game to both Debn and Phillips, the goalies in
this game. End quote done. Good game, Debn, Good game,
(06:40):
Gwyneth Phillips. The series shifts to Ottawa for the next
two games, with Game three tomorrow night at TD Place.
Speaking of hockey, Slice, Ava g reached out to ask
why the Athletic and the ESPN app don't have the
PWHL on their scores tab. We've actually mentioned this before.
ESPN claims adding new leagues to the app is far
more complicated than one might think, but we are told
(07:01):
to ask is in so maybe hopefully they're working on
it behind the scenes for next season. Also, the great
Meg Linahan not just the host of the full Time podcast,
but also the women's sports lead at the Athletics, so
I reached out to her and she let me know
they're pushing for it there too, but she doesn't think
the site's stats provider currently supports them. In the meantime,
Alex says you could check out an app called flash Score,
(07:24):
which has scores for all of the leagues PWHL, WNBA, NWSL, PVF.
We'll link to it in our show notes. Thanks for
the question, Ava, and also shout out to your cute
pup Zuggie. To Volleyball News, the twenty twenty five Pro
Volleyball Federation season is over and the Orlando Valkyries are champions.
Orlando beat the India ig Nite three sets to one
(07:46):
to secure the title and the one million dollars in
bonus money that came with it. Opposite hitter Britney Abercrombie
led the way with thirty one of her team seventy
points in those four sets. Also got to give a
huge shout out to Abercrombie for being named opposite Hitter
of the Year and PVFMVP on Saturday before the final match,
both honors well deserved, as Abercrombie set league records with
(08:07):
four hundred and sixty two kills, forty three point six
kills per set, twelve hundred and eight attacks, and five
hundred three points Dominance to Hoops where the New York
Liberty playned the WNBA's last preseason game tonight at Matthew
Knight Arena on the University of Oregon campus. It'll be
a homecoming for former Ducks niar Aesabili and sabrinian Escu,
who never really got to say a proper goodbye as
(08:30):
Nunescu's senior year was interrupted by COVID, no senior night,
no ncaattorney. So when New York takes on the Toyota
Antelopes of the Women's Japan Basketball League tonight, it will
be a chance for the Oregon Faithful to finally give
Sabrina her flowers for an incredible career with the Ducks.
And she hooked them up too, because she brought her
Liberty squad to Rennie's Landing a bar on campus on
(08:53):
Saturday night, buying fans beer and hanging out in advance
of tonight's game. Pretty cool. You can catch that one
live at seven pm Eastern tonight on WNBA League Pass
for zero dollars and zero cents. More hoops and more
heartbreaking WNBA cuts Ole miss guard forward Madison Scott, drafted
number fourteen overall by the Dallas Wings, has been waved.
(09:14):
Also last week, the Indiana Fever waved the number twenty
overall pick Bree Haul out of South Carolina. Finally in
hoops more Chicago baby news A baby vander Quiggs. Chicago's
Sky supercuple Courtney vander Slute and Ali Quigley announced the
arrival of their little girl, Jana Christine vander Slute Quiggly,
born on April eighth. Vander Slute returned to the Sky
(09:36):
this season after two seasons with the Liberty, including winning
a title with them last year, and Quigley played for
the Sky from twenty thirteen to twenty twenty two. One
of my favorite sports moments ever was watching vander Slute
absolutely lose her mind cheering for Quigley in her final
All Star three point contest in Chicago over All Star Week,
and a couple of years ago, it was her record
fourth three point contest win, and just watching Courtney go
(10:00):
was so fun. The sweetest couple. We're so happy for them.
To the Diamond, where college softball conference championships took place
over the weekend, including an unprecedented double champ So bad
weather in Athens, Georgia resulted in the cancellation of Saturday's
SEC Softball Championship game between Oklahoma and Texas A and M.
And because it was deemed a no contest, the Sooners
(10:21):
and Aggies are co champions of the twenty twenty five
SEC Softball Tournament, first time they've been co champions since
it began in nineteen ninety seven. Sunday night, the live
NCAA Tournament selection show took place on ESPN two, and
the sixty fourteen field is set for the first time
in program history. Texas A and M was named the
number one overall seed in the twenty twenty five NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma,
(10:44):
winners of the last four College World Series, are right
behind them at number two. In fact, the SEC bost
seven of the top eight national seeds for the tournament.
Fourteen of the league's fifteen teams made the Ncuba tournament,
with only Missouri getting left out. We'll share a link
to the sixty fourteen field and the schedule in our
show notes. Want to send out a quick shout out
(11:06):
to the boss Lady Laura Correnti, founder of Deep Blue
Sports and Entertainment, who announced she's expecting a baby with
her husband this November. Kingratz goes out to Laura, We're
gonna take a quick break when we come back. How's
my Chicago Sky looking entering the twenty twenty five WNBA season.
We'll discuss the deets you need to know stick around
(11:34):
Welcome back Splices. The first of today's pair of previews
is my hometown squad, the Chicago Sky, who finished with
a thirteen and twenty seven record last season, losing Angelries
to injury in early September and missing the playoffs for
the first time since twenty eighteen. Here's your need to
know Sky history. Founded in two thousand and five, the
team played its first season in two thousand and six.
(11:56):
They've made the finals twice, losing to the Phoenix Mercury
in twenty fourteen and beating the Phoenix Mercury in twenty
twenty one to capture their first and only title. Great
players in Sky history are plenty, including Candace Dupre, Sylvia Fowls,
Christy Tolliver, Epiphany Prince, Tischa Pennicero, Ruth Riley, Swin Cash,
Elena Deladon, and Candace Parker. Colia Copper, who's still active
(12:19):
in now playing with the Mercury, was Finals MVP when
the Sky won that title. Twenty twenty five tagline for
the team, the Sky's the Limit. Let's talk additions and
losses for this team. They lost Marina Maybury via trade
midway through last season, and she was responsible for forty
six percent of their three point attempts before the trade.
They also sent another sharpshooter, Dana Evans, to the Las
(12:40):
Vegas Aces and assign and trade over the off season,
and they chose not to re sign last year's leading
scorer Kennedy Carter. They did add quite a few contributors, though,
including bringing back two time WNBA champion, five time All Star,
and seven time WNBA assists leader Courtney Van der Slut,
who spent the first twelve seasons of her career in Chicago.
They also added former All Star Kia Nurse and free
(13:02):
agency as well. Making the Sky Nurses fifth WNBA team.
She most recently played with the Sparks last season. The
Sky acquired WNBA champion and two time All Star Ariel Atkins,
the Washington Mystics leading scorer last season, via trade, same
with three point threat Rebecca Allen acquired from Connecticut. They
also made a change at coach, hiring new head coach
(13:22):
Tyler Marsh in November after beloved former Hall of Fame
player Teresa Weatherspoon effectually known as t Spoon, was fired
after just one season at the Helm. Marsh spent ten
years coaching on the men's side before joining the Las
Vegas Aces for the last three seasons as an assistant,
helping them to titles in twenty twenty two and twenty
twenty three. Marsh has also hired former Atlanta Dream head
(13:43):
coach Tanisha Wright as an assistant coach. Wright was let
go by the Dream at the end of last season.
Some notable draft picks for the Sky this year include
TCU standout Hayley van Litt at number eleven and Notre
Dames Matty Westbelt at sixteen. The team also took Slovenian
player Aisha Sievka tenth overall, but the nineteen year old
doesn't look like she'll come to the WNBA this season.
(14:04):
As for the stars on this team, a few shining
stars alongside the quiet veteran Van der Slute, who's not
just a fan favorite but also a legendary dime dealer.
Only eight times has the player averaged at least eight
assists per game in WNBA history, and she accounts for
six of those eight. She's quiet, though she does her
work on the court. The biggest star not so quiet,
(14:26):
Angel Reese, the seventh overall pick in the twenty twenty
four draft. Reese is already a mini mogul after leading
LSU to its first ever national championship in twenty twenty
three and averaging the most rebounds per game in SEC
history her senior year. She entered the w with a
question mark next to her name. Would her game translate?
And she answered with a resounding yes. We'll get to
(14:48):
the records that she broke in a minute. She did
so in style, too, though, as one of the most
popular players in the league, attending met galas, hosting her
own podcast, and hawking a ton of products from Reese's
pieces to McDonald's Kamilla Cardoso, also a star. A highly
touted rookie in last year's draft, she was selected third
overall by the Sky out of South Carolina. She missed
(15:09):
the first six games of last season with the shoulder
injury and the last two games of the season as well,
but this year hoping for an injury free campaign. Her
game translated extremely well last season, in part thanks to
the preparation she did with the game Cocks in three
years of her college hoops under Don Staley and how
battle tested she was. She was a big reason the
game Cocks won NCAA titles in twenty twenty two and
(15:30):
twenty twenty four. So what are the stakes for this
team after missing the postseason last year? Due to the
talent on this squad, I wouldn't be surprised if fans
think a championship is attainable this year. As for me,
I think a lot of things would have to go
right for them to compete with the likes of the
Liberty and the Lynx. This team's got new pieces that'll
need some time to mesh, and they need to adjust
(15:50):
to what expects to be a very different approach under
new head coach Marsh playoffs are a goal, but I
don't think they're ready to win it all. Let's talk stats,
because a couple of Sky players filled up the box
score last year, but the team has some pretty big
statistical holes to fill. First, the good Angel Rees set
a new WNBA record for consecutive double doubles, notching one
(16:11):
in fifteen straight games and finishing with twenty six on
the season, the most ever by a rookie. She also
averaged a league record thirteen point one rebounds per game
and broke the league's single season rebounding record with four
hundred and forty six rebounds before missing the end of
the season to injury and getting passed by the Aces
Asia Wilson. Despite missing early games to injury, Reese's classmate,
(16:32):
Cardoso still came close to averaging a double double in
twenty twenty four. Her nine point eight points were third
most among rookies and seven point nine rebounds per game
were second among newcomers, behind only Reese. Also, per her Hoopstats,
Cardoso was one of just nine players in the league
last year who averaged at least nine points per game
and seven rebounds per game while shooting at least fifty
(16:52):
percent on field goal attempts. Now, remember that good shooting,
because here comes the bad. The Sky attempted a league
low fourteen point nine threes per game last season and
averaged only four point eight. Makes the next closest team,
the Connecticut Sun, took at least eighteen threes per game,
and the league leading Liberty boasted twenty nine attempts per game,
(17:13):
draining ten plus per game. Now, the additions of Nurse
Alan and Atkins should help them improve beyond the arc,
where new coach Marsh has given them the green light
to quote let it fly. Their issues weren't just from
deep though the team ranked eleventh in field goal percentage,
twelfth in restricted area field goal percentage, and dead last
in free throw percentage. Their dominance on the offensive boards
(17:36):
gave them second and third chances, but they need to
tighten things up when it comes to their shooting. Now.
I know what some of you are thinking, are all
those numbers due to Angel Reese struggling to finish inside? No,
but that's certainly part of it. Reese committed to working
on her layups over the offseason, working with Lisa Leslie
Wilett unrivaled, and she should also benefit from a much
(17:56):
better offense, hopefully less clogged, less predictable, less dependent on
her to make things happen inside since defenders will hopefully
need to respect the perimeter guards this year. Now, with
Angel Reese on your squad, you're never short of stories.
Beyond the constant media battles debating Angel versus Caitlin, Beyond
the content creation and headline generating she did with her
(18:17):
podcast and her endorsements. Beyond the nearly five million followers
on Instagram alone, Angel also sold tickets and put butts
in seats. Last year, Producer Misch went to the Washington
Mystic Chicago Sky game. They got moved to Capitol One Arena,
a twenty thousand plus seat venue, and when Reese was
announced in the starting lineup, the screams were deafening. Cardoso
(18:39):
came off the bench in that game and during the
dead ball she got more of the same. Both players
carried over huge fan bases from college, and that makes
sense considering the national championships they each brought to their schools.
You also got van der Slute returning not only to
a team that she won a championship with, but a
team that she used to plan with her wife, who
I mentioned earlier in the show, Ali Quigley, who was
(18:59):
a knocked down three point shooter. Now Quigley has sat
out the last two WNBA seasons, and as I mentioned,
they've got a new baby to care for. But for
my hoops and gay shit lovers, she's technically not officially retired,
so you'd never know. Fun fact about the Sky. They
finally dumped their lay mass excuse for a mascot, Sky Guy,
(19:20):
near the end of last season, and introduced Sky the Lioness,
sort of an Ellie the Elephant disciple. She was built
by the same mascot designer now. Naming her Sky with
an E at the end, which makes it tough to
distinguish when you're talking whether you're talking about the team
or the mascot was a choice. Also, no one knows
why her head is yellow and her body is blue.
(19:42):
But whatever, Literally, anything is better than Sky Guy, and
I'm going to give Sky the Lioness a year or
so to really get into her groove. All right, me,
I know you're sitting in the airport waiting to fly home,
But what did I miss?
Speaker 2 (19:55):
I don't want to get you too excited, Okay, but
I think that the sky might be problem this year.
They've got just I know, yeah, I know it hurts
me to say this to you, but they've got an
excellent mix of that rookie sophomore fresh energy and vets
who've been there and done that in different situations. So
there's just no doubt in my mind that they're gonna
(20:15):
come out strong this season. I think angel Rees Camillacardos
so obviously are gonna step their game up on both ends.
But then you add Courtney Vanderslut's ability to orchestrate her
championship experience to the mix. You've got Elizabeth Williams, She's
a steady interior presence, then Rebecca Allen who can shoot
that thing, defensive lockdown capabilities, and then Ariel Atkins the
(20:36):
same great perimeter defender, also a playmaker, also can shoot it.
Rachel Banham can shoot, Hayley Ben Like, there's just up
and down the roster. You got folks who can play
the hell out of their roles. But I'm interested to
see who the go to is gonna be on this
squad though, because there isn't a Kennedy Carter esque player
who can get them a bucket at will in my
humble opinion, but on the flip, that might not matter
(20:59):
as much as it could on other squads because defensively,
long story short, for this guy, they're going to be
really really hard to score on.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Yeah, And I think it almost is like instead of
the certified bucket getter, you have the certified setter upper
in slute where you can make an Angel Reese or
a Camiale or somebody like that be getting the buckets
and points you need by just setting them up right.
And salute is the master the all time, right. Yeah,
I'm excited.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
I do think I'm curious to see how they use
Camilla and Angel in a first full season with both healthy.
I think it looks like Camila has gotten in better
shape in the offseason, and if she has a full
season playing, plus the experience from last year getting used
to the pro game, I think we really are going
to see a lot more from her, and that inside
(21:48):
out game is going to be really necessary to take
advantage of those two bigs inside. If they don't hit
from three, which they have not in the past couple
of seasons, it really makes it easy to focus inside.
And that's why I think to your point, those three
point shooters are going to be huge. All right, We
got to take another break when we come back. Time
to dive into Mesh's Mystics. All right, slices, let's talk
(22:20):
the Washington Mystics. Mish's team, who finished fourteen to twenty
six last season. Finishing ninth and missing the playoffs actually
a decent mark, considering they started the season oh to twelve,
the worst start in franchise history. Here's what you need
to know about the Mystics history. The team was one
of the first two expansion teams to join the league
in nineteen ninety eight, one year after the original eight
(22:41):
began play, and they share an owner with the MNBA
Washington Wizards. They've made the postseason in thirteen of twenty
three seasons, reaching the finals for the first time in
twenty eighteen, losing to the Seattle Storm, but winning their
first and only title the next year over the Connecticut Sun.
Top players in Mystics team history include Shamiqua Holdshaw, Elena Beard,
Crystal Langhorne, Christy Tolliver, and Elena Deladon. The team's twenty
(23:05):
twenty five tag line, come for the Brunch, Suffer through
the basketball. Sorry, Mesh. Let's talk additions and losses and
why I think fans might be more excited about those
bottomless mimosas during the brunch and basketball promo than they
will be about the team's postseason chances. First, the goodbyes.
Elena Deladon announced her retirement this offseason after electing to
(23:27):
sit out last year, and the team can now officially
move on without wondering if she'll ever be able to return.
The team also traded last year's leading scorer Ariel Atkins
to the Sky, sent Carly Samuelson to the Links, and
let shatory Walker Kimberle leave for the Atlanta Dream. After
mutually agreed to part ways with both head coach Eric
Tebow and general manager Mike Tebow, who had been with
(23:47):
the team for over a decade, they hired longtime college
coach Sidney Johnson and named former WNBA player Jamila Wideman
as the team's new GM. Johnson's experience is mainly in
men's college basketball, though he was an assistant with Chicago
last season. The Mystics added some major talent in the draft,
and number three pick Sonya Citron out of Notre Dame
(24:07):
and number four pick Kiki Eriafen out of USC. Unfortunately,
number six pick Georgia Amore has already suffered an ACL
injury in preseason camp and she'll be out for the season.
Let's talk the stars of this squad. Britney Sykes, the
runner up for Rookie of the Year back in twenty seventeen,
was second in scoring to the departed Atkins last season,
and in the offseason she helped roseby C win the
(24:28):
first Unrivaled championship, leading the team in scoring and sinking
the title winning free throw. Eliah Edwards, a Yukon product
who was selected sixth and last year's draft, also turned
heads and Unrivaled this offseason, making it to the finals
of the inaugural one v one competition, where she fell
to Champ No Fisa Collier. She could be primed for
a breakout year. The stakes for this team, To quote
(24:51):
producer mish Lo, this team just doesn't have the firepower
to compete with the best in the league, and they're
going to need time to get youngsters Citron and Eriafen
up to speed. This season is all about growth, figuring
out who to build around for the future, and finding
their way back into the playoffs. Sooner rather than later.
As for stats, the Mystics have finished seventh or worse
(25:14):
in offensive rating every season since they won the title
in twenty nineteen, and they slid on defense last year too.
After leading the league in defensive rating in twenty twenty two,
they dropped to fifth in twenty twenty three and fell
even further down to seventh last season. When they're healthy,
Psychs and Shakira Austin are effective defenders, so if they
can stay in the game, they'll look to help the
(25:35):
Mystics fix their defensive woes. As for stories and Laura,
on this team, Steph Dolson aka Big Mama Steph can
be counted on for solid social content, often showing off
her fantastic fits and flaunting her unique fashion sense, and
rookies amor Ereafen and Citron also showed some stylish sides
at the draft, so we'll see if that keeps up
during the season. Fun fact about the Mystics, Misha's parents
(25:59):
used to take them to Mystics games when she was
a wee babe, and at one game against the Houston Comets,
who else but WNBA legend RYL Swoops came over to
hold infant Mesh. There's a super cute picture of the
two of them on Misha's Insta. We'll link to it
in our show notes. All right back to airport, Mesh,
What I forget about your squad? Oh?
Speaker 2 (26:20):
You didn't forget anything. You didn't forget anything. I am
just these rookies. I was at the WNBA Draft and
when I tell you, I was so free excited to
see them get Kiki Area fen In, Sonya Citron and
Georgia Amore. Of course we're sending our love to her
with a knee injury, but those two, my eyes are
on them. I mean they It's gotta be iron sharpening
(26:42):
iron all over the place in that training camp.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
But the two of them could.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Develop into real, true solid pieces that fill in gaps
for DC for Sonia Citron. She's excellent without the ball,
moving off ball. She said as much herself during the preseason,
and that bene fits her as a rookie big time,
because chances are head coach Sidney Johnson won't be asking
her to be a go to player, not at all.
He'll be asking her to capitalize on the opportunity she
(27:09):
gets off the ball when Britney Sykes or Elia Edwards
or Shakira Austin gets shut down.
Speaker 1 (27:15):
And then you add the fact that she can defend.
Speaker 2 (27:17):
Extremely well already, which is going to keep her on
the floor and make her reliable.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
You could call me crazy.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
All y'all out there could call me crazy, but I
think she could have a sleeper Rookie of the Year campaign.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
I'm saying it right now, and I'm saying it with
my whole chest.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
As for Kiki iriafin with the combination she has of quickness, strength,
and explosiveness her size, she could be another weapon that
gives DC a different kind of dynamic in the post.
I'm curious to see how things shake out for the
rest of preseason, though, because the Mystics have a lot
of bigs in camp right now. They've got her, Shakira Austin,
(27:51):
as I mentioned, Eliah Edwards, as I mentioned Stephanie Dolson,
and Sika Kone at the time we're recording this, and unfortunately,
as we know, everybody can't make the team, or maybe
they can, you know, maybe they can.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
I'm not a GM. I love the enthusiasm that you have.
I'll be rooting for Sonya Stron She's on my fantasy team.
I'm for the first time playing WNBA fantasy auction draft
style and friend of the show claim Connikin and Aaron
Foley have a team, and then I teamed up with
my friend ty Duncan. Our team name is Skyler's Old Pussy.
(28:23):
If you don't understand that.
Speaker 3 (28:24):
Reference, we will link to it in our show notes.
Speaker 1 (28:29):
Good, but Sonya is on our team, so I'm hoping
that she can go off. I also love that we
got two signature W moments from them. Already. Sonya had
her Welcome to the W moment getting absolutely flattened by
a screen from Gritney brutt Britney Griner Britney Grinder, although
I like calling her Gritney Briner when she's like extra
gritty Gritney Briner. And then also we already saw Kegy
(28:52):
like getting in a verbal altercation on the court, so
we know she's ready for the bros. Kiki, she don't
love you, She don't Kiky, don't you love me? We
love that you're listening, but we want you to get
in the game every day too. Like listener CJ, who
left us this voicemail.
Speaker 4 (29:11):
Hey, big Ciris, this is CJ from Atlanta. I appreciate
y'all doing a spotlight on the Atlantic Dream and all
the WNBA teams right before the season starts. I just
want to say that one of the interesting things about
the Atlanta Dream y'all mentioned the lack of noise around
the Dreams team. It could be because the Dreams play
in one of the smallest arenas in all of professional sports,
with only about three thousand speeks, and that could be
(29:33):
an issue since they're playing outside of the city, and
that impact their revenue and everything else about the team. Honestly,
so we're very intrigued here in Atlanta, here at the
Dream We're going to move to a big arena at
some point. Besides for the Kaling card games. Thanks for
all of y'all do Sears.
Speaker 1 (29:48):
You know that's a great point, CJ. And absolutely that
impacts the team's ability to draw revenue so that they
can break through the noise with big activations or marketing campaigns,
with the kind of things that fans like me might
notice amid the noise the rest of the league. They
are in fact on the hunt for a bigger arena.
So there was a recent interview with front office Sports
and team president Morganshaw Parker said the team is looking
(30:08):
for a new home that would fit about twelve thousand
to fourteen thousand fans, whether that's via a new build
or by partnering with an existing stadium. So we'll link
to that story in our show notes if you want
to check it out. Also want to shout out our
resident Connecticut Sun correspondent who was back with thoughts on
our preview of that team, including thoughts on Mish's comments
about the team's arena. Matt Douglass wrote, quote, I heard
(30:30):
what Mesh said about Mohegan being remote. That's a hard
hear and we don't use that word around here. We
prefer scenic surroundings, bucolic and yeah, it's a casino, but
it has great food options too. End quote, Ha, scenic surroundings.
You should be a realtor, Matt. It's not small, it's cozy,
it's not dated, it's charming. Thanks for writing in. We
(30:53):
always love to hear from you. Also hit us up
on email good game at wondermedianetwork dot com or leave
us a voicemail at eight seven to two two oh
four fifty seventy. Don't forget to subscribe. Rate and Review.
Y'all seriously, go now leave us five stars. Say something nice.
It's easy watch calling Trump's bluff. Rating ten out of
ten review. The Trump administration and the USDA has agreed
(31:17):
to restore federal funding for education programs in the state
of Maine, ending a freeze that stemmed from the President's
stance on transgender athletes. Agriculture Secretary Brook Rollins had frozen
funds for nutrition programs in Maine after Trump threatened the
state over their refusal to ban trans athletes from participating
in women's sports. Now, you might remember back in February
(31:37):
when the President threatened main Governor Janet Mills at the
White House, and she responded, quote, we'll see you in court. Well,
after suing the USDA and getting the funds restored, Mills said,
quote I told them I'd see him in court. Well,
we did see him in court and we won. End quote. Yeah,
Now it's your turn. Rate and Review slcenes. Thanks for listening.
(31:59):
See you tomorrow when we up. You for the Minnesota
Links and the Las Vegas Aces. Good game, Chicago, Good game, Washington,
you bullies, We'll punch back. Good game with Sarah Spain
is an iHeart Women's Sports production in partnership with Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. You could find us on the
iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
(32:22):
Production by Wonder Media Network, our producers are Alex Azzie
and Misha Jones. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz,
Jenny Kaplan and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rutterer,
Brittany Martinez, Grace Lynch, and Gianna Palmer. Our associate producer
is Lucy Jones and I'm Your Host Sarah Spain
Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we're cleaning
bird shit out of our eye and remembering well, life
comes at you fast. It's Monday, May twelfth, and truly
shout out to that bird yesterday that shipped directly into
my eyeball. That's got to be double the good luck. No.
On today's show, we'll be continuing with the shoot around
our team by team WNBA season preview, getting you slices
(00:22):
ready for tip off with all the stars, steaks, stats
and stories, a little history, a little lore, a little gossip,
and a little more. Today we're info dumping on my
Chicago Sky and producer Mish's Washington Mystics. So break out
your note, Pats. It's all coming up right after this
(00:52):
Welcome back, Happy Monday. Before we get to the Sky
and the Mystics, here's what you need to know today.
Let's start with the end and the game. I told
y'all I was out in La to attend last week
Angel City FC versus the Utah Royals, and let's talk
about the good stuff. First, legendary forward Kristin Press scored
less than thirty seconds after subbing into the second half,
(01:14):
her first goal at home at Bemo Stadium since tearing
her ACL in June twenty twenty two, and it was
in absolute bete. She juked a defender in the box
and then put the perfect lefty touch on it to
curl it up and in over Royals keeper Mandy McGlynn.
Angel City went on to win the game two nothing
thanks to a goal by Alyssa Thompson in the ninety
(01:34):
seventh minute, her fourth on the season that ties are
for third most in the league. The game, like most
ACFC games, was an incredible game day experience full of celebs,
including New Los Angeles resident Kelsey Plumb and her La
Sparks teammate Deerica hamby John Lovett from the Crooked Media Pods,
one of my favors, in particular Pod Save America, Friend
(01:54):
of the Show, comedian Aaron Foley, team owner Lily Singh,
and Will Ferrell, who I got to chat with and
thank for the very meaningful and very powerful doc Will
and Harper. I also thanked him for as less meaningful
and less powerful but always entertaining Harry Carey impression. I'm
a Cubs fan, I couldn't resist. While ACFC got the win,
the final score was the last thing on most people's
(02:15):
minds by the end of the game, because fans and
players alike were waiting for an update on ACFC defender
Savvy King. She's a twenty year old defender second pick
in the twenty twenty four NWSL draft by BFC, but
she's been a starter all season after joining Angel City
in February. You may have seen this story, but in
the seventy fourth minute of the game, Savvy King collapsed
on the field. Medical staff raced out to a ten
(02:37):
tour and immediately I saw them frantically waving their arms
to the sideline, and then I was terrified as I
watched this one trainer sprint to the sideline to retrieve
what appeared to be an AED machine. This is the
defibrillator device that's used to revive someone who's experiencing sudden
cardiac arrest. Now, King was surrounded by trainers the whole time,
but at one point we could see one individual who
(03:00):
look like they were doing CPR and chess compressions on
her before she was ultimately taken off the field on
a cart. Now, for the entire ten minutes that she
was down, the crowd was completely silent, the players from
both teams were visibly emotional. It was really terrifying to
witness this in person, and it immediately reminded me of
those awful, awful minutes watching NFL player Damar Hamlin when
(03:23):
he was revived on the field in twenty twenty two.
If you remember, he suffered a blow to the chest
that caused cardiac arrest, and my mind immediately went there.
I was so glad to see her get put on
the cart, so glad to hear her taken to the hospital,
and the NWSL confirmed after the game that she was
in stable condition at the hospital. Then they issued a
statement on Saturday saying in part that she'll be undergoing
(03:45):
more evaluation and that quote league protocols were followed from
both a medical and game operations perspective. We are grateful
to the Angel City medical staff as well as to
local paramedics, who handled this difficult situation seamlessly. As always,
the NWSL will review and de term and if changes
to that protocol need to be made end quote yeah,
I mean shout out to the medics and the trainers
(04:05):
who acted in that moment with incredible speed and bravery
and potentially saved her life. I don't know that, we
don't know exactly what happened, but it certainly seemed like
a very dire situation. After the game, some players and
coaches questioned why the match was allowed to continue, and
Utah coach Jimmy Kunratz, who has undergone multiple heart surgeries himself,
said in his postgame press conference quote, in those moments,
(04:28):
I'm not sure if we should have continued the game.
You're emotionally, not only them, but also our players were
just scared. That's not the right situation to be in.
But in the end we played on. That's the decision
other people have taken, which is fine. It was a
really tough moment. End quote. We'll link to a story
from the Athletic in our show notes that dives into
the decision to continue the game. In the meantime, we're
(04:49):
sending all of our best to Savvy King and her
recovery to hockey. Game three of Minnesota Frost Toronto scepters
a high scoring affair in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with the
Frost grabbing this set seven five win and taking a
two games to one lead in the five game series.
Two goals apiece for michaela Cova and Brooke mcquig in
the win for the defending Walter Cup champs. The Frost
(05:10):
had evened the series with the Scepters on Friday Night,
winning five to three behind a monster night from Lee's deckline,
who had two goals and an assist. Polarizing Frost player Brita.
Curl Selemi was suspended for that Game two after an
illegal head check on Toronto's were not a fast in
Game one. This was Carl Selem's third suspension of the season.
Interesting note, so one of Carl Selemi's Frost teammates, Taylor Heisei,
(05:34):
liked a Jackson Jill's Instagram post announcing curl Sleme's suspension
very intriguing. Plenty of others have had thoughts on curl
Slemi being a repeat offender this season, including Alyssa Turner
of the Icegarden dot Com, whose opinion column argues that
a one game suspension was not enough. We'll link to
that story in the show notes. We'll also link to
(05:54):
the league's official explanation video of the punishment. We do
really appreciate how transparent the PWHL are about these issues
to the other series, The Ottawa Charge up one game
to none on the Montreal Victoire heading into Sunday's Game two,
which turned out to be the longest game in PWHL history,
Catherine Dubois scoring at fifteen thirty three of the fourth
overtime to lift the Victoire to a three to two
(06:16):
win and even the series at a game. Apiece and
Renee Deben made sixty two saves in the win for Montreal.
In fact, Roade Slice Dana Holtbert on Blue Sky quote
the epic in Quebec took over five and a half
hours with four overtimes at Sarah, Spain. Please give a
good game to both Debn and Phillips, the goalies in
this game. End quote done. Good game, Debn, Good game,
(06:40):
Gwyneth Phillips. The series shifts to Ottawa for the next
two games, with Game three tomorrow night at TD Place.
Speaking of hockey, Slice, Ava g reached out to ask
why the Athletic and the ESPN app don't have the
PWHL on their scores tab. We've actually mentioned this before.
ESPN claims adding new leagues to the app is far
more complicated than one might think, but we are told
(07:01):
to ask is in so maybe hopefully they're working on
it behind the scenes for next season. Also, the great
Meg Linahan not just the host of the full Time podcast,
but also the women's sports lead at the Athletics, so
I reached out to her and she let me know
they're pushing for it there too, but she doesn't think
the site's stats provider currently supports them. In the meantime,
Alex says you could check out an app called flash Score,
(07:24):
which has scores for all of the leagues PWHL, WNBA, NWSL, PVF.
We'll link to it in our show notes. Thanks for
the question, Ava, and also shout out to your cute
pup Zuggie. To Volleyball News, the twenty twenty five Pro
Volleyball Federation season is over and the Orlando Valkyries are champions.
Orlando beat the India ig Nite three sets to one
(07:46):
to secure the title and the one million dollars in
bonus money that came with it. Opposite hitter Britney Abercrombie
led the way with thirty one of her team seventy
points in those four sets. Also got to give a
huge shout out to Abercrombie for being named opposite Hitter
of the Year and PVFMVP on Saturday before the final match,
both honors well deserved, as Abercrombie set league records with
(08:07):
four hundred and sixty two kills, forty three point six
kills per set, twelve hundred and eight attacks, and five
hundred three points Dominance to Hoops where the New York
Liberty playned the WNBA's last preseason game tonight at Matthew
Knight Arena on the University of Oregon campus. It'll be
a homecoming for former Ducks niar Aesabili and sabrinian Escu,
who never really got to say a proper goodbye as
(08:30):
Nunescu's senior year was interrupted by COVID, no senior night,
no ncaattorney. So when New York takes on the Toyota
Antelopes of the Women's Japan Basketball League tonight, it will
be a chance for the Oregon Faithful to finally give
Sabrina her flowers for an incredible career with the Ducks.
And she hooked them up too, because she brought her
Liberty squad to Rennie's Landing a bar on campus on
(08:53):
Saturday night, buying fans beer and hanging out in advance
of tonight's game. Pretty cool. You can catch that one
live at seven pm Eastern tonight on WNBA League Pass
for zero dollars and zero cents. More hoops and more
heartbreaking WNBA cuts Ole miss guard forward Madison Scott, drafted
number fourteen overall by the Dallas Wings, has been waved.
(09:14):
Also last week, the Indiana Fever waved the number twenty
overall pick Bree Haul out of South Carolina. Finally in
hoops more Chicago baby news A baby vander Quiggs. Chicago's
Sky supercuple Courtney vander Slute and Ali Quigley announced the
arrival of their little girl, Jana Christine vander Slute Quiggly,
born on April eighth. Vander Slute returned to the Sky
(09:36):
this season after two seasons with the Liberty, including winning
a title with them last year, and Quigley played for
the Sky from twenty thirteen to twenty twenty two. One
of my favorite sports moments ever was watching vander Slute
absolutely lose her mind cheering for Quigley in her final
All Star three point contest in Chicago over All Star Week,
and a couple of years ago, it was her record
fourth three point contest win, and just watching Courtney go
(10:00):
was so fun. The sweetest couple. We're so happy for them.
To the Diamond, where college softball conference championships took place
over the weekend, including an unprecedented double champ So bad
weather in Athens, Georgia resulted in the cancellation of Saturday's
SEC Softball Championship game between Oklahoma and Texas A and M.
And because it was deemed a no contest, the Sooners
(10:21):
and Aggies are co champions of the twenty twenty five
SEC Softball Tournament, first time they've been co champions since
it began in nineteen ninety seven. Sunday night, the live
NCAA Tournament selection show took place on ESPN two, and
the sixty fourteen field is set for the first time
in program history. Texas A and M was named the
number one overall seed in the twenty twenty five NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma,
(10:44):
winners of the last four College World Series, are right
behind them at number two. In fact, the SEC bost
seven of the top eight national seeds for the tournament.
Fourteen of the league's fifteen teams made the Ncuba tournament,
with only Missouri getting left out. We'll share a link
to the sixty fourteen field and the schedule in our
show notes. Want to send out a quick shout out
(11:06):
to the boss Lady Laura Correnti, founder of Deep Blue
Sports and Entertainment, who announced she's expecting a baby with
her husband this November. Kingratz goes out to Laura, We're
gonna take a quick break when we come back. How's
my Chicago Sky looking entering the twenty twenty five WNBA season.
We'll discuss the deets you need to know stick around
(11:34):
Welcome back Splices. The first of today's pair of previews
is my hometown squad, the Chicago Sky, who finished with
a thirteen and twenty seven record last season, losing Angelries
to injury in early September and missing the playoffs for
the first time since twenty eighteen. Here's your need to
know Sky history. Founded in two thousand and five, the
team played its first season in two thousand and six.
(11:56):
They've made the finals twice, losing to the Phoenix Mercury
in twenty fourteen and beating the Phoenix Mercury in twenty
twenty one to capture their first and only title. Great
players in Sky history are plenty, including Candace Dupre, Sylvia Fowls,
Christy Tolliver, Epiphany Prince, Tischa Pennicero, Ruth Riley, Swin Cash,
Elena Deladon, and Candace Parker. Colia Copper, who's still active
(12:19):
in now playing with the Mercury, was Finals MVP when
the Sky won that title. Twenty twenty five tagline for
the team, the Sky's the Limit. Let's talk additions and
losses for this team. They lost Marina Maybury via trade
midway through last season, and she was responsible for forty
six percent of their three point attempts before the trade.
They also sent another sharpshooter, Dana Evans, to the Las
(12:40):
Vegas Aces and assign and trade over the off season,
and they chose not to re sign last year's leading
scorer Kennedy Carter. They did add quite a few contributors, though,
including bringing back two time WNBA champion, five time All Star,
and seven time WNBA assists leader Courtney Van der Slut,
who spent the first twelve seasons of her career in Chicago.
They also added former All Star Kia Nurse and free
(13:02):
agency as well. Making the Sky Nurses fifth WNBA team.
She most recently played with the Sparks last season. The
Sky acquired WNBA champion and two time All Star Ariel Atkins,
the Washington Mystics leading scorer last season, via trade, same
with three point threat Rebecca Allen acquired from Connecticut. They
also made a change at coach, hiring new head coach
(13:22):
Tyler Marsh in November after beloved former Hall of Fame
player Teresa Weatherspoon effectually known as t Spoon, was fired
after just one season at the Helm. Marsh spent ten
years coaching on the men's side before joining the Las
Vegas Aces for the last three seasons as an assistant,
helping them to titles in twenty twenty two and twenty
twenty three. Marsh has also hired former Atlanta Dream head
(13:43):
coach Tanisha Wright as an assistant coach. Wright was let
go by the Dream at the end of last season.
Some notable draft picks for the Sky this year include
TCU standout Hayley van Litt at number eleven and Notre
Dames Matty Westbelt at sixteen. The team also took Slovenian
player Aisha Sievka tenth overall, but the nineteen year old
doesn't look like she'll come to the WNBA this season.
(14:04):
As for the stars on this team, a few shining
stars alongside the quiet veteran Van der Slute, who's not
just a fan favorite but also a legendary dime dealer.
Only eight times has the player averaged at least eight
assists per game in WNBA history, and she accounts for
six of those eight. She's quiet, though she does her
work on the court. The biggest star not so quiet,
(14:26):
Angel Reese, the seventh overall pick in the twenty twenty
four draft. Reese is already a mini mogul after leading
LSU to its first ever national championship in twenty twenty
three and averaging the most rebounds per game in SEC
history her senior year. She entered the w with a
question mark next to her name. Would her game translate?
And she answered with a resounding yes. We'll get to
(14:48):
the records that she broke in a minute. She did
so in style, too, though, as one of the most
popular players in the league, attending met galas, hosting her
own podcast, and hawking a ton of products from Reese's
pieces to McDonald's Kamilla Cardoso, also a star. A highly
touted rookie in last year's draft, she was selected third
overall by the Sky out of South Carolina. She missed
(15:09):
the first six games of last season with the shoulder
injury and the last two games of the season as well,
but this year hoping for an injury free campaign. Her
game translated extremely well last season, in part thanks to
the preparation she did with the game Cocks in three
years of her college hoops under Don Staley and how
battle tested she was. She was a big reason the
game Cocks won NCAA titles in twenty twenty two and
(15:30):
twenty twenty four. So what are the stakes for this
team after missing the postseason last year? Due to the
talent on this squad, I wouldn't be surprised if fans
think a championship is attainable this year. As for me,
I think a lot of things would have to go
right for them to compete with the likes of the
Liberty and the Lynx. This team's got new pieces that'll
need some time to mesh, and they need to adjust
(15:50):
to what expects to be a very different approach under
new head coach Marsh playoffs are a goal, but I
don't think they're ready to win it all. Let's talk stats,
because a couple of Sky players filled up the box
score last year, but the team has some pretty big
statistical holes to fill. First, the good Angel Rees set
a new WNBA record for consecutive double doubles, notching one
(16:11):
in fifteen straight games and finishing with twenty six on
the season, the most ever by a rookie. She also
averaged a league record thirteen point one rebounds per game
and broke the league's single season rebounding record with four
hundred and forty six rebounds before missing the end of
the season to injury and getting passed by the Aces
Asia Wilson. Despite missing early games to injury, Reese's classmate,
(16:32):
Cardoso still came close to averaging a double double in
twenty twenty four. Her nine point eight points were third
most among rookies and seven point nine rebounds per game
were second among newcomers, behind only Reese. Also, per her Hoopstats,
Cardoso was one of just nine players in the league
last year who averaged at least nine points per game
and seven rebounds per game while shooting at least fifty
(16:52):
percent on field goal attempts. Now, remember that good shooting,
because here comes the bad. The Sky attempted a league
low fourteen point nine threes per game last season and
averaged only four point eight. Makes the next closest team,
the Connecticut Sun, took at least eighteen threes per game,
and the league leading Liberty boasted twenty nine attempts per game,
(17:13):
draining ten plus per game. Now, the additions of Nurse
Alan and Atkins should help them improve beyond the arc,
where new coach Marsh has given them the green light
to quote let it fly. Their issues weren't just from
deep though the team ranked eleventh in field goal percentage,
twelfth in restricted area field goal percentage, and dead last
in free throw percentage. Their dominance on the offensive boards
(17:36):
gave them second and third chances, but they need to
tighten things up when it comes to their shooting. Now.
I know what some of you are thinking, are all
those numbers due to Angel Reese struggling to finish inside? No,
but that's certainly part of it. Reese committed to working
on her layups over the offseason, working with Lisa Leslie
Wilett unrivaled, and she should also benefit from a much
(17:56):
better offense, hopefully less clogged, less predictable, less dependent on
her to make things happen inside since defenders will hopefully
need to respect the perimeter guards this year. Now, with
Angel Reese on your squad, you're never short of stories.
Beyond the constant media battles debating Angel versus Caitlin, Beyond
the content creation and headline generating she did with her
(18:17):
podcast and her endorsements. Beyond the nearly five million followers
on Instagram alone, Angel also sold tickets and put butts
in seats. Last year, Producer Misch went to the Washington
Mystic Chicago Sky game. They got moved to Capitol One Arena,
a twenty thousand plus seat venue, and when Reese was
announced in the starting lineup, the screams were deafening. Cardoso
(18:39):
came off the bench in that game and during the
dead ball she got more of the same. Both players
carried over huge fan bases from college, and that makes
sense considering the national championships they each brought to their schools.
You also got van der Slute returning not only to
a team that she won a championship with, but a
team that she used to plan with her wife, who
I mentioned earlier in the show, Ali Quigley, who was
(18:59):
a knocked down three point shooter. Now Quigley has sat
out the last two WNBA seasons, and as I mentioned,
they've got a new baby to care for. But for
my hoops and gay shit lovers, she's technically not officially retired,
so you'd never know. Fun fact about the Sky. They
finally dumped their lay mass excuse for a mascot, Sky Guy,
(19:20):
near the end of last season, and introduced Sky the Lioness,
sort of an Ellie the Elephant disciple. She was built
by the same mascot designer now. Naming her Sky with
an E at the end, which makes it tough to
distinguish when you're talking whether you're talking about the team
or the mascot was a choice. Also, no one knows
why her head is yellow and her body is blue.
(19:42):
But whatever, Literally, anything is better than Sky Guy, and
I'm going to give Sky the Lioness a year or
so to really get into her groove. All right, me,
I know you're sitting in the airport waiting to fly home,
But what did I miss?
Speaker 2 (19:55):
I don't want to get you too excited, Okay, but
I think that the sky might be problem this year.
They've got just I know, yeah, I know it hurts
me to say this to you, but they've got an
excellent mix of that rookie sophomore fresh energy and vets
who've been there and done that in different situations. So
there's just no doubt in my mind that they're gonna
(20:15):
come out strong this season. I think angel Rees Camillacardos
so obviously are gonna step their game up on both ends.
But then you add Courtney Vanderslut's ability to orchestrate her
championship experience to the mix. You've got Elizabeth Williams, She's
a steady interior presence, then Rebecca Allen who can shoot
that thing, defensive lockdown capabilities, and then Ariel Atkins the
(20:36):
same great perimeter defender, also a playmaker, also can shoot it.
Rachel Banham can shoot, Hayley Ben Like, there's just up
and down the roster. You got folks who can play
the hell out of their roles. But I'm interested to
see who the go to is gonna be on this
squad though, because there isn't a Kennedy Carter esque player
who can get them a bucket at will in my
humble opinion, but on the flip, that might not matter
(20:59):
as much as it could on other squads because defensively,
long story short, for this guy, they're going to be
really really hard to score on.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Yeah, And I think it almost is like instead of
the certified bucket getter, you have the certified setter upper
in slute where you can make an Angel Reese or
a Camiale or somebody like that be getting the buckets
and points you need by just setting them up right.
And salute is the master the all time, right. Yeah,
I'm excited.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
I do think I'm curious to see how they use
Camilla and Angel in a first full season with both healthy.
I think it looks like Camila has gotten in better
shape in the offseason, and if she has a full
season playing, plus the experience from last year getting used
to the pro game, I think we really are going
to see a lot more from her, and that inside
(21:48):
out game is going to be really necessary to take
advantage of those two bigs inside. If they don't hit
from three, which they have not in the past couple
of seasons, it really makes it easy to focus inside.
And that's why I think to your point, those three
point shooters are going to be huge. All right, We
got to take another break when we come back. Time
to dive into Mesh's Mystics. All right, slices, let's talk
(22:20):
the Washington Mystics. Mish's team, who finished fourteen to twenty
six last season. Finishing ninth and missing the playoffs actually
a decent mark, considering they started the season oh to twelve,
the worst start in franchise history. Here's what you need
to know about the Mystics history. The team was one
of the first two expansion teams to join the league
in nineteen ninety eight, one year after the original eight
(22:41):
began play, and they share an owner with the MNBA
Washington Wizards. They've made the postseason in thirteen of twenty
three seasons, reaching the finals for the first time in
twenty eighteen, losing to the Seattle Storm, but winning their
first and only title the next year over the Connecticut Sun.
Top players in Mystics team history include Shamiqua Holdshaw, Elena Beard,
Crystal Langhorne, Christy Tolliver, and Elena Deladon. The team's twenty
(23:05):
twenty five tag line, come for the Brunch, Suffer through
the basketball. Sorry, Mesh. Let's talk additions and losses and
why I think fans might be more excited about those
bottomless mimosas during the brunch and basketball promo than they
will be about the team's postseason chances. First, the goodbyes.
Elena Deladon announced her retirement this offseason after electing to
(23:27):
sit out last year, and the team can now officially
move on without wondering if she'll ever be able to return.
The team also traded last year's leading scorer Ariel Atkins
to the Sky, sent Carly Samuelson to the Links, and
let shatory Walker Kimberle leave for the Atlanta Dream. After
mutually agreed to part ways with both head coach Eric
Tebow and general manager Mike Tebow, who had been with
(23:47):
the team for over a decade, they hired longtime college
coach Sidney Johnson and named former WNBA player Jamila Wideman
as the team's new GM. Johnson's experience is mainly in
men's college basketball, though he was an assistant with Chicago
last season. The Mystics added some major talent in the draft,
and number three pick Sonya Citron out of Notre Dame
(24:07):
and number four pick Kiki Eriafen out of USC. Unfortunately,
number six pick Georgia Amore has already suffered an ACL
injury in preseason camp and she'll be out for the season.
Let's talk the stars of this squad. Britney Sykes, the
runner up for Rookie of the Year back in twenty seventeen,
was second in scoring to the departed Atkins last season,
and in the offseason she helped roseby C win the
(24:28):
first Unrivaled championship, leading the team in scoring and sinking
the title winning free throw. Eliah Edwards, a Yukon product
who was selected sixth and last year's draft, also turned
heads and Unrivaled this offseason, making it to the finals
of the inaugural one v one competition, where she fell
to Champ No Fisa Collier. She could be primed for
a breakout year. The stakes for this team, To quote
(24:51):
producer mish Lo, this team just doesn't have the firepower
to compete with the best in the league, and they're
going to need time to get youngsters Citron and Eriafen
up to speed. This season is all about growth, figuring
out who to build around for the future, and finding
their way back into the playoffs. Sooner rather than later.
As for stats, the Mystics have finished seventh or worse
(25:14):
in offensive rating every season since they won the title
in twenty nineteen, and they slid on defense last year too.
After leading the league in defensive rating in twenty twenty two,
they dropped to fifth in twenty twenty three and fell
even further down to seventh last season. When they're healthy,
Psychs and Shakira Austin are effective defenders, so if they
can stay in the game, they'll look to help the
(25:35):
Mystics fix their defensive woes. As for stories and Laura,
on this team, Steph Dolson aka Big Mama Steph can
be counted on for solid social content, often showing off
her fantastic fits and flaunting her unique fashion sense, and
rookies amor Ereafen and Citron also showed some stylish sides
at the draft, so we'll see if that keeps up
during the season. Fun fact about the Mystics, Misha's parents
(25:59):
used to take them to Mystics games when she was
a wee babe, and at one game against the Houston Comets,
who else but WNBA legend RYL Swoops came over to
hold infant Mesh. There's a super cute picture of the
two of them on Misha's Insta. We'll link to it
in our show notes. All right back to airport, Mesh,
What I forget about your squad? Oh?
Speaker 2 (26:20):
You didn't forget anything. You didn't forget anything. I am
just these rookies. I was at the WNBA Draft and
when I tell you, I was so free excited to
see them get Kiki Area fen In, Sonya Citron and
Georgia Amore. Of course we're sending our love to her
with a knee injury, but those two, my eyes are
on them. I mean they It's gotta be iron sharpening
(26:42):
iron all over the place in that training camp.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
But the two of them could.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Develop into real, true solid pieces that fill in gaps
for DC for Sonia Citron. She's excellent without the ball,
moving off ball. She said as much herself during the preseason,
and that bene fits her as a rookie big time,
because chances are head coach Sidney Johnson won't be asking
her to be a go to player, not at all.
He'll be asking her to capitalize on the opportunity she
(27:09):
gets off the ball when Britney Sykes or Elia Edwards
or Shakira Austin gets shut down.
Speaker 1 (27:15):
And then you add the fact that she can defend.
Speaker 2 (27:17):
Extremely well already, which is going to keep her on
the floor and make her reliable.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
You could call me crazy.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
All y'all out there could call me crazy, but I
think she could have a sleeper Rookie of the Year campaign.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
I'm saying it right now, and I'm saying it with
my whole chest.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
As for Kiki iriafin with the combination she has of quickness, strength,
and explosiveness her size, she could be another weapon that
gives DC a different kind of dynamic in the post.
I'm curious to see how things shake out for the
rest of preseason, though, because the Mystics have a lot
of bigs in camp right now. They've got her, Shakira Austin,
(27:51):
as I mentioned, Eliah Edwards, as I mentioned Stephanie Dolson,
and Sika Kone at the time we're recording this, and unfortunately,
as we know, everybody can't make the team, or maybe
they can, you know, maybe they can.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
I'm not a GM. I love the enthusiasm that you have.
I'll be rooting for Sonya Stron She's on my fantasy team.
I'm for the first time playing WNBA fantasy auction draft
style and friend of the show claim Connikin and Aaron
Foley have a team, and then I teamed up with
my friend ty Duncan. Our team name is Skyler's Old Pussy.
(28:23):
If you don't understand that.
Speaker 3 (28:24):
Reference, we will link to it in our show notes.
Speaker 1 (28:29):
Good, but Sonya is on our team, so I'm hoping
that she can go off. I also love that we
got two signature W moments from them. Already. Sonya had
her Welcome to the W moment getting absolutely flattened by
a screen from Gritney brutt Britney Griner Britney Grinder, although
I like calling her Gritney Briner when she's like extra
gritty Gritney Briner. And then also we already saw Kegy
(28:52):
like getting in a verbal altercation on the court, so
we know she's ready for the bros. Kiki, she don't
love you, She don't Kiky, don't you love me? We
love that you're listening, but we want you to get
in the game every day too. Like listener CJ, who
left us this voicemail.
Speaker 4 (29:11):
Hey, big Ciris, this is CJ from Atlanta. I appreciate
y'all doing a spotlight on the Atlantic Dream and all
the WNBA teams right before the season starts. I just
want to say that one of the interesting things about
the Atlanta Dream y'all mentioned the lack of noise around
the Dreams team. It could be because the Dreams play
in one of the smallest arenas in all of professional sports,
with only about three thousand speeks, and that could be
(29:33):
an issue since they're playing outside of the city, and
that impact their revenue and everything else about the team. Honestly,
so we're very intrigued here in Atlanta, here at the
Dream We're going to move to a big arena at
some point. Besides for the Kaling card games. Thanks for
all of y'all do Sears.
Speaker 1 (29:48):
You know that's a great point, CJ. And absolutely that
impacts the team's ability to draw revenue so that they
can break through the noise with big activations or marketing campaigns,
with the kind of things that fans like me might
notice amid the noise the rest of the league. They
are in fact on the hunt for a bigger arena.
So there was a recent interview with front office Sports
and team president Morganshaw Parker said the team is looking
(30:08):
for a new home that would fit about twelve thousand
to fourteen thousand fans, whether that's via a new build
or by partnering with an existing stadium. So we'll link
to that story in our show notes if you want
to check it out. Also want to shout out our
resident Connecticut Sun correspondent who was back with thoughts on
our preview of that team, including thoughts on Mish's comments
about the team's arena. Matt Douglass wrote, quote, I heard
(30:30):
what Mesh said about Mohegan being remote. That's a hard
hear and we don't use that word around here. We
prefer scenic surroundings, bucolic and yeah, it's a casino, but
it has great food options too. End quote, Ha, scenic surroundings.
You should be a realtor, Matt. It's not small, it's cozy,
it's not dated, it's charming. Thanks for writing in. We
(30:53):
always love to hear from you. Also hit us up
on email good game at wondermedianetwork dot com or leave
us a voicemail at eight seven to two two oh
four fifty seventy. Don't forget to subscribe. Rate and Review.
Y'all seriously, go now leave us five stars. Say something nice.
It's easy watch calling Trump's bluff. Rating ten out of
ten review. The Trump administration and the USDA has agreed
(31:17):
to restore federal funding for education programs in the state
of Maine, ending a freeze that stemmed from the President's
stance on transgender athletes. Agriculture Secretary Brook Rollins had frozen
funds for nutrition programs in Maine after Trump threatened the
state over their refusal to ban trans athletes from participating
in women's sports. Now, you might remember back in February
(31:37):
when the President threatened main Governor Janet Mills at the
White House, and she responded, quote, we'll see you in court. Well,
after suing the USDA and getting the funds restored, Mills said,
quote I told them I'd see him in court. Well,
we did see him in court and we won. End quote. Yeah,
Now it's your turn. Rate and Review slcenes. Thanks for listening.
(31:59):
See you tomorrow when we up. You for the Minnesota
Links and the Las Vegas Aces. Good game, Chicago, Good game, Washington,
you bullies, We'll punch back. Good game with Sarah Spain
is an iHeart Women's Sports production in partnership with Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. You could find us on the
iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
(32:22):
Production by Wonder Media Network, our producers are Alex Azzie
and Misha Jones. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz,
Jenny Kaplan and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rutterer,
Brittany Martinez, Grace Lynch, and Gianna Palmer. Our associate producer
is Lucy Jones and I'm Your Host Sarah Spain
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