October 24, 2024 • 46 mins
On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl and Tee catch up after the WNBA Finals to discuss the controversial call in Game 5 that helped clinch the Liberty’s first WNBA championship. The two also share their overall thoughts on the growth of the sport this season, including viewership numbers and how college basketball fans gaining interest in the WNBA has helped increase it’s popularity.
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, everybody, I am Tarika Foster Brassby.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
And y'all know what time it is. I'm your girl, Cheryl.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Swoops And this is levels to this podcast. This is
the show where we share that it's levels to the ship.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
That women go through.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Man, we've got such a great show today. We're definitely
going to talk about some WNBA. The season is over,
the series is over. The New York Liberty have won
the first ever title for the sake of New York
and the WNBA, So we definitely got to talk about that.
But first we got to catch up Cheryl, because you
(00:39):
and I have not seen home and I don't know
how long.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
It's been a while.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
It's been a minute.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
I was on the road for thirteen days and I
thought that my husband missed me. When I got home,
he did, I mean he did kind of. It was
it lasted for like twenty minutes.
Speaker 4 (00:57):
That was it.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
It was twenty minutes. I came home. He was all excited,
gave me the good.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Hug, all that kind of stuff, sat.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Down on the couch.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
About fifteen minutes in he was just like yo, loud
mouth ass.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
Is back.
Speaker 5 (01:13):
Waite, Wasn't he like okay, baby? When's your next.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Trip where you go?
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Ready to go? It's right because I'm on Friday Friday here, but.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
I think that's just but that's men, right, Like, yeah,
you're right. And I was talking about this earlier, like
like I'm all in my feelings right now.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
Because i missed my husband.
Speaker 5 (01:32):
I've been on the road not quite thirteen, but i've
been on the road for seven. Yeah, I've been on
the road for seven and I got to be on
the road for another three, so it'll be ten eleven days.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
By the time I get home. But you know, I'm a.
Speaker 5 (01:47):
Very like affectionate, emotional woman.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I love my time with my husband.
Speaker 5 (01:53):
And so this morning he said, baby, you're not on
a plane home yet, right, And I was like, oh, I.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Said, maybe you miss me.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
Stop laughing, damn stop laughing. And he was like, yeah,
I do miss you. So I said, what do you miss?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Now? Let me let me let me say.
Speaker 5 (02:14):
This, because I always like take care of him before
I leave. I make like meals, I cook, I make
greens and chicken and rice, whatever it is he wants.
So I said, well, what do you miss? He said, well,
I mean I am on my last pot of greens.
So I was like, Oh, so you missed my cooking.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
That's what you missed.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
That's what you missed.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Homecree, you want me to just come home, make you
some more food, and get bass back out of the road.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Okay, okay, okay, okay, lord, But you know what this
reminds me of?
Speaker 5 (02:53):
Though I got mad for a second and then I laughed.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
But you know what this reminds me of.
Speaker 5 (02:57):
Like, seriously, our first episode out the different levels to
motherhood and being wives and stuff, like, we just talked
about all the things that we as women have to
do and take care of, and this is part of it.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
Yep, it is, it really is.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
It's funny because I caught my husband called me when
I was out. I was in Minnesota getting ready to
go back to New York. This was Friday. This was
this past Friday. And so my home is heated by
an oil by like oil furnace and not like an
electric furnace. So whenever the oil tank gets low, we
(03:33):
have to call the energy people to come out and
refill the oil.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
So wait a minute, wait a minute, wait it oil
not gas.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Yeah, it's not gas. It's not a gas furnace. It's
an oil furnace.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
So it actually it actually saves me a little bit
of money in the longer stane, okay.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Because I don't have to pay a gas bill or
a heat bill at all in the summer, So from
like March to like September, I'm good, right, But we'll
pay a little bit, maybe anywhere between five or six
hundred dollars for them to come and fill up the oil,
and the oil will last me for like three months.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
So we could. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
So anyway, we turned our we turned our furnace off
in March. I turned it back on before we left
because it started to get a little chili. So we
were already a little low. Friday comes along and Greg.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
Says, oh, by the way, the the heat is off.
And I said, the heat is off? What you mean?
Speaker 1 (04:27):
He's like, yeah, I think the tank is low. This
is Friday. I am in Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
About it? Yeah, what you're gonna know about it?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
So I said, you you ain't called a man and
tell him to come out here. He's like, man, I
forgot about it until like a few minutes ago.
Speaker 3 (04:43):
So you've been in the cold for three days. It's
what you said, You've been in the cold.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
This whole time. What I mean, you gonna called a
man to come out and put some oil in the
damn place?
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Yeah? Like, well, y'all are going for you to get
home to do that.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
I'm gonna stay cold. I'm just gonna stay bro.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
I'm not home until Monday is Friday. You're just gonna
be you know, hoodie around the house.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Listen, it can't it cannot just be your husband and
my husband. Like I know y'all out there, sisters, women.
I know y'all could relate to this. I know you can't.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
And you know what, and the men are probably like, damn,
that's I did it that me?
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:25):
God yeah, but it's so funny. It's funny.
Speaker 5 (05:29):
But but my point is this, But for him to
call you and say, oh, the gas is off and
you're not even home, I'm like, what do you want
to do?
Speaker 1 (05:39):
He wanted you to call, He wanted you to call
and get it feel all. He wanted me to call
the man to come out here. I called the man
on Friday and told the man we needed some oil
for the for the furnace, and he was like, I
will gladly come out. But I can't come out until Monday.
Now I could have said, sir, it's an emergency, it's
no heat in my house, can you come out?
Speaker 3 (06:00):
But I see, hey on.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
No since show ass in this code ass house.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I'm good.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
I'm good.
Speaker 5 (06:11):
I got heat, I got a c I got service,
I could control it.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
I'm good.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
So needless to say, yesterday we got to eat the house.
It was great, of course you did.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
But the whole entire purpose of me not being home
for thirteen days is because I was on the road
covering the WNBA Finals. So going back and forth from
New York to Minnesota and then back to New York
again for Game five, I'm like, wow, this series has
been a series in Cheryl. I can't wait to dive
(06:42):
and to not only this finals, but really this overall.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
Season with you.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
So let's go ahead and get ready to take this
to the next level.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Cheryl. I don't think that I have missed and this
might be very different for you because you have played
in four WNBA finals. You don't know what it's like
to lose a WNBA finals. That is what it is.
But I was so thoroughly entertained from Game one to
(07:18):
Game five of this finals, that it didn't surprise me
one bit that it would end in the fashion that
it ended, So for those who may have missed it,
the New York Liberty are now the twenty twenty four
WNBA champions after an overtime thriller in a Game five
where they won sixty seven to sixty two, and not
(07:41):
without controversy, because there was indeed a controversial call. At
the end of regulation. With ten point one seconds left
on the clock, the Minnesota Lynks were up sixty to
fifty eight and a file was called on Atlanta Smiths
against Brianna Stewart, where to me it looked all bald.
(08:02):
If there was any contact, the contact was so marginal,
I don't know how a referee could have called it,
but they did call it. She went to the free
throw line, she hit both free throws, tied the score
sixty sixty, and.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
That's how we ended up going in overtime. Sure, yeah, yeah,
charl Reeves, I.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Say that was my that was my rewind.
Speaker 5 (08:22):
Yeah, let's rewind before that foul call. Let's rewind because
Brianna Stewart did travel I'm sorry, and did she did?
The New York shuffle if there is such a thing,
and did and that too, Yes, just it was.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
It was unreal how many missed calls. And granted it
was on both.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Sides, because no doubt there were there were. It was
just terrible officiating. But down the stretch there was just
some things that happened that made Sheryl Ribs say they
stole the championship from us.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
This was stolen from us. These these things should not
have happened. That happened.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Whereas on the other side, Sandy Brondella, who had just
argued the game before, yes, like game these thing, this thing, this,
she was saying it wasn't fair. She felt it was
pretty fair, which it is fair when you win. It
is unfair when you lose. So Suiryl, just overall, number one,
what did you think about the series? And number two,
(09:26):
what were your overall thoughts on Game five?
Speaker 5 (09:30):
So the series itself, I loved. I was hoping, you know,
it's funny. Halfway through the season, I was like, damn,
I'll be ready when the season's over because there was
just way too much ugliness and just stuff right, and
then we.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Get to the finals, I'm like, oh, I do not
want this series to end. That's what you want from
the finals.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
You wanted to go to Game five, or if it's
Game seven, you wanted to go Game seven. But every
single game was good, Every game was competitive.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Listen, I was here for it.
Speaker 5 (10:02):
Team I didn't. I don't know about you. I don't
know about very many people had Minnesota playing in the finals.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
So I did not have them in the finals, but
I did have them as one of the final four teams.
I thought biasedly, I thought Connecticut would would beat Minnesota.
I did have New York, Vegas, Minnesota, and Connecticut, but
I thought Connecticut was good enough to beat Minnesota to
(10:31):
make it to the finals.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
But I did have New York still win it at
all because I.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Didn't think Connecticut was would be able to contact New
York for all five games.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
Facts.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
The reason why I say that is because when you
look at this Minnesota team, I've always thought he was
a good basketball player, but Nafisa Collier was on a
whole another level this season, and she opened my eyes
and a lot of other people. But people weren't talking
(11:01):
about Nafista Callier very much until this season. But when
I look at the entire Minnesota Leak's team. They're not
a team that's.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Made up of superstars, right, No, I don't think so.
Speaker 5 (11:13):
They're a team that's made up of some really good players,
but they're not your quote superstars. So for them to
play the way they played the entire season to make
it to the finals, to.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Make it to Game five win.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
If you're a Links fan, you say they got cheated
it with stolen.
Speaker 2 (11:30):
If you're a Liberty fan, you say they lost right.
Speaker 5 (11:34):
But to make it to Game five of the Finals
in New York with opportunity to win. Listen, you can't
have Stewie shoot four for fifteen and Sabrina go one
for nineteen and you not find a way to win
that game and you're up twelve, and you're up twelve,
(11:56):
and you want to sell the story, Suyl, like all
the other stuff happened right Dewey's travel because she didn't travel,
they didn't call it the foul they call on Atlanta
Smith down the stretch back call.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
But it should never even come down to that. It
shouldn't thank you, thank.
Speaker 3 (12:10):
You, because that is exactly what I said.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Besides the fact that you didn't take care of business
when you should have him minutes that part two in
Game three. But the end of the day, there is
no way you're up twelve with Sabrina and and Stewie having.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
An underperformed both of them, both of them.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
And you not only let them get back in.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
But you know, listen, I ain't playing basketball in a
long time, since since endto high school. But I can
never forget words from certain coaches, and it's never one
of and Coach Blackburn always said, if you leave it
in the hands of the ref, you didn't get urger
win anyway.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Yes, yes, you know what.
Speaker 5 (12:51):
Coach Chancellor, my coach Chancellor with the comments he used
to always say to us when we would bitch and
complain about foul calls. He always said, don't allow the
ref to be human, meaning they're going.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
To make mistakes. So just don't don't even put yourself
in that position where you're relying on the reft to
make a call or not.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Yeah, and then let's move into overtime. Right when we
get into overtime, the fact of the matter is you
turned the ball over four times, you only score two
points and missed wide open shots, a couple of layups,
easy bunnies that fell off. I mean realistically, no matter
how you feel about the foul, you had a chance
(13:35):
to win.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
You did, and you did it. You did, you did
and you didn't.
Speaker 5 (13:39):
Now, listen, it's the finals. You are playing for a chip.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
You got to show up. I don't care. That's in regulation,
that's in overtime. The big dogs got to.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
Show up and your role players got to show up.
And you know who showed up for New York Sobbly
Ooh listen, she showed up and showed out. Yeah, if
they would have given MVP just based off of that
one game, my vote was going to the R just
for that one day.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
I was I was making a joke and I said,
if she wanted to save herself from the expansion Draft,
she just did that.
Speaker 5 (14:22):
You that she really did, real she really did.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
If you're in New York, you gotta be like, maybe
we put that protection around around Yes.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Maybe she's one of our six.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
Maybe she's one of our six.
Speaker 5 (14:37):
Seriously, because the moment, the moment wasn't too big for her.
Speaker 3 (14:40):
Nope, I mean literally made the most of her.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Minutes all season, yes series, excuse me, yes, she made
the most of her minutes.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
So I was very proud of her. And happy to
see Satu. They're happy for her.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
But let's talk about MVP for a second, because there
were some discussion among I think those outside now it.
It wasn't a public a social media discussion, but I
was a voter for MVP, and there were a few
people who were kind of like Dan, We're not sure
where to go. And for me, it was instantly John Quill.
John Quill had been the most consistent player that entire
(15:17):
most about the playoffs. Throughout the playoffs, and they don't
win this chip if not for John Quill for two
straight games. I agree with it was the only one
that was that was that was holding it down offensively.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
She was getting triple teams in the paint at.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Times and wasn't getting called at times and still had
to maintain that level of consistency.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
It felt so good to see a.
Speaker 1 (15:40):
Player like John Quill who have came and lost, came
and conquered, and I feel like the only thing that
was truly missing from her resume.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Was a w NBA championship.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
And now she tends it me too. You know, I
was I don't want to say it was hard on her,
but I.
Speaker 5 (15:59):
Was like, John, well, you could dominate a lot more
than you are if you would just establish yourself in
the paint, because Minnesota couldn't do nothing with her in
the paint, you know. But there were times where she
was like, all right, I don't have nothing. This is
in the paint, so let me go get me a
couple of threes in Now. Granted she could shoot it,
(16:20):
but that's not your game. That's not where she's going
to hurt you. Fee struggle, Atlanta struggle. When dorka you
has came in, she struggled. There was nobody that could
guard her in the paint. So I'm gonna take this
time though, to say to John quel Jones, I was wrong.
Since you bawled your ass out, you deserve this finals, MVP,
(16:43):
you deserve this championship. I'm not Bahamian, but I know
Bahama is celebrating right now. They having a party like
no other. But I was just so happy for her.
And I am gonna say this because someone asked me
how I felt, like who was I cheering for? And
(17:04):
I was like, I didn't have a dog in a fight.
I just wanted it to be a great series. I
was looking for a three for three overtimes not just one.
I was like, give me another overtime in another but
since hear me out, hear me out. At one moment,
I was pulling for New York. Another moment, I was
pulling for Minnesota. But in reality, I ain't really want
(17:27):
either one of those teams to win.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
But let me give you my reason.
Speaker 5 (17:34):
I just did not want Minnesota to be that team
that got five championships. I know it's petty, but listen, listen,
I am petty right now because I'm like, oh no, no, no,
come on, New York.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Let's just leave it at four.
Speaker 5 (17:55):
I don't need them look at five right now. Okay,
I got to get that out of my system, y'all.
I am being petty, but that's that's just that's the
competitor in me. I'm being petty because I also saw
somebody call me a hater for saying that that that
ain't hating, that's just being competitive.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Like what about competitive yet?
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (18:15):
But but but I'm also saying it jokingly right and
on the other side, because of the battles that the
comments had with the Liberty back in the day, I
never wanted to see New York win a thing.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
That's right, thank e h A n G. You hear me?
Speaker 3 (18:36):
Yes, yes, I do know.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
I can't pull for New York.
Speaker 5 (18:41):
New York was our nemesis, like, yes, but we had
some good battles.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
But I but I do have to end on this.
I felt spoons joy. Oh, I felt her pain. I
felt her like.
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Like the weight had been lifted off of her shoulder,
even though she doesn't play anymore.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
Yes, same thing.
Speaker 5 (19:03):
With Sue Wicks, right, because we battle with them and
for them to never win a championship when they were playing,
but to still be around and involved and to see
it happen for their squad. I will say I was
so happy for them.
Speaker 3 (19:21):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
Yeah, but I can't. I can't be happy for New
York very much.
Speaker 3 (19:25):
I know that's the right.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Let's say first of all, it was funny because I
was talking to a few friends after Sabrina had hit
that three point.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
That was crazy, that was crucial too.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
We were talking about that was crucial and crazy because
that literally is what gave them game three, and I
was like, yeah, the only other shot that like instantly
comes to mind outside of Neka is Spoons against the comments.
Speaker 4 (19:48):
Yeah right, the buzzer sounds the bank shot, the three
pointer from half court by Teresa Weather Squad and the
liberty left for another day. The stadium is just stunn
some Weather schools. You think, okay, let's get it in
the hands of Christah Robinson. But great rotation. She lost it.
She's able to turn to her right, which defensively, when
(20:09):
you've got a right handed player, you make them go left.
You put the pressure on them, get in front. Tina
Thompson is the only one coming up on the defensive
end and has to play to the side, and they pray.
It's just a prayer, and it's answer.
Speaker 5 (20:22):
Perhaps the most remarkable comeback in the three year history
of the WNBA.
Speaker 3 (20:27):
But here's the thing. Here's the thing. Ultimately it didn't matter.
I know you hated it. I know you did.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
You're real wrong, But ultimately it didn't matter, right because
I mean, we know what ended up coming out of that.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
So Lera' said, you ain't got a.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Wish I could see my face bavvy.
Speaker 5 (20:46):
You know when I said, when I see Raymond, they
want to talk about the shot.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
I tell Spoon, I said, it's all good.
Speaker 5 (20:51):
All you did was prolonged and inevitable. Prolong We were coming,
we was coming back.
Speaker 3 (20:58):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
I love it, but Spoon legitimately made me.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
She brought me to tears.
Speaker 1 (21:04):
I walked up to her with my phone and I said, Hey, Spool,
how does it feel to witness you know what has
been such a long time coming? And I have never
seen that woman speechless? And I shared it on my
social media because she was speechless and the emotion and
the pride, and honestly, I felt it more. I felt
(21:25):
it was definitely more than just this is New York.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It was I've been through some shit this year.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Like this was this, This was like the culmination of
everything that we fought for to happen. But also just
I felt like she was saying to me without saying
to me, I needed.
Speaker 5 (21:46):
Something good tea, I said the same thing. It was
bigger than New York winning the championship.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
It was all the shit that she went.
Speaker 5 (21:54):
Through with Chicago and just just so much on her shoulders.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
Girl, y'all.
Speaker 5 (22:00):
I felt it through the TV and I was like,
she needed this, she needed this.
Speaker 3 (22:06):
I felt that she needed it. She needed it. I did.
I felt it. So I was just very excited for
her and very excited for again. You mentioned Sue. Sue
was so excited.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
I saw swing. I was like swinging, not too much,
not swing. You were shot a minute.
Speaker 5 (22:26):
Too much.
Speaker 3 (22:27):
Swim not too much, not too much, swim not too much.
Take your little hat, get your little T shirt. But
you know, not too much now.
Speaker 1 (22:35):
But when we come back on the other side of
the break, I think this season was just a season
unlike any other for so many different reasons. And we'll
talk about that when we come back.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
You know.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Sure we kind of touched on a little bit the
season and the way it ended for you know, Teaspoon
in Chicago, but just really that was just one of
the many things that happened over the course of this season.
This season was I said before and I'll say it again.
(23:21):
I had such a love hate relationship with this season
because I always love when the w NBA season comes around.
Speaker 3 (23:26):
It's my season.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
I love it right from a working perspective, From a
fan perspective, I love it. But this season came with
so much turmoil as well as with the growth. It
came with so much divisiveness as well as so much.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Love and hate and hate.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
It was so much of everything, and.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
It's hard to put in words that it's like, yeah,
we understand that when a game is growing, that there's
going to be some people who are going to be
let in. But I also feel like they misunderstand what
we're trying to say when we say like, new fans
need to understand the kind of community that they're coming into,
and I don't think that that is understood because there's
(24:14):
this thing. First of all, let me back up a second.
I want people to understand definitions. And one thing I
hate is when folks be like, oh, y'all, old fans
are gatekeeping. Can you please understand what the word gatekeeping means.
Nobody is keeping you from watching the WNBA. Nobody's keeping
you from attending games, buying tickets, buying merch, nobody's gate
(24:35):
keeping anything. We're not disallowing you access.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
To be a fan of the WNBA. So I need
y'all to stop the shit.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
Stop using words because you hear it and you think
it's popular that you can just throw it out there.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
At your leisure, and yeah, don't know what it means.
Speaker 3 (24:49):
Something, and you don't know what it means.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Gatekeeping actually means something, So we're not gatekeeping anything.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
What we are saying is.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
That You don't just walk into the sport brand new
and act like you know everything, because you don't. There
are a lot of people who put their blood, sweat
and tears, including you, into helping to grow this game
to where it is now. It didn't just magically grow
in the twenty twenty four season. It's been a culmination
(25:16):
of things over the course of time. You got to
respect that history in order to appreciate what we're seeing now.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
And I think that's what hurt me the most, that
I'm sure hurt you.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
All, is that there was a lack of respect and
a lack of acknowledgment for who put the hard work
in to get to where we are now.
Speaker 5 (25:38):
Damn you said a lot that needed to be said.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
Yeah, ooh, let me just pick up where you left off.
Speaker 5 (25:47):
You know, T as a pioneer of this game, the
first player design. I care deeply about the league, about
the game, about the players, and that's all of the players,
because to me, it's a sisterhood.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Current players, former players, it's a sisterhood. Right. There are so.
Speaker 5 (26:12):
Many themes that happened this season where I was like,
you know what, let me step away because this shit
hurts and I'm not talking about people who were coming
for me. I'm talking about people who were coming for
current players. Yeah, because I did and I always will
(26:34):
stand up for those players when people are coming for
them in a way that has nothing to do with basketball.
First of all, I got called everything but a child
of God. But it didn't bother me because I do
know I.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
Am a child to God.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Okay, but I got.
Speaker 5 (26:50):
Called everything but a child of God because I have
an opinion, an opinion And you know the thing that
I didn't underst and I still don't understand. You have
male analysts, former NBA players doing podcasts talking about the game.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Doing whatever.
Speaker 5 (27:10):
They're allowed to say whatever they want, whenever they want,
however they want, and there's nothing right Like they can
sit here and say whatever it does they want to say.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
They can.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
They're allowed to have opinions about the game, about players,
and there's no hate, no nothing that comes back to them.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Right.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
No, people tune in the next week to hear it.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Again, exactly. But let a former player or even some
of the current players say something or have an opinion,
and it's like, how dare you?
Speaker 2 (27:43):
And I just wanted.
Speaker 5 (27:44):
People to understand this, like it's my opinion, just like
everybody has their opinions on who the goat is.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
If I'm not your go good, that's your opinion.
Speaker 3 (27:56):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (27:57):
But I didn't take the social media and cusha out
and call you out, your name and you know, all
of those things, which is what happened when I had
an opinion.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
An opinion that other people also shared, right, because it wasn't.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
Like you was the only one.
Speaker 1 (28:10):
There's an opinion that so many people shared and it
wasn't and it wasn't an improbable opinion.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
It was very valid. But it didn't matter what I said.
Speaker 5 (28:22):
I tweeted something to Diamond to Shills after they played
Indiana Fever, and what I tweeted to her was like,
keep your head up, we got you, We're here for you.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
But that had nothing to do with basketball.
Speaker 5 (28:34):
That was when everyone was coming for her, saying I
hope your tumor comes back and.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
You die next time.
Speaker 3 (28:39):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (28:41):
Like I don't know how other people feel about that.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
That's not okay with me.
Speaker 5 (28:45):
So I see that I'm going to address it. I'm
going to say something. But when I look at trying
to take all of that ugliness out of it, right,
and when I look at just.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
The basketball, it was so good.
Speaker 5 (29:02):
The basketball itself was so good, from the rookies that
came in to the second ear players to the vets,
like everybody balled out, everybody.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
Showed up when the lights were on, they showed up.
Speaker 5 (29:18):
And to me, I really wish we would have and
could have just focused on how good the game was
instead of all the negative energy that came with it.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
One hundred percent agree.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
I think for a long time we had tried to
figure out why there was a disconnect between women's college
basketball and the WNBA, and slowly but surely, over the
last few years, you'd begin to see Yukon fans turn
into more W fans because of all the Yukon players
South Carolina. Really, when Asia came into the game, you
(29:55):
really saw an influx. Oh yeah, you know, college Chanians
become W fans because they followed Asia, and then they
followed Tiffany Mitchell, and then they followed you know, Alicia Grant,
and then here recently, obviously the most recent example is
Kaitlin Clark and all the IM fans that have now
you know, Notre Dame had an influx of people because
(30:16):
of Iarique and all, so like this year I think
was the year that we truly saw an influx of
college fans turn into WNDA fans, which kept the numbers high,
which kept the interest high. Absolutely love that. And I
think that anyone who would say that Kaitlin Clark didn't
(30:36):
play a role in that is high.
Speaker 3 (30:39):
Because clearly she did. She absolutely played a role.
Speaker 2 (30:43):
But I don't know anyone who said that right.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Me neither me neither. I don't know one who didn't
who said that.
Speaker 1 (30:50):
And so I keep asking myself, right, like, where where
does this come from? And I tried to, like I
really tried to sit in like rationalize it right, And
believe me, I've come to the conclusion that there is
no rationalization.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
Where did you come up?
Speaker 1 (31:06):
There's nothing, absolutely absolutely nothing. But in the beginning I
tried to put myself in. I said, you know what,
I'm a college fan as it comes to D one,
I'm a Michigan State girl.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
You know I love aerial powers. That's my dog. Could
you know? We rolling Spartan high.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
So here we go, like is it the fandom that
we have in college sports that it's like are we
bringing that level? Like I'm trying, I was trying to understand,
and nothing at all made sense, Like there's no reason, nothing,
no rhyme or.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
Reason to it made sense.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
And it just got to the point that the only
reason why people felt okay with bringing this ugliness and
this hate and this divisiveness to this league is because
we're women, and society just accepts every kind of shit
that you throw at women, and when you throw it
at Black women, it just doesn't matter. Let me, you
(32:00):
can look at what's going on culturally right now with
Sean Combs. Yeah, it was a woman, and no one
believed that she was getting beat up or no one
believed that she was and then you have to have
the video evidence, You have to have all of this
stuff to prove, to further prove and show, and even
then you get doubters, right, And that's what it is
(32:20):
with the WNBA. That's what it is with this league.
People can come in and say what they want to
say about folks. They can talk to how y'all, how
they want to talk to y'all. They could say what
they want to say about y'all to y'all because you
all are women, because we are all women, and no
one cares truly about our thoughts, our opinions, are our feelings,
because this is what people have done to women and
(32:42):
women's sports and women in any profession for centuries.
Speaker 3 (32:47):
I don't care.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
They would never do this to men, even in the
infancy stages of the NBA.
Speaker 3 (32:53):
They would never bring this to men.
Speaker 1 (32:56):
And that's really what it boils down to, I guess,
really what it boils down to women's sports. As much
as we're growing and as much as we're seeing the investment,
we are still not necessarily getting the respect that you
all deserve.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
And that is why this door can be open.
Speaker 2 (33:13):
That is such a great point, my goodness. But you
know the other.
Speaker 5 (33:17):
Part to that two T is when it happens, we
don't say nothing. It's like we sit back and we
sit there like, oh shit, well, I know that's wrong,
but I can't say anything because if I say something,
this might happen, or that might happen, or I might
lose this, or I might lose that. And the men
(33:40):
on the other side are like, I dare you to
say something. Well, this is my opinion, this is how
I feel, this is what I'm gonna do.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
What you're gonna do about it?
Speaker 3 (33:48):
Yep?
Speaker 5 (33:48):
But it's you knows. As women we're always looking to men.
Speaker 2 (33:56):
To validate us.
Speaker 5 (33:57):
We too, we look to men to tell us how
great we are, how beautiful we are, how good we are,
how whatever. But as women we also do the same
thing that that we talk about the men doing.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
We tear each other down quicker than a man will.
Speaker 3 (34:15):
Speak on it. Speak on it.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Because I see many women in my I wait for
what reason?
Speaker 5 (34:23):
Because if you sit here and you're talking about, oh,
I want the league to grow. I want the league
to grow. I want to What can I do well?
Since you can stop tearing us down and go at
the ones who don't know shit about this game, don't
know shit about the players, and start showing some respect. Yeah,
because I listen, I'll sit here when I When I
(34:45):
don't want to deal with it, I don't respond, or
I just block you block block block block girl. And
then they get mad that I blocked them, like why
are you blocking me? Because I don't have to let
you sit here on my page and save ignorant shit
to me.
Speaker 3 (34:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
And I not only that, but it's the ones that
say stuff and then when you clap back, they're like,
but you're supposed to be professional, but you're supposed to be.
And I know we're gonna talk about this in more
detail on a later show. But I'm still a human
and I'm still I'm still that girl from the East
Side of Detroit. You come on my Twitter page talking shit,
(35:21):
you best believe I don't clap back, and I'm not
at all worried about whether or not I'm going to
lose my job or I'm going to lose an endorsement,
or I'm going to lose any girl.
Speaker 5 (35:31):
When im good, I have time, I'm gonna let you
know I have time. I got time in some days
I'm like, you know what, I don't.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
Have time and I don't even know you. But here's
the thing, Te. You listen.
Speaker 5 (35:44):
If I don't like you, if I don't like what
you're doing, I don't like what you're posting.
Speaker 2 (35:48):
I'm not gonna follow you.
Speaker 5 (35:50):
I'm not gonna have my notifications turned on so that
every time TE posts something I can see what she doing.
I don't follow people, I don't listen to people. I
don't deal with people that I don't like.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (36:01):
So if you don't like me, why are you here?
Why are you on my page? Why are you watching
everything I post? Why are you watching everything I do?
Speaker 3 (36:08):
It is wild, it is wild.
Speaker 1 (36:11):
It's just crazy, quite literally, it's quite literally wild.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
I think it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (36:31):
I was looking at a poll because one thing that
people say about, you know, as we conclude here, just
kind of talking about this season.
Speaker 3 (36:39):
Well, why don't you guys have more women as fans
and blah blahlah blah blah, And I'm.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
Like, okay, there are about I believe it's fifty six
to forty four as it relates to sports fans than
the sports fan demographic, fifty six percent of sports fan
are men. So obviously, as we grow it can't be
just women. You can't just expect women to watch. Obviously
men have to watch too, obviously men. I mean that's
(37:05):
just that's just basic fucking math, Like you're going to
need so like I really wish people just quit me.
Speaker 3 (37:11):
And like, you know, you need to get more women
to watch it.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
I mean, sure, we need to get more people of
everybody people, period, But basic math says it's just people
because men are bigger sports fans than women.
Speaker 3 (37:23):
That's just what the study shows with the post shows,
So y'all sound stupid.
Speaker 1 (37:26):
It's shit continuing to say this, but anyway, I bring
that up to say I bring that up to say
that it is interesting to me that as I look
at the growth of this sport and I look at
all the TV deals that are coming in and the
merchandise sales were through the roof. It was just announced
that the Finals had two point fifteen million viewers. That
(37:50):
just further lets me know that whether you hate it,
whether you want to talk about it, whether you want
to hate on us as you know, either a former
player or an analyst or whatever, at the end of
the day, we got your attention. You're watching, you're engaging,
you're talking, and the numbers are showing it improving it.
(38:11):
So you can continue to tweet what you're tweeting, you
can continue to say what you're saying. You can continue
to hate the way that you want to hate, or
you can just jump on board and love the product.
Speaker 3 (38:21):
You can also jump on board and get other people
to watch the product. You can do it the right
way or the wrong way.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
But either way, the number suggests that this game ain't
going nowhere.
Speaker 5 (38:32):
It's just not We're not going nowhere, not Pereriod period.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Like we're not going nowhere.
Speaker 5 (38:39):
And you know, to add to that, we're not going
anywhere because it's a great product.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Yes, they're not going anywhere.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
The talent level is.
Speaker 5 (38:49):
Crazy stupid, but you know what, the personalities that these
players have, they're fun to watch, they're fun to engage with.
When you really get to know them, you get to
know their personality and then to see what they do
on the court, like, these are some of the best
players in the world, the absolute best in the world,
(39:12):
and they deserve so much better than they were given
this year from fans because I feel like some of
it was like we couldn't really enjoy the product on
the floor because of all the ugliness that came along
with that. And I really hope that it's better next year.
I want to say this one thing, and I'm sure
(39:33):
you saw it. So Darius Rucker, did you see his
post He just posted a couple of days ago. He
basically said thank you to the WNBA and thank you
to the Indiana Fever. He said he and his girlfriend
attended almost I think he said every Indiana Fever game.
He was just talking about how great the talent was.
(39:54):
He came in to watch Aliyah because South Carolina and Caitlyn,
And I said, but when we got there, we got
to see Kelsey Mitchell and then he talked about all
the other players that he watched play. But I just
thought that tweet and that post, I was like, damn,
I wish all New fans felt this way.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
But would you say that, I would say that.
Speaker 1 (40:18):
I think the numbers show us that in a way
they kind of do, whether they want to admit it
or not.
Speaker 3 (40:24):
I mean, how many people did you hear say, oh, well,
Indiana lost, we might as well pack it up. The
WNBA might as well pack it up. Nobody's gonna watch
no more or up.
Speaker 1 (40:34):
And the numbers say otherwise. Viewership say folks watched. Viewership
say folks watched in abundance. Viewership says that people actually
enjoy the WNBA and enjoy watching the WNBA despite who
may be the most popular player at the time or whatever.
Speaker 3 (40:53):
That might be.
Speaker 1 (40:54):
And so I think people just need to admit it, like,
just admit that this is a good, prime thing that
you enjoy watching it, and not necessarily have to put
it all on one person, because the truth is is
just that maybe Caitlyn is what brought you to the W.
Maybe Angel is what brought you to the W. Maybe
you know whatever it is that brought you to the W.
(41:16):
That's great that that's what brought you here, but there
are so many other things that make you stay. And
I love that about the talented women in this league.
And so Darius just really echoed. He did a lot
of people feel maybe they just don't want to say it.
Speaker 3 (41:32):
He did point one five million people watch.
Speaker 5 (41:35):
Well and listen in case people didn't see it or
don't have Twitter. I want to read it real fast
because I think it's it's worth acknowledging and recognizing. Yes,
so he said, my girlfriend and I watched every Fever
game and got to see how truly great the basketball
play in your league really is.
Speaker 2 (41:52):
I want to thank ab.
Speaker 5 (41:53):
Aliah Boston, my fellow game cock CC one of the
greatest I've ever seen. That's Caitlin Clark, Kels, Kelsey, Mitchell Buckets,
Melissa Smith, Holly, Lexi Hall, d d Damirs Dantis. I
love the nickname and all the other great players and
coaches in Indiana for a fun, great season.
Speaker 2 (42:14):
Getting to watch the enemy.
Speaker 5 (42:16):
I only call her that because she played like Jordan
against my Fever talking about Aurique and all the other
great players play with That amount of passionate skill has
me hooked. He continued to say, we got to go
and see the game against the Goat Asia Wilson, and
the atmosphere in that building was amazing. What an incredible
place to watch a game. And now watching the finals
(42:37):
with the microwave, that's Sabrina Stewie and Zeppelin, that's jj
go five games in overtime against the Assassin, Courtney Williams
and feezy Nefisa was icing on the cake. Just want
to thank all of you for being great. Now I
get to watch my game COCOMs Basketball and then go
right into the next season.
Speaker 2 (42:56):
Man and my so in like I read that, and
I will like I gotta repost it because here's the thing.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
You you can be a fan of one team or
a fan of one players, but still appreciate the rest
of the talent and the league yep, without being so
ugly and mean and disrespectful. Like it's a great product.
It's a great product across the board. So Darius, thank
(43:24):
you for being a fan, for being in and we
expect to have you on levels to this one day.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
So absolutely that is a great way to close it out.
We look forward to the twenty twenty five season women's
college basketball that's coming up, starting very soon, so we
get to see Juju and Paige Becker's and you know,
Hannah Hadogo Raven Johnson's gonna cut up as South Carolina.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Malaysia for Wiley Malaysia.
Speaker 3 (43:55):
Oh my god.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
Yes, and we hope she feels better. We know she
got hurt a couple of games ago, but hopefully she's good.
It's just so much talent in women's basketball right now.
This college season is gonna be crazy. The drafts in
twenty twenty five, it is gonna be crazy.
Speaker 3 (44:09):
New format next year for the WNBA. The finals is
going seven games. The first round.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
Will be one one one, so everybody gets a home game. Man,
it's just gonna be so much fun. There will be
levels to the WNBA and women's basketball next season, and
we're gonna be right there for it, every piece of it,
all right, y'all.
Speaker 3 (44:35):
So that is what's gonna do it for us here.
Speaker 1 (44:39):
I had levels to this, but before we go, of course, Cheryl,
you have got to help us level up for the
next week.
Speaker 3 (44:45):
What you got for us today, this.
Speaker 5 (44:47):
One is short and sweet, but I don't know if
anyone else is feeling this. I found this and I
was like, you know what this is for me, and
I'm just giving you some context so.
Speaker 2 (44:59):
Then when I read it, you'll be like, Okay, maybe hopefully.
I think in life, we all go through things, right.
Speaker 5 (45:06):
And sometimes we get to a point to where we
wonder like is it time to make a change, and
we get afraid to.
Speaker 2 (45:13):
Like just step out and do it.
Speaker 5 (45:15):
It's kind of sort of where I am right now
with some stuff I'm going through.
Speaker 2 (45:18):
So I found this and this is what it says.
Speaker 5 (45:21):
It says in any given moment, we have two options
to step forward into growth or step back into safety.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
M and that plays right into what we discussed today,
growth of the league, growth of even just growth of self.
Speaker 3 (45:39):
Just that's a whole other topic right there, just what
it is.
Speaker 5 (45:43):
But that's when I am right now, Like I'm comfortable, right,
I know, I'm safe with where I am and what
I'm doing, but there are some other things I want
to do, but I'm a little nervous to just to
step out in it and grow.
Speaker 3 (45:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (45:58):
Yeah, there are some things that I've done just this
year that I was like, holy shit, but you gotta
be favor, be comfortable.
Speaker 3 (46:06):
Or grow.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
And I always want to know, but always want.
Speaker 1 (46:11):
To grow, want to grow, easy, love it, Love it
well fans. Thank you guys so much for listening to
levels to this. We will be back next week with
more next level conversation about the real shit women go through. Right,
but this just is not our show. It's our show,
so we want to hear from you. Leave us a
review in Apple Podcasts and tell us what you thought
(46:33):
of this we show or what you may want us
to talk about next.
Speaker 3 (46:36):
You can also follow us
Speaker 1 (46:37):
On Instagram, at els and t pod, but until then,
keep your mentals ground level and we'll be back next
week
Hey, everybody, I am Tarika Foster Brassby.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
And y'all know what time it is. I'm your girl, Cheryl.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Swoops And this is levels to this podcast. This is
the show where we share that it's levels to the ship.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
That women go through.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Man, we've got such a great show today. We're definitely
going to talk about some WNBA. The season is over,
the series is over. The New York Liberty have won
the first ever title for the sake of New York
and the WNBA, So we definitely got to talk about that.
But first we got to catch up Cheryl, because you
(00:39):
and I have not seen home and I don't know
how long.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
It's been a while.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
It's been a minute.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
I was on the road for thirteen days and I
thought that my husband missed me. When I got home,
he did, I mean he did kind of. It was
it lasted for like twenty minutes.
Speaker 4 (00:57):
That was it.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
It was twenty minutes. I came home. He was all excited,
gave me the good.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Hug, all that kind of stuff, sat.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Down on the couch.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
About fifteen minutes in he was just like yo, loud
mouth ass.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
Is back.
Speaker 5 (01:13):
Waite, Wasn't he like okay, baby? When's your next.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Trip where you go?
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Ready to go? It's right because I'm on Friday Friday here, but.
Speaker 5 (01:23):
I think that's just but that's men, right, Like, yeah,
you're right. And I was talking about this earlier, like
like I'm all in my feelings right now.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
Because i missed my husband.
Speaker 5 (01:32):
I've been on the road not quite thirteen, but i've
been on the road for seven. Yeah, I've been on
the road for seven and I got to be on
the road for another three, so it'll be ten eleven days.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
By the time I get home. But you know, I'm a.
Speaker 5 (01:47):
Very like affectionate, emotional woman.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I love my time with my husband.
Speaker 5 (01:53):
And so this morning he said, baby, you're not on
a plane home yet, right, And I was like, oh, I.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Said, maybe you miss me.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
Stop laughing, damn stop laughing. And he was like, yeah,
I do miss you. So I said, what do you miss?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Now? Let me let me let me say.
Speaker 5 (02:14):
This, because I always like take care of him before
I leave. I make like meals, I cook, I make
greens and chicken and rice, whatever it is he wants.
So I said, well, what do you miss? He said, well,
I mean I am on my last pot of greens.
So I was like, Oh, so you missed my cooking.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
That's what you missed.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
That's what you missed.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Homecree, you want me to just come home, make you
some more food, and get bass back out of the road.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Okay, okay, okay, okay, lord, But you know what this
reminds me of?
Speaker 5 (02:53):
Though I got mad for a second and then I laughed.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
But you know what this reminds me of.
Speaker 5 (02:57):
Like, seriously, our first episode out the different levels to
motherhood and being wives and stuff, like, we just talked
about all the things that we as women have to
do and take care of, and this is part of it.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
Yep, it is, it really is.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
It's funny because I caught my husband called me when
I was out. I was in Minnesota getting ready to
go back to New York. This was Friday. This was
this past Friday. And so my home is heated by
an oil by like oil furnace and not like an
electric furnace. So whenever the oil tank gets low, we
(03:33):
have to call the energy people to come out and
refill the oil.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
So wait a minute, wait a minute, wait it oil
not gas.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Yeah, it's not gas. It's not a gas furnace. It's
an oil furnace.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
So it actually it actually saves me a little bit
of money in the longer stane, okay.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Because I don't have to pay a gas bill or
a heat bill at all in the summer, So from
like March to like September, I'm good, right, But we'll
pay a little bit, maybe anywhere between five or six
hundred dollars for them to come and fill up the oil,
and the oil will last me for like three months.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
So we could. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
So anyway, we turned our we turned our furnace off
in March. I turned it back on before we left
because it started to get a little chili. So we
were already a little low. Friday comes along and Greg.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
Says, oh, by the way, the the heat is off.
And I said, the heat is off? What you mean?
Speaker 1 (04:27):
He's like, yeah, I think the tank is low. This
is Friday. I am in Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
About it? Yeah, what you're gonna know about it?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
So I said, you you ain't called a man and
tell him to come out here. He's like, man, I
forgot about it until like a few minutes ago.
Speaker 3 (04:43):
So you've been in the cold for three days. It's
what you said, You've been in the cold.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
This whole time. What I mean, you gonna called a
man to come out and put some oil in the
damn place?
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Yeah? Like, well, y'all are going for you to get
home to do that.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
I'm gonna stay cold. I'm just gonna stay bro.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
I'm not home until Monday is Friday. You're just gonna
be you know, hoodie around the house.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Listen, it can't it cannot just be your husband and
my husband. Like I know y'all out there, sisters, women.
I know y'all could relate to this. I know you can't.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
And you know what, and the men are probably like, damn,
that's I did it that me?
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:25):
God yeah, but it's so funny. It's funny.
Speaker 5 (05:29):
But but my point is this, But for him to
call you and say, oh, the gas is off and
you're not even home, I'm like, what do you want
to do?
Speaker 1 (05:39):
He wanted you to call, He wanted you to call
and get it feel all. He wanted me to call
the man to come out here. I called the man
on Friday and told the man we needed some oil
for the for the furnace, and he was like, I
will gladly come out. But I can't come out until Monday.
Now I could have said, sir, it's an emergency, it's
no heat in my house, can you come out?
Speaker 3 (06:00):
But I see, hey on.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
No since show ass in this code ass house.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I'm good.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
I'm good.
Speaker 5 (06:11):
I got heat, I got a c I got service,
I could control it.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
I'm good.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
So needless to say, yesterday we got to eat the house.
It was great, of course you did.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
But the whole entire purpose of me not being home
for thirteen days is because I was on the road
covering the WNBA Finals. So going back and forth from
New York to Minnesota and then back to New York
again for Game five, I'm like, wow, this series has
been a series in Cheryl. I can't wait to dive
(06:42):
and to not only this finals, but really this overall.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
Season with you.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
So let's go ahead and get ready to take this
to the next level.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Cheryl. I don't think that I have missed and this
might be very different for you because you have played
in four WNBA finals. You don't know what it's like
to lose a WNBA finals. That is what it is.
But I was so thoroughly entertained from Game one to
(07:18):
Game five of this finals, that it didn't surprise me
one bit that it would end in the fashion that
it ended, So for those who may have missed it,
the New York Liberty are now the twenty twenty four
WNBA champions after an overtime thriller in a Game five
where they won sixty seven to sixty two, and not
(07:41):
without controversy, because there was indeed a controversial call. At
the end of regulation. With ten point one seconds left
on the clock, the Minnesota Lynks were up sixty to
fifty eight and a file was called on Atlanta Smiths
against Brianna Stewart, where to me it looked all bald.
(08:02):
If there was any contact, the contact was so marginal,
I don't know how a referee could have called it,
but they did call it. She went to the free
throw line, she hit both free throws, tied the score
sixty sixty, and.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
That's how we ended up going in overtime. Sure, yeah, yeah,
charl Reeves, I.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Say that was my that was my rewind.
Speaker 5 (08:22):
Yeah, let's rewind before that foul call. Let's rewind because
Brianna Stewart did travel I'm sorry, and did she did?
The New York shuffle if there is such a thing,
and did and that too, Yes, just it was.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
It was unreal how many missed calls. And granted it
was on both.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Sides, because no doubt there were there were. It was
just terrible officiating. But down the stretch there was just
some things that happened that made Sheryl Ribs say they
stole the championship from us.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
This was stolen from us. These these things should not
have happened. That happened.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Whereas on the other side, Sandy Brondella, who had just
argued the game before, yes, like game these thing, this thing, this,
she was saying it wasn't fair. She felt it was
pretty fair, which it is fair when you win. It
is unfair when you lose. So Suiryl, just overall, number one,
what did you think about the series? And number two,
(09:26):
what were your overall thoughts on Game five?
Speaker 5 (09:30):
So the series itself, I loved. I was hoping, you know,
it's funny. Halfway through the season, I was like, damn,
I'll be ready when the season's over because there was
just way too much ugliness and just stuff right, and
then we.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Get to the finals, I'm like, oh, I do not
want this series to end. That's what you want from
the finals.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
You wanted to go to Game five, or if it's
Game seven, you wanted to go Game seven. But every
single game was good, Every game was competitive.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Listen, I was here for it.
Speaker 5 (10:02):
Team I didn't. I don't know about you. I don't
know about very many people had Minnesota playing in the finals.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
So I did not have them in the finals, but
I did have them as one of the final four teams.
I thought biasedly, I thought Connecticut would would beat Minnesota.
I did have New York, Vegas, Minnesota, and Connecticut, but
I thought Connecticut was good enough to beat Minnesota to
(10:31):
make it to the finals.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
But I did have New York still win it at
all because I.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Didn't think Connecticut was would be able to contact New
York for all five games.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
Facts.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
The reason why I say that is because when you
look at this Minnesota team, I've always thought he was
a good basketball player, but Nafisa Collier was on a
whole another level this season, and she opened my eyes
and a lot of other people. But people weren't talking
(11:01):
about Nafista Callier very much until this season. But when
I look at the entire Minnesota Leak's team. They're not
a team that's.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Made up of superstars, right, No, I don't think so.
Speaker 5 (11:13):
They're a team that's made up of some really good players,
but they're not your quote superstars. So for them to
play the way they played the entire season to make
it to the finals, to.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Make it to Game five win.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
If you're a Links fan, you say they got cheated
it with stolen.
Speaker 2 (11:30):
If you're a Liberty fan, you say they lost right.
Speaker 5 (11:34):
But to make it to Game five of the Finals
in New York with opportunity to win. Listen, you can't
have Stewie shoot four for fifteen and Sabrina go one
for nineteen and you not find a way to win
that game and you're up twelve, and you're up twelve,
(11:56):
and you want to sell the story, Suyl, like all
the other stuff happened right Dewey's travel because she didn't travel,
they didn't call it the foul they call on Atlanta
Smith down the stretch back call.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
But it should never even come down to that. It
shouldn't thank you, thank.
Speaker 3 (12:10):
You, because that is exactly what I said.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Besides the fact that you didn't take care of business
when you should have him minutes that part two in
Game three. But the end of the day, there is
no way you're up twelve with Sabrina and and Stewie having.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
An underperformed both of them, both of them.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
And you not only let them get back in.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
But you know, listen, I ain't playing basketball in a
long time, since since endto high school. But I can
never forget words from certain coaches, and it's never one
of and Coach Blackburn always said, if you leave it
in the hands of the ref, you didn't get urger
win anyway.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Yes, yes, you know what.
Speaker 5 (12:51):
Coach Chancellor, my coach Chancellor with the comments he used
to always say to us when we would bitch and
complain about foul calls. He always said, don't allow the
ref to be human, meaning they're going.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
To make mistakes. So just don't don't even put yourself
in that position where you're relying on the reft to
make a call or not.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Yeah, and then let's move into overtime. Right when we
get into overtime, the fact of the matter is you
turned the ball over four times, you only score two
points and missed wide open shots, a couple of layups,
easy bunnies that fell off. I mean realistically, no matter
how you feel about the foul, you had a chance
(13:35):
to win.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
You did, and you did it. You did, you did
and you didn't.
Speaker 5 (13:39):
Now, listen, it's the finals. You are playing for a chip.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
You got to show up. I don't care. That's in regulation,
that's in overtime. The big dogs got to.
Speaker 5 (13:51):
Show up and your role players got to show up.
And you know who showed up for New York Sobbly
Ooh listen, she showed up and showed out. Yeah, if
they would have given MVP just based off of that
one game, my vote was going to the R just
for that one day.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
I was I was making a joke and I said,
if she wanted to save herself from the expansion Draft,
she just did that.
Speaker 5 (14:22):
You that she really did, real she really did.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
If you're in New York, you gotta be like, maybe
we put that protection around around Yes.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Maybe she's one of our six.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
Maybe she's one of our six.
Speaker 5 (14:37):
Seriously, because the moment, the moment wasn't too big for her.
Speaker 3 (14:40):
Nope, I mean literally made the most of her.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Minutes all season, yes series, excuse me, yes, she made
the most of her minutes.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
So I was very proud of her. And happy to
see Satu. They're happy for her.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
But let's talk about MVP for a second, because there
were some discussion among I think those outside now it.
It wasn't a public a social media discussion, but I
was a voter for MVP, and there were a few
people who were kind of like Dan, We're not sure
where to go. And for me, it was instantly John Quill.
John Quill had been the most consistent player that entire
(15:17):
most about the playoffs. Throughout the playoffs, and they don't
win this chip if not for John Quill for two
straight games. I agree with it was the only one
that was that was that was holding it down offensively.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
She was getting triple teams in the paint at.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Times and wasn't getting called at times and still had
to maintain that level of consistency.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
It felt so good to see a.
Speaker 1 (15:40):
Player like John Quill who have came and lost, came
and conquered, and I feel like the only thing that
was truly missing from her resume.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Was a w NBA championship.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
And now she tends it me too. You know, I
was I don't want to say it was hard on her,
but I.
Speaker 5 (15:59):
Was like, John, well, you could dominate a lot more
than you are if you would just establish yourself in
the paint, because Minnesota couldn't do nothing with her in
the paint, you know. But there were times where she
was like, all right, I don't have nothing. This is
in the paint, so let me go get me a
couple of threes in Now. Granted she could shoot it,
(16:20):
but that's not your game. That's not where she's going
to hurt you. Fee struggle, Atlanta struggle. When dorka you
has came in, she struggled. There was nobody that could
guard her in the paint. So I'm gonna take this
time though, to say to John quel Jones, I was wrong.
Since you bawled your ass out, you deserve this finals, MVP,
(16:43):
you deserve this championship. I'm not Bahamian, but I know
Bahama is celebrating right now. They having a party like
no other. But I was just so happy for her.
And I am gonna say this because someone asked me
how I felt, like who was I cheering for? And
(17:04):
I was like, I didn't have a dog in a fight.
I just wanted it to be a great series. I
was looking for a three for three overtimes not just one.
I was like, give me another overtime in another but
since hear me out, hear me out. At one moment,
I was pulling for New York. Another moment, I was
pulling for Minnesota. But in reality, I ain't really want
(17:27):
either one of those teams to win.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
But let me give you my reason.
Speaker 5 (17:34):
I just did not want Minnesota to be that team
that got five championships. I know it's petty, but listen, listen,
I am petty right now because I'm like, oh no, no, no,
come on, New York.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Let's just leave it at four.
Speaker 5 (17:55):
I don't need them look at five right now. Okay,
I got to get that out of my system, y'all.
I am being petty, but that's that's just that's the
competitor in me. I'm being petty because I also saw
somebody call me a hater for saying that that that
ain't hating, that's just being competitive.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Like what about competitive yet?
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (18:15):
But but but I'm also saying it jokingly right and
on the other side, because of the battles that the
comments had with the Liberty back in the day, I
never wanted to see New York win a thing.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
That's right, thank e h A n G. You hear me?
Speaker 3 (18:36):
Yes, yes, I do know.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
I can't pull for New York.
Speaker 5 (18:41):
New York was our nemesis, like, yes, but we had
some good battles.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
But I but I do have to end on this.
I felt spoons joy. Oh, I felt her pain. I
felt her like.
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Like the weight had been lifted off of her shoulder,
even though she doesn't play anymore.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
Yes, same thing.
Speaker 5 (19:03):
With Sue Wicks, right, because we battle with them and
for them to never win a championship when they were playing,
but to still be around and involved and to see
it happen for their squad. I will say I was
so happy for them.
Speaker 3 (19:21):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
Yeah, but I can't. I can't be happy for New
York very much.
Speaker 3 (19:25):
I know that's the right.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Let's say first of all, it was funny because I
was talking to a few friends after Sabrina had hit
that three point.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
That was crazy, that was crucial too.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
We were talking about that was crucial and crazy because
that literally is what gave them game three, and I
was like, yeah, the only other shot that like instantly
comes to mind outside of Neka is Spoons against the comments.
Speaker 4 (19:48):
Yeah right, the buzzer sounds the bank shot, the three
pointer from half court by Teresa Weather Squad and the
liberty left for another day. The stadium is just stunn
some Weather schools. You think, okay, let's get it in
the hands of Christah Robinson. But great rotation. She lost it.
She's able to turn to her right, which defensively, when
(20:09):
you've got a right handed player, you make them go left.
You put the pressure on them, get in front. Tina
Thompson is the only one coming up on the defensive
end and has to play to the side, and they pray.
It's just a prayer, and it's answer.
Speaker 5 (20:22):
Perhaps the most remarkable comeback in the three year history
of the WNBA.
Speaker 3 (20:27):
But here's the thing. Here's the thing. Ultimately it didn't matter.
I know you hated it. I know you did.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
You're real wrong, But ultimately it didn't matter, right because
I mean, we know what ended up coming out of that.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
So Lera' said, you ain't got a.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Wish I could see my face bavvy.
Speaker 5 (20:46):
You know when I said, when I see Raymond, they
want to talk about the shot.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
I tell Spoon, I said, it's all good.
Speaker 5 (20:51):
All you did was prolonged and inevitable. Prolong We were coming,
we was coming back.
Speaker 3 (20:58):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
I love it, but Spoon legitimately made me.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
She brought me to tears.
Speaker 1 (21:04):
I walked up to her with my phone and I said, Hey, Spool,
how does it feel to witness you know what has
been such a long time coming? And I have never
seen that woman speechless? And I shared it on my
social media because she was speechless and the emotion and
the pride, and honestly, I felt it more. I felt
(21:25):
it was definitely more than just this is New York.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It was I've been through some shit this year.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Like this was this, This was like the culmination of
everything that we fought for to happen. But also just
I felt like she was saying to me without saying
to me, I needed.
Speaker 5 (21:46):
Something good tea, I said the same thing. It was
bigger than New York winning the championship.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
It was all the shit that she went.
Speaker 5 (21:54):
Through with Chicago and just just so much on her shoulders.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
Girl, y'all.
Speaker 5 (22:00):
I felt it through the TV and I was like,
she needed this, she needed this.
Speaker 3 (22:06):
I felt that she needed it. She needed it. I did.
I felt it. So I was just very excited for
her and very excited for again. You mentioned Sue. Sue
was so excited.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
I saw swing. I was like swinging, not too much,
not swing. You were shot a minute.
Speaker 5 (22:26):
Too much.
Speaker 3 (22:27):
Swim not too much, not too much, swim not too much.
Take your little hat, get your little T shirt. But
you know, not too much now.
Speaker 1 (22:35):
But when we come back on the other side of
the break, I think this season was just a season
unlike any other for so many different reasons. And we'll
talk about that when we come back.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
You know.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Sure we kind of touched on a little bit the
season and the way it ended for you know, Teaspoon
in Chicago, but just really that was just one of
the many things that happened over the course of this season.
This season was I said before and I'll say it again.
(23:21):
I had such a love hate relationship with this season
because I always love when the w NBA season comes around.
Speaker 3 (23:26):
It's my season.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
I love it right from a working perspective, From a
fan perspective, I love it. But this season came with
so much turmoil as well as with the growth. It
came with so much divisiveness as well as so much.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Love and hate and hate.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
It was so much of everything, and.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
It's hard to put in words that it's like, yeah,
we understand that when a game is growing, that there's
going to be some people who are going to be
let in. But I also feel like they misunderstand what
we're trying to say when we say like, new fans
need to understand the kind of community that they're coming into,
and I don't think that that is understood because there's
(24:14):
this thing. First of all, let me back up a second.
I want people to understand definitions. And one thing I
hate is when folks be like, oh, y'all, old fans
are gatekeeping. Can you please understand what the word gatekeeping means.
Nobody is keeping you from watching the WNBA. Nobody's keeping
you from attending games, buying tickets, buying merch, nobody's gate
(24:35):
keeping anything. We're not disallowing you access.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
To be a fan of the WNBA. So I need
y'all to stop the shit.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
Stop using words because you hear it and you think
it's popular that you can just throw it out there.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
At your leisure, and yeah, don't know what it means.
Speaker 3 (24:49):
Something, and you don't know what it means.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Gatekeeping actually means something, So we're not gatekeeping anything.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
What we are saying is.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
That You don't just walk into the sport brand new
and act like you know everything, because you don't. There
are a lot of people who put their blood, sweat
and tears, including you, into helping to grow this game
to where it is now. It didn't just magically grow
in the twenty twenty four season. It's been a culmination
(25:16):
of things over the course of time. You got to
respect that history in order to appreciate what we're seeing now.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
And I think that's what hurt me the most, that
I'm sure hurt you.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
All, is that there was a lack of respect and
a lack of acknowledgment for who put the hard work
in to get to where we are now.
Speaker 5 (25:38):
Damn you said a lot that needed to be said.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
Yeah, ooh, let me just pick up where you left off.
Speaker 5 (25:47):
You know, T as a pioneer of this game, the
first player design. I care deeply about the league, about
the game, about the players, and that's all of the players,
because to me, it's a sisterhood.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Current players, former players, it's a sisterhood. Right. There are so.
Speaker 5 (26:12):
Many themes that happened this season where I was like,
you know what, let me step away because this shit
hurts and I'm not talking about people who were coming
for me. I'm talking about people who were coming for
current players. Yeah, because I did and I always will
(26:34):
stand up for those players when people are coming for
them in a way that has nothing to do with basketball.
First of all, I got called everything but a child
of God. But it didn't bother me because I do
know I.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
Am a child to God.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Okay, but I got.
Speaker 5 (26:50):
Called everything but a child of God because I have
an opinion, an opinion And you know the thing that
I didn't underst and I still don't understand. You have
male analysts, former NBA players doing podcasts talking about the game.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Doing whatever.
Speaker 5 (27:10):
They're allowed to say whatever they want, whenever they want,
however they want, and there's nothing right Like they can
sit here and say whatever it does they want to say.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
They can.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
They're allowed to have opinions about the game, about players,
and there's no hate, no nothing that comes back to them.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Right.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
No, people tune in the next week to hear it.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Again, exactly. But let a former player or even some
of the current players say something or have an opinion,
and it's like, how dare you?
Speaker 2 (27:43):
And I just wanted.
Speaker 5 (27:44):
People to understand this, like it's my opinion, just like
everybody has their opinions on who the goat is.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
If I'm not your go good, that's your opinion.
Speaker 3 (27:56):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (27:57):
But I didn't take the social media and cusha out
and call you out, your name and you know, all
of those things, which is what happened when I had
an opinion.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
An opinion that other people also shared, right, because it wasn't.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
Like you was the only one.
Speaker 1 (28:10):
There's an opinion that so many people shared and it
wasn't and it wasn't an improbable opinion.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
It was very valid. But it didn't matter what I said.
Speaker 5 (28:22):
I tweeted something to Diamond to Shills after they played
Indiana Fever, and what I tweeted to her was like,
keep your head up, we got you, We're here for you.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
But that had nothing to do with basketball.
Speaker 5 (28:34):
That was when everyone was coming for her, saying I
hope your tumor comes back and.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
You die next time.
Speaker 3 (28:39):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (28:41):
Like I don't know how other people feel about that.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
That's not okay with me.
Speaker 5 (28:45):
So I see that I'm going to address it. I'm
going to say something. But when I look at trying
to take all of that ugliness out of it, right,
and when I look at just.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
The basketball, it was so good.
Speaker 5 (29:02):
The basketball itself was so good, from the rookies that
came in to the second ear players to the vets,
like everybody balled out, everybody.
Speaker 2 (29:15):
Showed up when the lights were on, they showed up.
Speaker 5 (29:18):
And to me, I really wish we would have and
could have just focused on how good the game was
instead of all the negative energy that came with it.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
One hundred percent agree.
Speaker 1 (29:32):
I think for a long time we had tried to
figure out why there was a disconnect between women's college
basketball and the WNBA, and slowly but surely, over the
last few years, you'd begin to see Yukon fans turn
into more W fans because of all the Yukon players
South Carolina. Really, when Asia came into the game, you
(29:55):
really saw an influx. Oh yeah, you know, college Chanians
become W fans because they followed Asia, and then they
followed Tiffany Mitchell, and then they followed you know, Alicia Grant,
and then here recently, obviously the most recent example is
Kaitlin Clark and all the IM fans that have now
you know, Notre Dame had an influx of people because
(30:16):
of Iarique and all, so like this year I think
was the year that we truly saw an influx of
college fans turn into WNDA fans, which kept the numbers high,
which kept the interest high. Absolutely love that. And I
think that anyone who would say that Kaitlin Clark didn't
(30:36):
play a role in that is high.
Speaker 3 (30:39):
Because clearly she did. She absolutely played a role.
Speaker 2 (30:43):
But I don't know anyone who said that right.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Me neither me neither. I don't know one who didn't
who said that.
Speaker 1 (30:50):
And so I keep asking myself, right, like, where where
does this come from? And I tried to, like I
really tried to sit in like rationalize it right, And
believe me, I've come to the conclusion that there is
no rationalization.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
Where did you come up?
Speaker 1 (31:06):
There's nothing, absolutely absolutely nothing. But in the beginning I
tried to put myself in. I said, you know what,
I'm a college fan as it comes to D one,
I'm a Michigan State girl.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
You know I love aerial powers. That's my dog. Could
you know? We rolling Spartan high.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
So here we go, like is it the fandom that
we have in college sports that it's like are we
bringing that level? Like I'm trying, I was trying to understand,
and nothing at all made sense, Like there's no reason, nothing,
no rhyme or.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
Reason to it made sense.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
And it just got to the point that the only
reason why people felt okay with bringing this ugliness and
this hate and this divisiveness to this league is because
we're women, and society just accepts every kind of shit
that you throw at women, and when you throw it
at Black women, it just doesn't matter. Let me, you
(32:00):
can look at what's going on culturally right now with
Sean Combs. Yeah, it was a woman, and no one
believed that she was getting beat up or no one
believed that she was and then you have to have
the video evidence, You have to have all of this
stuff to prove, to further prove and show, and even
then you get doubters, right, And that's what it is
(32:20):
with the WNBA. That's what it is with this league.
People can come in and say what they want to
say about folks. They can talk to how y'all, how
they want to talk to y'all. They could say what
they want to say about y'all to y'all because you
all are women, because we are all women, and no
one cares truly about our thoughts, our opinions, are our feelings,
because this is what people have done to women and
(32:42):
women's sports and women in any profession for centuries.
Speaker 3 (32:47):
I don't care.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
They would never do this to men, even in the
infancy stages of the NBA.
Speaker 3 (32:53):
They would never bring this to men.
Speaker 1 (32:56):
And that's really what it boils down to, I guess,
really what it boils down to women's sports. As much
as we're growing and as much as we're seeing the investment,
we are still not necessarily getting the respect that you
all deserve.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
And that is why this door can be open.
Speaker 2 (33:13):
That is such a great point, my goodness. But you
know the other.
Speaker 5 (33:17):
Part to that two T is when it happens, we
don't say nothing. It's like we sit back and we
sit there like, oh shit, well, I know that's wrong,
but I can't say anything because if I say something,
this might happen, or that might happen, or I might
lose this, or I might lose that. And the men
(33:40):
on the other side are like, I dare you to
say something. Well, this is my opinion, this is how
I feel, this is what I'm gonna do.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
What you're gonna do about it?
Speaker 3 (33:48):
Yep?
Speaker 5 (33:48):
But it's you knows. As women we're always looking to men.
Speaker 2 (33:56):
To validate us.
Speaker 5 (33:57):
We too, we look to men to tell us how
great we are, how beautiful we are, how good we are,
how whatever. But as women we also do the same
thing that that we talk about the men doing.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
We tear each other down quicker than a man will.
Speaker 3 (34:15):
Speak on it. Speak on it.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Because I see many women in my I wait for
what reason?
Speaker 5 (34:23):
Because if you sit here and you're talking about, oh,
I want the league to grow. I want the league
to grow. I want to What can I do well?
Since you can stop tearing us down and go at
the ones who don't know shit about this game, don't
know shit about the players, and start showing some respect. Yeah,
because I listen, I'll sit here when I When I
(34:45):
don't want to deal with it, I don't respond, or
I just block you block block block block girl. And
then they get mad that I blocked them, like why
are you blocking me? Because I don't have to let
you sit here on my page and save ignorant shit
to me.
Speaker 3 (34:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
And I not only that, but it's the ones that
say stuff and then when you clap back, they're like,
but you're supposed to be professional, but you're supposed to be.
And I know we're gonna talk about this in more
detail on a later show. But I'm still a human
and I'm still I'm still that girl from the East
Side of Detroit. You come on my Twitter page talking shit,
(35:21):
you best believe I don't clap back, and I'm not
at all worried about whether or not I'm going to
lose my job or I'm going to lose an endorsement,
or I'm going to lose any girl.
Speaker 5 (35:31):
When im good, I have time, I'm gonna let you
know I have time. I got time in some days
I'm like, you know what, I don't.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
Have time and I don't even know you. But here's
the thing, Te. You listen.
Speaker 5 (35:44):
If I don't like you, if I don't like what
you're doing, I don't like what you're posting.
Speaker 2 (35:48):
I'm not gonna follow you.
Speaker 5 (35:50):
I'm not gonna have my notifications turned on so that
every time TE posts something I can see what she doing.
I don't follow people, I don't listen to people. I
don't deal with people that I don't like.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
Yep.
Speaker 5 (36:01):
So if you don't like me, why are you here?
Why are you on my page? Why are you watching
everything I post? Why are you watching everything I do?
Speaker 3 (36:08):
It is wild, it is wild.
Speaker 1 (36:11):
It's just crazy, quite literally, it's quite literally wild.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
I think it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (36:31):
I was looking at a poll because one thing that
people say about, you know, as we conclude here, just
kind of talking about this season.
Speaker 3 (36:39):
Well, why don't you guys have more women as fans
and blah blahlah blah blah, And I'm.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
Like, okay, there are about I believe it's fifty six
to forty four as it relates to sports fans than
the sports fan demographic, fifty six percent of sports fan
are men. So obviously, as we grow it can't be
just women. You can't just expect women to watch. Obviously
men have to watch too, obviously men. I mean that's
(37:05):
just that's just basic fucking math, Like you're going to
need so like I really wish people just quit me.
Speaker 3 (37:11):
And like, you know, you need to get more women
to watch it.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
I mean, sure, we need to get more people of
everybody people, period, But basic math says it's just people
because men are bigger sports fans than women.
Speaker 3 (37:23):
That's just what the study shows with the post shows,
So y'all sound stupid.
Speaker 1 (37:26):
It's shit continuing to say this, but anyway, I bring
that up to say I bring that up to say
that it is interesting to me that as I look
at the growth of this sport and I look at
all the TV deals that are coming in and the
merchandise sales were through the roof. It was just announced
that the Finals had two point fifteen million viewers. That
(37:50):
just further lets me know that whether you hate it,
whether you want to talk about it, whether you want
to hate on us as you know, either a former
player or an analyst or whatever, at the end of
the day, we got your attention. You're watching, you're engaging,
you're talking, and the numbers are showing it improving it.
(38:11):
So you can continue to tweet what you're tweeting, you
can continue to say what you're saying. You can continue
to hate the way that you want to hate, or
you can just jump on board and love the product.
Speaker 3 (38:21):
You can also jump on board and get other people
to watch the product. You can do it the right
way or the wrong way.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
But either way, the number suggests that this game ain't
going nowhere.
Speaker 5 (38:32):
It's just not We're not going nowhere, not Pereriod period.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Like we're not going nowhere.
Speaker 5 (38:39):
And you know, to add to that, we're not going
anywhere because it's a great product.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Yes, they're not going anywhere.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
The talent level is.
Speaker 5 (38:49):
Crazy stupid, but you know what, the personalities that these
players have, they're fun to watch, they're fun to engage with.
When you really get to know them, you get to
know their personality and then to see what they do
on the court, like, these are some of the best
players in the world, the absolute best in the world,
(39:12):
and they deserve so much better than they were given
this year from fans because I feel like some of
it was like we couldn't really enjoy the product on
the floor because of all the ugliness that came along
with that. And I really hope that it's better next year.
I want to say this one thing, and I'm sure
(39:33):
you saw it. So Darius Rucker, did you see his
post He just posted a couple of days ago. He
basically said thank you to the WNBA and thank you
to the Indiana Fever. He said he and his girlfriend
attended almost I think he said every Indiana Fever game.
He was just talking about how great the talent was.
(39:54):
He came in to watch Aliyah because South Carolina and Caitlyn,
And I said, but when we got there, we got
to see Kelsey Mitchell and then he talked about all
the other players that he watched play. But I just
thought that tweet and that post, I was like, damn,
I wish all New fans felt this way.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
But would you say that, I would say that.
Speaker 1 (40:18):
I think the numbers show us that in a way
they kind of do, whether they want to admit it
or not.
Speaker 3 (40:24):
I mean, how many people did you hear say, oh, well,
Indiana lost, we might as well pack it up. The
WNBA might as well pack it up. Nobody's gonna watch
no more or up.
Speaker 1 (40:34):
And the numbers say otherwise. Viewership say folks watched. Viewership
say folks watched in abundance. Viewership says that people actually
enjoy the WNBA and enjoy watching the WNBA despite who
may be the most popular player at the time or whatever.
Speaker 3 (40:53):
That might be.
Speaker 1 (40:54):
And so I think people just need to admit it, like,
just admit that this is a good, prime thing that
you enjoy watching it, and not necessarily have to put
it all on one person, because the truth is is
just that maybe Caitlyn is what brought you to the W.
Maybe Angel is what brought you to the W. Maybe
you know whatever it is that brought you to the W.
(41:16):
That's great that that's what brought you here, but there
are so many other things that make you stay. And
I love that about the talented women in this league.
And so Darius just really echoed. He did a lot
of people feel maybe they just don't want to say it.
Speaker 3 (41:32):
He did point one five million people watch.
Speaker 5 (41:35):
Well and listen in case people didn't see it or
don't have Twitter. I want to read it real fast
because I think it's it's worth acknowledging and recognizing. Yes,
so he said, my girlfriend and I watched every Fever
game and got to see how truly great the basketball
play in your league really is.
Speaker 2 (41:52):
I want to thank ab.
Speaker 5 (41:53):
Aliah Boston, my fellow game cock CC one of the
greatest I've ever seen. That's Caitlin Clark, Kels, Kelsey, Mitchell Buckets,
Melissa Smith, Holly, Lexi Hall, d d Damirs Dantis. I
love the nickname and all the other great players and
coaches in Indiana for a fun, great season.
Speaker 2 (42:14):
Getting to watch the enemy.
Speaker 5 (42:16):
I only call her that because she played like Jordan
against my Fever talking about Aurique and all the other
great players play with That amount of passionate skill has
me hooked. He continued to say, we got to go
and see the game against the Goat Asia Wilson, and
the atmosphere in that building was amazing. What an incredible
place to watch a game. And now watching the finals
(42:37):
with the microwave, that's Sabrina Stewie and Zeppelin, that's jj
go five games in overtime against the Assassin, Courtney Williams
and feezy Nefisa was icing on the cake. Just want
to thank all of you for being great. Now I
get to watch my game COCOMs Basketball and then go
right into the next season.
Speaker 2 (42:56):
Man and my so in like I read that, and
I will like I gotta repost it because here's the thing.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
You you can be a fan of one team or
a fan of one players, but still appreciate the rest
of the talent and the league yep, without being so
ugly and mean and disrespectful. Like it's a great product.
It's a great product across the board. So Darius, thank
(43:24):
you for being a fan, for being in and we
expect to have you on levels to this one day.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
So absolutely that is a great way to close it out.
We look forward to the twenty twenty five season women's
college basketball that's coming up, starting very soon, so we
get to see Juju and Paige Becker's and you know,
Hannah Hadogo Raven Johnson's gonna cut up as South Carolina.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Malaysia for Wiley Malaysia.
Speaker 3 (43:55):
Oh my god.
Speaker 1 (43:56):
Yes, and we hope she feels better. We know she
got hurt a couple of games ago, but hopefully she's good.
It's just so much talent in women's basketball right now.
This college season is gonna be crazy. The drafts in
twenty twenty five, it is gonna be crazy.
Speaker 3 (44:09):
New format next year for the WNBA. The finals is
going seven games. The first round.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
Will be one one one, so everybody gets a home game. Man,
it's just gonna be so much fun. There will be
levels to the WNBA and women's basketball next season, and
we're gonna be right there for it, every piece of it,
all right, y'all.
Speaker 3 (44:35):
So that is what's gonna do it for us here.
Speaker 1 (44:39):
I had levels to this, but before we go, of course, Cheryl,
you have got to help us level up for the
next week.
Speaker 3 (44:45):
What you got for us today, this.
Speaker 5 (44:47):
One is short and sweet, but I don't know if
anyone else is feeling this. I found this and I
was like, you know what this is for me, and
I'm just giving you some context so.
Speaker 2 (44:59):
Then when I read it, you'll be like, Okay, maybe hopefully.
I think in life, we all go through things, right.
Speaker 5 (45:06):
And sometimes we get to a point to where we
wonder like is it time to make a change, and
we get afraid to.
Speaker 2 (45:13):
Like just step out and do it.
Speaker 5 (45:15):
It's kind of sort of where I am right now
with some stuff I'm going through.
Speaker 2 (45:18):
So I found this and this is what it says.
Speaker 5 (45:21):
It says in any given moment, we have two options
to step forward into growth or step back into safety.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
M and that plays right into what we discussed today,
growth of the league, growth of even just growth of self.
Speaker 3 (45:39):
Just that's a whole other topic right there, just what
it is.
Speaker 5 (45:43):
But that's when I am right now, Like I'm comfortable, right,
I know, I'm safe with where I am and what
I'm doing, but there are some other things I want
to do, but I'm a little nervous to just to
step out in it and grow.
Speaker 3 (45:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (45:58):
Yeah, there are some things that I've done just this
year that I was like, holy shit, but you gotta
be favor, be comfortable.
Speaker 3 (46:06):
Or grow.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
And I always want to know, but always want.
Speaker 1 (46:11):
To grow, want to grow, easy, love it, Love it
well fans. Thank you guys so much for listening to
levels to this. We will be back next week with
more next level conversation about the real shit women go through. Right,
but this just is not our show. It's our show,
so we want to hear from you. Leave us a
review in Apple Podcasts and tell us what you thought
(46:33):
of this we show or what you may want us
to talk about next.
Speaker 3 (46:36):
You can also follow us
Speaker 1 (46:37):
On Instagram, at els and t pod, but until then,
keep your mentals ground level and we'll be back next
week
Hosts And Creators
Terrika Foster-Brasby
Sheryl Swoopes
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