July 7, 2025 • 46 mins
On this episode of Naked Sports, Cari Champion opens up about finding her tribe, cutting off toxic relationships (yes, we’re talking frenemies), and creating a sense of peace in a world that feels more divided than ever.
Then it’s game time: we dive into the headlines shaking up the WNBA.
From record-breaking expansion to fiery rivalries over player rankings—this week on Naked Sports, Cari Champion digs into the explosive growth of the WNBA, the drama brewing around Caitlin Clark’s All‑Star selection, and whether the league’s meteoric rise comes at a cost.
Why are some folks upset that Caitlin Clark is an All-Star captain in just her second year? What's really behind the WNBA expansion news—and why are only male owners getting the big buy-in? Cari breaks it all down with honesty and edge, from fan vote drama to long-overdue investment in women’s sports.
Mark your calendar: WNBA All-Star Weekend is July 18–20 in Indiana.
Connect @CariChampion
Subscribe Cari Champion's YOUTUBE Channel
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Naked Sports, the podcast where we live at
the intersection of sports, politics, and culture. Our purpose reveal
the common threads that bind them all.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
So what's happening in women's basketball right now is what
we've been trying to get to for almost thirty years.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
From the stadiums where athletes break barriers and set records.
Kydon Park broke them all time single game assists record.
This is crazy for rookies to be doing. Our discussions
will uncover the vital connections between these realms and the
community we create. In each episode, we'll sit down with athletes,
political analysts, and culture critics, because at the core of
(00:40):
it all, how we see one issue shines the light
on all others. Welcome to Naked Sports. I'm your host,
Carrie Champion. Hey, everybody, welcome back to another edition. It's edition,
not a another edition of Naked Sports. It's how you've
(01:00):
been family. I hope you have been well. I have
been pretty well. I had a great birthday month. My
friends took really good care of me. My friends and
my family took really good care of me, and I
was really really happy, and I was just telling people
I feel more. I feel more in touch with my tribe,
(01:22):
like I know who my tribe is, and so I,
as a result, wanted to just give a brief shout
out to my girls, right. I don't want to forget
anybody but my best friend, Kendra, Tommy Mosama, Jamel, Kelly,
Marci Fabiola. I had a beautiful crew of people who
(01:43):
really really nurtured me and took care of me during
my entire birthday month. And I felt so grateful. You
know how people say grateful and blessed, but I felt
so loved, so blessed, so happy. It was such a
euphoric feeling. And I really have been saying to myself,
I can keep that feeling. I can keep my crew
(02:04):
and my circle tight. I can I can protect that
little precious part that I don't want to give out
to everyone else. And and as and as a result,
this makes me a better person. I'm happier, I'm lighter,
I'm all of the things and the reason why it
meant so much to me now that I give it
thought and I don't normally do this, but I'm just
(02:26):
giving you guys an update. This is a bit of
an update slash vent before we get into the podcast,
but I'm giving you this message because it helped me
as well. I know that we can control our surroundings
the surround We can't control who we work with, we
can't control what happens when you walk down the street,
but we can control our intimate surroundings. We can create
(02:49):
a little bit of heaven here on earth, I believe,
especially during the times in which we live in today.
And I felt that during this past month as I
selllebrated with my friends and family, it was very intentional
how I celebrated. I was very vulnerable about wanting to
celebrate with the people that I feel safe and loved with.
And why I crave that because it was a craving
(03:12):
from my body. While I was craving that, I realized
it was simply because I had been dealing with a
lot of people in my life who were frenemies and
I didn't even know what it was. I don't I
didn't even know I was dealing with that. I didn't
even know it was a term, y'all. So the other
day on social media, not as if you know, all
(03:34):
the wisdom is there, but I started to listen to
Robert Green, and he was on the podcast Diary of CEO.
We love that podcast. Shout out to my producer who
told me about it, jah Quies, which she just reminded me.
I'm like, yeah, you did. You turned me onto that.
But anyway, Robert Green, this is his discussion on frenemies
(03:55):
and I want you to listen to this. Robert Green
highlights how envy and hidden can petitiveness can manifest in
relationships disguised as friendships and then.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Lo and behold, you start noticing all kinds of behavior
that's very ugly that you weren't expected because you're they're
your friend. They start saying bitchy comments that get under
your skin, that makes you feel insecure. They take things
from you, they act in ways that are hurtful, but
because they're your friend, your for instancetinct is to blame yourself. Well,
maybe it's my fault that they've done this, Maybe I'm
(04:26):
actually to blame for what they're saying, et cetera, et cetera.
So I believe behind the freeminemy's phenomenon is this phenomenon
of envy where the person secretly wants what you have
and they're becoming your friends that they can wound you.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
We simply call them haters today, right, But if you
don't want to label something, and you can tell something
is off, like there are people in your life that
aren't necessarily haters, but something is off. It's a feeling
that you get when you walk away. It is a
feeling that I don't necessarily feel safe to share everything here.
But yeah, I call you a friend, and we are friendly,
(05:02):
and we hang out and maybe we have vacation together.
Who the heck knows, I don't know. But listen to
this term. And I know you've heard it before, and
I know you've heard people say so and so's a frenemy.
But this is a technical term, and I want to
give you the definition textbook. These frenemies may appear friendly
while secretly harboring resentment or jealousy towards the other person's
(05:23):
success and or status or looks or place in life.
Robert Green explains that this can lead to subtle acts
of sabotage, devaluation of achievements, or emotional manipulation under the
guise of friendship, secret envy, passive aggression, overly eager friendship,
(05:46):
information gab, the ring, getting all in your business. Now
we all, whether we know it or not have interacted
and or have someone who feels like a frenemy in
our life. And the reason it's so important for me
to talk about this now is because what I just
experienced this past month with all my tribe and my
(06:08):
friends and my family, that euphoria. I hadn't been dealing with,
that I've been missing that, That's what my body was
craving because I realized, in different circumstances, I had a
lot of frenemies. And I don't know if these people
are intentionally being frenemies. I don't know if this is
something that people can identify readily within themselves. But what
(06:31):
I was able to at least understand for me is
that I ain't got to deal with it. I ain't
got to deal with it. Meaning you can create your
own slice of heaven right here on earth. You can
choose to interact when you're not at work, when you're
in your off time, when you're in that precious relaxation time,
(06:51):
you can pick and choose. You can curate an environment
that feels safe and friendly. And I encourage everybody today
to do that, to start doing that. Look at the
world that we live in right now, and while you
might be saying, Carrie, this is you don't have to
do with sports. Yeah, no, it's all the same. Sports culture, politics,
(07:12):
all of these things blend in with the daily lives
that we lead. And what I am saying to you
is is that while we are out here navigating this
world of sports, culture and politics and whatever it may
be that you're navigating, make sure that you take a
lot of time, a lot of time and curate your
own little slice of heaven with your tribe. It could
(07:34):
be your family, it could be your family and friends,
it could be one best friend, it could be whomever.
But you make sure you find If you're one, you're lucky, right.
If you got more than one, you are blessed. And
you find this tribe and you make sure that you
are vulnerable with them, and you tell them what you need.
And the reason why I'm saying it's so important to
do it in today's cccity is because every time we
(07:57):
turn on the TV, or every time we turn on
our phones, someone's fighting, someone's lying, someone's calling someone a name.
This country is so polarized now there isn't nuance. There
is no such thing as nuance to any of our
conversations it's either you're on this side or that side.
It's black and it's white, and that is just not
how life is. People are more defensive. People think because
(08:20):
you disagree with them, that you might be in a
class that's different than theirs, or you might be a Republican,
or you might be a Democrat. You can't just be
in society. And I feel it obviously a little more
than other people. But what I have I have decided
for me and what I mean, I feel it a
little bit more. I feel it in my workspace. Obviously,
(08:41):
I fill it in sometimes when I'm doing this podcast,
depending on who I'm talking to. I have decided that,
because this is the world in which we live in,
I have to create my own. I hear a lot
of people talking about I'm moving. I'm moving, I'm moving
from America. I'm gonna go live in Portugal. I know.
I said that too. I went to Portugal. I'm not
going to move there though, but that was my thought process.
(09:02):
I got to get out of here as crazy and
it is. It's all of those things, and you can
still believe that you need to leave this country whatever,
but in the meantime, it is imperative to have balance
that allows you to feel safe and loved and protected.
And if you don't have that, try to create it.
But you don't have to. There's no rule in life
(09:25):
that says you have to be friends with people who
don't really like you. Like all of us have had
that one friend where you're like, gosh, she loves hanging
out with me, but I don't think she really liked
me because she says these little digs and jabs, and
I'm just I don't know where they're coming from. She's
calling me names or judging me, and I haven't really
(09:47):
talked to Sheila like that. I don't know why she
would say that. She doesn't have all the information. Hey
guess what, I too could be a friend of me
in someone's mind, but I choose if I don't like you,
I don't want to hang out. I just removed myself
from the situation. I wouldn't pretend to be your friend
and take digs at you. I don't know what kind
of crazy psychology that is. But here's the deal. You
(10:09):
don't have to deal with it. In today's society, it
is so important to have people around you that make
you feel safe. Let's bring that back, Let's make that trending,
Let's make that popular. And I say that because coming
off of this past month of my birthday, I was like, Oh,
this is this is a life that I can live.
(10:29):
This is something that I really enjoy. So it made
sense to me. While I was at work last week
at CNN, I got into it with Scott Jennings in
a way that I had never gotten into it with
him before. And I normally don't allow him to bother me.
I kind of laugh it off. I take the high road,
(10:50):
I don't get into it. I ignore his little biity comments.
But this time he really was just lying. He always,
in my opinion, doesn't tell the truth. But this time
he's being a real liar. And I said, as opposed
to a not so real liar. And I said to
him during commercial break, I was like, you're such a liar.
(11:11):
And I just was like it just clicked to me.
I was like, you'll never tell the truth because you
have a party line and you have a party message,
and you're doing a personal audition for the president of
this country. And it doesn't matter what I say. It
doesn't matter how I say it, it doesn't even matter
if it makes sense to you or not, you are
(11:32):
going to try your best to refute and or make
me feel like I am not qualified, and it will
only matter to the people who listen to you. They
will believe you. Conversely, you know, I posted him on
my page, and the people who follow me believe me.
To my point, we are so divided in this society.
(11:54):
But I said to myself, you know what, No, mass
I'm not gonna be Ontie yelling at you, trying to
convince you that Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize wasn't affirmative action.
I'm just not gonna do that. That's just silly Baraco.
First of all, Barack Obama a hat been president for
how long? Why are we still talking about this man?
(12:15):
Why do we still talk about this man if he's
still the president? Why are you still criticizing this man
who cares. He's not in president nomore. He's someone on
Martha's vineyard golfing, and you're talking about whether or not
his Nobel Peace Prize was affirmative action because Don Junior
said it. This is ridiculous, and I will not. I
(12:37):
will not. I will not tolerate nonsense anymore, meaning I
can pick and choose. I can still be just as
effective as what I do what I do on CNN
without being on a round table with that man. I
can be just as effective with this podcast and using
my voice to platform people who are trying to do
great things in today's society, whether that be talking about
(12:59):
sports and or culture and or politics. So I will
not and I think that we should really as a
society focus on the things that bring us joy when
we don't have to be around the people that don't
bring us joy. Meaning you might work with some people
(13:20):
and you don't like them as well. You know what
I'm talking about. You might have a mother in law
that you don't love so much. Right, I'm making up something,
But the reality is is that we can create our
own I did that in real time without realizing I
was doing that, And so I encourage you to disassociate
with that frenemy. Don't allow yourself to be around the
(13:42):
people that make you think about them at night if
they are doing something inappropriate to you. If you feel
that if you're in company with people that you know
don't really like you, you gotta ask yourself why life
is too short? I can't sit around with people who
who choose not to like me for whatever reasons. Life
(14:03):
is entirely too short, and there is so much going
on in this world that we have to create an
oasis otherwise we're gonna lose our minds. Every morning we
wake up, there's a new headline, there's a new a
new scandal, there's a new argument on Twitter between Elon
(14:23):
Musk and the president of this country. There's a new
and by the way, it's not new. We are all
very aware of what is happening. But during this time,
during this mess, it's important more important to have some
people that really hold you down. A person, some people,
(14:44):
a family, a friend. I don't know. Maybe you need
to make an ai friend who knows you're right, because
a lot of people I truly feel are lonely and
they don't know how to get out of this lonely space.
So they're angry, and then anger allows them to live
in this space where they have to pick sides. We
can find our heaven. I just did it. At this
(15:06):
big age, didn't realize I could do it. And when
I was listening to Robert Green have that conversation about frenemies,
it just translated to more than just friends. It's just
people that are in your space and you're like, this
doesn't make me feel well. I might have to interact
with them, I might have to work with them, but
I am not going to give them any of my
valuable time, the time that makes me feel sane and safe,
(15:30):
the time that I'm going to give to those who
actually care about me. In short, In short, surround yourself.
It could be one person, two people, your kids, right,
it could be anything. But you do not have to
tolerate people who don't like or who take subtle jabs
at you, or who pretend to be in your world
or and or society and pretend as if they like you.
(15:52):
You do not. I feel like this is more common
and people do not talk about it. And while I
am venting, I'm getting this off my chest. But there's
somebody listening now, like, no, I know I got four
or five for dems. I'm not talking to Jack no more,
or I'm just going to remove myself from Jack's presence.
You know what I'm talking about, And it's okay to
say no, that's not a bad thing. Go find your people.
(16:15):
Speaking of finding my people on today's podcast, because the
podcast is going to begin Now. That was my venting
message that I approve of. But on today's podcast, we're
talking about the WNBA, and I don't know if you
know this. WNBA All Star Weekend begins July seventeenth, eighteenth,
(16:36):
and nineteenth, three days of festivities. The game will be
on a Saturday night. The format not necessarily the same
as the NBA, but for some reason there's a little
scuttle but little scandal, a little brujha happening right now
in the WNBA. You know, the format is to pick
(16:56):
a team captain, one representing the East, one representing the West.
The team captain representing the East this year, Caitlyn Clark.
The team captain representing the West this year, a Fisakalier. Well,
apparently there are some within the WNBA atmosphere that are
(17:19):
not happy that Caitlyn Clark is a team captain during
her sophomore year. Right, she's ricky last year. This is
her second year in the league. She's team captain. Not
her fault, because you know how they vote based on
fan votes. She got the most fan votes, record setting
fan votes. You can't be mad at what the fans
(17:41):
want because the All Star Weekend is truly for them,
but some people are mad. And on today's podcast, we'll
talk about the WNBA why they're mad at Caitlyn Clark
for being the team captain and who exactly are they.
And then also, the WNBA is expanding. They're adding three
more teams, three more teams to bring the grand total
(18:01):
to eighteen. What it all means after the break, So it.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
Is my honor to officially announce that the WNBA is
expanding from are currently announced fifteen teams to eighteen teams
over the next few years, so on behalf of the
entire WNBA. I'm thrilled to welcome Cleveland and Detroit back
and to welcome Philadelphia officially to the WNBA.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
So first and foremost, let me just say thank you
Kathy Ngelbird for that information. Congratulations. There are three more
teams coming to the w making it a grand total
of eighteen. That is amazing. That is beautiful for women's sports.
I want to I just want to be clear, if
you hear me, that is amazing. I am happy that
this is happening. It's going to give women more opportunities
(18:59):
to play professional sports. And if there are more dollars
more revenue, more interest. All it can do is get
bigger and better and expand. However, when announcing those teams,
you dig a little, do a little research, and you
notice they're all male owners. That's the first thing, NBA owners,
(19:21):
if you will. And I think that's great because the
inception of the league actually began in partnership with the NBA.
So let me explain this so it doesn't sound weird.
The league WNBA would not exist. I will be very
honest with you if the NBA did not lend a
(19:41):
financial planned and resources. A financial plan not with a
D and resources. So they thought it was it would
be smart to take the Lakers, for instance, and say,
let me give you a women's team, because you already
have an arena where they can play, you already have colors,
you're an established franchise is already in place. We're just
(20:01):
going to take the Lakers and do a model of
what you all are doing with this franchise, and we're
going to give birth to the Los Angeles Sparks. That's
how it all began. And they did that with a
few teams when the league started in nineteen ninety seven. Perfect, great,
thank you. Now it wasn't making money. It still isn't
making money, for being honest, but it is very popular
(20:25):
and there is money to be made. So now that
there's money to be made, they let the men buy in.
All the men are buying in, what about the women.
I want to be a part owner of a WNBA team.
I have two dollars to add. Here's my and look,
I'm not going to complain. I understand. I am going
to complain. That's a lie. I understand that you need
(20:48):
to have an owner that is obviously well resourced because
there's travel facility, marketing, sponsors. How do you keep the
team afloat? I understand that is necessary because you want
to give each one of these new teams, these expansion teams,
(21:10):
an opportunity to flourish. And I can't come in, Carrie
Champion can't come in with her twenty dollars and say
I'm a build a team. I need to have some
serious money. And the buy in now is huge. It's
really huge. I mean, listen to this.
Speaker 5 (21:27):
I mean you have ticket sales up, you know, sixty
six percent, and you have you know, attendance up, same
sponsorships and viewership up. You know the playoffs one hundred
and thirty percent year over year growth. So I think
there's an ascendency that has a ways to go. As
a value investor, you know, it's it's it's a trophy
(21:51):
franchise and price like a trophy franchise.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
Clara Wissi was quoted in Bloomberg Is saying that by
twenty thirty, she expects the Liberty to be the first
one billion dollar women's sports franchise. Do you see that
that's a big number.
Speaker 5 (22:05):
It's a big number, but I think that you know,
it's not it's not out of the question. Where we
are right now, ten years from now. I mean, just
the pace of growth here is extraordinary, and it's only
getting better. There are more teams, there's more talent, there's
more interests, there's more interests in college basketball, women's sports
more broadly.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
A lot to love here. So over the next five years,
Cleveland will join in twenty twenty eight. So that's the
WNBA team in Cleveland, followed by one in Detroit in
twenty twenty nine, followed by one in Philly in twenty thirty.
The buy in if you wanted to bring a WNBA
(22:45):
team to your town two hundred and fifty million dollars
two five zero. Congratulations to the w Congratulations to the
value that these women are now starting to actually receive
in terms of what they are worth. They won't see
that money, but you understand the value of the team.
Look and as a reminder, the WNBA added a thirteenth team,
(23:08):
the Golden State Valkyries this season. You may have seen them,
and they're playing really, really well. While the Toronto Temple
will be there next year, and then the Portland team
will also join, so that'll be a grand total of
eighteen teams in the league. That is huge. Now we've
heard complaints from so many people that they're not allowing
(23:32):
those who have supported the league all of these years
to be a part of ownership. And I understand both sides.
You need somebody with deep pockets to own a WNBA
team to keep up, to make sure that these women
are flying private and have the best hotels and are
getting the best and have the best facilities and the
best trainers. But that money, that money, that two hundred
(23:55):
and fifty million dollars, The women are not seeing it.
The players are not seeing that. I'm old enough to
remember when the Los Angeles Sparks jumped from owner to
owner to owner because each owner did not feel that
there was value in these teams. Now they're fighting fighting
to own WNBA teams. Here's a short little lesson, and
(24:16):
I don't even know if you remember this. Jerry Buss,
who owned the Los Angeles Lakers. He was the very
first owner of the Los Angeles Sparks. He owned when
the league started in nineteen ninety seven. He said, hey,
I'll put my hat in he may he rest in peace.
Jerry Buss. He sold the team in two thousand and six.
(24:37):
When he sold the team, and this kudos to you, Jerry,
because you get what we were trying to do. When
he sold the team, he sold it to an independent
group of owners led by a woman named Kathy Goodman,
and one of the women I've admired for many years
in media that her name was Paula Madison. So it
was a group of women who actually owned that team
from two thousand and six until twenty fourteen. So when
(25:02):
the ladies sold it, they sold it to Mark Walters.
Do you know who Mark Walters is. That's the guy
who just bought the Lakers. So he owns the Lakers.
He owns the Dodgers, and he owns the Sparks. That's
step pockets. If I was a player on the Sparks,
I would think, Great, we're gonna have the best facilities,
(25:22):
We'll have the best accommodations, We'll have all of the things,
because this man has a lot of money in deep
pockets and huge, huge partners, Magic Johnson being one of them.
And I love all that. I love it. I love
that you're investing in the WNBA. I love that you're
still committed to making it great. But I also know
(25:43):
that most of these people who own these teams don't
even watch the wo They could care less, and that's
really disappointing. It really truly is disappointing. And I say
that because there are people who have worked all their
life to build up women's sports, all of their life
to build up women's sports. Let me think I can
(26:03):
think of I think of someone like Lisa Leslie, who
was one of the original players for the Sparks. I
she had a small percentage of ownership for a small time,
like maybe a few years. I think of people who
are who played in the league, like Don Staley. She'd
like to own a WNBA team. I know that for
a fact, and there is no real effort to allow
(26:30):
the people who help build the brand, build the sport
keep it afloat in terms of their blood, sweat and
tears equity playing on the court. There's no real effort
to reward them. And what I mean by that is
that you clearly can't pay them. You still haven't been
able to pay them, But why not allow them to
feel some type of ownership in the league that they
(26:51):
build from scratch and cared for. If you play in
the w you're playing because you love the sport. It's
for the love, it's not for the money. You're doing
everything possible. Especially in the beginning years. They were playing
in gyms, they get kicked out of the arenas. They
were on buses, they were on public transportation, public flights
(27:12):
with layovers, sometimes flights delayed, sleeping in airports. I mean,
these women really love the sport and I am just
here to say that I wish that they could see
some value in it in terms of money for themselves. Now,
when we come back, like a small little break, when
(27:33):
we come back, I want to talk about Kaitlyn Clark
speaking of the WNBA speaking of that that superstar, that
super nova. Caitlin Clark is the captain, one of the
captains for the w NBA All Star Weekend, representing the East.
If you said Collier representing the West, what does that
(27:57):
all mean? And why are some folks not happy about it?
Back in a.
Speaker 7 (28:01):
Moment, it's cool that fans get to be a part
of it and having a little impact on the game.
And then I think also like it's going to be
really special to be able to do it here in
this city. And I think, you know, there's already been
so much time and effort put in by so many
people that you know aren't going to get credit for
(28:22):
what they did to bring All Star here, so, you know,
trying to make it the best All Star the WNBA
has ever had. I know we'll certainly do that. But
also it is certainly a cool honor for sure.
Speaker 1 (28:31):
WNBA All Star Weekend beginning on July eighteenth, and the
game is on Saturday the nineteenth. I just mentioned before
the break and if he's a Collier is the captain
of the West. Caitlin Clark captain representing the East. Clark
received a record setting number of fan votes one point
two nine million votes. Basically one point three million votes,
(28:56):
one point three million people. I don't even know that
many people love the w One point three million people
said We've got to see Kaitlyn Clark play. Second most
votes went to Noughisa Collier one point one seven. Now,
the question always comes up, especially when it's Kaitlyn Clark.
(29:17):
Is she that good? Do people really like her? Are
they weaponizing her? Is she really representing sports or is
it an idea that this country wants? Why are people
just now getting interested in sports or WNBA for that matter,
just because of Kitlin Clark. I hear these questions. We
did a long series, go back and listen to it.
I always tell people to do it. But Kaitlyn Clark,
(29:41):
she is just a super nova. Someone has to come
along and be that one. It's happened in every sport,
it happens in every industry. You have to have that
one who sets the standard, who who the tide rises
with them, the person that people are attracted to. In college,
Caitlyn Clark, as we all know, was this superstar. People
(30:01):
would try for hours to see her play basketball because
she would hit the I mean literally hit the logo
and drop a three. How could you do that so easily,
so effortlessly, And she did it consistently in day in
and day out all the time. She became a traveling
superstar in terms of people would go, oh is Caitlin
(30:21):
Clark Intown? I heard, I want to go see the
girl who plays for Iowa who drops threes like Steph Curry.
People had heard about her but didn't really know if
she would live up to all these expectations, all the
hooplah if you will. And she did. And not only
did she take all of her fans from college and
bring them to the W, she also created a movement.
(30:45):
And so yes, there's some resentment because the w has
been around since nineteen ninety seven and it took this long,
this long twenty some odd years for people to start
really paying attention. I won't say she is the only
reason why people are paying attention to the WNBA, but
I will say she introduced the WNBA to an entirely
(31:10):
new fan base, and those fans voted for her, and
those fans wanted to see her in the game more
than anyone else. And the way the votes were, the
fan votes in particular, they determine who will be the
team captains because they are the most popular people. Those
two players, Caitlin Clark and a Fisa Collier. Now Here
(31:33):
comes the rum they have a tendency to do this.
They let you know how many fan votes you got,
how many media votes you have, and how many player
votes you receive, and usually the players vote based on
who they think is the best. They really do, it
(31:55):
would be no surprise to you that Caitlyn Clark came
in ninth with the players, meaning there were eight other
players better than her according to the WNBA players in
the league. She's not She's not perfect. There's a lot
(32:15):
about our game that needs to be that needs to
be fixed. She rushes the ball, she moves too quickly,
she needs to settle before she takes certain shots. I
think she complains too much on the court. Right, we
can say that, and she arguably is not the best
point guard. She's just not That makes sense to me, right,
(32:40):
But what doesn't make sense is this hint of I'm
upset that she's the captain because she's only been in
the league for two years.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
Caitlyn Clark began this year incredibly strong, but unfortunately injuries
got in the way and if it were not for
it being in Indianapolis, I would probably be a person's
challenge and say maybe a reserve. But it's difficult to
say that somebody should probably be a captain when they've
(33:11):
missed a certain amount of games this year. And I
just want it to be known that it's to me
based off that that I would say for any other
player in any other team or on any other city
in which the All Stars being held, I think that
would be a factor. But the fact that it's being
in Indy, she's the most popular player in Indy, she
is the most popular fan base. It makes total sense
(33:34):
that she's a captain. And I really didn't foresee it
going any other way.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And while they're being politically correct, you know, there's a
bit of resentment. I think that's okay. I think it's okay.
I think it's okay not to like Katelyn Clark, or
to be or to feel some sort of resentment towards
Katelyn Clark. I think all of that is okay. You
know why, because we do not require it of the men.
We do not require that the men be best friends,
(33:59):
we do not require that they like each other. In fact,
we complain that the NBA is too friendly now and
they all are hanging out in their buddies. So why
does this make so many of these new fans upset
as if there is a conspiracy theory to gang up
on Caitlin Clark and not like her and take her
down and remove her from the league. It's just not
(34:21):
the case. It's sports, it's competitive. If they don't like
each other, that's fine. In fact, I think it's great.
In fact, I think it's better for the league. I
just do. I'm tired a few people complaining about women
not being nice on the court. You guys, see that
TikTok video the other day Cocoa Golf and Sebolenka and
(34:46):
Sebalinka said something to the effect of, we're good now, guys,
so you should be too. While they're dancing and doing
their TikTok dance, Why have you would Roger Federer and
raf An a doll I'll ever do a TikTok video
together when they were at the height of their competition,
when they couldn't stand each other, would they ever? No,
(35:10):
let me be more clear, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic
definitely didn't like each other, and it was known, and
no one said, hey, guys, come together and shake hands
till people aren't upset. Matgic Johnson couldn't stand Larry Bird.
They were competitors off the court. Maybe I'll say to
you there was no uproar like y'all should get along.
(35:32):
What Magic said about Larry was mean. This is crazy.
Just said it out loud. This is crazy. We do
not care if the men don't like each other. Why
do we care so much that people don't like Caitlin
Clark and are upset?
Speaker 8 (35:48):
Part of the WNBA All Star selection, the players get
to vote, and Caitlin Clark was voted as the ninth
best guard in the WNBA by WNBA plays right, yes,
So then you're sitting there going like, oh boy, here
we go. And then you're like, well, you know, I mean,
I just kind of be honest when I saw the pole.
(36:10):
I don't watch the WNBA except the case when Kid
and Clark is playing, right, I mean, can we just
be honest, Sam, I accept the fact that you do,
but the rest of us and most of the rest
of the world do not.
Speaker 1 (36:25):
I don't watch I don't watch games outside of fever games, honestly, Okay, yeah, fair.
Speaker 8 (36:29):
Enough, right, So, like Skyler Diggins, like I remember her
from Notre Dame, I can't tell you I've ever seen
her play professional basketball. I have no idea if she's
awesome or if she's just okay or whatever. But again,
like she's the player's rank curve way ahead, and everybody
else fans and media does not like. I don't know,
(36:51):
so I don't. So you're like, wow, that that's weird. Ninth.
That feels like they don't like her, right. It feels
like they're trying to even out the hype train.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Why do we care? I mean, I don't care. I'm
asking you. I am so sick and tired of trying
to make peace in a game that doesn't deserve peace.
It's competition. I don't like you, you don't like me.
You have something I want, I'm going to take it.
I think I'm better than you. You're not as good
(37:23):
as me. I know ten more players better than you,
and I'm going to tell you why. That's to me,
sounds like sports, sounds like competition. So here we are
having the age old debate of whether or not Caitlin
Clark is liked because she is white. The age old
debate of why other players who are better than her
(37:46):
are not getting the same attention, the same debate over
whether or not she's friendly. Is Angel Rees friendly? No,
she's the villa. We know that, right, that will already
be the case, right, that's Angel Reese is the villain.
That story has been written. But is she She's just honest.
(38:09):
She just says what she feels. If you want to
do comps. She reminds me of Draymond Green. You all
may not like Draymond, but the victriol that Angel gets
could could be the equivalent, if not more. It's more
than what Draymond gets at his height. Remember he socked
(38:30):
his teammate. People were trying to take him out. Then
I would think you would think Angel Reese came on
the court and sock Caitlin Clark the way you guys
hate on her. You would think she punched her in
the face like Draymond Green did. Like Draymond Green did.
She did not, And I think it's ridiculous. I think
it's so ridiculous that we are not allowing these women
(38:52):
in this new fragile state that they are in, to
just enjoy the sport. We're not allowing them to have
their own personalities. We're not allowing them to fight and
talk trash. I love it watching when they talk trash.
I like to see them lose their mind. I like
to see them throw the ball. I want to see
all of that because it means you care. We have
got to let these ladies play. I started the podcast
(39:14):
complaining about the gatekeeping because the men are now the
owners of the WNBA and only interested because there is
money there. Unfair women are being left out. Who started
the sport to be unfair? And then I slide into
what's going on with these new expansion teams, and then
I slide into what's going on with Caitlin Clark and
white people are upset about the All Star Game because
(39:37):
she is a captain. I think too soon, too soon,
too soon. She's a super nova accepted and I'm not
saying that she plays this way. So let me be
very clear. But every now and again, there has to
be a face of a league, Baseball, basketball, it has
to be a face of a sport, Tennis, soccer. I
(40:01):
named all those sports right away. You thought about somebody
who was the face, the first, the most popular person,
the name that you knew that was synonymous, Wit said
sport Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Larry Byrn Messy,
Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak, Djokovic, Serena Williams. They're just
(40:25):
people who are and the chosen one just so happens
to be a white woman, And people are up in
arms because of that, in both ways. Up in arms
because she's getting all the attention on a league that
is seventy percent black, up in arms because they think
she's being picked on, and they're defending her. Up in
(40:46):
arms because she's getting more money than players have ever
seen their entire life. Who built the league? Not her fault, anything,
None of this. None of this is her fault, none
of it. So if we could settle and allow the
sport to be a sport where we just watch it
and enjoy it, it'll be a good life for us.
(41:08):
I understand the argument of why some people are upset
that she's a team captain. It's not really valid, though,
has nothing to do with you, the fans chosen. I
would feel away, especially if I feel like I'm better
than her, But that is not her fault. Just so
happens she was the chosen one and we have to
(41:28):
accept it. We just gotta All Star Weekend July eighteenth,
nineteenth and twentieth. Ohways, get my dates wrong. I'm glad
that you guys are here with me, so as you
are watching, I'm looking to make sure that I got
it right in my calendar. Here I'm going. I think
I'm not for sure you all should go though. It's
(41:50):
in Indiana. Oh gosh, of course it's in in Indiana eighteenth, nineteenth,
and twentieth. Yes, correct, that is All Star Weekend. It's
in Indiana. You should definitely show up. It's going to
be a good time. I do not I do not,
and I repeat, I do not want anybody in my
message just talking about why I got to be in Indiana,
where where Kaitlyn Clark is from, where she plays. Why
I gotta be there because she's the star. That's where
(42:18):
the fans are one point three million voted. They're all
traveling to Indiana, Indiana to see her. That's why. That's
why it's in Indiana. Okay, okay, okay, I'm being silly,
but I'm also saying relax, just relax, it is what
it is, and then another superstar will come along. We
(42:38):
got Juju coming. I'm so excited about Juju Watkins coming.
She'll be the star. We have Paige Beckers in the league.
She's not getting as much attention as Caitlyn Is, but
she's also a starter in the All Star weekend. Paige
Beckers is lights out. She's figuring it out as a rookie.
But right now, all eyes are on Caitlin and that's
(42:58):
just what it is. He's the hot girl in the
room with the little black dress on and all the
fellows want to talk to her. She's the popular kid
at school that had all the new electronics and had
all the game boys and toys, or who has the
best lunch, and she's trading her stuff out with other
people because people just want to be around there. It's her,
She's it for now. That doesn't mean she's the best player,
(43:20):
that doesn't mean she is wrong for existing. It just
is what it is. These are the circumstances, and you
can't take that out on her. Even though people will
and people are upset, it has nothing to do with her.
The people have spoken one point three million impact. All right,
let me get off my high horse. I want you
guys to check out All Star Weekend. If you don't
(43:41):
definitely watch the game on TV that's Saturday, July nineteenth.
It's going to be a really good game. I think
what I learned last year watching the All Star Game
was that the new fans that have now started to
watch the w have made me more interested because these
wild takes of who they think is great and who
are these plays. So it's great. I love it. They
(44:01):
give me all the storylines. But you should watch the
weekend of July eighteenth, nineteen twentieth. There's a lot happening.
We have a three point contest, which is going to
be great as well. We have the game, and then
we have the festivities. The ladies get dressed. They try
to be sassy. These WNBA players. Let me just take
a note. They look good. They are dressing. I mean,
I love to see it. I love to see it.
(44:23):
That how much it's evolved. These ladies are out here,
they're famous, they know who they are. They people are
standing in line to say hi. People are like you,
or can I get your autograph? I want to grow
up and be just like you. It's a beautiful thing
because it'll trickle down in other areas. It's a beautiful thing.
Tune in watch support. Try to keep it not so negative. Okay,
(44:46):
let's try to just try to enjoy the sport, and
let's not wish that these ladies were best friends. Right,
Let's just enjoy the sport and let them be the
how about that fancy here's a fancy thing, them be
them crazy. I remember when I'm old enough to remember
when we didn't like Lebron. Y'all remember that, right, But
(45:08):
Lebron did some things. There was there were reasons to
not like Lebron. Well, I didn't like him because I
was a hater, but there were other reasons not to
like Lebron. I was just a pure hater, right, Just
just I don't want you to take over Kobe's spot.
I hate you if we laugh about that. But let
these ladies play. And at the end of the day,
(45:29):
we're going to be able to read so many benefits
for this. This will from this moment on. Honestly, women
are going to see a lot of strides. If you
can see them in sports in real ways, in terms
of equity and movement and respect, it will it will
somehow find its way into society somehow, some way, So support,
(45:51):
Caitlin Clark support, Fisa Collier support, Angel Reese, Let these
Ladies play. Thank you all for listening to the podcast.
I'll be back next week. Naked Sports written and executive
produced by me Kerrie Champion, Produced by Jacquies Thomas, Sound
designed and mastered by Dwayne Crawford. Naked Sports is a
(46:14):
part of the Black Effect podcast Network in iHeartMedia
Welcome to Naked Sports, the podcast where we live at
the intersection of sports, politics, and culture. Our purpose reveal
the common threads that bind them all.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
So what's happening in women's basketball right now is what
we've been trying to get to for almost thirty years.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
From the stadiums where athletes break barriers and set records.
Kydon Park broke them all time single game assists record.
This is crazy for rookies to be doing. Our discussions
will uncover the vital connections between these realms and the
community we create. In each episode, we'll sit down with athletes,
political analysts, and culture critics, because at the core of
(00:40):
it all, how we see one issue shines the light
on all others. Welcome to Naked Sports. I'm your host,
Carrie Champion. Hey, everybody, welcome back to another edition. It's edition,
not a another edition of Naked Sports. It's how you've
(01:00):
been family. I hope you have been well. I have
been pretty well. I had a great birthday month. My
friends took really good care of me. My friends and
my family took really good care of me, and I
was really really happy, and I was just telling people
I feel more. I feel more in touch with my tribe,
(01:22):
like I know who my tribe is, and so I,
as a result, wanted to just give a brief shout
out to my girls, right. I don't want to forget
anybody but my best friend, Kendra, Tommy Mosama, Jamel, Kelly,
Marci Fabiola. I had a beautiful crew of people who
(01:43):
really really nurtured me and took care of me during
my entire birthday month. And I felt so grateful. You
know how people say grateful and blessed, but I felt
so loved, so blessed, so happy. It was such a
euphoric feeling. And I really have been saying to myself,
I can keep that feeling. I can keep my crew
(02:04):
and my circle tight. I can I can protect that
little precious part that I don't want to give out
to everyone else. And and as and as a result,
this makes me a better person. I'm happier, I'm lighter,
I'm all of the things and the reason why it
meant so much to me now that I give it
thought and I don't normally do this, but I'm just
(02:26):
giving you guys an update. This is a bit of
an update slash vent before we get into the podcast,
but I'm giving you this message because it helped me
as well. I know that we can control our surroundings
the surround We can't control who we work with, we
can't control what happens when you walk down the street,
but we can control our intimate surroundings. We can create
(02:49):
a little bit of heaven here on earth, I believe,
especially during the times in which we live in today.
And I felt that during this past month as I
selllebrated with my friends and family, it was very intentional
how I celebrated. I was very vulnerable about wanting to
celebrate with the people that I feel safe and loved with.
And why I crave that because it was a craving
(03:12):
from my body. While I was craving that, I realized
it was simply because I had been dealing with a
lot of people in my life who were frenemies and
I didn't even know what it was. I don't I
didn't even know I was dealing with that. I didn't
even know it was a term, y'all. So the other
day on social media, not as if you know, all
(03:34):
the wisdom is there, but I started to listen to
Robert Green, and he was on the podcast Diary of CEO.
We love that podcast. Shout out to my producer who
told me about it, jah Quies, which she just reminded me.
I'm like, yeah, you did. You turned me onto that.
But anyway, Robert Green, this is his discussion on frenemies
(03:55):
and I want you to listen to this. Robert Green
highlights how envy and hidden can petitiveness can manifest in
relationships disguised as friendships and then.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Lo and behold, you start noticing all kinds of behavior
that's very ugly that you weren't expected because you're they're
your friend. They start saying bitchy comments that get under
your skin, that makes you feel insecure. They take things
from you, they act in ways that are hurtful, but
because they're your friend, your for instancetinct is to blame yourself. Well,
maybe it's my fault that they've done this, Maybe I'm
(04:26):
actually to blame for what they're saying, et cetera, et cetera.
So I believe behind the freeminemy's phenomenon is this phenomenon
of envy where the person secretly wants what you have
and they're becoming your friends that they can wound you.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
We simply call them haters today, right, But if you
don't want to label something, and you can tell something
is off, like there are people in your life that
aren't necessarily haters, but something is off. It's a feeling
that you get when you walk away. It is a
feeling that I don't necessarily feel safe to share everything here.
But yeah, I call you a friend, and we are friendly,
(05:02):
and we hang out and maybe we have vacation together.
Who the heck knows, I don't know. But listen to
this term. And I know you've heard it before, and
I know you've heard people say so and so's a frenemy.
But this is a technical term, and I want to
give you the definition textbook. These frenemies may appear friendly
while secretly harboring resentment or jealousy towards the other person's
(05:23):
success and or status or looks or place in life.
Robert Green explains that this can lead to subtle acts
of sabotage, devaluation of achievements, or emotional manipulation under the
guise of friendship, secret envy, passive aggression, overly eager friendship,
(05:46):
information gab, the ring, getting all in your business. Now
we all, whether we know it or not have interacted
and or have someone who feels like a frenemy in
our life. And the reason it's so important for me
to talk about this now is because what I just
experienced this past month with all my tribe and my
(06:08):
friends and my family, that euphoria. I hadn't been dealing with,
that I've been missing that, That's what my body was
craving because I realized, in different circumstances, I had a
lot of frenemies. And I don't know if these people
are intentionally being frenemies. I don't know if this is
something that people can identify readily within themselves. But what
(06:31):
I was able to at least understand for me is
that I ain't got to deal with it. I ain't
got to deal with it. Meaning you can create your
own slice of heaven right here on earth. You can
choose to interact when you're not at work, when you're
in your off time, when you're in that precious relaxation time,
(06:51):
you can pick and choose. You can curate an environment
that feels safe and friendly. And I encourage everybody today
to do that, to start doing that. Look at the
world that we live in right now, and while you
might be saying, Carrie, this is you don't have to
do with sports. Yeah, no, it's all the same. Sports culture, politics,
(07:12):
all of these things blend in with the daily lives
that we lead. And what I am saying to you
is is that while we are out here navigating this
world of sports, culture and politics and whatever it may
be that you're navigating, make sure that you take a
lot of time, a lot of time and curate your
own little slice of heaven with your tribe. It could
(07:34):
be your family, it could be your family and friends,
it could be one best friend, it could be whomever.
But you make sure you find If you're one, you're lucky, right.
If you got more than one, you are blessed. And
you find this tribe and you make sure that you
are vulnerable with them, and you tell them what you need.
And the reason why I'm saying it's so important to
do it in today's cccity is because every time we
(07:57):
turn on the TV, or every time we turn on
our phones, someone's fighting, someone's lying, someone's calling someone a name.
This country is so polarized now there isn't nuance. There
is no such thing as nuance to any of our
conversations it's either you're on this side or that side.
It's black and it's white, and that is just not
how life is. People are more defensive. People think because
(08:20):
you disagree with them, that you might be in a
class that's different than theirs, or you might be a Republican,
or you might be a Democrat. You can't just be
in society. And I feel it obviously a little more
than other people. But what I have I have decided
for me and what I mean, I feel it a
little bit more. I feel it in my workspace. Obviously,
(08:41):
I fill it in sometimes when I'm doing this podcast,
depending on who I'm talking to. I have decided that,
because this is the world in which we live in,
I have to create my own. I hear a lot
of people talking about I'm moving. I'm moving, I'm moving
from America. I'm gonna go live in Portugal. I know.
I said that too. I went to Portugal. I'm not
going to move there though, but that was my thought process.
(09:02):
I got to get out of here as crazy and
it is. It's all of those things, and you can
still believe that you need to leave this country whatever,
but in the meantime, it is imperative to have balance
that allows you to feel safe and loved and protected.
And if you don't have that, try to create it.
But you don't have to. There's no rule in life
(09:25):
that says you have to be friends with people who
don't really like you. Like all of us have had
that one friend where you're like, gosh, she loves hanging
out with me, but I don't think she really liked
me because she says these little digs and jabs, and
I'm just I don't know where they're coming from. She's
calling me names or judging me, and I haven't really
(09:47):
talked to Sheila like that. I don't know why she
would say that. She doesn't have all the information. Hey
guess what, I too could be a friend of me
in someone's mind, but I choose if I don't like you,
I don't want to hang out. I just removed myself
from the situation. I wouldn't pretend to be your friend
and take digs at you. I don't know what kind
of crazy psychology that is. But here's the deal. You
(10:09):
don't have to deal with it. In today's society, it
is so important to have people around you that make
you feel safe. Let's bring that back, Let's make that trending,
Let's make that popular. And I say that because coming
off of this past month of my birthday, I was like, Oh,
this is this is a life that I can live.
(10:29):
This is something that I really enjoy. So it made
sense to me. While I was at work last week
at CNN, I got into it with Scott Jennings in
a way that I had never gotten into it with
him before. And I normally don't allow him to bother me.
I kind of laugh it off. I take the high road,
(10:50):
I don't get into it. I ignore his little biity comments.
But this time he really was just lying. He always,
in my opinion, doesn't tell the truth. But this time
he's being a real liar. And I said, as opposed
to a not so real liar. And I said to
him during commercial break, I was like, you're such a liar.
(11:11):
And I just was like it just clicked to me.
I was like, you'll never tell the truth because you
have a party line and you have a party message,
and you're doing a personal audition for the president of
this country. And it doesn't matter what I say. It
doesn't matter how I say it, it doesn't even matter
if it makes sense to you or not, you are
(11:32):
going to try your best to refute and or make
me feel like I am not qualified, and it will
only matter to the people who listen to you. They
will believe you. Conversely, you know, I posted him on
my page, and the people who follow me believe me.
To my point, we are so divided in this society.
(11:54):
But I said to myself, you know what, No, mass
I'm not gonna be Ontie yelling at you, trying to
convince you that Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize wasn't affirmative action.
I'm just not gonna do that. That's just silly Baraco.
First of all, Barack Obama a hat been president for
how long? Why are we still talking about this man?
(12:15):
Why do we still talk about this man if he's
still the president? Why are you still criticizing this man
who cares. He's not in president nomore. He's someone on
Martha's vineyard golfing, and you're talking about whether or not
his Nobel Peace Prize was affirmative action because Don Junior
said it. This is ridiculous, and I will not. I
(12:37):
will not. I will not tolerate nonsense anymore, meaning I
can pick and choose. I can still be just as
effective as what I do what I do on CNN
without being on a round table with that man. I
can be just as effective with this podcast and using
my voice to platform people who are trying to do
great things in today's society, whether that be talking about
(12:59):
sports and or culture and or politics. So I will
not and I think that we should really as a
society focus on the things that bring us joy when
we don't have to be around the people that don't
bring us joy. Meaning you might work with some people
(13:20):
and you don't like them as well. You know what
I'm talking about. You might have a mother in law
that you don't love so much. Right, I'm making up something,
But the reality is is that we can create our
own I did that in real time without realizing I
was doing that, And so I encourage you to disassociate
with that frenemy. Don't allow yourself to be around the
(13:42):
people that make you think about them at night if
they are doing something inappropriate to you. If you feel
that if you're in company with people that you know
don't really like you, you gotta ask yourself why life
is too short? I can't sit around with people who
who choose not to like me for whatever reasons. Life
(14:03):
is entirely too short, and there is so much going
on in this world that we have to create an
oasis otherwise we're gonna lose our minds. Every morning we
wake up, there's a new headline, there's a new a
new scandal, there's a new argument on Twitter between Elon
(14:23):
Musk and the president of this country. There's a new
and by the way, it's not new. We are all
very aware of what is happening. But during this time,
during this mess, it's important more important to have some
people that really hold you down. A person, some people,
(14:44):
a family, a friend. I don't know. Maybe you need
to make an ai friend who knows you're right, because
a lot of people I truly feel are lonely and
they don't know how to get out of this lonely space.
So they're angry, and then anger allows them to live
in this space where they have to pick sides. We
can find our heaven. I just did it. At this
(15:06):
big age, didn't realize I could do it. And when
I was listening to Robert Green have that conversation about frenemies,
it just translated to more than just friends. It's just
people that are in your space and you're like, this
doesn't make me feel well. I might have to interact
with them, I might have to work with them, but
I am not going to give them any of my
valuable time, the time that makes me feel sane and safe,
(15:30):
the time that I'm going to give to those who
actually care about me. In short, In short, surround yourself.
It could be one person, two people, your kids, right,
it could be anything. But you do not have to
tolerate people who don't like or who take subtle jabs
at you, or who pretend to be in your world
or and or society and pretend as if they like you.
(15:52):
You do not. I feel like this is more common
and people do not talk about it. And while I
am venting, I'm getting this off my chest. But there's
somebody listening now, like, no, I know I got four
or five for dems. I'm not talking to Jack no more,
or I'm just going to remove myself from Jack's presence.
You know what I'm talking about, And it's okay to
say no, that's not a bad thing. Go find your people.
(16:15):
Speaking of finding my people on today's podcast, because the
podcast is going to begin Now. That was my venting
message that I approve of. But on today's podcast, we're
talking about the WNBA, and I don't know if you
know this. WNBA All Star Weekend begins July seventeenth, eighteenth,
(16:36):
and nineteenth, three days of festivities. The game will be
on a Saturday night. The format not necessarily the same
as the NBA, but for some reason there's a little
scuttle but little scandal, a little brujha happening right now
in the WNBA. You know, the format is to pick
(16:56):
a team captain, one representing the East, one representing the West.
The team captain representing the East this year, Caitlyn Clark.
The team captain representing the West this year, a Fisakalier. Well,
apparently there are some within the WNBA atmosphere that are
(17:19):
not happy that Caitlyn Clark is a team captain during
her sophomore year. Right, she's ricky last year. This is
her second year in the league. She's team captain. Not
her fault, because you know how they vote based on
fan votes. She got the most fan votes, record setting
fan votes. You can't be mad at what the fans
(17:41):
want because the All Star Weekend is truly for them,
but some people are mad. And on today's podcast, we'll
talk about the WNBA why they're mad at Caitlyn Clark
for being the team captain and who exactly are they.
And then also, the WNBA is expanding. They're adding three
more teams, three more teams to bring the grand total
(18:01):
to eighteen. What it all means after the break, So it.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
Is my honor to officially announce that the WNBA is
expanding from are currently announced fifteen teams to eighteen teams
over the next few years, so on behalf of the
entire WNBA. I'm thrilled to welcome Cleveland and Detroit back
and to welcome Philadelphia officially to the WNBA.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
So first and foremost, let me just say thank you
Kathy Ngelbird for that information. Congratulations. There are three more
teams coming to the w making it a grand total
of eighteen. That is amazing. That is beautiful for women's sports.
I want to I just want to be clear, if
you hear me, that is amazing. I am happy that
this is happening. It's going to give women more opportunities
(18:59):
to play professional sports. And if there are more dollars
more revenue, more interest. All it can do is get
bigger and better and expand. However, when announcing those teams,
you dig a little, do a little research, and you
notice they're all male owners. That's the first thing, NBA owners,
(19:21):
if you will. And I think that's great because the
inception of the league actually began in partnership with the NBA.
So let me explain this so it doesn't sound weird.
The league WNBA would not exist. I will be very
honest with you if the NBA did not lend a
(19:41):
financial planned and resources. A financial plan not with a
D and resources. So they thought it was it would
be smart to take the Lakers, for instance, and say,
let me give you a women's team, because you already
have an arena where they can play, you already have colors,
you're an established franchise is already in place. We're just
(20:01):
going to take the Lakers and do a model of
what you all are doing with this franchise, and we're
going to give birth to the Los Angeles Sparks. That's
how it all began. And they did that with a
few teams when the league started in nineteen ninety seven. Perfect, great,
thank you. Now it wasn't making money. It still isn't
making money, for being honest, but it is very popular
(20:25):
and there is money to be made. So now that
there's money to be made, they let the men buy in.
All the men are buying in, what about the women.
I want to be a part owner of a WNBA team.
I have two dollars to add. Here's my and look,
I'm not going to complain. I understand. I am going
to complain. That's a lie. I understand that you need
(20:48):
to have an owner that is obviously well resourced because
there's travel facility, marketing, sponsors. How do you keep the
team afloat? I understand that is necessary because you want
to give each one of these new teams, these expansion teams,
(21:10):
an opportunity to flourish. And I can't come in, Carrie
Champion can't come in with her twenty dollars and say
I'm a build a team. I need to have some
serious money. And the buy in now is huge. It's
really huge. I mean, listen to this.
Speaker 5 (21:27):
I mean you have ticket sales up, you know, sixty
six percent, and you have you know, attendance up, same
sponsorships and viewership up. You know the playoffs one hundred
and thirty percent year over year growth. So I think
there's an ascendency that has a ways to go. As
a value investor, you know, it's it's it's a trophy
(21:51):
franchise and price like a trophy franchise.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
Clara Wissi was quoted in Bloomberg Is saying that by
twenty thirty, she expects the Liberty to be the first
one billion dollar women's sports franchise. Do you see that
that's a big number.
Speaker 5 (22:05):
It's a big number, but I think that you know,
it's not it's not out of the question. Where we
are right now, ten years from now. I mean, just
the pace of growth here is extraordinary, and it's only
getting better. There are more teams, there's more talent, there's
more interests, there's more interests in college basketball, women's sports
more broadly.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
A lot to love here. So over the next five years,
Cleveland will join in twenty twenty eight. So that's the
WNBA team in Cleveland, followed by one in Detroit in
twenty twenty nine, followed by one in Philly in twenty thirty.
The buy in if you wanted to bring a WNBA
(22:45):
team to your town two hundred and fifty million dollars
two five zero. Congratulations to the w Congratulations to the
value that these women are now starting to actually receive
in terms of what they are worth. They won't see
that money, but you understand the value of the team.
Look and as a reminder, the WNBA added a thirteenth team,
(23:08):
the Golden State Valkyries this season. You may have seen them,
and they're playing really, really well. While the Toronto Temple
will be there next year, and then the Portland team
will also join, so that'll be a grand total of
eighteen teams in the league. That is huge. Now we've
heard complaints from so many people that they're not allowing
(23:32):
those who have supported the league all of these years
to be a part of ownership. And I understand both sides.
You need somebody with deep pockets to own a WNBA
team to keep up, to make sure that these women
are flying private and have the best hotels and are
getting the best and have the best facilities and the
best trainers. But that money, that money, that two hundred
(23:55):
and fifty million dollars, The women are not seeing it.
The players are not seeing that. I'm old enough to
remember when the Los Angeles Sparks jumped from owner to
owner to owner because each owner did not feel that
there was value in these teams. Now they're fighting fighting
to own WNBA teams. Here's a short little lesson, and
(24:16):
I don't even know if you remember this. Jerry Buss,
who owned the Los Angeles Lakers. He was the very
first owner of the Los Angeles Sparks. He owned when
the league started in nineteen ninety seven. He said, hey,
I'll put my hat in he may he rest in peace.
Jerry Buss. He sold the team in two thousand and six.
(24:37):
When he sold the team, and this kudos to you, Jerry,
because you get what we were trying to do. When
he sold the team, he sold it to an independent
group of owners led by a woman named Kathy Goodman,
and one of the women I've admired for many years
in media that her name was Paula Madison. So it
was a group of women who actually owned that team
from two thousand and six until twenty fourteen. So when
(25:02):
the ladies sold it, they sold it to Mark Walters.
Do you know who Mark Walters is. That's the guy
who just bought the Lakers. So he owns the Lakers.
He owns the Dodgers, and he owns the Sparks. That's
step pockets. If I was a player on the Sparks,
I would think, Great, we're gonna have the best facilities,
(25:22):
We'll have the best accommodations, We'll have all of the things,
because this man has a lot of money in deep
pockets and huge, huge partners, Magic Johnson being one of them.
And I love all that. I love it. I love
that you're investing in the WNBA. I love that you're
still committed to making it great. But I also know
(25:43):
that most of these people who own these teams don't
even watch the wo They could care less, and that's
really disappointing. It really truly is disappointing. And I say
that because there are people who have worked all their
life to build up women's sports, all of their life
to build up women's sports. Let me think I can
(26:03):
think of I think of someone like Lisa Leslie, who
was one of the original players for the Sparks. I
she had a small percentage of ownership for a small time,
like maybe a few years. I think of people who
are who played in the league, like Don Staley. She'd
like to own a WNBA team. I know that for
a fact, and there is no real effort to allow
(26:30):
the people who help build the brand, build the sport
keep it afloat in terms of their blood, sweat and
tears equity playing on the court. There's no real effort
to reward them. And what I mean by that is
that you clearly can't pay them. You still haven't been
able to pay them, But why not allow them to
feel some type of ownership in the league that they
(26:51):
build from scratch and cared for. If you play in
the w you're playing because you love the sport. It's
for the love, it's not for the money. You're doing
everything possible. Especially in the beginning years. They were playing
in gyms, they get kicked out of the arenas. They
were on buses, they were on public transportation, public flights
(27:12):
with layovers, sometimes flights delayed, sleeping in airports. I mean,
these women really love the sport and I am just
here to say that I wish that they could see
some value in it in terms of money for themselves. Now,
when we come back, like a small little break, when
(27:33):
we come back, I want to talk about Kaitlyn Clark
speaking of the WNBA speaking of that that superstar, that
super nova. Caitlin Clark is the captain, one of the
captains for the w NBA All Star Weekend, representing the East.
If you said Collier representing the West, what does that
(27:57):
all mean? And why are some folks not happy about it?
Back in a.
Speaker 7 (28:01):
Moment, it's cool that fans get to be a part
of it and having a little impact on the game.
And then I think also like it's going to be
really special to be able to do it here in
this city. And I think, you know, there's already been
so much time and effort put in by so many
people that you know aren't going to get credit for
(28:22):
what they did to bring All Star here, so, you know,
trying to make it the best All Star the WNBA
has ever had. I know we'll certainly do that. But
also it is certainly a cool honor for sure.
Speaker 1 (28:31):
WNBA All Star Weekend beginning on July eighteenth, and the
game is on Saturday the nineteenth. I just mentioned before
the break and if he's a Collier is the captain
of the West. Caitlin Clark captain representing the East. Clark
received a record setting number of fan votes one point
two nine million votes. Basically one point three million votes,
(28:56):
one point three million people. I don't even know that
many people love the w One point three million people
said We've got to see Kaitlyn Clark play. Second most
votes went to Noughisa Collier one point one seven. Now,
the question always comes up, especially when it's Kaitlyn Clark.
(29:17):
Is she that good? Do people really like her? Are
they weaponizing her? Is she really representing sports or is
it an idea that this country wants? Why are people
just now getting interested in sports or WNBA for that matter,
just because of Kitlin Clark. I hear these questions. We
did a long series, go back and listen to it.
I always tell people to do it. But Kaitlyn Clark,
(29:41):
she is just a super nova. Someone has to come
along and be that one. It's happened in every sport,
it happens in every industry. You have to have that
one who sets the standard, who who the tide rises
with them, the person that people are attracted to. In college,
Caitlyn Clark, as we all know, was this superstar. People
(30:01):
would try for hours to see her play basketball because
she would hit the I mean literally hit the logo
and drop a three. How could you do that so easily,
so effortlessly, And she did it consistently in day in
and day out all the time. She became a traveling
superstar in terms of people would go, oh is Caitlin
(30:21):
Clark Intown? I heard, I want to go see the
girl who plays for Iowa who drops threes like Steph Curry.
People had heard about her but didn't really know if
she would live up to all these expectations, all the
hooplah if you will. And she did. And not only
did she take all of her fans from college and
bring them to the W, she also created a movement.
(30:45):
And so yes, there's some resentment because the w has
been around since nineteen ninety seven and it took this long,
this long twenty some odd years for people to start
really paying attention. I won't say she is the only
reason why people are paying attention to the WNBA, but
I will say she introduced the WNBA to an entirely
(31:10):
new fan base, and those fans voted for her, and
those fans wanted to see her in the game more
than anyone else. And the way the votes were, the
fan votes in particular, they determine who will be the
team captains because they are the most popular people. Those
two players, Caitlin Clark and a Fisa Collier. Now Here
(31:33):
comes the rum they have a tendency to do this.
They let you know how many fan votes you got,
how many media votes you have, and how many player
votes you receive, and usually the players vote based on
who they think is the best. They really do, it
(31:55):
would be no surprise to you that Caitlyn Clark came
in ninth with the players, meaning there were eight other
players better than her according to the WNBA players in
the league. She's not She's not perfect. There's a lot
(32:15):
about our game that needs to be that needs to
be fixed. She rushes the ball, she moves too quickly,
she needs to settle before she takes certain shots. I
think she complains too much on the court. Right, we
can say that, and she arguably is not the best
point guard. She's just not That makes sense to me, right,
(32:40):
But what doesn't make sense is this hint of I'm
upset that she's the captain because she's only been in
the league for two years.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
Caitlyn Clark began this year incredibly strong, but unfortunately injuries
got in the way and if it were not for
it being in Indianapolis, I would probably be a person's
challenge and say maybe a reserve. But it's difficult to
say that somebody should probably be a captain when they've
(33:11):
missed a certain amount of games this year. And I
just want it to be known that it's to me
based off that that I would say for any other
player in any other team or on any other city
in which the All Stars being held, I think that
would be a factor. But the fact that it's being
in Indy, she's the most popular player in Indy, she
is the most popular fan base. It makes total sense
(33:34):
that she's a captain. And I really didn't foresee it
going any other way.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And while they're being politically correct, you know, there's a
bit of resentment. I think that's okay. I think it's okay.
I think it's okay not to like Katelyn Clark, or
to be or to feel some sort of resentment towards
Katelyn Clark. I think all of that is okay. You
know why, because we do not require it of the men.
We do not require that the men be best friends,
(33:59):
we do not require that they like each other. In fact,
we complain that the NBA is too friendly now and
they all are hanging out in their buddies. So why
does this make so many of these new fans upset
as if there is a conspiracy theory to gang up
on Caitlin Clark and not like her and take her
down and remove her from the league. It's just not
(34:21):
the case. It's sports, it's competitive. If they don't like
each other, that's fine. In fact, I think it's great.
In fact, I think it's better for the league. I
just do. I'm tired a few people complaining about women
not being nice on the court. You guys, see that
TikTok video the other day Cocoa Golf and Sebolenka and
(34:46):
Sebalinka said something to the effect of, we're good now, guys,
so you should be too. While they're dancing and doing
their TikTok dance, Why have you would Roger Federer and
raf An a doll I'll ever do a TikTok video
together when they were at the height of their competition,
when they couldn't stand each other, would they ever? No,
(35:10):
let me be more clear, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic
definitely didn't like each other, and it was known, and
no one said, hey, guys, come together and shake hands
till people aren't upset. Matgic Johnson couldn't stand Larry Bird.
They were competitors off the court. Maybe I'll say to
you there was no uproar like y'all should get along.
(35:32):
What Magic said about Larry was mean. This is crazy.
Just said it out loud. This is crazy. We do
not care if the men don't like each other. Why
do we care so much that people don't like Caitlin
Clark and are upset?
Speaker 8 (35:48):
Part of the WNBA All Star selection, the players get
to vote, and Caitlin Clark was voted as the ninth
best guard in the WNBA by WNBA plays right, yes,
So then you're sitting there going like, oh boy, here
we go. And then you're like, well, you know, I mean,
I just kind of be honest when I saw the pole.
(36:10):
I don't watch the WNBA except the case when Kid
and Clark is playing, right, I mean, can we just
be honest, Sam, I accept the fact that you do,
but the rest of us and most of the rest
of the world do not.
Speaker 1 (36:25):
I don't watch I don't watch games outside of fever games, honestly, Okay, yeah, fair.
Speaker 8 (36:29):
Enough, right, So, like Skyler Diggins, like I remember her
from Notre Dame, I can't tell you I've ever seen
her play professional basketball. I have no idea if she's
awesome or if she's just okay or whatever. But again,
like she's the player's rank curve way ahead, and everybody
else fans and media does not like. I don't know,
(36:51):
so I don't. So you're like, wow, that that's weird. Ninth.
That feels like they don't like her, right. It feels
like they're trying to even out the hype train.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Why do we care? I mean, I don't care. I'm
asking you. I am so sick and tired of trying
to make peace in a game that doesn't deserve peace.
It's competition. I don't like you, you don't like me.
You have something I want, I'm going to take it.
I think I'm better than you. You're not as good
(37:23):
as me. I know ten more players better than you,
and I'm going to tell you why. That's to me,
sounds like sports, sounds like competition. So here we are
having the age old debate of whether or not Caitlin
Clark is liked because she is white. The age old
debate of why other players who are better than her
(37:46):
are not getting the same attention, the same debate over
whether or not she's friendly. Is Angel Rees friendly? No,
she's the villa. We know that, right, that will already
be the case, right, that's Angel Reese is the villain.
That story has been written. But is she She's just honest.
(38:09):
She just says what she feels. If you want to
do comps. She reminds me of Draymond Green. You all
may not like Draymond, but the victriol that Angel gets
could could be the equivalent, if not more. It's more
than what Draymond gets at his height. Remember he socked
(38:30):
his teammate. People were trying to take him out. Then
I would think you would think Angel Reese came on
the court and sock Caitlin Clark the way you guys
hate on her. You would think she punched her in
the face like Draymond Green did. Like Draymond Green did.
She did not, And I think it's ridiculous. I think
it's so ridiculous that we are not allowing these women
(38:52):
in this new fragile state that they are in, to
just enjoy the sport. We're not allowing them to have
their own personalities. We're not allowing them to fight and
talk trash. I love it watching when they talk trash.
I like to see them lose their mind. I like
to see them throw the ball. I want to see
all of that because it means you care. We have
got to let these ladies play. I started the podcast
(39:14):
complaining about the gatekeeping because the men are now the
owners of the WNBA and only interested because there is
money there. Unfair women are being left out. Who started
the sport to be unfair? And then I slide into
what's going on with these new expansion teams, and then
I slide into what's going on with Caitlin Clark and
white people are upset about the All Star Game because
(39:37):
she is a captain. I think too soon, too soon,
too soon. She's a super nova accepted and I'm not
saying that she plays this way. So let me be
very clear. But every now and again, there has to
be a face of a league, Baseball, basketball, it has
to be a face of a sport, Tennis, soccer. I
(40:01):
named all those sports right away. You thought about somebody
who was the face, the first, the most popular person,
the name that you knew that was synonymous, Wit said
sport Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Larry Byrn Messy,
Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak, Djokovic, Serena Williams. They're just
(40:25):
people who are and the chosen one just so happens
to be a white woman, And people are up in
arms because of that, in both ways. Up in arms
because she's getting all the attention on a league that
is seventy percent black, up in arms because they think
she's being picked on, and they're defending her. Up in
(40:46):
arms because she's getting more money than players have ever
seen their entire life. Who built the league? Not her fault, anything,
None of this. None of this is her fault, none
of it. So if we could settle and allow the
sport to be a sport where we just watch it
and enjoy it, it'll be a good life for us.
(41:08):
I understand the argument of why some people are upset
that she's a team captain. It's not really valid, though,
has nothing to do with you, the fans chosen. I
would feel away, especially if I feel like I'm better
than her, But that is not her fault. Just so
happens she was the chosen one and we have to
(41:28):
accept it. We just gotta All Star Weekend July eighteenth,
nineteenth and twentieth. Ohways, get my dates wrong. I'm glad
that you guys are here with me, so as you
are watching, I'm looking to make sure that I got
it right in my calendar. Here I'm going. I think
I'm not for sure you all should go though. It's
(41:50):
in Indiana. Oh gosh, of course it's in in Indiana eighteenth, nineteenth,
and twentieth. Yes, correct, that is All Star Weekend. It's
in Indiana. You should definitely show up. It's going to
be a good time. I do not I do not,
and I repeat, I do not want anybody in my
message just talking about why I got to be in Indiana,
where where Kaitlyn Clark is from, where she plays. Why
I gotta be there because she's the star. That's where
(42:18):
the fans are one point three million voted. They're all
traveling to Indiana, Indiana to see her. That's why. That's
why it's in Indiana. Okay, okay, okay, I'm being silly,
but I'm also saying relax, just relax, it is what
it is, and then another superstar will come along. We
(42:38):
got Juju coming. I'm so excited about Juju Watkins coming.
She'll be the star. We have Paige Beckers in the league.
She's not getting as much attention as Caitlyn Is, but
she's also a starter in the All Star weekend. Paige
Beckers is lights out. She's figuring it out as a rookie.
But right now, all eyes are on Caitlin and that's
(42:58):
just what it is. He's the hot girl in the
room with the little black dress on and all the
fellows want to talk to her. She's the popular kid
at school that had all the new electronics and had
all the game boys and toys, or who has the
best lunch, and she's trading her stuff out with other
people because people just want to be around there. It's her,
She's it for now. That doesn't mean she's the best player,
(43:20):
that doesn't mean she is wrong for existing. It just
is what it is. These are the circumstances, and you
can't take that out on her. Even though people will
and people are upset, it has nothing to do with her.
The people have spoken one point three million impact. All right,
let me get off my high horse. I want you
guys to check out All Star Weekend. If you don't
(43:41):
definitely watch the game on TV that's Saturday, July nineteenth.
It's going to be a really good game. I think
what I learned last year watching the All Star Game
was that the new fans that have now started to
watch the w have made me more interested because these
wild takes of who they think is great and who
are these plays. So it's great. I love it. They
(44:01):
give me all the storylines. But you should watch the
weekend of July eighteenth, nineteen twentieth. There's a lot happening.
We have a three point contest, which is going to
be great as well. We have the game, and then
we have the festivities. The ladies get dressed. They try
to be sassy. These WNBA players. Let me just take
a note. They look good. They are dressing. I mean,
I love to see it. I love to see it.
(44:23):
That how much it's evolved. These ladies are out here,
they're famous, they know who they are. They people are
standing in line to say hi. People are like you,
or can I get your autograph? I want to grow
up and be just like you. It's a beautiful thing
because it'll trickle down in other areas. It's a beautiful thing.
Tune in watch support. Try to keep it not so negative. Okay,
(44:46):
let's try to just try to enjoy the sport, and
let's not wish that these ladies were best friends. Right,
Let's just enjoy the sport and let them be the
how about that fancy here's a fancy thing, them be
them crazy. I remember when I'm old enough to remember
when we didn't like Lebron. Y'all remember that, right, But
(45:08):
Lebron did some things. There was there were reasons to
not like Lebron. Well, I didn't like him because I
was a hater, but there were other reasons not to
like Lebron. I was just a pure hater, right, Just
just I don't want you to take over Kobe's spot.
I hate you if we laugh about that. But let
these ladies play. And at the end of the day,
(45:29):
we're going to be able to read so many benefits
for this. This will from this moment on. Honestly, women
are going to see a lot of strides. If you
can see them in sports in real ways, in terms
of equity and movement and respect, it will it will
somehow find its way into society somehow, some way, So support,
(45:51):
Caitlin Clark support, Fisa Collier support, Angel Reese, Let these
Ladies play. Thank you all for listening to the podcast.
I'll be back next week. Naked Sports written and executive
produced by me Kerrie Champion, Produced by Jacquies Thomas, Sound
designed and mastered by Dwayne Crawford. Naked Sports is a
(46:14):
part of the Black Effect podcast Network in iHeartMedia
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