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The Fever Report with John Robertson & Michelle Garmon (2.45.2) · The Central Indiana Sports Report

• 0:01
  [SPEAKER_02]: welcome fever fans to the final fever report of the 2025 season.
• 0:07
  [SPEAKER_02]: Of course, John and Michelle and I will have a lot of them during the off season or in the draft or in any free agency, anything that happens will be there to talk about it.
• 0:19
  [SPEAKER_02]: But the final fever report of 2025, unfortunately, after last night's overtime loss in Las Vegas,
• 0:27
  [SPEAKER_02]: These are my final deciding game.
• 0:30
  [SPEAKER_02]: I'm your host, Greg Mangel, I'm joined by John Robertson and we will be joined shortly by Michelle Garmin.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_02]: We have a tight window, so that we get John in here and your initial thoughts on the season overall, John.
• 0:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's where we're in this weird limbo type thing where I can mentally can't be upset without the season went for this team, right?
• 0:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: You can be sad at all the injuries and the obstacles and all the things that they face.
• 1:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: But at the same time, you have to be so incredibly proud of how they performed in the face of all of that, it's hard to be incredibly upset, right?
• 1:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I'm still sad, I'm not ready for it to be over.
• 1:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: I wasn't thrilled with the execution of the game last night as a whole.
• 1:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: I was so proud of them to get over time, making it over time was such a huge, just unbelievable.
• 1:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: If I told you with this roster that we were going to take the aces to the brink of five games and go to overtime, if I told you that before we started, people would have been like you're crazy.
• 1:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know, you would have to have been thrilled.
• 1:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: You have to be thrilled with it, especially considering losing Kelsey Mitchell in the third.
• 1:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: and Alia Boston fouling out early in the fourth.
• 1:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Or no, I guess it was in the middle of the fourth, but we knew we were gonna have her for over time.
• 1:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: So for the team to still make it to over time and still give them a run up until the last two minutes or minute and a half of the time.
• 1:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: This is a fantastic season, fantastic story, but I'm just still not over the sadness of it all being over yet.
• 2:06
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, probably my, probably extraordinary story to be honest.
• 2:09
  [SPEAKER_02]: The whole season,
• 2:11
  [SPEAKER_02]: at one point you and I and Michelle and Mike I think we all agreed might just be better to count the season as a loss and move on and they ended up a game from the finals with we can go through
• 2:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, and and three of them right in a row we lost Chloe Bibi after we picked her up on a hard ship contract There's one more tell see last night a Kelsey last night.
• 2:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, so I was just For any team to get that close to the finals with that type of outcome this crazy
• 2:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: people can say that the fever's locker room culture isn't good or whatever they can say whatever they want, but I think that this team just proved that is absolutely not accurate.
• 3:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: The culture of this team is unbelievable.
• 3:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: They write or die for each other.
• 3:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: They literally write or die.
• 3:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're not just saying it.
• 3:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're like, we'll go out there and put our bodies on the line for for these wins.
• 3:15
  [SPEAKER_02]: Before we get to some big WNBA news that I'm interested in talking with you in particular in Ephesus comments on Tuesday night, I want to talk a little bit about next year because we've been saying next year ever since Caitlin went out and if they can keep this all together, there's no reason to believe they're not the favorites going in the next year, right?
• 3:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: assuming there's a WMVACs in next year, I guess, and I think that's kind of an assumption at this point, but yeah, I don't see how they wouldn't be the favorites.
• 3:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: You have to figure, I mean, let's run down who we think for sure is protected in the expansion draft, Katelyn, Alia, Kelsey, Black Sea, who?
• 4:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Who else?
• 4:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: Who's your fifth?
• 4:09
  [SPEAKER_02]: I would assume Sophie.
• 4:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, Sophie, Sophie.
• 4:12
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, over
• 4:15
  [SPEAKER_02]: Natasha.
• 4:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Natasha Howard can't be taken in the expansion draft due to her status as a veteran.
• 4:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: I literally just read that today.
• 4:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: She's a free, she's understricted for agent with no eligible eligibility as a core so she cannot be expansion draft taken.
• 4:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I like the Natasha Howard a lot.
• 4:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't know how many seasons she has left.
• 4:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: But she, I was unsure about her at the beginning of the season.
• 4:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to be real honest with you.
• 4:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: When the season started, I didn't know what to expect from Natasha Howard.
• 4:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: And she maybe got off to a slow start with the team, but she really made her value known the second half of the season.
• 4:55
  [SPEAKER_02]: John, even before the first injury happened this year, you and I were questioning the one question we had was the death.
• 5:02
  [SPEAKER_02]: And it's amazing that they just kept adding players who contributed.
• 5:07
  [SPEAKER_02]: If they can keep it mostly together, next year you go in with tremendous depth.
• 5:12
  [SPEAKER_02]: Are you thinking?
• 5:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 5:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 5:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know what I'm saying?
• 5:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Odyssey Sims is like Odyssey.
• 5:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: You have definitely earned a spot on some team if they are not kept on the fever.
• 5:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: You would obviously love to keep them on the fever.
• 5:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I just, I don't know what the two expansion draft teams is going to be a weird offseason.
• 5:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I just, that's all you can really say.
• 5:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's going to be weird.
• 5:38
  [SPEAKER_02]: I brought up earlier that we're going to continue to have fever reports throughout the off season.
• 5:42
  [SPEAKER_02]: The draft, we will definitely be podcasting.
• 5:46
  [SPEAKER_02]: We'll probably do the expansion draft.
• 5:47
  [SPEAKER_02]: We'll probably preview both of those things as well.
• 5:49
  [SPEAKER_02]: So we'll be doing a lot of fever stuff during the off season.
• 5:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: It's a long off season though.
• 5:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: It is a long off season.
• 5:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's a long off season.
• 5:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's a long off season.
• 5:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm really excited for the pace or season.
• 6:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know that a lot of people are kind of right in the season off without Halley, but I'm curious, but yeah, I feel like this fever season should almost inspire you to think that the fever or the paceers are going to be just as exciting.
• 6:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: I can't imagine they don't, I really love the culture around paceers' fever and how they, they almost feel like one team.
• 6:21
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it's great that there are what three likable teams in the WNBA and we have the most likable one.
• 6:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely.
• 6:29
  [SPEAKER_02]: Maybe the most likable team in the NBA as well.
• 6:32
  [SPEAKER_02]: If not one of the most likable teams in the NBA for sure.
• 6:37
  [SPEAKER_02]: You say that this is a throwaway season.
• 6:41
  [SPEAKER_02]: I don't say it's a throwaway season.
• 6:43
  [SPEAKER_02]: You mentioned that.
• 6:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's been slowed out there.
• 6:47
  [SPEAKER_02]: even if you have a team that doesn't make the playoffs and they're going to make the playoffs, but even if you have, if they were not projected to make the playoffs, it's an important year for the development of the franchise and and a team that in 27 will expect to win a championship.
• 7:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: How spoiled are we, though, to get such a deep run from the Pacers and then a really deep run and I'm like, and they're both miraculous story.
• 7:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're
• 7:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: in lovable teams and lovable characters.
• 7:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: Honestly, we are spoiled.
• 7:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're very spoiled.
• 7:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Update, did you see the update on Kelsey Mitchell was just cramping so she's not super injured?
• 7:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think we need to talk about that a little bit because that woman gave everything she had to this team.
• 7:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: Right, if you don't love Kelsey Mitchell now, then you're just, you don't appreciate a warrior.
• 7:38
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, you're, there's no, there's no talking to you.
• 7:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 7:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, let's think about the other Lexi warrior.
• 7:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: you know, so I just soapy warrior.
• 7:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm curious to see how Caitlyn can do if she is a full rested season where she's not injured.
• 7:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Because if you think about her first season here, she was tired from coming straight out of college.
• 8:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then this season, obviously, she got hurt really bad.
• 8:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm curious to see what she does next year.
• 8:07
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, well, let's hope it's a full season.
• 8:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, let's hope.
• 8:14
  [SPEAKER_02]: Again, we're going to talk more about the people coming up, but I really wanted to get into the WNBA tonight because of the impending lock-out because of a piece of collier's timing.
• 8:25
  [SPEAKER_02]: And because there still is a final.
• 8:28
  [SPEAKER_02]: I'm not watching the finals.
• 8:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: I was afraid you're going to ask me to do a podcast about the final.
• 8:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not watching it.
• 8:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like not even interested.
• 8:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't even care.
• 8:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Literally the seasons over and I don't care.
• 8:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: Um, as far as I'm watching that way, I'm watching that way when the Pacers lose.
• 8:44
  [SPEAKER_02]: I, I, I love the NBA playoffs.
• 8:46
  [SPEAKER_02]: I love everything about it, but when they lose, it's hard for me to get back into it after they're gone.
• 8:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: I can follow the NBA after the Pacers are out, and I'm cool with it, and I usually pay attention.
• 8:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just, this two, unlikeable teams, and I don't, and they both just, to have this aura of, you know, like, I like the, I like the ACEs a lot more than the Mercury, a lot more.
• 9:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Asia Wilson's comments after the game just heard already here comments what was she said that everybody counted them out and they were blah blah blah and I'm like no they were there were four games under five hundred at one point they were out of a playoffs till halfway through the season
• 9:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: If that's what she's talking about fine, but if she's talking about in the playoff, that's just ridiculous.
• 9:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm tired of these people that have to be the victim all the time.
• 9:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: This victim mentality knows he's tries to mean that.
• 9:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: So anyway, that would bother.
• 9:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then they had a tweet of the, and I don't want to get too involved in this, because what is whatever, but the ACE's social media put out like a bow bow bow, moving on to the finals, because they were mocking Aliyah Boston because that's her thing.
• 9:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, that's dumb.
• 9:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't know.
• 9:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yep.
• 9:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: I obviously don't like the mercury because they're playing football and injuring everybody.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: So you want to talk about in the feasts of call yours comments?
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: We can do that because I have I thought one was before we move on summarized and real fast for those who don't know well she basically said flat out that she could be summarized in the league has the worst leadership in all sports.
• 10:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, basically she's in Kathy, you suck in the front office is terrible and it's the worst leadership is for She said I had conversations with Kathy and Kathy and this is the this is the part that I thought was ridiculous I'll just find out saying the part where Kathy if true the alleged comments
• 10:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: where Kathy says, Caitlyn should be thanking us for the fact that she can make $16 million outside of the court because she wouldn't be able to do with us.
• 10:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: That is the most delusional.
• 10:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: There's some delusional people in the WMBA.
• 10:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: We've agreed that there's some very delusional people in the WMBA, but that might be the most delusional.
• 11:00
  [SPEAKER_02]: If she thinks that she has no business being anywhere near leadership of the league, no, you're absolutely right.
• 11:07
  [SPEAKER_02]: That's at least half of your audience right now.
• 11:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, and in the FISA gave said page and an angel, and I think that page and angel bring eyes to for Kathy to say that K-Lens should be thanking the WMBA that she can make that is just nuts.
• 11:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's absolutely nuts.
• 11:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 11:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't know.
• 11:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just, I couldn't even, I don't know if I'll rent my brain around how delusional that is.
• 11:37
  [SPEAKER_02]: After a quick equipment malfunction, we are back talking about the delusional commissioner of the WNBA John.
• 11:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I just, I honestly don't know how she can stay.
• 11:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, before we get to this part, I agree with everything the piece of color had to say.
• 11:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: That one will be on record as I agree with everything she had to say.
• 12:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm really proud of her for being willing to say it.
• 12:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I do think the message is diluted coming from her because because she owns or is part owner of unrivaled, which is a competing league.
• 12:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: My analogy when I was discussing it today was, you know, she says obviously we know how to run a league because I run a league and that's like McDonald's saying Burger King sucks and doesn't make burgers because we not make burgers.
• 12:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, obviously McDonald's it's going to say
• 12:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: And it's the same same situation, right?
• 12:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Unrivaled even though it's three on three, versus a 505, it's a competing entity.
• 12:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: So while I do agree with everything she says, the conflict of interest in my opinion deludes the power of our statement, some.
• 12:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: But she's right.
• 12:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: She's right.
• 12:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: She's absolutely right.
• 12:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: No, like then that's what I want to point but like you're it's very easy for the league to now say Well, of course you want to knock us down because you're trying to promote yourself or It's of course you think you know, there's lots of ways for people to downplay her actual good valid arguments
• 13:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: But she had to, somebody had to be the one to do it.
• 13:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: She fell in the sword for everyone.
• 13:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I've seen lots of players thanking her for it today on social media.
• 13:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Natasha Howard did.
• 13:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: Lexi did last night in an interview before the game.
• 13:25
  [SPEAKER_02]: All right, I just want to say once again, not the last people report just because it's the last one of the 25 season.
• 13:35
  [SPEAKER_02]: Apparently Michelle Garmin ran into an issue or something was not able to join us.
• 13:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: I know she texted the group last night how proud she was to be a fever fan and she had the same sentiments that we did.
• 13:48
  [SPEAKER_02]: She did.
• 13:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: She absolutely did.
• 13:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know she loves it.
• 13:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, there she is.
• 13:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: There she is.
• 13:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Speak of it.
• 13:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: You say Michelle Garmin three times and she shows up like Beetlejuice.
• 13:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's Michelle.
• 13:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: Your thoughts on the season.
• 14:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: I thought the fever, you couldn't have asked for any more if you were a fan, they gave you last night in terms of energy, execution, heart, desire, all of those things you have to be very proud.
• 14:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Last night, fever gave us everything you could ever want as a fan, kudos to him, glad for Kelsey Mitchell's just cramps.
• 14:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: Stephanie White, I don't care.
• 14:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: She may not have the honor.
• 14:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't care what anybody says.
• 14:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: She was the best coach in the WMBA by far this year.
• 14:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: What she did through the season,
• 14:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: look at what she, her post game conference last night, what you also realize is that they also had some issues going on off the court that she handled and they juggled and brought them together.
• 14:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: The culture was culture is terrific and it was.
• 14:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's really great.
• 14:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm looking forward to next year.
• 14:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: I hope the fever are able to through all the collective
• 14:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: Lexi, Sophie, Caitlin, this court could be really good and we know that Stephanie White knows what she's doing when she brings in.
• 15:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: I do think everybody, I think the organization probably learned a lesson from the DeWanna Bonner situation and will be very careful when signing veteran free agents in the future.
• 15:19
  [SPEAKER_02]: Got to fit in.
• 15:20
  [SPEAKER_02]: That's important, John.
• 15:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think just their locker room culture is great.
• 15:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think they're going to try and keep it
• 15:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: I agree with Michelle.
• 15:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think they learned their lesson.
• 15:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think they really wanted to want a boner to work out.
• 15:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think they got swindled.
• 15:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think I think the want a boner planned on that the entire time.
• 15:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: No evidence, but I just think that's what happened.
• 15:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know what?
• 15:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're going to look forward to next season.
• 15:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: You guys let me know who wins the finals.
• 15:50
  [SPEAKER_02]: Thanks so much to John and Michelle for joining me talking some fever.
• 15:54
  [SPEAKER_02]: For the fourth of his time, this podcast, we will be back plenty of times in the offseason stock fever basketball.
• 16:02
  [SPEAKER_02]: And of course, John and Michelle will be along to talk Pacers basketball starting very, very soon.
• 16:07
  [SPEAKER_02]: Maybe even tomorrow.
• 16:09
  [SPEAKER_02]: But at the very latest early next week on the next Pacers report, please join us.
• 16:20
  [SPEAKER_02]: Instagram, we're all over the place, go find us so you don't miss any of our podcasts.
• 16:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: We also have podcasts on IU Purdue, the Pacers, as I mentioned, IndieCar, high school football and basketball college basketball college football, the NFL, majorly baseball in the playoffs right now.
• 16:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: We're podcasting every night about the playoffs.
• 16:44
  [SPEAKER_02]: Please join us.
• 16:56
  [SPEAKER_02]: Central Indian Sports Report is a product of ITG media, and I'll see you soon.