Latest / The Central Indiana Sports Report / The Fever Report with John Robertson & Michelle Garmon and Guest Mike Hutsell: The WNBA Can't Get Out of Its Own Way (2.322.1)

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The Fever Report with John Robertson & Michelle Garmon and Guest Mike Hutsell: The WNBA Can't Get Out of Its Own Way (2.322.1) · The Central Indiana Sports Report

0:04
[SPEAKER_02]: Welcome, Vever fans at the Central Indiana Sports Report for this week's Fever Report with John Robertson and Michelle Garmin joined this week by our friend Mike Hutzl of the IU report to talk about the fever and what's going on around the fever and there's a lot.
0:20
[SPEAKER_02]: I think watching today's game guys, I think it's clear now that the Minnesota links are the favorite to win the WMBA championship, but I do think the fever can get there, John.
0:30
[SPEAKER_01]: We talked last time about how Minnesota is just incredibly good, especially now that the feasts of colliers back.
0:36
[SPEAKER_01]: But fever played them tough, and even with Caitlyn didn't feel very well, and Alia had a not great day.
0:42
[SPEAKER_01]: But Minnesota is the best team in the league currently, so I don't think that it's like a foregone conclusion.
0:49
[SPEAKER_01]: My 80 means that the fever can't hang with them, but you've got to believe that Minnesota's the best team.
0:57
[SPEAKER_03]: and I'm just thrilled about that because I can't think of anybody I'm happy you're for in life than Cheryl Reeve just a just a beacon of light in a dreary time.
1:09
[SPEAKER_03]: Every every time I'm having a bad day I just go read Cheryl Reeve quotes and it just makes me so happy to to be a part of this world.
1:18
[SPEAKER_03]: So thank goodness that Cheryl Reeve's having a great day.
1:24
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, she fits in where she works.
1:26
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll we'll just say that.
1:27
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, that's a good point.
1:30
[SPEAKER_00]: As Gynraid said, what do we expect she lives in Minnesota?
1:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Come on.
1:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I think Minneapolis specifically is a little more.
1:42
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't know, charged and the rest of the state.
1:44
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
1:44
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
1:45
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
1:46
[SPEAKER_01]: I have friends that lived outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota and they get tired of, I mean, not even around basketball.
1:51
[SPEAKER_01]: Just all the nonsense is a lot of nonsense.
1:54
[SPEAKER_03]: But I learned today that she's married to one of the owners, or final office execs, so our entire relationship is in HR violation.
2:03
[SPEAKER_03]: But I did not know that.
2:07
[SPEAKER_03]: that's crazy.
2:08
[SPEAKER_03]: That's insane.
2:09
[SPEAKER_03]: She can't basically can't be fired.
2:11
[SPEAKER_03]: He can't be fired.
2:13
[SPEAKER_03]: Her wife it was the Grand Marshall at the Minneapolis Pride Festival and she's an executive in the front office and HR does not apply when it comes to the W.
2:27
[SPEAKER_01]: not even talk about any specific thing.
2:30
[SPEAKER_01]: I've just decided that the WMBA as a whole is just one big political activism movement with a side of basketball.
2:38
[SPEAKER_03]: You're like not wrong on that, John.
2:39
[SPEAKER_03]: I don't know.
2:40
[SPEAKER_03]: Except for the feedback, how was there been?
2:43
[SPEAKER_03]: How has there been an L.P.GA tour for decades that has just as much, let's face it, you know.
2:54
[SPEAKER_03]: what is being, you know, the activism doesn't translate over to the help.
3:01
[SPEAKER_03]: This is just a different point.
3:04
[SPEAKER_03]: It's an activism league portrayed with a little basketball on the side.
3:07
[SPEAKER_03]: You're absolutely right.
3:09
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's been that way for such a long time.
3:10
[SPEAKER_01]: Like you think back to when Atlanta demanded to be sold to somebody else and vote for against the owner of the team.
3:17
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's been going on for a decade or multiple decades.
3:20
[SPEAKER_01]: It's just
3:21
[SPEAKER_01]: I do think in Indiana that we care about the basketball, I think the majority of fans care about the basketball in Indiana, that are their fringe people on both sides of any argument probably, but I really do think that the real fever fans care about the basketball.
3:36
[SPEAKER_01]: You step outside of that bubble and I really think it is so much more about the activism and less about the basketball.
3:43
[SPEAKER_03]: And I think more people would be interested in it if it was more about the basketball.
3:49
[SPEAKER_03]: I grinds away a casual basketball fan to have this level of activism.
3:54
[SPEAKER_03]: I mean, you have an owner literally a teenage kid to the point of tears and the wigs are like, hello, well, get in line, girl.
4:06
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it's pretty ridiculous though.
4:08
[SPEAKER_01]: The way I don't know.
4:10
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't just say I can't imagine living my life that offended.
4:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't imagine being so offended about it and I don't even spot talking specifically about any issue that the dubbing like any issue in the world is like whatever I can't imagine being just bothered by everything.
4:28
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't know how you can function on a daily life like that.
4:31
[SPEAKER_01]: But man, do they ever?
4:32
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not only that, but how do you be right and cut out teenager youth, young, the young girls?
4:40
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't care what, Jersey, they're wearing, and I don't care what, sign as long as it's not.
4:46
[SPEAKER_00]: profanity driven or hate driven, which that there's was not.
4:51
[SPEAKER_01]: That's one thing that bothers me.
4:52
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't care where you fall on an issue as long as you can be cordial and discuss your issue.
4:56
[SPEAKER_01]: The guys that we're going around with like vulgar signs today and putting them up behind people's heads and stuff.
5:01
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't like that.
5:02
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't like when I take my daughter somewhere, it doesn't like she has to see the effort.
5:07
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not offended by it.
5:08
[SPEAKER_01]: I just, I don't like it.
5:09
[SPEAKER_01]: I've taught my daughter.
5:10
[SPEAKER_01]: We'll deal with it and some people just lack class, but like,
5:17
[SPEAKER_02]: and suddenly it was kind of a perfect example of some really good basketball at times it kind of gets marred by this stuff and I kind of said it's all political except for the fever but they're everybody's trying to pull the fever into the politics and they just kind of want to stay out of and you saw all star weekend i don't even think that the players are necessarily
5:37
[SPEAKER_03]: that involved in all this.
5:38
[SPEAKER_03]: You saw Caitlin Clark with the Spud Buds, and we know they probably are on different sides of the aisle politically, but they were perfectly fine being teammates and friends.
5:48
[SPEAKER_03]: And but it's the fans of the game and the people in charge of the game that want to create this culture of victimhood and, you know, you're on our side or you're not going to enjoy yourself.
6:03
[SPEAKER_03]: And that's what the league has become, and it's just frustrating
6:08
[SPEAKER_00]: And how about this?
6:09
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, all of a sudden the gambling video, which would have been a nice distraction to last him for a couple days, all of a sudden they brushed that aside and say, Oh, it was just a joke.
6:20
[SPEAKER_00]: Excuse me, you flashed money, Angel Reese, no, they know the rules.
6:24
[SPEAKER_00]: They flashed money.
6:25
[SPEAKER_00]: She brought it up at her post game presser talking about collecting.
6:29
[SPEAKER_00]: How you can just say, Oh, it's just joking.
6:32
[SPEAKER_00]: No punishment.
6:34
[SPEAKER_00]: This job, this league is so.
6:38
[SPEAKER_00]: They are so far from being professional.
6:40
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll agree with you, Michelle.
6:41
[SPEAKER_01]: Honestly, you guys know I don't care about gambling that much, like I gamble, but I don't think players in the league are active players should be participating.
6:49
[SPEAKER_01]: But the fact that the WMBA just blew that off when we know what the historical ramifications for other athletes and other sports, it's like the league doesn't want to be taken seriously at this point.
6:58
[SPEAKER_01]: Because it's hard to take them seriously when they just let, I would say pretty big deal.
7:03
[SPEAKER_03]: You wouldn't know.
7:04
[SPEAKER_01]: Like I know that like you know Jordan and Bird, those guys were gambling during their games, but they kept it quiet and it was still, you know, they were, they were betting on each other and against each other, but not like on the wins.
7:15
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't remember if it was Jordan or Bird who said he had a bet on how many threes he was going to hit one night just to make fun of the other bench.
7:21
[SPEAKER_01]: A personal bet.
7:23
[SPEAKER_01]: A personal bet.
7:24
[SPEAKER_03]: A personal bet.
7:24
[SPEAKER_03]: The issue is with this is who put the video out and made it public.
7:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Well agreed, and also the angel was comfortable enough recording it, that's the part that blew my mind, like how dumb do you have to be to actively film yourself doing something that you know is against the rules?
7:49
[SPEAKER_02]: Guys, I want to get back to talking basketball.
7:52
[SPEAKER_02]: Sunday was a great game, and I wanted to talk some basketball, but since we're talking politics, a little political.
7:59
[SPEAKER_02]: Listen to three podcasts this week, two political and one sports podcast, and they all said they think that Sophie cutting him is now the face of the WMBA thoughts.
8:09
[SPEAKER_01]: Dumb, that's dumb.
8:12
[SPEAKER_03]: Yes, I'm right online with John on that one.
8:15
[SPEAKER_01]: She's the most visible at the moment because there are outside actors trying to use her for their own agendas.
8:20
[SPEAKER_01]: Regardless, whether they are four or against her.
8:23
[SPEAKER_01]: They've latched onto you.
8:25
[SPEAKER_01]: This is a way to get casual.
8:27
[SPEAKER_01]: People riled up and angry about something.
8:29
[SPEAKER_01]: One way or the other does, I mean, whichever side you want to pick.
8:32
[SPEAKER_01]: So to them, it might be the face of the league.
8:36
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's absolutely not the face of the league.
8:39
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't think that she's the face of the league.
8:43
[SPEAKER_00]: I commend her because I think for her, she has become maybe a lot of young girls this very favorite player and I'm going to give her kudos because whether you agree or disagree and I don't like to get into all of that.
9:00
[SPEAKER_00]: But here's the thing.
9:02
[SPEAKER_00]: I love it because she's not, she's not back down.
9:05
[SPEAKER_00]: So I would say Sophie Cunningham has become a fan favorite of mothers
9:13
[SPEAKER_00]: because they've seen her standing up for their daughters and not backing down.
9:17
[SPEAKER_00]: But to say she's the face of the league, no, she's just very, I mean, her popularity has probably tripled.
9:25
[SPEAKER_03]: Well, she's popular, she's outspoken, she's fun.
9:28
[SPEAKER_03]: She's obviously going to catch the attention of guys my age for other reasons.
9:34
[SPEAKER_03]: But she's not good enough to be the face of the league.
9:43
[SPEAKER_03]: white-mindedness of, but she's not that good of a player.
9:49
[SPEAKER_03]: She's never going to be an Olympian.
9:50
[SPEAKER_03]: She's never probably going to be an all-star if we're being realistic.
9:54
[SPEAKER_03]: She's a fun, she's quotable,
9:58
[SPEAKER_03]: she can do any kind of modeling gig that she wants to do, but she's not Caitlin.
10:05
[SPEAKER_03]: Everybody knows who Caitlin is.
10:06
[SPEAKER_03]: Everybody knows who Sabrina is.
10:07
[SPEAKER_03]: Everybody knows who Stewie is.
10:09
[SPEAKER_03]: Everybody knows who Angel is, who Asia Wilson is.
10:13
[SPEAKER_03]: Those are the faces of the league, and Sophie's just never going to get to that caliber.
10:18
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, please, Angel Reese is the best.
10:22
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, she's the face of brick layers.
10:23
[SPEAKER_00]: All right, when they have a brick layers convention, all they need is a post or a angel race.
10:29
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, but you gotta have a heel, like think about WWE wrestling.
10:34
[SPEAKER_01]: Like you've gotta have the heroes and the heels or the face and the heels.
10:38
[SPEAKER_01]: Even the heels are a face of the WWE.
10:41
[SPEAKER_01]: So I think the angel's not very good at basketball either, but at the same time she is more of a face than others.
10:50
[SPEAKER_01]: I agree with what Mike saying, but I will say there's a lot of people who are casuals are aren't really fans and I'll say oh we're going to the fever game tonight and they'll say oh yeah you're going to go see Caitlin and Sophie so I do think more people know Sophie that may not be basketball fans outside of the basketball world I think that she's more known.
11:07
[SPEAKER_03]: Then she moves March.
11:08
[SPEAKER_03]: I won't give her that.
11:09
[SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, for sure.
11:10
[SPEAKER_03]: The number two in Jersey sales.
11:13
[SPEAKER_03]: So maybe I'm short selling it, but I I just don't think the caliber player she is she can ever truly.
11:19
[SPEAKER_03]: No, she never be the face.
11:20
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, no.
11:22
[SPEAKER_00]: What I like about her is she just fills her role.
11:24
[SPEAKER_00]: She knows what her role is.
11:25
[SPEAKER_00]: She's accepts her role on the team.
11:27
[SPEAKER_00]: She's a good teammate.
11:28
[SPEAKER_00]: She's a good leader in what she excels at when it comes to basketball is exactly that filling her role.
11:37
[SPEAKER_02]: I want to piggyback off of what Hudson said here.
11:40
[SPEAKER_02]: I tried my very best to just not make her my favorite player because of how hot she is because I didn't want to be a stereotype, but she's really hard to not like outside of that.
11:53
[SPEAKER_01]: I want to add to that there's a bit of a side to this.
11:57
[SPEAKER_01]: And you can either be complicated or not, I guess.
11:59
[SPEAKER_01]: But like people like my wife, Sophie's been her favorite ever since she became a fever player because they like traficiness, she likes the way she, you know, isn't afraid to back down.
12:10
[SPEAKER_01]: So regardless of where you stand on any of this, she's now my wife who works in a public job is worried that if she wears her Sophie jersey, that people are going to think that she's sick.
12:20
[SPEAKER_02]: So what a world we live in.
12:22
[SPEAKER_01]: And again, I do believe my wife will do whatever she wants and she's not going to let it get to her, but the fact that you even have to have that as a consideration is kind of sad.
12:30
[SPEAKER_01]: This is one of those things that I do think that's, you know, it's sad.
12:34
[SPEAKER_01]: You're right, that's it.
12:34
[SPEAKER_01]: Because I put a big old Lexi poster in my room and I work and I don't care, but I don't think Lexi one's going to be as controversial.
12:46
[SPEAKER_03]: If she the Morgan Wallen of the W and B, I mean, yeah, I think that's basically
12:52
[SPEAKER_01]: you know, people brand her as that type now.
12:55
[SPEAKER_01]: I will say I respect that the one thing I've really, really respect about Sophie in her position is that she's not shy to away from saying, I want to hear other points of view.
13:06
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not afraid to listen to other people say why they disagree and she's been respectful and all very much in favor of the first amendment, which is one thing that I stand for.
13:15
[SPEAKER_01]: We don't have to agree on issues, but let's actually have a discussion.
13:18
[SPEAKER_01]: The
13:21
[SPEAKER_03]: Whoa, whoa, whoa, we actually acknowledge there's a first amendment in this country at this point.
13:27
[SPEAKER_01]: I do, I absolutely do, that's why I guess, what is it from?
13:32
[SPEAKER_03]: What world are you, what planet are you on, Joe?
13:35
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I try to live in my own bubble there.
13:38
[SPEAKER_01]: And we're getting way off the deep in here, but I was having a conversation with my daughter about fascism because she's been seeing that word all over the place and I had to try to explain to her fascism is one side of the ideology where you're not allowed to, you don't let other people, people that are claiming to be anti-fascists are the ones that are with megaphone and shouting you down and I'm like, so I asked my 14-year-old daughter, I said, what do you think, which one seems more like fascism than she had her opinion?
14:03
[SPEAKER_01]: I said, well fair enough.
14:09
[SPEAKER_02]: Michelle, you had something to say.
14:11
[SPEAKER_00]: It was going to lead into John here.
14:13
[SPEAKER_00]: Talking about the fever again, John, they came off these last three games.
14:19
[SPEAKER_00]: He's wrote this road trip pretty well, actually.
14:22
[SPEAKER_00]: I know it was a loss today, but you feel good with where they're at right now, as we head into the next couple of weeks of the season.
14:31
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, absolutely.
14:32
[SPEAKER_01]: We talked about how we wanted to do in the series of games and they're on pace to do what we want.
14:37
[SPEAKER_01]: I said would be a successful run.
14:40
[SPEAKER_01]: Anytime you have a long road trip, you've got, you know, you can't expect you're going to drop at least a gamer too, and they only lost the one today, which is not that big a deal.
14:49
[SPEAKER_01]: I think the game against Las Vegas at home on Thursday will be telling the Chicago game I'm not too concerned about.
14:58
[SPEAKER_01]: and then we've got New York and then Dallas.
15:01
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's really a really difficult schedule coming up, but if they can ride through that and get hot and stay hot, I think going into the playoffs, it could be good, but I mean, we've got Vegas and then Chicago, New York, Dallas, Atlanta, and then a couple of like Toronto, I'm not too worried about, but then we play, we play the links back to back to end the season.
15:26
[SPEAKER_01]: I think the matchup against the links as they as they I think that we had players that just didn't have great games today, and I think the links had some really great games.
15:34
[SPEAKER_01]: So I'm curious to see how they we do against the aces.
15:38
[SPEAKER_01]: We've done really well against the aces all season long.
15:42
[SPEAKER_01]: Again, they're coming into Indianapolis.
15:44
[SPEAKER_01]: So I think if we can get that one, we might be able to leapfrog them in the in the standings pretty soon.
15:55
[SPEAKER_03]: Like it was, it's over.
15:58
[SPEAKER_03]: Is it past?
15:59
[SPEAKER_03]: Because they made the trade with Kelsey, so I didn't know if it was upcoming or this week.
16:03
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I think this weekend was it.
16:04
[SPEAKER_01]: I would, there might be Monday, but I don't think so.
16:07
[SPEAKER_03]: Because I had to, I had a trade I was going to throw out, but if it's not feasible, I was going to see what you guys thought about Raven's first time.
16:18
[SPEAKER_01]: Sunday, Sunday was the deadline.
16:21
[SPEAKER_01]: Man, I had a Raven for Skyler Digan's trade
16:26
[SPEAKER_01]: Raven played today and I played against the links.
16:30
[SPEAKER_01]: And I thought she played pretty well honestly.
16:32
[SPEAKER_01]: Her defense was was pretty good.
16:35
[SPEAKER_01]: She hasn't been getting very many minutes.
16:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I thought she had a played a lot lately, actually.
16:39
[SPEAKER_00]: No, but she's been listed with a lower body as most likely probable.
16:44
[SPEAKER_00]: So I don't know if that angle that she heard earlier if she's tweaked it.
16:48
[SPEAKER_00]: And they just wanted to get her 100%.
16:51
[SPEAKER_00]: And they haven't really needed her.
16:52
[SPEAKER_00]: So I don't know, but no, she hadn't played a lot until today.
16:57
[SPEAKER_03]: And did you guys see that the reason Olivia Miles is with the links is because they didn't want to draft somebody else that we've already talked about on the show today.
17:08
[SPEAKER_03]: I did not two years ago, they traded the pick to Chicago, a future first round pick to Chicago, right?
17:15
[SPEAKER_01]: Right, right?
17:16
[SPEAKER_03]: Because they didn't want to take Angel Reeves.
17:20
[SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, right.
17:21
[SPEAKER_02]: I think they won that trade.
17:23
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I think I know I still like Angel Reese.
17:26
[SPEAKER_02]: You guys aren't gonna talk me out of that.
17:28
[SPEAKER_03]: So, she's Andre Drummond.
17:31
[SPEAKER_03]: I like, yeah, it's a good, it's a perfect comparison.
17:35
[SPEAKER_03]: I saw it somewhere else today as well.
17:37
[SPEAKER_03]: And I was like, wow, that makes way too much sense.
17:41
[SPEAKER_03]: I just think she's misunderstood.
17:43
[SPEAKER_01]: That's all, personally.
17:45
[SPEAKER_01]: I think she plays fine.
17:47
[SPEAKER_01]: I think she wants to be bigger than she is in that kitchen or otherwise.
17:49
[SPEAKER_01]: She gets in her own way because of her ego.
17:51
[SPEAKER_01]: And that,
17:54
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't want to give her any more thought-brain-prower.
17:57
[SPEAKER_00]: Angel Reese is a really, really good rebounder.
18:02
[SPEAKER_00]: You can play some good defensive times, but offensively.
18:07
[SPEAKER_00]: She's got a long way to go to ever be in the top half of the all-time grades to play in the NBA.
18:18
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, John, I guess so much for not wanting to talk politics in this podcast.
18:22
[SPEAKER_02]: Michelle, you got to find out that.
18:24
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, I'm going to say it's a shame that where we are at or how the WNBA has let their league become so political or one side, you know, I think what I disappoints me the most.
18:39
[SPEAKER_00]: Right now, if the people in our world and a lot of young people is their comprehension skills of what they read and what they hear or listen to are probably maybe at an all-time low.
18:50
[SPEAKER_00]: I've amazed sometimes just that when people don't read and then they are they want to replace words with the word it wasn't uttered.
18:59
[SPEAKER_00]: changes the meaning, but that aside in WNBA needs to, they need to embrace the kitten clerks and the Sophie cunning hymns.
19:08
[SPEAKER_00]: And Olivia Miles who's coming up, I don't think Olivia Miles has the same following among girls that Caitlyn and Sophie and even like Kelsey and Alia have.
19:17
[SPEAKER_00]: I just don't.
19:18
[SPEAKER_01]: She should.
19:18
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, let's be honest.
19:20
[SPEAKER_02]: I was gonna say, but damn, she's good.
19:22
[SPEAKER_02]: Oh, like, no.
19:23
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, what I'm saying is she should.
19:25
[SPEAKER_00]: I just, I think for her,
19:29
[SPEAKER_00]: kind of private person in a lot of ways.
19:32
[SPEAKER_00]: I think she's embracing this though and coming out and speaking of Olivia Miles guys, I think she has grown a couple inches in the last year.
19:41
[SPEAKER_00]: She is taller than what, I mean, she's taller than what I remember and I know it's real rare for females, I know men can grow, can grow.
19:49
[SPEAKER_00]: But I think Miles may have maybe have grown.
19:51
[SPEAKER_00]: I did to be honest.
19:52
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't I watched her play some at TCU But I really didn't pay attention to how she matched up height wise with players, but I do know she has grown at least Like one or two inches since her playing days at Notre Dame All right guys, let's talk some basketball John as of right now.
20:10
[SPEAKER_02]: What would your top five power pull be?
20:14
[SPEAKER_02]: Top five teams.
20:16
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes
20:18
[SPEAKER_01]: uh... most likely to win the championship links number one uh... i would have the fever at two a says three falconries four you could flip either one of those any day the week what if a lady a healthy was going to say i was going to put liberty in there like they were going to be my next one of my five you said right now though
20:45
[SPEAKER_03]: No, I'm at most likely to win the championship.
20:48
[SPEAKER_01]: Most likely win championship.
20:49
[SPEAKER_01]: It will link the fever, then ACEs, Valkyries.
20:53
[SPEAKER_01]: You can flip either one up three, four, and Liberty at five.
20:58
[SPEAKER_03]: I think if there's only one team in the East that I think can win it, and it's the one that John named.
21:03
[SPEAKER_03]: The West is definitely running this league right now, and people can try to sell me on the dream.
21:10
[SPEAKER_03]: I don't have a dream.
21:11
[SPEAKER_03]: I'm sorry.
21:12
[SPEAKER_03]: It's the links to me, and then it's everybody else right now.
21:15
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't really disagree with what John said either.
21:17
[SPEAKER_00]: I bet I don't think it's just the links by themselves.
21:21
[SPEAKER_00]: They want a day's game because of how well they shot the ball from outside and how well.
21:25
[SPEAKER_00]: And I mean, I think Courtney Williams played the game of her life today.
21:28
[SPEAKER_00]: By the way, I think it was her probably one of her best career performances.
21:32
[SPEAKER_03]: Those shoes, she got at the all-star break.
21:34
[SPEAKER_03]: I think.
21:35
[SPEAKER_00]: must be, but when it push comes to shove, if those outside shots aren't falling and I know call yours good, but the fever have an advantage inside with Boston and KK and Billings and I know Lee had didn't play exceptionally well today, but if those shots aren't falling for the links, then they become vulnerable because they don't have a really good interior game.
22:00
[SPEAKER_01]: I think they've been consistent, even without the face of collier, so even when you add her back in, I think they just get stronger.
22:07
[SPEAKER_01]: This run there on is really impressive.
22:10
[SPEAKER_01]: no, it's absolutely impressive and I think that they're not going to slow down.
22:14
[SPEAKER_01]: I really don't.
22:15
[SPEAKER_01]: The one caveat I'll add to my prediction was I do think that if the fever match up against golden state that the fever and trouble because golden state has been our nemesis and they match up very well against us and poorly for the fever.
22:27
[SPEAKER_01]: So they could move up depending on the bracket.
22:33
[SPEAKER_00]: I, you know, yes, they could, again, I know in the links are very good, but I'm going to still stay in the if they're outside game, because that's what got them in trouble in the playoff series.
22:42
[SPEAKER_00]: The last couple of years is they're, they couldn't hit outside shots and they didn't have a strong enough inside game to combat an Asia Wilson at times or whoever John Quill Jones or, you know, and in this case, it'll be like a, um,
22:58
[SPEAKER_00]: only a Boston, like I said, Boston Billings in, in Timson.
23:02
[SPEAKER_00]: I, I like the fever.
23:04
[SPEAKER_00]: I think the fever, at least, offensively are the most complete team in the league.
23:10
[SPEAKER_00]: They still have some work to do defensively and the links are probably ahead of the fever defensively by just a little bit right now.
23:17
[SPEAKER_03]: I have to look at the rest of the schedule.
23:20
[SPEAKER_03]: I don't know who plays who in the West.
23:22
[SPEAKER_03]: The terminator down there in Phoenix for the rest of the regular season.
23:27
[SPEAKER_03]: She could take out three or four top stars before the end of the season.
23:32
[SPEAKER_03]: That's what she likes to do.
23:33
[SPEAKER_03]: So we don't know what the playoff rosters are going to look like.
23:36
[SPEAKER_01]: So did you guys see Kelsey Plum got traded the Phoenix today?
23:40
[SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, and I have a theory on that too that I can maybe share at the end of the show.
23:44
[SPEAKER_00]: Hey, who did the sparks get for her?
23:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I saw her.
23:49
[SPEAKER_00]: I saw she joined the was traded for the first draft.
23:52
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, who were the first draft pick was and then a second round draft pick next year?
23:59
[SPEAKER_03]: And Kelsey is probably not resigning with Phoenix based on what a bread today.
24:04
[SPEAKER_03]: So she didn't make a lot of sense.
24:08
[SPEAKER_00]: I think that's why the sparks were wanting to get rid of it.
24:10
[SPEAKER_00]: They wanted to get something poor because she indicated that them, she was not going to resign with LA to where she headed.
24:23
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't think Kelsey Plum would go back to Vegas.
24:26
[SPEAKER_01]: I think there was some drama going on there that she didn't like.
24:30
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't have evidence of that, but it just feels like there was something going on there.
24:35
[SPEAKER_03]: This could set LA up though for the rest of the year to be bad enough where you can get the lottery positioned for due due to end up in LA.
24:44
[SPEAKER_03]: Good point.
24:46
[SPEAKER_00]: That's why that is if that is if you do decides to come out a year back to you get the chance to go to the sparks I had with feeling well that's true to I do know you do is close to the Kobe Bryant family for her It'll be interesting to see how our year goes and she could she could potentially make more money even though they've had the salary and Increase she could potentially make more money by staying at USC for one additional year.
25:08
[SPEAKER_00]: So it will be interesting
25:11
[SPEAKER_03]: Well, if Nike can get her in the pros in LA, they can take care of her at a level where I know college women's college is grown, but I think they can market her a lot more as a pro in LA.
25:30
[SPEAKER_03]: They could turn her into, you know, just like you said, she's close with Kobe's family.
25:34
[SPEAKER_03]: They can make her almost the Kobe of the sparks with that story.
25:42
[SPEAKER_03]: I just anticipate, you know, that that being something the league puts together.
25:47
[SPEAKER_01]: We have expansion teams coming in too.
25:49
[SPEAKER_01]: So I think they'll probably be drafting next year.
25:51
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't know how that'll work all, but I think Cleveland and Houston is next year, right?
25:55
[SPEAKER_02]: They can rig it so she ends up in LA.
25:58
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I'm just, I'm just saying like that's a consideration as when we start once we get to the point of thinking about draft is for next year.
26:06
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, so the upcoming schedule, we have Indiana at home versus Las Vegas, and then that's on Thursday the 6th Saturday the 8th we have fever at Chicago, then Tuesday the 11th fever at home versus New York and then Friday the 14th is fever at home versus Dallas.
26:27
[SPEAKER_01]: And then at the end against the dream.
26:30
[SPEAKER_01]: And then at Atlanta gets the dream and on Sunday the 16th.
26:33
[SPEAKER_01]: And that starts a big string of away games because there is like four or five away in a row.
26:38
[SPEAKER_01]: I was looking at the trying to schedule a season ticket stuff for that.
26:43
[SPEAKER_01]: Stretching, there's a long period of away games.
26:46
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't remember when the, I don't remember when the fee best stuff is either, that's coming up.
26:50
[SPEAKER_01]: But we do have a difficult schedule coming up other than I would say Chicago because Chicago,
26:57
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, they could squeak out of wind like I'm not going to lie like Chicago could pull an upset, but knocked off Las Vegas this weekend.
27:03
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, that was just because the Vegas like stop playing that ending of that game was ridiculous.
27:11
[SPEAKER_01]: Did get DJ Naebacks?
27:13
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
27:14
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
27:15
[SPEAKER_01]: So we'll see, I think the Vegas game will be exciting.
27:19
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm curious to see how we do against New York this time because that's been honestly those games
27:29
[SPEAKER_03]: You said they closed with back to backs with the links.
27:32
[SPEAKER_01]: But the end of the season, yeah, September 22nd, 24th is here versus the links and then away at links.
27:38
[SPEAKER_03]: Man, that much time with Cheryl Reeve.
27:42
[SPEAKER_03]: Good grief.
27:42
[SPEAKER_03]: It's like getting stuck in the elevator with your mother-in-law.
27:46
[SPEAKER_03]: Good lord.
27:49
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, she's something- You brought up the fever, John.
27:52
[SPEAKER_02]: Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you there.
28:00
[SPEAKER_02]: four games so August 28th is their last game before the break September 18th is their first game after the break and then the season and six days later.
28:09
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you guys think the break will be good for the fever or bad for the fever?
28:13
[SPEAKER_01]: Good.
28:15
[SPEAKER_01]: Depends on health.
28:18
[SPEAKER_01]: We've talked about it multiple times and also in the Pacers.
28:22
[SPEAKER_01]: Pacers report I have this fear of Indiana basketball players playing in
28:30
[SPEAKER_03]: Hopefully, it's called Paul George.
28:33
[SPEAKER_03]: Like, Alia has seen me at legoring issues.
28:37
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
28:38
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm a little nervous about how her season's going to go, because I thought she was done for a couple of games the other night, which fell on her knee.
28:45
[SPEAKER_03]: Any time off, you can give to her is I think good before the playoffs.
28:49
[SPEAKER_03]: So she's on a favorite team.
28:53
[SPEAKER_01]: She's on a last summer.
28:55
[SPEAKER_02]: She's on a last summer ice.
28:56
[SPEAKER_01]: We'll see how much she plays because I will say I've been very proud of the players for Not getting distracted and doing the things they need to do to stay risk that up and keep the mate like But Lea's words were we're gonna keep the main thing the main thing which is winning a championship So even at the all-star game she only played a few minutes and then sat out because she knew she needed rest I thought that I respect that a lot So hopefully that's kind of what happens in the Olympics her fever or whatever we're calling it
29:23
[SPEAKER_00]: So we don't even really know who the United States of Speedba team is.
29:27
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, because they haven't announced that roster yet.
29:30
[SPEAKER_00]: It's not, it does not have to be the same one that did the qualifier, the World Cup, or did the thing in the spring, there could be changes to this roster.
29:41
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't know enough about it, so I just hope that our players don't get hurt.
29:44
[SPEAKER_01]: That's all I care about.
29:46
[SPEAKER_02]: Thanks, guys.
29:48
[SPEAKER_02]: That was fun.
29:49
[SPEAKER_02]: That's all you're always, that was fun.
29:53
[SPEAKER_02]: Central Indiana Sports Report is a product of ITG media, and I love Susie.