Good Follow - Liberty & Lynx Undefeated, Atlanta Dream Climb to #3 + Fever sign Aari McDonald & More
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Hey, what's up, y'all? Welcome to Good Follow, presented by DraftKings. I'm Roz Gold on What8. That's my girl, Logan Hackett. And Logan, bonjour. How was Paris? How was France and tennis with your mother and all the things? Bonjour. Comment ça va? It was really, really good. Ça va? Ça va? Oui, ça va bien. It

It was so good. I mean, just being at the French open, especially compared to the us open and Australian open was amazing. And then the PSG men's team won the champions league. So that was absolutely insane. And Paris is just so beautiful. I loved it.

Oh, I'm so happy for you to have had such a great time and also to have that family time. And we're happy to have you back. Welcome back to Good Follow. For all of you watching at home, let me take you through today's show. We got a nice menu for you. Here's our lineup. We will be comparing the Liberty and the Lynx and their success to start the season. The Atlanta Dream. Have you heard? They're quietly rising, y'all. Keep your eye on a dream. The Fever. Pick up now.

airy McDonald. We'll take a look at that plus athletes show out at the Sports Illustrated swimsuit show. And as always, y'all thank you so much for subscribing, commenting, liking, clicking, clicking all the buttons and following our socials but we have a packed show. So are you ready to get into it? Let's do it. Let's do it. Well last weekend, the one the only the iconic Ellie the elephant celebrated her birthday and the Liberty

the Liberty had quite a crazy gift beating the Sun 100 to 52. And with that, the team is now seven and oh, but they only scored two points in the final six minutes and still won by 48, which is the second largest margin of victory in WNBA history. And they now sit number one in the standings.

Now, there are so many takeaways from this game. I mean, 19 made threes, no starter played over 23 minutes, and the plus minus on the score sheet was absolutely insane. But they're off to their hottest start since the WNBA's inaugural season in 97. So with this and everything else that we've seen so far, what's the key to their success this early in the season?

I've got three keys for the Liberty's success and I'm on the call for these games as the team analyst and I'm seeing it up close and personal. First and foremost, Logan, it starts with the Liberty's depth.

All right. That's the biggest thing. The fact that they're so deep. Then it's also their selfless culture. It's the assists. It's the playmaking for one another. And then I'd also point to their defense. Let me start with the talent depth chart. I'll try to take you through it really quick. But we knew it was going to be Jonquil Jones and Brianna Stewart and Sabrina Onescu who are going to be like the core of stars for this team. So you added in Natasha Cloud.

who is playing great on both sides of the ball, offense, defense, energy, crucial timely stops. But she also gives this team aura. Like she's got such a big personality. She fills the locker room. She keeps it light, keeps it fresh. Then you got Leone Fibish, right? This is Mrs. Dependable. You know what you're going to get with Leone. And you also don't need to do a lot for her. She's just going to make the right plays.

Okay. There's a lot of expanded roles and new faces. Kennedy Burke, when she found out, oh, Kayla Thornton wasn't coming back. Oh, Benajalini Hamilton isn't going to play this season. This was Kennedy Burke. Because she's eating. She's eating.

the opportunity she is crushing it she is confident she has worked hard on her jump shot she's defending she's doing all the things she's been fantastic to start the season for the liberty real quickly kennedy burke i was going through her stats because i was like she seems to be popping off more than she did last season last season she averaged 12.1 minutes 3.4 points this year she started in one game 21.6 minutes average and 8.9 points per game she is in the running for six women of the year at this point

- Facts, facts. In fact, I even spoke to her and I was like, "Hey girl, what you work on in the off season?" And she said, "I worked on my three point shooting." She said, "Some people have tried to put me in a box that I'm not a shooter."

but i like to think of myself as a shooter she said i think of myself as a shooter and it shows sometimes you just gotta manifest and claim it you know and then you know you have uh rebecca gardner who fits the mold of being long and you know just competitive on both sides and um hustling and then of course you have maureen johannes who i've been calling on the broadcast one foot two foot red foot blue foot

because she's just such an explosive, exciting score and it can just happen anywhere, anyhow, on any foot. And then maybe Niarasabli if she's healthy. I mean, we haven't seen her that much yet, but they're deep.

But probably the most impressive thing, Logan, of that 48-point win against the Sun that you brought up, Logan, for me, it's the 29 assists on 33 made field goals. That's part of the culture of being selfless and the assists. Because if you keep moving the ball with this team, there's so much talent, someone is open. And when you have this much talent on the team,

The culture has to be of sacrifice. It's the only way this works. And so that's really clear. And if you watch highlights of the Liberty scoring in these games, you'll also notice they're all setting screens, the screen setting. That doesn't always show up on a stat sheet. It doesn't. But there's everyone is willing to do something extra to help their teammate get a better shot. That's a culture.

And lastly, I'll just point out defense because the Liberty are anchored defensively inside by John Quayle Jones, Brianna Stewart, the way they crash the glass, the way they change in block shots, the way they defend in the paint. But they're also a really disruptive defense this year. They're really active. I mean, they lead the league in blocks. They're a smidgen off of being in the lead for steals. They're going to turn you over and run off of it. Why is that important? The Liberty often are not going up against set defenses.

They're on the run off of these steals, off of these blocks, off of these defensive rebounds, and they're pushing the pace. So that's a big deal. Another crazy thing is this was their fourth game in six days. So it wasn't even like they're fresh off of a few day break or coming in hot. Like, well, I guess they were coming in hot, but they're riding off this momentum and also super tired because I could not imagine how that would tire you out. But after that,

After them, sitting in second right now is the Minnesota Lynx. And at the time of recording, they're currently also undefeated at 7-0. But how do they stack up against the Liberty? Because they're both amazing teams right now. You know, Logan, I knew you were going to ask this question. And so I came prepared. I wanted to come through and make a comparison of the Liberty and the Lynx. And I wanted it to be very scientific. I wanted this to be methodology that anyone could follow. So I had to tap it back.

- Fifth grade science or math, I don't even know, was this English? I'm bringing up the old fashioned Venn diagram. Have you heard of this, Logan? Do you know what a Venn diagram is? - I do, I have not seen this since grade school. - Okay, I wasn't sure if they were still teaching that to your age group, to your generation, or if this was like an outdated theory, but back in my day,

Back in my day, we had Venn diagrams when we had to compare. So that's what I'm doing here with the Liberty. I'm going to start with where they are similar, right in that middle right there. These are both two unselfish teams. They're number one and two in assists.

They moved that thing. This is also very veteran teams. These are players who have been in a league, who have played with each other before, who have made long runs, and have seen it all, both sides. They both got legendary coaches, all right? So shout out to Sandy Brandello, Cheryl Reeve, much respect. Championship coaches, international coaches, all the things. Got some spicy PGs. Between Courtney Williams and Natasha Cloud, like, I don't know. Who has more to say? Yeah.

in that matchup. Those two are just quite a delight. And interestingly enough, mogul talk, each team boasts an unrivaled founder in the piece of Collier and Brianna Stewart. So, okay, those are the similarities that I could do with this team. But now I'll go to what makes them different in this 7-0 start.

The Liberty have two to three MVP candidates right now. I mean, it could be Jonquil. It could be Stewie. You could argue Sabrina. You could make an argument for Natasha Cloud, but...

On the other side, for the Lynx, it's the fee show, right? This is all around her. For the Liberty, there are multiple new faces, people in new roles. There is a little sense of meshing that needs to happen, although it doesn't look like they've had trouble with it so far. On the Lynx side, there's a lot more continuity that they doubled down on. On the Liberty side and X Factor, you mentioned it. It was Ellie's birthday. It's just...

Ellie makes home games at Barclays. It's a vibe in there. Everybody's having fun. I don't know if you saw Natasha Cloud grabbed Ellie the elephant and swept her off her feet and did a circle with her and like all in the middle of the court. And I'm like, boy, this team's just having a blast. So they have Ellie. The Lynx have the electric slide traditionally. And look, who doesn't love a little line dance, a little community dancing? They got some culture and tradition themselves. So, okay, cool.

For the Liberty, they've already won without a star player. They've won without Jonquil Jones in that second game against the Valkyries. The Lynx just won without Fee in a tough game. I think it was against the Mercury, yes. So they won without Fee, which is impressive. The Liberty are more disruptive on defense. They're leading the league in blocks. They're right up there in steals. The Liberty also have more blowout wins. And I took a look at each team's schedule to start in this 7-0 run.

I think actually I couldn't really say who had a tougher schedule. Both have seen, you know, some of the quote unquote weaker teams this season and had a couple of tougher challenges. I would say it's been pretty even, but the Liberty have just blasted their way through most of their schedule. And the Liberty are on track. If we were to do it right now, I would say they got four all stars on the team.

Stewie, Jonquell, Sabrina, Natasha Cloud, four all-stars on the team right now. Lynx continuing to do this thing by committee alongside Fee. And then for the Liberty, obviously they have more three-point shooting, not once, but twice.

They hit a WNBA record all time for 19 threes in a game. They popping that thing up there, like I said, they're moving it, they're playing up tempo. A lot of these shots are open, you know? And then for the Lynx on the other side, what they've got going, they have a very clear villain origin story, right?

Coming out of the WNBA finals, they don't like the Liberty. It was controversial. The refs got it wrong. They got a chip on their shoulder. It's very clear. And they got something to hang on to together, some pain bonds. And finally, I'll say here's an area where they have an advantage on the Liberty. They've got original content, original programming coming out of their team. I don't know if you're familiar with stud buds. Yeah.

which is Natesha Heideman and Courtney Williams doing like, I don't know, daily streaming or some kind of streaming on Twitch. They got a show and they're bringing, they're having guest appearances. It's been a hit and

And it's hilarious. And it's a team bonding thing. And we get to see the personality of this team, which likes each other and is having a lot of fun. I would say on the programming and content side, Lynx have the advantage. So I got some on court, some off court. But this is how I'm going to compare the early start for the season between the Liberty and the Lynx. What do you think, Logan? I agree.

I absolutely love that. I would add a margin of error type of bracket because I feel like New York Liberty has- That's very scientific of you, by the way. Very scientific.

a larger margin of error compared to the links because I mean you would have every single starter having just an off game at the exact same time and maybe they'll fall off there but one or two people having an off game isn't bad because the Liberty are so deep whereas I mean we did see the links win without fee but she is absolutely all over their stat sheet but what pains me is that they don't play until July 30th so we will have to wait until then to watch the matchups between them but with all the

With all the buzz going around with these top two teams, there's another one slowly climbing up the rankings and they're currently in third place. The team is the Atlanta Dream.

It all seems to be coming together for them. Alicia Gray was just named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. She's having a great start. Brian Howard averaging 17.6, 5.6, and 5 assists. Bree Jones and BG combining for 26.1 points per game, 15.7 rebounds per game. So what do you see clicking for them in Atlanta, and do they get enough respect? You know what, Logan? I don't want to be the girl that says, oh, toot my own horn. I don't want to do that, okay?

But I called it. I called this, I called it, I said it. Listen, producers, can we do just like a replay or look back to the season preview for the Atlanta Dream? 'Cause I called this. - Bring the receipts.

I think there's more to go for Alicia Gray and Ryan Howard. I mean, I know Alicia was already like she dominated All-Star weekend. She won the skills. She won the three. She was an All-Star. She was one of the best players at Unrivaled. I think she's got more to do. I'm excited for it. Ryan Howard personally told me while I was reporting at Unrivaled, she said, this is a breakout season. We already know Ryan is a...

a bucket. But I think the challenge for her is, are you going to challenge yourself to be as great on defense as you are on offense? Because she is capable when she's locked in on defense. Listen, listen, I called this and it's not like I'm such a genius. It's more like

I saw it at Unrivaled. I was in Miami. I saw a lot of what we're seeing from the dream. I saw the seeds being planted in Unrivaled. First of all, congrats to Alicia Gray, Eastern Conference Player of the Week. You know, she's averaging a career high in points and assists, 21 points per game. So, Logan, that's six points more than last season.

which is a really significant jump. You know, people jump like two points, things like six points. And especially when you're already averaging 15 plus points, like it's, it's much easier in many ways to jump from three points to nine points, but 15 to 21, you know, and then to do that while shooting career highs on field goal percentage and three percentage, she's almost shooting 40. Sorry. She's almost shooting 50% from the field.

And it's not like she's shooting efficiently and not putting it up. She's putting up the most attempts from the field, from three. She's putting it up there. She's taking the most attempts of her career, shooting at the most efficient rate, averaging the most points, and she's also creating for her teammates. She's averaging two more assists per game than last season.

So you're talking about this is a significant jump that Alicia Gray is making. And the same thing for Ryan Howard, who, you know, we already knew she was a bucket. She also is now averaging two more assists per game than last season. So the playmaking is there. But what stands out to me, and this was the challenge that, you know, I heard her talking about with Teresa Weatherspoon at Unrivaled, was on the defensive end because she's been capable of

And when she really locks in on that end, she's like could be one of the most dynamic two way players in the league. And she's doing that lately. She's been defending the best player, the biggest challenge on the other team. So, you know, when I look at this, this Atlanta dream team and what they're doing, they have four wins in a row. Jordan Canada hasn't even played and she's coming back.

Jordan is a defensive presence. She's a very great leader. She can hit tough shots and she's got a nice demeanor about her for the team. You know, everybody likes her. She likes them. She's great. Brittany Griner has room to improve. She has not hit her stride at the most elite level this season. And that's a beautiful thing that there's more that she can do.

Bree Jones has started off strong. And as I watch this Atlanta Dream team, I'm seeing role players emerging. Naz Hillman, who also had a nice showing at Unrivaled. And I've been known Nia Coffey. These are two players that are making the most of their minutes. So for me, when I look at the Atlanta Dream, I see a team that has not even begun to hit its final form. And they're already sitting at third in the standings. And there's a lot of room for them to blossom and continue to improve.

There's also a lot to say just with these top three teams in general. I love their team chemistry and you could see it on the court, off the court, even on social media, who's hanging out with who. I mean, I feel like team chemistry or chemistry between players is huge this year, but it really shows out for those top three teams. And I want to,

kind of touch quickly on a team that's not looking so hot, which is the Fever, ironically. And even though Sid Coulson is set to return, Kaitlyn Clark is out with a quad injury and Sophie Cunningham is still out with her ankle injury, which led to them signing Aerie McDonald on an emergency hardship exception. Now, in my opinion, this is the best possible point guard pickup. But Roz, how does Aerie help the Fever?

Yeah, Aerie McDonald brings them speed, a defensive presence, and another ball handler. That's what the Fever need right now. Boy, when it rains, it pours. It's like all of their ball handlers and guards got hurt at the same time. And Caitlin and Sophie and Sid all banged up. And so the Fever have now lost three in a row. So Aerie can bring that presence there. But

It doesn't mean that you can just throw any old guard and say, "Okay, we're gonna do a pick and roll. We've been running a pick and roll. Go and do a pick and roll." No, what makes Caitlyn special

is that the attention that she receives in the pick and roll is what sets everything else up. Because defenses are in a state of confusion, chaos, and urgency to communicate and get the read right on Kaitlyn. So what it ends up leaving is space, is opportunities for reads, for her teammates to either pick and roll, pick and pop, pick and...

and slip and flare. Like it's because of like the space that's created and the advantage that's created. And you'll see too, like when you look at Kelsey Mitchell in the last two games without Kaitlin, she's only shooting 25% from the field. I mean, it's just putting a lot of extra on everyone else where before they could be a little bit more free and flourish within the flow of the offense. And now everybody's got, you know, to take on more responsibility to help each other. But that's not why the Fever are losing.

The Fever are losing right now. It's because of their defense. They lost to the Sun. That was the Sun's only loss on the season. They just lost by 50 to the New York Liberty. And the Fever let them shoot 51% from the field. They gave up 10 threes. In their other loss against the Mystics, they were out-rebounded 41-33.

So, if you're not going to rebound, and if you're not going to get defensive stops, it often means you're going up against a set defense. You don't have the opportunity to play up tempo. And so in these last two games, you'll also notice, according to the stat sheet in the box score, the Fever only have four fast break points over the last two games.

And that's all versus the sun, four versus the sun, zero versus the Mystics. So you're not getting easy opportunities, you know, and the game's slowing down and they're scoring less points. I don't want to just harp here because it's not a reason to panic. This is beautiful. It's happening in May. You want to be a team that like coming out of the all-star break, you're rising up and they're going to get Caitlyn back. This is all good. And there are some bright spots because Aaliyah Boston,

has looked really good when she's not in foul trouble as far as facilitating and passing. And Dewana Bonner has looked engaged and like has seemed to figure out where she can find some points and a shot really well. You mentioned the tempo and that's something that I think Aerie will be able to contribute to because she's fast. And I feel like she could really push the tempo for this team, but y'all, we have to take a break and coming right up. I make my DraftKings pick of the week. We'll be right back.

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Welcome back to Good Follow. Today's episode is presented by DraftKings. DraftKings, the crown is yours. It is now time for the DraftKings Pick of the Week presented by DraftKings. The NWSL is back after an international break with top-ranked Casey Currant heading to Gotham FC for their first matchup of the year. Casey Currant is on a roll with an 8-2 record and leading the league with 22 goals scored. Their success lies in their depth, dangerous midfield, and clinical attack, no longer relying on their star to get all the goals,

but rather all seven of their scorers this season. With that said, their star Tamuachewenga is still the one to watch as she's been on a three-game goal streak and is climbing back into the Golden Boot race.

On the other hand, Gotham FC has had a dip in form, currently sitting in ninth place and aren't looking as good as they have in recent years. Esther has been carrying this team on her back, scoring seven of their 12 goals and is one to keep an eye on as she's tied for first in the Golden Boot Race. We've seen that Gotham is capable of handing out big L's, but Kansas City is coming in with so much momentum that I'm picking them to get the win. Make sure to follow along and tweet us your predictions at GoodFollowShow. This segment is presented by DraftKings. DraftKings, the crown is yours.

The crown is yours, Logan. It's ours. Oh, we'll share the crown. Logan, do you have some quick hits and headlines for us, my queen? Yes, we do. The first is that the French Open finals are Saturday. It is definitely going to be a good one because the tennis is amazing. And coming from someone who was there, you should definitely watch it. But subtle flex, subtle flex. Sorry. One thing that we saw

saw it this weekend with the us women's national team as lola bonta became the oldest player to make a national team debut it was a huge thing she is severely underrated i'm shocked that she wasn't on this roster before but congrats to low this is huge

I am always in favor of older people making history. Love it. And actually going to the complete opposite end, all three Thompson sisters were called up to a Team USA national camp. You have Alyssa and Giselle who are on the US Women's National Team and their younger sister Zoe made the U14 Talent ID Camp. So this is just a young soccer forward insane family.

Very cool. We love it family affair. Yes. And the last one is the athlete shining in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit runway. They looked absolutely amazing.

Absolutely delivered and understood the assignment. And Logan, this was a quick one. It was a pleasure to hang out with you for another Good Follow. Thank you to all of you for watching and rocking out with us. Please make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, to all of our social media, and you can find Good Follow wherever it is that you get your podcasts and also on DraftKings Network. Good Follow is presented by DraftKings, and we will see you next time. Thanks for pulling up. Bye, guys.

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