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School is back and Dick's Sporting Goods has what you need to win your year. We've got everything from cleats to sambas, dunks, and more. Plus the hottest looks from Nike, Jordan, and Adidas. Find your first day fits in store or online at dicks.com. It's not your time yet. We've been waiting in line and we need to go through you to get to the ultimate prize. You're standing in the way. This is Queens of the Court.
Hey everybody, it is your favorite duo once again. Welcome to another episode of Queens of the Court, an Odyssey original podcast produced in partnership with the WNBA. I'm your girl, Cheryl Swoops. And I'm Jordan Robinson. And court. And court. Is in session. Is in session. Booyah! Order in the court! In our lives, because it is the week of WNBA All-Stars, so we're trying...
Trying to sort a lot of things out to see y'all in Phoenix. But we're going to be there. And we're here now. It's a lot. It's a lot. I'm excited. You know, like we've gotten several listener emails, right? And every time I read them, they always put a big smile on my face. Mm-hmm.
And I understand why they feel the way they feel about our podcast, because I always look forward to doing it on Monday, seeing you, because you put a smile on my face. And it's a great time for us to not just talk about hoops, but kind of talk a little bit about life. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And so speaking of life. Okay. Okay.
Jordan, you've been in these streets lately. You've been in the streets. Listen, I've been stalking you on social media. What do you mean in these streets? Oh, you're talking about my event? Yeah, look, I had to screenshot it. I had to screenshot it. She took a screenshot of my Instagram post, you guys. I did. Because I have to tell the people. Listen, Jordan...
Like Jordan's big time, y'all. I ain't getting no invite to this event. No. But you got it. No, you have to tell us about it because I just want to read the caption. Okay. Okay. You said when you get a DM from at Karen Civil, you run to RSVP. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Because if y'all can remember last year for the Swoop Soiree brunch, she didn't run to RSVP for my event. Oh, my.
I'm just saying. I'm so in my vids. I'm doing this. No, we healed. We healed and moved on. This year, I am there. I thought so too until I read that caption. I was like, oh.
Okay. God. Last year, I did RSVP to your brunch, but then I had to interview Asia Wilson during the exact same time for Women's Sports Network. I remember that. You know what? And I did say I was going to let you make it. You did because it was Asia. Because it's Asia Wilson. Because it was Asia. So we healed it. My bad. But it just brought back some memories.
I'm never going to, I'm never going to live that down. You will, but I want to know about this event one day. No, that event was so great. You know, Karen civil is huge in the industry, especially, you know, with sports as well. And with entertainment, um, she was having this dinner after the ESPYs in LA, um, sent me a DM like on Wednesday for a Friday event. And I was like, yeah, this is, this,
This seems amazing. Let's dust off some heels and maybe I got a dress. And did you have a dress? Is that cute? Come on, shoulders. I know, right? Okay, I do need to learn how to pose, though. I was practicing a little in the mirror because I don't go to these events often for step and repeat or something like that. I got to practice. I did the whole little hands at the waist thing.
Yeah, I wanted to make sure my posture was good. But yeah, I need to pose. Do you have any tips on posing? Listen, you were in the room that you were supposed to be in. How about that? That was really special. Yeah, that's pretty dope. It was a short list. It was a small dinner. So it was really nice. And it was just nice. It was honoring women in sports in L.A. It was with Quavo's new...
alcohol that was a sponsor of it but it was it was nice to just be recognized it was a bunch of different black women in that room who were talent managers and pr um just doing a bunch of different stuff so it was nice to be recognized and as you should be thanks for as you should be you're liking my my getty image that was i did big deal congrats
Thank you. You look lovely. Thank you. Thank you, friend. Okay. You're welcome. Well, now that I'm sweating from trying to relive the horrors of missing Cheryl's brunch.
Let's get into this week's episode. I know we got to hop in it because we got a lot, but one more thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Remember how we talked about Your Honor? Yes. Do you remember? Yes. Yeah, so good. Can we talk about another movie? Oh, a movie. Because I've got a show for you too. Yes.
I've kind of read mixed reviews, but tell me what yours is. So mine is Presumed Innocent on Apple TV with Jake Gyllenhaal. I posted about it on my Instagram story with a little bit of a poll, like who's watching it, because I just needed someone to talk about it with. So I'm putting you on. Presumed Innocent. Okay, okay. Jake Gyllenhaal, he was a prosecutor. Now he's on trial for murder. Ooh.
Still courtroom drama, everything that we love here on Queens of the Court. Presumed innocent. Writing it down right now. I am, because you know me, I got to check it out. No, it's good. I got to check it out. It's good. But it's weekly now, so you can binge up until this point, but new episode drops Wednesdays, I think. Okay. Okay, got it. What's your movie?
And I don't know if you've heard about it, read about it, but it's all over social media. Okay. It's a movie, not a series, but Tyler Perry's Divorce in the Black. Ooh, okay. Is this with Megan Good? Yeah. Oh, is it good? Yeah. So I watched it over the weekend. Yeah.
Tyler Perry. I liked it. I liked it. Okay. All right. But listen, I'm a Tyler Perry fan, but some of his movies I can't do. This one was, I wanted a little something different, but it was good. Like it kept my attention from the beginning to the end.
The only thing I wish was that I had, like, they would have given a little bit more backstory. I don't want to tell you about it because you do need to watch it. All right, I'll watch it. But I needed a little bit more backstory. But it's worth the watch. So I would give it, I would give it...
Three and a half stars out of five. Three and a half. All right. All right. I want to give it four, but I can't. But you can't. Three and a half is honest. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. But check it out. All right. So you guys, listeners, you guys got some work to do. Presumed Innocent and Divorce in the Black. Yeah. Okay. So good. Megan Good was great in it, though. I will say that. She was a great act. She acted her you-know-what off in it. I really like Megan Good. Me too. Okay. Okay.
Got it. Got it. My list. Okay. Now we got the goods out the way. Now we're going to get into the good goods of all-star Olympics is approaching. But one thing I want to talk about is the injuries with the Olympians.
I know we talked about Cameron Brink. That kind of really set it off where she tore her ACL. She's going to miss her debut Olympics with the 3x3 team. But then it just felt like there were a lot of Olympians going down. Like a domino effect. And I was so nervous. I was like, okay, maybe everyone...
who's an Olympian just don't play and that's kind of what's been happening. I just want to run through a list. So Nafisa Collier has been out for five games. She aggravated plantar fasciitis in her left foot. BG left a game early against the fever on Friday. She left with a hip injury. Diana Taurasi was out with a fever with a lower leg injury. Both of them came back
against Connecticut on Sunday. But Breanna Stewart sat out versus Sky on Saturday. Ryan Howard hasn't played since June 19th because of her ankle. So everyone kind of has like one game this week. Do you think any of the Olympians should play this week or what's going on? Do I think they should or do I think they will? Oh, do you think they will? No, no.
No, I don't. Do I think they should? No, I don't. It's a double no for me. Why? But here's the interesting thing, though, Jordan. Not only should they not play this week, what happens at All-Star? That begs the even bigger question. Do you not play at All-Star because you're holding out for the Olympics? I didn't even think of that. I didn't even think of that.
And I mean, we mentioned the ones who were out, have been out, got hurt, came back, whatever. But I even think about like Chelsea Gray, right? Who's just getting her feet under her. I don't think Chelsea Gray should play an All-Star game. Interesting. She probably will, but I don't.
And I'm saying this for selfish reasons. We need our team as healthy as possible. So when I look at the injuries, I'll tell you, the Nafisa Collier injury really concerns me.
Because plantar fasciitis is not, I know it says aggravated, but that's not something that you just get over overnight. Right. That's a big deal. And I know Coach Reeve was like, she'll be ready for the Olympics, which I'm hoping she will be. But you know, what concerns me is her having not played the last five games and
She has to be very limited with what she can do conditioning wise, right? Yeah. Because of the plantar fasciitis. So how good or bad will her conditioning become Olympic time?
I don't know. I don't know. And of course we don't know what, if they're working out, you know, outside of the games and just trying to play it safe with, with gameplay. But I think about that with Ryan Howard. I'm like, yeah, is, is she just not doing anything right now? That's kind of hard to believe because I, I,
I so far we have heard that she is still on the team. So she would have to still be doing something. And Nafisa Collier kind of in that same boat. But now I'm kind of sad. I didn't think about the possibility of them not playing an all star because but then OK, here's a devil's advocate point of view. OK, I'm processing this in real time.
There are such limited opportunities for Team USA to get together and really sort things out before the Olympics. When I look at the men's Olympic basketball team, they played against Canada. They're in Dubai now. They have seven games where they're going to get to play before heading into the Olympics.
The W or the players that are coming out of the W, it's like your regular season games are keeping you in shape. And then we're going to throw you all together and see what happens. So missing a game like the all-star game, which is an exhibition game at the end of the day, it's a great point could kind of hinder their cohesion as they head into the Olympics. So yeah,
That's the devil's advocate of why you should have them play in the offseason. And I like that. I do. I totally agree with that. And that's what sucks right now about the timing of our season, like the W season, right? NBA, this isn't their season. So, of course, they can go fly wherever, play all these exhibition games in preparation for the Olympics. And we can't do that. So, to your point...
Yeah, if the players are healthy and able to play, I would say absolutely play because they're not going to get any better competition than playing against the W All-Stars. Right. The other side of that is you just keep your fingers crossed that no freak accident, no injury or anything like that happens, but...
I was surprised to see Diana play yesterday. Was that yesterday? Yes. Against Connecticut. I was surprised to see her play Sunday against Connecticut. Because I honestly was like, yeah, Diana, DT's done until after the Olympics. Me too. Me too. Not necessarily an injury. Not necessarily an injury, but just like resting and just getting your body right, which I think was Brianna Stewart as well, sitting out on Saturday. It was a jam-packed schedule last week. So I...
I also feel that way. But let me ask you this, because, you know, this is only the second time, like we mentioned, that it's been Olympians versus All-Stars. But when you were playing and it was the Olympics during the WNBA season, how did you kind of manage that with how hard do I go in the regular season? Was there an extensive break or how did that go? Oh, no, there was no managing. Yeah.
It was like business as usual. No, I seriously, I don't think any of us really thought about that. It was like, no, we're playing every regular season game. We can all start game. No. And you know,
I'm not saying that these players necessarily are like, I need to save myself, save my body for the Olympics. But when you... It's kind of hard not to when you look at the injuries, though, right? You had Kim, Ryan, Nafisa. Well, let's go all the way back to Chelsea, who had not played at all, right? And so there's got to be something somewhere where they're like...
All right. I'm going to play, but I got to take it a little easy because Jordan freak, freak accidents happen. Yeah. It's not that, you know, they're trying to, or anyone's trying to hurt you, but it happens. So I just, I hope we can get everybody back healthy and those who are able to play will play an all-star game. But as far as this week, I don't even know the standings like just off the top of my head, but I,
I would be like, chill. Everybody chill. Let's just play in the All-Star game and get ready for Paris. Everybody chill. Everybody relax. I feel those same vibes. Okay, well, we'll wait and see. Really interesting, though, you're saying, you guys didn't think twice about it. It's like, we're just going to keep it rolling because we want to play all the games.
Yeah. And I mean, you know, which, okay, hold up, hold up, hold up, hold up. This is coming flooding back to my mind. You were talking about my weekend. Speaking of you and the Olympics, you got to wait a minute. President Barack Obama. Did you like just die?
- Just side go, you sidetracked. - I had like a vision, like I was raving. I was like, wait a second, we're talking about the Olympics and your whole Olympic team was honored in Vegas and President Barack Obama was there and you got to hug him and you sent me the video because now I am one away from President Barack Obama. That's my first thought. I was like, hopefully now I'm closer to President Obama.
But what was that like? Real quick. We're talking about the Olympics, so it's not... I know, I know. So this fits, right? Yeah. Okay, so first of all, there were over like 300 Olympians at USA Basketball invited and brought to Vegas for the 50th anniversary celebration of USA Basketball. And so I happened to be in those numbers. But I have to tell you, it was such a great...
and reminiscing with the, not just the 96 Olympic team, but, you know, everybody else. But in particular, me, Dawn, Lisa, Jen, Teresa Edwards, Ruthie Bolt, like we all, we were just cutting up. Did you see me dancing? I did see you dancing. Yeah, I got to talk to Lisa about that. What happens in Vegas, right? But we had a really good time. And
Everybody in the building, with the exception of those who planned it, I guess, we were all shocked.
when Grant Hill introduced Barack Obama. And when he came out, like, he's got to be the coolest dude ever. Not just president, but the coolest dude ever. So great. Like, he went down the line, dapping everybody up, dapping, dapping, dapping. Then he got over to the coaches and it was like a handshake. I know. It was like the key and pill sketch. I don't know if you've seen that, but that was perfect. Yeah, it was hilarious. And then...
And then we went to the game. We watched the game. And after the game, I actually met him in the tunnel and I was able to take a picture with him. And I just, I always thought Barack Obama was like the coolest. I got to tell you a real funny thing. And so when he got introduced and he came out at the event, everybody in the room started yelling, four more years, four more years. Yeah.
Oh my goodness. It was funny, but it was such a great time and great to connect with everybody. And, you know, just great memories, great fond memories. Let that slide. No way. That was so fun to live through those social media moments with Ruthie Bolton pulling out gold medals out of her purse. Like this is iconic. I can't wait to talk more. Only Ruthie would do that. Yeah.
So love that. Love that for you. Love this for me now that I'm one away from Barack Obama. So incredible, incredible weekend in Vegas. It was. Can't wait for the Olympics and eager to see just to wrap up that whole segment, just eager to see.
What happens this week and who plays and how the injury reports come through. We'll be keeping our eyes on that and talk to you guys more about that as the Olympics. Yeah. And as we're wrapping up, let me say this. You know, we're talking about who will who will play in the All-Star game. Right. And I had to go back to, I guess, four years ago now, three, four years ago when I.
W All-Stars beat the Olympic team in the All-Star game. So when I go back and think about that, I'm like, oh yeah, they're going to play. I forgot. Cause it's revenge. It's revenge. There's layers. There's so many layers to it. There's a lot of layers to it. It's like, oh no, no, no, no, no. Yeah. We owe y'all one. We got you. We got you. Yeah.
So just swinging around the league a little bit, some other things that happened. You know, Indiana Fever, take down the three-seeded Lynx, but it was without Nafisa Collier. So that's definitely the caveat on that. But Fever are playing some really good basketball right now. On the offensive end, Aaliyah Boston is playing well. I mean...
Kaitlyn Clark had the first triple-double for a rookie. Just a lot of things on Indiana. They're figuring it out, their rotations. So I guess at this point, I'm not surprised. But if you would have told me in May, I would have been shocked that they would have beat the Lynx, especially from the start the Lynx had. But right now, they're making some noise. So I think this is spot on. What do you think? You know, I think...
If you go back to our first episode and we talked about the one word to describe each team. Yeah. I don't remember my word, but I think it was like fun, maybe. Okay. Young and fun. I don't remember. But they are a fun team to watch. They're young. I agree with you. Back in May, I would have been like...
And if playoffs started today, they would be in the playoffs, right? Yes. Here's what I think. Everybody's talking about Kaitlyn Clark, rightfully so. First rookie to get a triple-double. We talk about AT and her triple-doubles and how special that is and how hard it is to do. But to do it as a rookie is crazy insane, right? Yeah.
We've talked about Aaliyah Boston, how well she's playing now, her and Kaitlyn playing together. They're doing exactly what I think everybody thought would eventually happen. This one player for me, I don't think we've talked about her enough. And that's Kelsey Mitchell. Yes. All-star Kelsey Mitchell. Kelsey Mitchell, she's got to be one of the quickest players in the game. Kelsey and Kennedy Carter. Those two, with and without the ball, I can't keep up with them. But...
I think once Indiana started playing through Aaliyah Boston is where I feel like things change for them, right? Because it's not about Aaliyah just scoring it every time, but she's going to command so much attention. A double team, she always makes the right play, the right pass. So those two, Kaitlyn Aaliyah, great. But I think people have forgotten about how good Kelsey Mitchell is. Mm-hmm.
Because when, you know, Caitlin's drawing two or Leah's drawing two, Kelsey is just patiently standing out there waiting like, y'all, I'm open. I can shoot it. Give me the rock. But not only is she knocking down threes, Jordan, she's putting the ball on the deck. She's getting to the hole. She's finishing at the rim. She's defending. Like, Kelsey Mitchell, to me, has really changed this Indiana Fever squad. Yeah. And I just don't...
I don't think we talk about her or mention her enough. So I, yes, this Indiana fever team, they have come on as of late. And I do think a lot of it is because of the rest they've been able to get for whatever reason, ESPN, the league, somebody thought it was a great idea to give them all these games early on and like rest and practice are important. Yeah. And, and,
i don't think we're talking about enough how kelsey mitchell like that was a part of their slow start like she was out she missed training camp with an injury so she was kind of slowly getting into it as well and as also this was a new team with rookies and new players all together so that was all a part of it and now that kelsey mitchell is healthy and
getting her speed back because when you have a lower leg injury or an ankle injury, her speed is back in there and she is not only shooting those threes, but she's blowing by people and she's getting so many fast break opportunities because she's
already down the floor before the defense even realizes it. So having that speed and having a player like Caitlin to be able to pass up ahead, she is just feasting. So I think we're getting a new Kelsey Mitchell this year because of those passes that she's getting where last year she had to create a lot on her own off the ball. So it's like a new, new player. So that has, that has been fun. The we're going to talk a little bit more about the fever season.
a little bit later in the show. But one thing I wanted to talk about is the Mystics because we got a listener email a little bit ago, and this was from Charles. And he wrote us and said, Loving the podcast. I know the Mystics record hasn't been stellar. That is so kind. But are they the only team not to have a player in the All-Star game?
And Charles, yes, they are the only team to not have an all-star this season. And,
And then this week, Ariel Atkins showed us that she should have been that player representation from Washington. And why she's a two-time All-Star and an Olympian, dropped 36 points, a career high, versus the Aces. Not just anybody. Versus the Aces. She had 16 in the first quarter. She also, earlier in the week, had 26 in the win versus the Fever. So Ariel Atkins...
is like, hello, y'all must have forgot. I know our record isn't great, but there's also some other teams that don't have a great record who have an all-star on this squad. No doubt. Yeah. What do you think about Atkins showing up, showing out? First of all, Ariel must have read Charles's email to us, right? Because she was like, oh, okay, I got you. Yes.
You know, it goes back to, okay, if she makes the All-Star team, who doesn't? Right? I know we always bring that up. We always go through that. But my thing is, when you look at just the last couple of games, what she's done, but also, she's been a two-time All-Star, right? An Olympian. And she's been playing well. How to look at it, I like to look at situations like this and say...
You can't necessarily always look at a team's record and say, well, their record's not very good, so no one deserves to be on the All-Star team. It's fan voting. It's media voting. It's player voting. You've got to show some respect to Ariel in what she's not just done these last two games, but what she's been able to do for this Mystics team. They have been...
injury prone. They've been beaten down and she is still showing up for this squad every single night. So not a flower segment, but we're making it one for you. Double A because you have been balling and I don't know. Keep going. Who knows? Listen, they still have a chance to make the playoffs. They really do. They do. And it has to be rewarded in some way.
some capacity, which I feel like could be an all-star nod of, yes, you are on not so great team, but you individually are balling out because that's what the all-star is. It's an individual award. And so you, you, you,
I think the MVP award gets mixed into that. Are you the best player on the best team? Are you just the best player in the league? But an all-star, you could be the best player on the worst team still giving everybody buckets. And I think Ariel Atkins is like, hey...
My average is high. I'm still giving all of these all-stars and Olympians buckets because I've played with all of them on this high level. So, yeah. Charles, you have a point. Yes, you do, Charles. I think that's wild that they're the only team that does not have any representation. That's crazy. 0-12 is tough, but...
Ariel Atkins, we see you. And I should count for something because the queen sees you. Yes, we do. We do. All right, we're going to take a break. When we come back, we're going to talk. Yeah, if the season ended today, what would that look like? We'll be back. And now a word from our sponsors at Betterment.
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Welcome back to Queens of the Court. And I am looking at the standings right now. One through eight. If the season ended today...
The New York Liberty would be number one. They would face off. I'm going to read these off and then we can go one by one. So the Liberty would be number one. They would face off against the number eight seed Chicago Sky. Spicy. Then number two seed Connecticut Sun would go up against the Indiana Fever. They're at number seven right now. I'm seeing
The Aces at number three would go up against the Phoenix Mercury. Spiciest? I don't even know. I don't know either. And then the number four Minnesota Lynx would go up against the Seattle Storm. Okay, looking at this, my first thing is we should end the season now, right? Right. I love these matchups.
I love them. I love them. Okay, let's start with New York and Chicago. The Liberty rolling right now. First team to 20 wins. They're at 20 and four. Chicago Sky sitting at nine and 14. They just had their own little mini series this past week where New York is
I don't even know if it was personal, if they just wanted to be petty, but they just, they heard the noise that Chicago can hang with them and they just said, uh-uh, no. And they, yeah, 2-0 over the sky this past week. What are your thoughts on that matchup? I know it's 8-1. I love the matchup. Me too. Like, it could potentially be an upset. Potentially, no.
it could. It could. Listen, Chicago...
There's something about this squad. I still, and I've been saying this, there's still a piece that they're missing. But come playoff time, your regular season, none of that matters. And the fact that Chicago has beaten New York before, it gives them that confidence going into the playoffs. The other side of it is New York also remembers that. And again, it's playoffs. So New York is like, listen, we ain't got time to play with y'all.
We don't. We don't. Jordan, I like that matchup. I
I like it a lot. I would say, I don't know necessarily if the Sky could upset the Liberty, but I would say the Liberty do not want to see the Sky in the playoffs. Like, that is a team where you... Because the thing about the playoffs is you can be streaky a little bit. And you have Kennedy Carter who can go off for 30 one night. And if she does that on a night that beats you in the playoffs, then that's just how...
The cookie crumbles. And that's not what you want. You don't kind of want that up to chance when you're going up to somebody in the playoffs. So, interesting. And the other thing I'll add to this particular matchup, if Jonquil Jones shows up, Sky doesn't have a chance. Don't have a chance. If Jonquil Jones does not show up, Sky has a great chance. Okay. Okay.
Okay, here's to hoping that that actually happens because I think it would be fun. Moving on to Connecticut at number two. Well, they're 18 and five. And then going up against the Indiana Fever at number seven. Love this matchup too. What? Love, love, love. Love, love, love. Tell me, tell me everything because I like it too. I love everything about it. Okay.
Just everything. You know all the back and forth stuff on social media too, right? With Dejanay and Caitlyn. Yes. I'm here for all of that. You know, Connecticut. This is the one, though. I know Indiana's playing better. But I just feel like Connecticut has their number. I feel like Connecticut has Indiana's number. Yes. But if Connecticut...
does not show up and jump on Indiana early because I feel like Indiana is just going to keep getting better as the season goes on. Their confidence is going to be high. That's a good matchup. That's the interesting part because it's like Connecticut started so well. Indiana started so not well. Not well. And then now it's kind of like,
a little, not evening out, but like Connecticut is coming back to reality and Indiana fever are getting more confident. So if they cross each other at the wrong part in the playoffs, then that's, you know what I mean? But when we look at the regular season, Connecticut has,
has won. They played each other already three times, which seems hard to believe. But Connecticut has won all of those matchups. The closest one was a four-point game. That was the end of May.
But you got the... We're going to get some great content out of that. Great memes. That's going to be a great content game. Well, here are two players for me for Connecticut. We know what A.T.'s going to do. We know what DeJuana Bonner's going to do. Bree Jones. If Rachel Bannon can shoot the basketball the way she did on Sunday... Let's talk about it. I don't know...
Indiana then has to kind of go and pick their poison because that's the one thing Connecticut needs on a consistent basis. And Rachel Benham shot the lights out on Sunday. And the other player, sorry, Dijonay. I keep talking about her. I think Dijonay has a tip on her shoulder, rightfully so. Should be an all-star player.
Anyway, we won't go back there. But Dejanay Carrington, I don't even remember how many rebounds she had, but had a double-double on Sunday. Dejanay is playing out of her mind on both ends of the floor. Offensively, she's getting it done. Defensively, she's like, okay, who you want me to guard, Steph? Oh, okay, I got you.
Like, I just think she's on a mission herself personally. Right. And then Connecticut, like they're always the bridesmaid. Yeah. I think they're ready to be the bride. So. We can't underestimate that willpower to just be like, okay, fever, fever.
It's not your time yet. We've been waiting in line and we need to go through you to get to the ultimate prize. You're standing in the way. You're standing in the way. I like that a lot.
Well, Jordan, and experience plays a big part when it comes to the playoffs. Yes. Which, even when I go back to Chicago and Liberty, the same thing, right? Liberty's been there before. Yeah. But there's just, there's something, the mentality for Chicago seems to be a little different for me. But, yeah, let's just go. Let's go to the playoffs. I, just when you said that, that experience factor, yeah.
I'm kind of shocked that even if the season ended today, the Fever would be in the playoffs. I don't think I knew that they would be in the playoffs. I don't think I knew that they would make that jump. I guess they were barely out of the playoffs last year. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. All right. So this makes sense. They're sitting at seven. But real quick for Rachel Bannum, because eight made three-pointers.
is a WNBA record for a non-starter and a franchise record regardless. Anybody. Eight made threes is incredible. She's a shooter. She was stroking that thing. She is a shooter. And they won. She had 21 points.
Maybe not heavy on the scouting report. Of course, you got to count for her because she's a shooter. But they won the game by 27 points because of her extra effort off the bench. So, yeah, you got to make sure to count for Rachel Bannum. Yeah, you do. Yeah, you do. All right. That's going to be spicy. That's going to be good. Well, listen, we don't even know if that's going to be the matchup. I know. Whatever.
our imagination. If the season ended today. Las Vegas Aces at three, Phoenix Mercury at six. Oh my goodness. I love this matchup too. Who can I pay for this to be the matchup? How can we make this happen? Because come on, I love it. Jordan, you know, there are some
some teams just have your number, right? But, and like for a matchup, it just happens to be what the matchup is. And I'm not saying that Phoenix has Vegas's number, but I like this matchup. I like this series, if you want to say. But I will say this. I don't know any team that wants to play Asia-Pacific.
Laquita Shaniqua Wilson in the playoffs no on a different planet right now and Chelsea Gray is only getting better with every single game right got the Olympics coming up she's gonna get some more games under her belt and you know what you have four am I correct four
Four Vegas aces on the Olympic team. Yes, you are. Four. So they're playing pieces. You have four starters. So they're still going to be playing with each other. Yeah, they're still going to be playing. They're not even really going to have a break. They're just going to be like, oh, this is another day of practice. Oh my, that is a good point. Yeah, nobody wants to play the aces, but...
If there is one team that wants to spoil a three-peat, who would love that storyline of upset the back-to-back champs,
would be a Kalia Copper Finals MVP, a Natasha Cloud WNBA champion, a Diana Taurasi and BG two-time WNBA champion. Like, this would be the team that would say, okay, it's our turn to ruin the party. So I think they're going to give it all they got. I don't think they can. No doubt. But I think it would be interesting. And also you got to play in Phoenix in the playoffs.
They haven't been there in a while. It's good. Good stuff. That's good stuff. That might be, would you say that's going to be the best crowd? Oh, I don't know. Once we get to that, Minnesota and Seattle would be good, but the best crowd at home advantage. Yeah. Yeah. Versus Phoenix would be. Yeah, it absolutely could be. And who knows, right? I'm not saying this because she hasn't said it, but yeah,
If this is Diana's last season, what does that look like for her to go out winning another championship? But even if they don't win a championship, to be a part of the team that stopped the Aces from competing. That's so a part of her story. It has to be. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, okay. Yeah, that could be good. That could be good. That could be good.
So the last matchup, four and five. Four right now is the Minnesota Lynx. They dropped a little bit because they've been losing without Nafisa, who was putting up MVP numbers before getting injured. So they're at four right now. And then the Seattle Storm is at five, who are on...
are on the rise. They are playing so well right now. They had a nine game homestand, which is like unheard of. They went seven and two in that. So they're, they're clicking. They're at 16 and eight after a slow start to the season. And the links are, are tied 16 and eight as well. So who do you have coming out of this one?
This one's tough for me. You know, when I look at this Seattle, Minnesota matchup, I immediately go to the bitch. Okay. Because for me, this matchup in a way would come down to bitch production. Like...
which bitch is going to be able to contribute and bring more in the playoffs. But to your point, I love where Seattle is right now. I love how they're playing. They're starting to like,
The chemistry's there. They're starting to gel. Jewel Lloyd is a problem. Nneka is playing out of her mind. So well. Ezzy's doing Ezzy things. Skylar is getting back to Skylar. Like this Seattle Storm team, not to take anything away from Minnesota, because I think Minnesota's playing well also.
But Seattle could be scary in the playoffs to me. Yeah. Because of all of the vets that you just named who are also on a mission with this team. Jordan Horston. Playing great. Man, I know it's just her second season, but she is she is playing really well for this team. And so that's why I'm like, what?
what type of bench production does Seattle have or will they have? Cause the side, when I look at, at Minnesota, if diamond Miller can come back after the looks, I know she's playing, but how, how healthy can she be? How healthy will she be? I like Natisha Heideman coming off the bench from Minnesota. Um,
I don't know. This matchup, this one to me is very interesting. I think so, too. I'm not like... I think it could go either way. Me, too. I'm not confident of like, oh, because Minnesota is ranked higher, they're going to move on. I don't think so. I think we've seen Jewel Lloyd turn into something else in the playoffs time and time again. So that can very much happen again.
Oh my gosh. I really like these matchups. I can't wait to like when the playoffs is about to start and we can look back and see if these hold. Yeah. Cause I think there are teams that we, that aren't in the playoffs right now that could sneak in the playoffs. They're not far off. Like Chicago is holding onto that eight spot. And that is going to be a different conversation of who feels that, um,
comes in and snatches it. There's some teams at the bottom that if they get healthy, they could slide back in there. So I know it might be far fetched, but Dallas is very interesting to me, especially if Satu comes back healthy. That's one of the teams I'm like, keep your eyes on Dallas. Keep your eyes on Dallas. All right.
Well, that was fun. That was fun. Look into the future. That was great. Okay. We're going to take another quick break. And when we come back, it's time to give out some flowers.
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That's BlueNile.com. Overnight, Duncan's Pumpkin Spice Coffee has sent folks into a cozy craze. I'm Lauren LaTulip reporting live from home in my hand-knit turtleneck that my nana made me. Mmm, cinnamony. The home with Duncan is where you want to be. Welcome back to Queens of the Court, and it is time to hand out a few bouquets.
That means it's time for Giving Flowers presented by AT&T, our favorite. And first up, we got to do Asia Wilson. Her first career 2020 game, 24 points and 20 rebounds in the win against Seattle. Again, this is a big-time team. They won 84-79 last Wednesday. Aces have won the last 11 games.
Yeah, 11 of their last 13. But what type of flowers you want to give Asia for that 2020 game? I want to give her a whole garden. So let her go pick what flower she wants. She gets whatever. You can get the whole garden because listen, girl, I want to say a lot because I just I just want her stats to do the talking. And here's here's what I feel every day Asia is saying.
Asia's hand or Shakita, Laniqua, whatever, one of them. I feel like she wakes up and says, oh, expletive, I dare you to give me a fourth place vote this year. Every time when she looks in the mirror. It's just disrespectful. It wasn't even me. And I get mad when I think about that. Like, what in the world? Who? How? What? What would...
What were you thinking? Don't make it personal. And to me, a fourth place vote is personal. I don't know. I don't know if it was somebody that asked her out on a date and she said no. Like, I don't know. But come on. Come on, man. And every day she, yes, I think it's on a sticky note. It's somewhere. And it is very personal. Um,
And she's also also some flowers for the cover of NBA 2K. How about that? As you should be. So all of this is just, hey, it's all happening the way it should be for Asia. Listen, I love Jason Tatum, so I'll take it. But she should be on there by herself. Just saying. But we'll take it. We'll take it. We'll take it. We'll take it. Seriously, Jordan, just when you think.
She can't play any better or she can't do anything better. She does. I just, yeah, man. Top tier. Like Asia, you already know how we feel about you on this show. I'm not even going to ask you to come on. Cause I see you all over the place. You got so much going on. You ain't got time for us little Queens of the court. We still don't give you your flowers. We still love it. It's so beautiful to watch. And you know,
What I love about her is that even though she is, to me, by far easily MVP, like she's not satisfied. And she continues to elevate her game and making everybody around her better and continues to give her teammates credit. And she, man. I know. I'm a fan, Asia. I'm a fan. A fan.
Yeah. We love you, Asia. Okay, next up, some flowers. Real quick, just for like a rookie shout out to Celeste Taylor because she got waved by Indiana to make room for a healthy dentist. She gets picked up on a seven-day contract for Phoenix.
Who is Phoenix's first game against her former team, the Fever. She played a total of 17 minutes in the 18 games that she was with the Fever. And her first game with the Mercury because Natasha Clouds, you know, sat out. Diana Taurasi was out. She played 24 minutes in that one game. She was asked to run point guard. She didn't know any of the sets. She ended with five assists and two steals.
Like, of course, you know, Natasha Cloud and Taurasi are back, but this league is so wild where things can change for you overnight and you have to be ready. You have to still work on your game and not be comfortable on the bench. You don't know when your number can be called. And it was so nice because I loved watching Celeste in college, especially on the defensive end. She got her number called and she went in and just played basketball because she didn't know
anything about that team. She just met them all the day before. So to come in and just play, I bet that was also just really nice for her to just be like, yeah, I do know how to play basketball. Like I am. You know what? I belong in this league. Yes. I belong in here. Because here's the thing.
Absolutely. You got to have more practice time. But the thing I loved is how hard she played. I don't care if you've been with a team for 30 seconds, you can always play defense. To me, that's what Celeste did so well in college. And that's where I feel like she will find her niche in this league is being a defensive stopper. Yes. And I thought she played hard. And you have to know she was nervous for two reasons, right? Yeah.
She had just gotten there. She's playing with Phoenix now. And he's like, go in, run the team. Then it's against her former team. So she wants to have a good showing. So Celeste Taylor, giving you your flower. Shout out to you. So happy for you. Keep working. Keep working. I just love that. All right. Here's the last little shout out. This was hilarious. So right before we started recording,
wonderful producer James mentioned and was like, oh yeah, we should put this in the show. There was an ESPN top 100 athlete since 2000. And our very own Cheryl Swoops was ranked number 81. And before he finished saying 81, like before he finished the number, Cheryl was like, it was too low. And
I wish you guys could have saw James' face because it just dropped. He thought he was doing something great. Oh my gosh. It is great. Cheryl, top 100 athletes since 2011.
But you're not satisfied. I think this is a flowers because I want to give you your flowers. But what do you think? I thank you and I thank James for wanting to give me flowers. This is more like a thorn in my side. It ain't no flower. It ain't no bouquet. No, no, no, no, no. Listen, for real. I want to know who the 80 people are above me. Yeah. Yeah.
That is the most Cheryl swoops answer that has, I honestly wouldn't expect anything, anything less, anything less. If you would have said, if you would have said, wow, 81, that is such an honor. I would have said someone, I'll call the police. Something go, go to Cheryl's house. It's a robot. Like I barely made the 81 out of a hundred. I barely made the list.
That does not sit very well with me. And I can't come out of retirement. You know how many there are so many athletes who weren't they were number five thousand and a hundred. But oh, well, that's their problem. They're not Cheryl Swoops. What number do you think without even seeing the list? What number would you be comfortable with?
like I don't know the list I don't know the criteria I don't know none of that but you know what what number would I be comfortable with I'm always gonna say number one but I know that's not gonna happen you know what I'll roll with 22 22 little jersey number shout out that would be so top 25 deuce deuce yeah I think I deserve top 25 I don't even know who's on the list but let's go you do too
And with that, this has been giving flowers presented by AT&T, maybe even a thorn or so, but Hey, roses have thorns. That's fine.
Okay, that was hilarious. Make sure to please continue to follow, rate, review the show. It's available on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also send us questions, feedback, stories to our listener emails. We can't wait to see you guys in Phoenix. Our email address is queensofthecourtatodyssey.com. And y'all know where to find us on social media because Jordan just had her shoulders out and everything.
But y'all know where to find us. I'm at airsweeps22. Jordan is at, I'll keep it short and sweet because you, are you dancing today? No, no, I'm not. I'm not dancing. I'm laughing actually. I know. That's why I asked. She, Jordan, are. Queens of the Court is an Odyssey original created in partnership with the WNBA.
The show is produced by James Jackson. The executive producers are Asha Saluja, Maddie Sprung-Kaiser, and Leah Reese Dennis. Social media assistance from Isabella Apple. Music from T-Storm Battle. And a very special thank you to Lena Moss Glazer and the one and only Alex Ozzie. And court. And court. Is adjourned. Is adjourned.