Chasing the Rookies

On this week's episode, Amanda and Bonnie share their reactions to the draft, free agency so far and the media's strange obsession with Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers.

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Transcript

Amanda 0:07

Welcome back to another episode of Chasing the W. I'm Amanda.

Bonnie 0:11

And I'm Bonnie.

Amanda 0:12

How's it going?

Bonnie 0:14

I'm good. How are you? I can't stop eating gummy worms. It's I feel like a child. But you know what? Therapy says that's good. Go back to your inner child. Do what your child would want to do.

Amanda 0:27

That makes sense to me. I never grew up, so. Yeah. Um apparently. Growing up is lame. Listen, apparently there's a study that says that 32 is the last age of adolescence, and so I'm still a kid. Damn. Yeah. I'm not. You only just became an adult though. Not too long ago.

Bonnie 0:48

But I'm 32 plus four.

Amanda 0:50

Yeah, but you only you've only been an adult for four years.

Bonnie 0:53

You're still learning. I'm a baby adult. Yeah. You're just a girl. Just a little girl.

Amanda 1:02

Okay, so you tell me, Bonnie, what's on the agenda today? It's the Bonnie show.

Bonnie 1:07

The agenda today. We're gonna talk about the draft and some reactions from what actually went down. I think last episode we talked about some mock drafts, and boy, were we wrong. And then we're gonna talk about free agency. The last day to sign is April 20th. We're three days away from that, and a lot has happened, and a lot has not happened. So we're gonna talk about both. And then we've got an overtime section, no spoilers, and a 24-second shot clock from Amanda. Also, no spoilers.

Amanda 1:41

No spoilers, man. No spoilers. We were okay. We use a lot of people. You're right. Because I knew I knew that they would take Aisy at number one.

Bonnie 1:54

It was kind of crazy that they were saying she wouldn't go number one.

Amanda 1:57

Yeah, my um one of my friends was just like, I'm happy that the media has stopped pretending that Aisy's not gonna go number one because of course day of the draft, everyone was like, Azy number one pick no shit, brother. No shit, brother. Starting to sound like we won't. It's crazy.

Bonnie 2:16

Yeah, well, there's it happened to be. So yeah, if you didn't watch the draft, AZ went number one. Hazy AZ was the first pick to Dallas. So we're happy for her. Um and Yukon now holds the record of having seven number one draft picks. That's a lot of that's a lot of number one draft picks. Right. It was AZ, Paige, Stewie. Fee. Fee. Wait, no, Fee Fee wasn't number one?

Amanda 2:45

Wait. That would be crazy.

Bonnie 2:46

I don't think Fee was number one. I'm just rattling. The rest I have are Maya Moore, Tina Charles, Diana Tarasi, and Sue Bird. Producer in the Relegated Land says she was not a number one pick. Oh shit.

Amanda 2:59

Just so you know, listeners, we've we've made our producers sit on the couch so we can stop picking up their audio. We've relegated them to the couch. Just kidding. Get the fuck out. Just kidding. We love them.

Bonnie 3:13

We do.

Amanda 3:14

She was sixth overall. Fee was? Oh, yeah. Well, that explains why she's never won an MVP. Just kidding. Damn.

Bonnie 3:23

Damn. Shots fired. Just kidding.

unknown 3:27

Okay.

Bonnie 3:27

Yeah, so AZ number one to Dallas. Olivia Miles number two. Right?

Amanda 3:33

I'm not surprised by that. Yeah, the Lynx took Olivia Miles and I mean, I was about to say Kathy. Her name's not Kathy. Her name is Cheryl. Cheryl said it in her presser earlier this week where Minnesota has never had a true point guard. And so they've gotten that in Olivia Miles. Yeah. And that's great. And she also said, like, no offense to Courtney Williams or whatever, which respectfully, Courtney Williams is more of a two guard than she is a woman.

Bonnie 4:00

Honestly, yeah. I think Courtney Williams should be a two-guard.

Amanda 4:03

Yeah.

Bonnie 4:04

She's got that mid-range catch-and-shoot game on lock.

Amanda 4:08

Yeah. And she did what she needed to do for the Lynx last year. Like that was what was asked of her. And now she gets to kind of go back to her bread and butter. I think Olivia Miles is going to be great. But also Fee's not even coming back until the middle of the season. So they're playing with a toothpick and what's her name? McBucket and Courtney Williams. And that's all.

Bonnie 4:27

Did you hear about Kayla McBride's channel? Oh my god, Andrew. It like exploded.

Amanda 4:32

Yeah. It's not funny. Just on a flight. I was like, damn. Okay, I will be the first to say that is actually really uncomfortable. I once got on a plane with an ear infection and I felt like my fucking eardrum was exploding. It was the most like aside from getting my wisdom teeth out and like forgetting to take the medicine. Because that was also really fucking painful.

Bonnie 4:52

Yeah. Who was who was babysitting you? They should have.

Amanda 4:55

It was my mom, bro. And like I was I was a senior, I remember, because this is such a tangent. But I was a senior in high school and I went to an all-girls high school and it was Catholic and it was Carol Knight, like three days later, and so we were all expected to sing, and I looked like a fucking chipmunk. And I could barely open my mouth, but like we forgot to take the dose.

Bonnie 5:14

Like it feels like a movie. Like, of course it's Carol Knight.

Amanda 5:17

Like, of course it's Carol Knight. I was wearing like a red graduation gown because you know it was like a choir or whatever, and my hair was my hair was short. Like almost I would say, like at the length it is now, except I didn't have a fade, and so there was more hair. And I remember I had it like tied up here, and I remember this because my hair is thin and my cheeks were so fat, and I was like trying to open my mouth and sing for fucking. That was pretty bad. I can probably p find a picture. Okay, yeah, we'll have to do that. Anyway, um, no, actually, like being having an ear injury on a plane at that high altitude, it's like fucked. It like is really, really, really painful.

Bonnie 5:54

Well, I wasn't she like stuck somewhere, like she couldn't get on another plane and she came back to the US for something and then she couldn't go back to Turkey. That's what it was.

Amanda 6:03

Okay, yeah, so she was unable to return to the team. But I'm just like, does that mean she's just like staying put in Minnesota or is she driving everywhere? Because that would be ass. That would be ass.

Bonnie 6:14

Maybe she's just staying put because training camp starts in two days, y'all. It does. Wait, hold on. Back to the draft. Yeah, back to the draft. Sorry, I'm gonna go to the show.

Amanda 6:23

So many DCLA players. Who was who was the third pick? Like, can we can we just round it out? The third pick was Awa Fam. Awa fam. Yeah, yeah. Awa fum tiam, apparently. Yeah. I was like, wow, that's a lot of ums. Yeah. You know what I mean? It's a lot of ah. Awa fum tiam. It's a laugh. It's just like I knew I was saying her name wrong.

Bonnie 6:42

I knew it. Of course, I knew too. Um, she goes number three to Seattle, and they've got some, they've got a forest in Seattle. It's fucking Ezzy Awa. Who am I forgetting? Dom, all three letter names. So, I mean, watch out for them, those trees. Yeah, and then and then all six UCLA seniors got drafted, which is iconic for that organization. Four, five, six, all UCLA players. Do you wanna do you remember?

Amanda 7:13

Yeah, it was Lauren Betts, you bet, Gabriela Jaquez, Charlice Ledger Walker, not in that order, just to be clear. Oh, okay. Or was it in that order? No, it wasn't. Okay, no, she was like a a later one. Then it was fuck, don't don't tell me because I know it. Kiki Rice. Yeah. And how many did I get? Four? That was four, yeah. Charlese Lauren Gabriela Kiki. Oh, um, I don't know this girl's name. I'm seeing her face right now, though.

Bonnie 7:48

I think I know who you're talking about.

Amanda 7:51

Yes. Uh, Dugalich. Angela. Oh, I didn't know who you were talking about. Yeah, Angela Dugalich. And then there's another one. That one I'm not gonna get.

Bonnie 8:00

It was an alien effort.

Amanda 8:02

But yeah, it was pretty cool to see Lauren. Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were gonna tell me, Bonnie.

Bonnie 8:06

I thought you were quizzing me to tell I thought you were quizzing me to tell me. I only have written down that Lauren, Gabriella, and Kiki went four, five, six. Okay. Three back to back.

Amanda 8:17

Yes, producers, producers. Oh yes, Diana Niepkins. Oh yeah. For some.

Bonnie 8:22

I also want to say mention, I feel like, not on the pod, but in a different conversation, we've talked about how there isn't much like ha Hispanic and Latina representation in the W, and I feel like this draft class kind of brought some of that.

Amanda 8:36

Yeah, Gabriela Jaquez, yeah. And there's a lot of Spaniards in this draft too, where I was just like, okay, we'll take it. A win is a win, I guess. They don't make them big in the Caribbean, so we're just we're just little girls. Tiny girls.

Bonnie 8:51

And after, you know, getting to know Gabriela Jaquez and her game, I realized that her brother played in the NBA game. Yeah, Jaime. Yeah. I didn't know that. He plays with Bam in Miami. Yeah, and that's the game. Remember, I was saying I watched one NBA game the other night. Oh. That was the game.

Amanda 9:07

Did you say, oh wait, I know that name? Yeah. I was like, wait, that's Gabriella's brother. No, literally, I've I knew this and then forgot about it. And then when they brought him up at draft night, I was like, oh yeah, I forgot. I forgot that was it. It was cute because he was on FaceTime. Yeah. He's in the middle of a season. He's busy. In the middle of busy, busy.

Bonnie 9:25

About to be playoffs. He was in the play-on tournament, and I think they lost. It was a crazy game. Bam got hurt.

Amanda 9:31

Yeah, LaMelo Ball grabbed his ankle. True.

Bonnie 9:34

It was an accident. Like Ronnie.

Amanda 9:35

I don't know. It was like how is it an accident to put your whole finger, all fingers around somebody's ankle?

Bonnie 9:41

If we watch it in slow-mo, I feel like he could not control his limbs at that at that point in time. Okay, fine. Anyway. I didn't watch. I hope Bam recovers quickly because he's gotta sit his ass down and watch his girl play. Yeah, well, he's got nowhere else to be. So true. Sounds like he's gotta get one of those donuts, you know, when you drive your butt. Mr. Wilson.

Amanda 10:01

He is Mr. Wilson. Because but you know, I really feel like Asia will probably end up being No, actually, that's a lie. I was about to say, because Asia is giving like extra straight, but like I think because she's Asia Wilson, she will never go by Asia at a bio. No. You know what I mean?

Bonnie 10:18

I mean, I feel like that's her brand, is her name.

Amanda 10:20

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly, exactly, exactly. Yeah. Who went seventh? I don't remember. And you know, I don't even know if I really care that much because what I really want to talk about is the in trade the trade. Well, not even the trade. First, I want to talk about how Raven Johnson was drafted to Indiana. Maybe she was seven. She was ten.

Bonnie 10:43

Oh.

Amanda 10:43

I remember because I didn't think that she would be top ten, respectfully.

Bonnie 10:47

I'm glad that she was. I love it. I'm happy she was too.

Amanda 10:49

I think she's great, but I am really worried about her going to Indiana because during the last tournament Caitlin played played in, I believe, she like waved Raven off on the three-point line. Oh, second to last. Because then they beat Yeah, oh yeah, yeah, yeah. It was hella disrespectful. It was hella disrespectful. And then she got a lot of online hate and uh racist comments from that interaction, even though she didn't do anything. And so now she's playing on the same team as Caitlin and that. I don't know. I don't know what it is. I it just it's made me feel good. And like I've been seeing the comments already online. The fever fans are crashing the fuck out, calling them thugs, like it's crazy.

Bonnie 11:29

I hate that like Caitlin acting like a fool and super cocky and just like unaware of she's just unaware of the cause and effect. You know what I mean? Like she doesn't understand her behavior affects other people and and like she also doesn't give a shit either.

Amanda 11:53

No, she doesn't. She doesn't give a shit.

Bonnie 11:54

And that's why she's not a friend of the pod.

Amanda 11:57

She's not a friend of the podcast. She'll never be a friend of the pod. It's just really annoying because it's just like you're just gonna let them keep talking about your teammates like this.

Bonnie 12:06

Right. Like something. I bet if she said, hey guys, hey Indiana fans, can you please stop? They'd stop. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_05 12:16

Of course they would, but she will never do that. And I don't like the excuse that she's young and not PR trained. Fuck all that.

Bonnie 12:21

No, fuck all that. She bet yeah. Look at Paige, her fucking peer, who's like a thousand times more mature than she is, and um what's her name, Caitlin, has the money to hire help. Like if she needs uh fucking media training, she can get it. You know she can. And she probably does have it, and they suck. She don't care.

Amanda 12:43

I mean, she's from Iowa. Yeah. It's like five people there, ain't it?

Bonnie 12:47

Like probably all white. Bunch of corn.

Amanda 12:51

Yeah, bunch of corn. Not like corn though.

Bonnie 12:54

Um, anyway, not to talk about her. Yeah. I'm happy for Raven. I'm happy she got drafted. I hope that you know Kelsey Mitchell takes her under her wing and is like, yo. And Aaliyah Boston, because she played with Aaliyah. Yeah. That's right. That's right. They played with each other at South Carolina, so they already have some chemistry.

SPEAKER_04 13:13

Yeah, they have pretty, pretty, pretty incredible pretty chemistry. Chemistry. Pretty pretty, pretty, pretty. Pretty, pretty good. Pretty, pretty good.

Bonnie 13:21

Okay. Um, yeah, so the other historic thing. Oh.

Amanda 13:27

Wait, no, sorry. I like just I remembered who went seven. It was Ayana Martin Garion, which is another Spanish player. So that's why we were like, wait a minute. Yeah, because then, yep. So it was three UCLA players in a row, so Lauren Gabriela Kiki, then Ayana Arando. And then at number eight, you have Flagget, which I guess I forgot that she was drafted that high. For some reason, I thought she was drafted after Raven. No. But I was obviously wrong.

Bonnie 13:54

I was kind of when I was watching, because we really only watched like the top ten, and then we changed it. So we missed when this happened, the trade in draft trade first ever for the W. Um. But yeah, she was drafted to uh Valkyries, yes, and then got traded to Seattle like a moment later.

Amanda 14:14

Yeah, so the I believe I believe Seattle drafted Marita Suarez and another Spanish player, and then they traded the Wrights, which probably first time for the W, but not the first time in like NBA.

Bonnie 14:32

No, because we're not talking about the NBA. Yeah, no, I know.

Amanda 14:36

No, I know, I know. I'm just thinking because of course I was also a victim of that. We traded a really good player on draft night for somebody who was fucking mediocre, the Sixers, but it's forever disappointing, perpetually disappointing, perpetually disappointing. Okay, yeah, and then after Flaget was Angela Duglich from UCLA, Raven, Cody McMahon from UCLA was drafted. Nell Angloma from France was uh honestly a lot of Spain and France, yeah, a lot of European players uh lately. I'm trying to see if there's that those were the lottery picks. The lottery picks like ended with Jana Niepkins, and then it was all second round picks, so that was cool. Um, one other notable draft pick was Rory Harmon from Texas. Love, I love Seattle. Yeah, Rory was drafted. Couldn't tell you which team, but she got drafted, and that's what's important. Yeah, who did she draft? Let's see. Probably Seattle. They don't got shit over in Seattle.

Bonnie 15:32

She was the 34th overall pick. Oh, Washington Mystics. Oh yeah, Washington had a lot of draft picks. Seattle still has no one.

Amanda 15:41

I was wondering I was wondering what Washington would do with their selections because they have Shakira at that point hadn't been signed yet. And then they drafted Lauren Betts, and they have another big down there, and I can't think Oh, they also had Big Mama. But she's gone. But she's gone, yeah. But it was like it was like the big central over there.

Bonnie 16:06

Kiki. Kiki Urif N.

Amanda 16:07

Yes, thank you. Oh my god. I can't it's always Kiki that I forget about. And I love Kiki. Yeah, I was just like, I why yeah, okay, anyway.

Bonnie 16:15

Yeah, I'm looking at their current roster right now, and it's that's a lot of bigs. Because like, how do you or unless a lot of people I don't know as well. Like, who the fuck is Alex Wilson?

Amanda 16:26

Yeah, I don't know, huh? I don't know, huh? What if what if they have Kiki playing the four instead of the five?

Bonnie 16:31

Oh, Alex Wilson. This is Melbourne girl. Okay, so this girl's from Australia. Not anyone remembering.

Amanda 16:37

Eliza allegedly loves Alex Wilson despite not having a reaction the first four times her name was mentioned. But the biggest with the girl that we um drafted Anna Anele.

Bonnie 16:51

Annalie Mailey. Annie Mailey. Welcome to New York. I feel like I just sounded like a flight attendant. You know, when they when you land. Welcome to New York. Oh my gosh.

Amanda 17:06

It's like after like a red eye. Meanwhile, I'm over here like Mr. You Bet.

Bonnie 17:10

I'm like, you bet! You bet! There's gotta be balance in the world. So yeah, lots of lots of great stuff happened during the draft. I'm s I'm happy, I mean I'm excited to see what these youngins can do.

Amanda 17:22

Yeah, it was super fun.

Bonnie 17:24

Alright, so moving on to free agency. Uh it's still going on. Every day is a winding road, as they say. Who says that? I think Cheryl Crow. Oh okay. Thanks. Every day is a winding road. Oh yeah. I know. Or something like that. Yeah, no, that's all. Anyway. You know, I don't have like a very like um what's the word? Like fully encompassing write-up for this, but I have some key some key points. Alright. First of all, I gotta talk about the libs. We finalized the contracts with our big three today. JJ coming back. You bet. Stewie coming back. You bet. Sab's coming back. And I heard Chris, new coach, new coach Chris, talk for the first time. I've never heard him speak before, but I saw a video. And he's saying Sab's gonna be at the one this year. I can see it.

Amanda 18:21

She filled in for Sleot when Sloot was out for unfortunate circumstances. And respectfully, Sloot fucked up the chemistry when she came back. Sabrina was dishing that thing. She was dishing it. Yeah.

Bonnie 18:34

Respectfully, like full respect to Sloot, but I I kind of feel like it's time to choose.

Amanda 18:43

I think so. And they're they're like, yeah, we got Sleute on the roster. Like they're they're yeah. You know? They're they're doing a lot. They're doing they're doing stuff in Chicago.

Bonnie 18:56

Um, but it's great to see, you know, the three that we knew, we knew they were gonna come back, but it's official, so I didn't I wasn't sure about JJ, I'm gonna be honest.

Amanda 19:05

I wasn't sure.

Bonnie 19:06

Yeah, we had our we had our doubts, but I do feel like JJ loves New York. I mean, how can you not? That's the thing. She loves it. And then the talk of the town. Where will Natasha Cloud end up? Yeah. Wait, and we got Satu. Oh yeah, we did get Satu, but then we talked about that last time. No, because we didn't talk about that last time.

SPEAKER_04 19:29

Bonnie and I are kind of like about Satsu.

Bonnie 19:33

Here's the thing. We really were trying to manifest Alana Smith to a moment of silence. Sorry.

Amanda 19:40

A moment of silence for Alana Smith.

Bonnie 19:44

Fuck man.

Amanda 19:46

Unfortunately, we will not be doing shows. I was so sick. And you know what? Because I'm delusional, even when I saw that we got Satu, I was like, there's still a chance. And it wasn't until Eliza said in the group chat, I don't think we're getting Alana Smith.

Bonnie 20:01

I said, You know what? There's also been a lot of chatter about um Satu coming to the libs because she's talked, like, okay, if anybody's been to a Liberty game at Barclays, you know that the fans are a big part of the vibe, and we're kind of like the team loves us. And the last time Satu was in New York, she talked a bunch of trash about the fans. And so we have sort of this personal beef, me and Satu. And so she better come and recognize that. What'd she say again? I don't remember what she said. You said it's not a it doesn't matter what you said, it's that she said it. Okay. Exactly. She disrespected us. You come into our house. Oh. You come into our house, leave your shoes on. Yeah.

Amanda 20:55

We've been living at that house for a couple of years now. I pay rent there, bro. Yo. I pay rent. You gonna come in my house talking crazy? Exactly.

Bonnie 21:03

Where I pay rent? So she better get on board real quick. Like she better turn that attitude down, at least towards us. You got auto's beef with Satu. I need to I need to humble brag for a minute. Brenda earlier told me I sounded like Amy Polar. So you do kind of sound like Amy Polar. Thanks, guys. Do you think I'm as funny as big mad Amy Polar? You think I'm as funny as Amy Polar? Say yes. Yeah.

unknown 21:29

Yeah, say sw.

Bonnie 21:32

Anyway, so Saty's coming. Part of me, the other part of me is like, damn, you took your sister's job. I but like, did she though?

Amanda 21:40

Okay, no, and I'm not but I'm not also not. Is this the right word? I'm not a Satu um uh believer. Yeah, like pacifist is is not the word. Uh a sat yes, a satu. This is why we have producers. Oh my god. I'm not a Satu apologist because I'm not her biggest fan. Do I believe I'm gonna give her a chance to believe to so I can believe in her? Yeah, sure. But I'm not an apologist by any means. But did she take Niara's job because she was select? Well, well, I don't know though, because I was gonna say, did she take her sister's job because baby Sobley was selected in the special expansion draft? But did she take her job because the Liberty didn't protect her?

unknown 22:28

Yeah.

Amanda 22:29

Did the Liberty not protect her because they said we finna go get the other Sobley? Maybe. Crazy.

Bonnie 22:35

Anyway, you know what? She'll be great. I'm gonna be positive. She'll be great. I feel like it's gonna be a weird starting five. I really want Leone to be in the starting five, but we'll see.

Amanda 22:46

Yeah, I'm sure Brenda wants her in the starting five too. Why does Brenda? Brenda loves Leone Phoenix.

Bonnie 22:52

Big crush. On Satu? No. Oh, Leia. Yeah. I get it. I kinda get it. Yeah, me too. Yeah, I kinda get it. She's got this like quiet, mysterious. Yeah. Is she gay, bruh? Like, it's no way she's gay.

Amanda 23:04

Yeah.

Bonnie 23:06

No, the other exciting thing that happened for the Libs is Bonaja Laney is coming back. Well, I knew that was happening because she told you to your face she would not lie to you, Bonnie. She would never lie to me.

Amanda 23:20

She wouldn't she would never lie to you.

Bonnie 23:22

Wait, what the fuck? I'm looking at this. I'm looking at the roster and they have Bonaja listed as a rookie. Well, clearly, not everyone's getting.

Amanda 23:33

I think they're understaffed over there because they didn't even do the appropriate announcement posts on social. Everybody, every other team is cooking on social and they said we've signed Satusaboli. And then it's like a fucking quote card. A quote card in the year of our Lord 2026 on social media.

Bonnie 23:48

It's because Sandy's like, I'ma take you, I'ma take you, I'ma take you even from the front office. Sandy done took the whole staff. Take me with you, Sandy. Yeah, Sandy, welcome. And we didn't get Alana, but we did get another Aussie Aussie Aussie. We did, we got another Aussie, Aussie, Azi, oi, oi, oi, oi, oi, oi.

Amanda 24:07

Oi, oi, oi, oi, oi, oi.

Bonnie 24:09

We actually got two. Beck Allen's coming back. She's coming home. I forgot about her. Yeah. She's coming home. And then we got. We already said this. It'll do donkey. Analy? Annalie Maley.

SPEAKER_00 24:20

Yes.

Bonnie 24:20

She's signed to the training camp contract. So you never know when the training camp comes, you know. You never know on those. You never know.

Amanda 24:30

It's true. No, I know. It's true. And all of the the new part-time WMBA fans are all gonna be really fucking devastated. Yeah. And for those of you who don't know, what's a training camp contract, Bonnie?

Bonnie 24:46

A training camp contract is, you know, you're just on the team for training camp. But you can get cut. But it's not guaranteed. You can get cut faster. It's non-guaranteed. It's one year minimum salary. And which honestly it's a fucking sweet deal after this new CBA.

Amanda 25:02

Give me a year's salary.

Bonnie 25:04

That's true, actually. Hell yeah, brother. But you do have to like in training camp, you're like trying out.

Amanda 25:11

Yeah, you're trying to make the team. It's like I'll walk the team. Well, it's not, I guess. It's like the opportunity to try out. Right, right, right, right, right. Yeah. It's an opportunity to show what you've got. You know what I mean?

Bonnie 25:23

Yeah. It's weird because like some of these. I'm just like looking up who's on a training camp contract. And some of these players like already played on the same team the prior year. I don't know. What do you mean? Like Leticia Amahir and Caitlin Chen are on training camp contracts. And I'm like, they were on the team last time. Last year. Last season. But we'll see. Odyssey Sims also. Oh. You know who's also coming back? Hmm. Not to the libs, thank G. Well, I don't want to be mean. But Kennedy Carter's coming back. She's going to Vegas. She's going to the Aces.

Amanda 26:01

And they're gonna fucking cook. They're gonna cook. Oh my god. And then she's gonna be around Asia, a role model.

Bonnie 26:07

If she can get her attitude right, she's gonna be a little bit more. If she can get her attitude right, like she's got so much.

Amanda 26:12

She's gonna turn her little ass around.

Bonnie 26:14

Asia's gonna be like, uh-uh, you don't come up here and be a bad sport.

Amanda 26:17

Mm-hmm.

Bonnie 26:17

Mm-hmm. And Becky. I know. I bet Becky's gonna be like that one coach that's gonna be like a big thing. Becky go grab her by the hoodie. Yeah. I believe in you. Did you see that during that was fucking scary almost? Mm-hmm. I was like, that's too much. Alright, let's let's keep going down the list. Sorry. It's okay. Alright, so we talked about the libs. Uh, you know, no one knows where Natasha Cloud's gonna end up, and that's the only question that is on my threads feed is what's happening with Natasha Cloud.

Amanda 26:47

Yeah, and someone in the l in the Liberty Loyals chat actually saw Tosh and or somewhere she was walking her dog and Izzy's dog, so I think they're still together. Also, friend of the pod, notably, Vonnie saw Tosh and Oh yeah, Izzy together.

Bonnie 27:03

They're back together. And did you see Izzy's goodbye post?

Amanda 27:07

Mm-hmm. It was really sweet.

Bonnie 27:09

It was really sweet. So then like I got to play with my love. Yeah.

Amanda 27:14

So I feel like and okay, so then this person from the Liberty Loyals chat who ran into Tosh was like, Well, I asked her if it was okay for me to share, and she said to just wait and to be patient, but she feels the love from New York fans.

Bonnie 27:28

That's nice.

Amanda 27:29

So I don't know what the hell that means. But if we're talking about Tosh now, like, no, she hasn't been signed anywhere. And I know people were speculating it's because she's a very outspoken basketball player, which shout out to her because I know. I mean, like, that's the WNBA has always been political, so always to me that that isn't the reason. But if I look at why the Liberty didn't sign her, Megan sent a really interesting graph about the plus-minus differential, and you can like use it to measure a lot measure a lot of different stats. At the bottom of the plus-minus list was Tosh Cloud. And essentially, for those who aren't like super, super in the weeds on basketball stats, essentially is the plus minus measures like on average how many points your team is ahead and or behind when you're on the floor. So, for example, someone could have like a a plus plus 12 one night, and it means that on average, while she was on the floor, the team held a 12-point lead versus like the minus, which is for example, I think I don't even remember what hers was. It was something fucking crazy. It was all the way at the bottom of the list. She had the worst, she had the worst plus minus. Yeah. So it's performance-based. Yeah, like I just don't really think that she fits. Like, sure, is she a great energy in the locker room and a good motivator for the team? Yeah, but it was not really translating onto the court. Right. Do you remember her first game with us last season? She absolutely fucking cooked, and we were like, oh, this we finna cook.

Bonnie 28:57

And then everybody went to the store and bought cloud jerseys. Us included. Us included.

Amanda 29:02

Uh also I think didn't we all get them on the same day together? We literally went together.

Bonnie 29:10

That's pretty gay of us. I hope she lands somewhere good. Like, I want her to succeed. They might as well just take her in Seattle. That's what I'm saying. Like, Seattle, you have nobody. Yeah. Demi needs someone to believe in. Yeah. Shout out to Demi. Shout out to Demi. We feel for you. Demi is actually the one that got Eliza and I into The Liberty. She she was the first person that had season tickets. I think it was 2022, maybe. Um, and we went with her and we sat in section three. That's where you face it, right? We're one. You're section one. Okay. Yeah. For now.

Amanda 29:46

We might be with the N3 next season.

Bonnie 29:48

Well, we're in 29.

Amanda 29:49

Oh, sorry. Got it.

unknown 29:52

I think.

Bonnie 29:53

Anyway, she took us to the games and then we fell in love and had so much fun in now. Which one is section three? Is it a corner? It's like our section and then the corner, yeah. Next to you. Oh, okay.

Amanda 30:06

Oh, so like pretty much. Opposite. Yeah, it's the same. Yeah.

Bonnie 30:09

One, two, three, guys.

Amanda 30:10

You got it. One, two, three. Okay, but twenty-nine is also to the right of me, so I think I don't know, whatever.

Bonnie 30:18

Okay, the other thing I wanted to mention. I I feel like fighting with a wizard today.

unknown 30:22

Yeah.

Bonnie 30:22

A couple a couple other big uh big news newsworthy things. Uh Asia Max. Asia Max. Might as well just call her Asia Max, you know what I mean? Asia signed a supermarket.

Amanda 30:36

Yeah. I was like, what the fuck are you talking about? Asia Max might as well call her that.

Bonnie 30:44

Asia. Asia signed a three-year, five million contract with the Aces. So it was the richest in the W history.

SPEAKER_00 30:52

A million.

Bonnie 30:53

Yeah. It was the richest in the W history until today when Aaliyah Boston reached a four-year, 6.3 million extension with the fever.

Amanda 31:02

That is a lot of money.

Bonnie 31:03

That's a lot of money. And her salary, we looked this up before the pod, her salary for the 2025 uh season was$83,000. Not even six figures. And now she's making seven.

Amanda 31:15

It's crazy because I feel like on average, that's how much, like, probably the person lowest on the totem pole at most, like jobs in New York, like a salaried position, they're probably making like 83. Yeah. Yeah. That's crazy.

Bonnie 31:29

It's abuse, really. It is abuse. And you know what? She doesn't have to deal with it anymore. So snaps for them. Yeah. Yeah. Snap, snap, snap. Snap, snap, snap. So, I mean, you know, things are happening all the time. I would say it's really hard to keep up with. But these names are still not on a roster. We talked about it. Natasha Cloud. You know who else? Tiffany Hayes. Not on a roster yet.

Amanda 31:56

Tiffany Hayes notably was rumored to be coming to the Liberty of Bonnie. Would have crashed the fuck out.

Bonnie 32:03

There's still time. I don't think she's gonna come here. Yeah, we're full. Oh, we're full. No vacancy. Tina Charles, which surprises me.

Amanda 32:13

Respectfully, Tina's too old to be hooping. She needs to go home. But she's good. She's a really good vet. I'll worry about her though. Like they the older they get, the more worried I'll get about them.

Bonnie 32:22

You know what I mean? Kalani Brown, but I think she actually did just re-sign with the Mercury today, so that could be moot. Um Emma Misaman. Sorry, girl, we told you to come over here and then you played half a season in 90 years.

Amanda 32:35

She just didn't fit. She just didn't fit. She's not a runner, she's not a track star. I know we'd be running out there.

Bonnie 32:41

She might be a good fit on Seattle. We're trying to build Seattle's team here.

SPEAKER_00 32:47

They got a lot of bigs over there.

Bonnie 32:50

True, true, true. Okay, let me think. Connecticut. They got Brittany Greiner now, but she could be the second big.

Amanda 32:57

But I think that like Emma Misaman, I think, is a starting center.

Bonnie 33:03

Fair.

Amanda 33:03

Do you know what I mean? So we're just gonna fight Brittany Greiner for that. Who's also a starting center?

Bonnie 33:10

Yeah, Emma Miseman is a center.

Amanda 33:12

Emma Misaman's not a center? Is she what is she?

Bonnie 33:15

A guard?

Amanda 33:17

She's more definitely not a guard. She's that's a big bitch. Yeah. Belgian basketball player.

Bonnie 33:26

She's definitely a forward.

Amanda 33:28

I'm gonna tell you right now. Forward slash. Oh my gosh, thank you so much. Okay. The rest. So I was notably correct.

Bonnie 33:40

I think you both were correct. Yeah. Yeah. Bria Hartley, also not on a team yet. Bree Hall, Arya McDonald, Tiffany Mitchell, Ariel Powers, and Tierra McCowan still are not on a roster.

Amanda 33:53

Sheesh. Tara McCowan was on Dallas.

Bonnie 33:55

I know. I'm surprised about Tara McCowan too, actually.

Amanda 33:58

Yeah, Tara McCowan was on my fantasy team last year. So was uh one of the uh Silchrist sisters? Maddy, there's Maddie. Thank you. I was like, Gilchrist? Kid Gilchrist whatever, sorry, there's an NBA player whose last name is Kid Gilchrist, and I couldn't get it out of my head, yeah.

Bonnie 34:23

Do you there's this one like moment of Tiara McCowan that I'll never forget? It lives rent-free in my head. She fouled out of a game and then she went and just stood like in front of the tunnel to watch the rest of the game, and the camera panned her and she just waved. I'm gonna have to find it because it's fucking hilarious. Alright. That's kind of all I have about free agency right now.

SPEAKER_00 34:53

Okay.

Bonnie 34:54

Yeah, we'll probably have one more update about it next week since we have there's still three more days, and um maybe it's gonna happen. Hopefully, we know where Tosh lands. Maybe hopefully crossing my fingers.

Amanda 35:10

Maybe Toronto. Come on, Sandy. Yeah, Sandy, you've already got one of the girlfriends. Also boy, who else does Toronto have? Do they have Mabrie? They have two Maybries.

SPEAKER_00 35:23

Fuck! That's right.

Bonnie 35:24

How do we not talk about Dara Mabrie? Let's talk about Dara Mabrie.

Amanda 35:29

She was signed to a training cab contract. Wow, that is kind of fucked up to say. It's hard to say, you know? I was just messing with the early, but then I, you know, I had to say it myself. Yep. Two Maybries would be fucking crazy.

Bonnie 35:43

I've never seen Dara play, and I'm excited to see. She's decent.

Amanda 35:46

She plays in Australia.

Bonnie 35:47

Oh, that's fun. Mm-hmm.

Amanda 35:49

Mm-hmm.

Bonnie 35:49

Great.

Amanda 35:50

And they've got Izzy, they've got Britney Sykes. Oh, okay. And they just signed Britney Sykes to a crazy contract. But is Britt Britney Sykes probably is like a guard forward. Yeah, she's a guard for sure. Okay, okay. She can jump so fucking high. It's insane. So they they might not, they might not need Tash. Well, who doesn't have a true point guard? Who only has one true point guard? Is Britney Sykes a true point guard? No, but I mean Minnesota. They just drafted Olivia Miles. Wouldn't it be nice if they had a veteran point guard to teach her the rope since Courtney is a two-guard?

Bonnie 36:25

Valkyrie's point guard.

Amanda 36:28

Veronica Burton? Yeah, maybe. She's a two-way guard, so.

Bonnie 36:34

Anyway, welcome to the W Dara Mabrie. Bonnie said it's too many possibilities. There's way too many possibilities. There's, you know, 13.

Amanda 36:44

I hope I hope Dara does well. I think that would be really cool. But I'm pretty sure she scored like 65 points in Australia. Like in her last game in Australia. It was something crazy. And if I just lit that number up, you're welcome.

Bonnie 36:56

Well, and you know, yeah. You know, Sandy's Australian too.

Amanda 37:00

So Oh my gosh, that's wait, hold on, Bonnie. That's it. That's the connection. She knew about Dara because she's Australian. Dara plays in Australia.

Bonnie 37:09

It's time for overtime. Alright. You know what I wanted to talk about today? I wanted to talk about relationships in the W. Let's couples. Let's do it. We're talking about actions. Um I want to talk about this because it's, you know, uh in the media a lot right now because uh AZ's drafted Dallas. There's been a lot of chatter about her and Paige playing together and how she will manage, etc. And we can get we can dive a little bit deeper into that because I know you had stuff to say too.

Amanda 37:41

Yeah, I have I have thoughts and opinions.

Bonnie 37:44

We'll come back to that. But I wanted to to talk about it because it's always obviously been prevalent in the W so since the beginning. So I broke it down by era. Uh-huh. Um and we can see how things have evolved. This is such a great section, Bob. So, like I said, there's always been relationships in the W, but obviously the way we've talked about them and embraced them has evolved since 1997. So we'll talk about 1997 to the early 2000s. This is the foundation of the W and what they call the don't ask, don't tell sort of energy era. I know. It's sad.

Amanda 38:17

It starts bleak. This reminds me of George Bush. Is this associated with George Bush's era? No. Oh. George Bush? No, but I mean the don't ask, don't tell. Wasn't that an army thing? It's an army thing. But I feel like sorry, it was just really dark and I didn't like it. Continue.

Bonnie 38:32

Basically, I mean it's true, like the league had a high percentage of clear queer players, but many people weren't out due to you know fears of sponsorships dropping them and media scrutiny. There were a few pioneers though, like Cheryl Swoops, who was gay. Um she came out in 2005, and that sort of helped shift visibility. But other than that, the league really leaned into conservative branding um to survive financially. I think that's a good idea.

Amanda 39:02

Yeah, they were all like wearing dresses and stuff, and yeah, it seems like kind of crazy to see them that kind of attire.

Bonnie 39:09

Like business score shirt uh skirts. Like they're all looking like insurance agents or something. State farm. Um and yeah, I mean, most of the marketing included like Lisa Leslie and Rebecca Lobo because they were trying to appeal to the heteros and you know, make sure that they didn't freak out. Um, so relationships were central in this area, but hidden. Then we moved to the mid-2000s and early 2010s. Visibility rises, culture stabilizes, um, the W starts to to develop a distinct cultural identity, and uh queer relationships become more visible. We saw big shifts where more players were openly out and about um relationships between players, like in the locker room, they became more comfortable with it. Um, and then the league stopped like actively distancing itself from their queer identity. Um the 2010s and to the present um is the queer league narrative. So by the late 2010s, the W became the most openly queer major pro sports league in the US. Uh they embrace it is um they embrace pride and social justice as we've seen, um, and players start to openly discuss their relationships, their marriages, and their families. Um so in the 2010s we saw them become comfortable with identity and empowerment. And during that time, Suberd and Megan Rapino's relationship began, and they, you know, obviously ended up becoming one of the most uh visible, powerful, queer couple relationships in sports, and we have to we have to pour one out for them today because today they announced that they are separating. Yeah, that's tough. It is tough, it's really tough.

Amanda 41:10

I can't say that it affects me really much. No, just because someone sent me a tweet today that was like all lesbian flags across the United States will be lowered to half mast for the rest of April, like to morn or whatever, and I was just like, This is is funny, but I don't care that much.

Bonnie 41:30

I feel like it was like a big thing for them to be like, especially because they were two stars in two different sports.

Amanda 41:37

Oh, yeah, yeah. Well, yeah, important. Sorry, I meant specifically about the breakup.

Bonnie 41:41

Not that I didn't care about the historic I didn't cry or anything, but I was like, oh, that really sucks.

Amanda 41:46

I'm happy that you didn't cry. Yeah. We would have had to have a conversation off the air about that.

Bonnie 41:52

Um, so last thing is the modern area era, uh 2020s and on and on. Um I guess that's where we are now. Uh social media visibility and parasocial fandom. So now relationships are just a part of the content ecosystem. Fans are invested in couples now, um, and you know, players' relationships are now part of like their brand and narrative and fandom economy, which is great because there are so many benefits, like they fuel activism, they help shape team chemistry and build fan connection between the teams and the fans. Um, but there are definitely cons, like we've seen with AZ and Page. Um media often overfocuses on relationships, um, which can overshadow, you know, their performance and achievements. So the league sort of now, I think, walks a line between visibility and empowerment and visibility and distraction a little bit. Damn, that's pretty good. You know what I mean? That's kind of poetic. And then I just wanted to rattle off some of the most iconic uh relationships we've seen in the W. Let's do it. Alright, Sue and Megan, rip, Diana Tarasi and Penny Taylor. Didn't know her wife played in the W. Me either. But the Married and Italian. And she's Australian. Wow, Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Okay. Um don't get mad about this one, but everywhere.

Amanda 43:25

Yeah. Sorry. They're just like Philadelphians and Eagles fans. I like there's so many Australians among us. There are. They're all in New York. Jeez. Like, oh.

Bonnie 43:33

They're not in the well, they're not in the rest of the country. Maybe California. Bonnie said they're not allowed anywhere else, only here. She was a really good player for Australia, so Penny Taylor.

Amanda 43:42

Penny Taylor.

Bonnie 43:43

She was the captain of the Australian when it was possible.

Amanda 43:45

Well, there you go. Oh my god. Honestly, Eliza's just like me for real. She'd just be knowing stuff about Australia. I'd just be knowing stuff about Philly. Just be coming out. She's cute too. And I just looked her up. Okay.

SPEAKER_05 43:56

I'm pretty sure she was nanny's double day.

Bonnie 44:00

Anyway, I think they're still married. They are. And they have kids. Candace Parker and Anna Petro Petrokova. Moving on. Not a friend of the pod.

Amanda 44:14

Not a friend of the pod.

Bonnie 44:15

No, she's got her own pod. Dewana Bonner and Alyssa Thomas. Courtney Vandersloot and Allie Quigley. Dejanay and Alyssa. Rip. Rip. And then Paige and Azy, which is actually I think you mean Dejanay and DJ.

Amanda 44:28

DJ and Jackie. Yeah, Dejanay and Alyssa. Rip. Dejanay and Jackie. It's on. Yeah, what's the opposite of rip? Yeah, that's what I was thinking.

Bonnie 44:39

Did you see the process? Anyway, I just thought it was cool. I know like a lot of new W fans are like really kind of, I don't know, surprised by like women that are dating each other, playing with each other against each other, and I'm like, you know, this is what it is, and it just makes it fun and it's normal and it's not that big of a deal to me.

Amanda 45:01

Wait, you forgot Izzy and Tosh.

Bonnie 45:03

Oh yeah, Izzy and Tosh. Duh. My dad. Yeah, they're sorry. No, I mean we could there's probably there's definitely more that we're gonna do. Oh wait, and remember Shakira and the TikTok? Rip. Wow. The height difference is just really, you know. I don't get it. Shall we move to the 24-second shot clock? Yes. Are you ready? You are? Yeah, sorry. Sorry, I didn't hear a verbal.

Amanda 45:32

Sorry, sorry. I need to take my glasses off for this one. Yeah, take the glasses. I gotta really lock it, okay? So Ais mom was drafted in 62. Damn, she's old as hell. Yes.

Bonnie 45:46

God 62. The league started in 97.

Amanda 46:10

That was crazy. I thought I was like, God damn. Drafted in sixty two crazy.

Bonnie 46:21

Yeah, seriously.

Amanda 46:27

I guess I'll have a chocolate English.

Bonnie 46:54

Why would I be able to hear it? And you put it into a slide. Oh nothing. Are you ready to take a ready? Listeners, we're about to do the 24 second shot clock. So please get ready. Amanda's preparing herself.

Amanda 47:17

Okay. Okay, 24 seconds on the clock. Starting now. I understand why AZ and Paige kept their relationship a secret because people are fucking weird. They're not being fetishized in the media. Like, why does Paige need to be sitting at Azy's table at the draft for people to know that they're still together? It's none of your fucking business, bro. Mind your business. It's not your business.

SPEAKER_00 47:36

They're together. If they're not, it doesn't fucking matter. Now they're teammates, they're colleagues. Leave it at that. Stop asking questions. You don't do that to the boys. What the fuck, bro? That's crazy. Oh my god.

Bonnie 47:47

That was really it.

SPEAKER_00 47:48

That's all I had to say.

Bonnie 47:50

That's what she had to say, folks. Because that's crazy. And honestly, I agree. Like, get out of their business. Let them just fucking live.

Amanda 47:57

I also feel like it's weird.

Bonnie 47:59

Can't Azy just have her moment? Period.

Amanda 48:01

Like, yeah.

Bonnie 48:02

Why are they why can't they leave her alone about Paige?

Amanda 48:05

And someone posted a video on TikTok. I think I sent this in our chat where people were just like, bro, just leave them alone. Like it's so crazy. Like, maybe Paige just wanted Aisy to have her moment and not make it about them, blah blah blah. And Paige liked it. Boom. And so there you have it. I just feel like I've like I do feel like it was a strategic decision because it doesn't it doesn't become Azy's night because it was different when Azy sat with Paige at their at her draft because they weren't out yet. Like people didn't know they were together. And so it wasn't really about that. They kept it super fucking cordial. And I remember around this time is when people started to like really start speculating that they were together because people caught them maybe trying to hold hands, whatever. They end up coming out on their own terms, and now everybody's fucking obsessed with it. And sure, it's really sweet, it's really cute. And I do feel like part of this, like this investment in these like celebrity relationships, is because people really don't have shit to look forward to right now. Like there's nothing to believe in, like, the world fucking sucks. Yeah. And so you kind of like are grasping for other sources of joy and happiness. Yeah. It's the same thing with like reality TV.

Bonnie 49:17

Like your energy has to go somewhere. Yeah.

Amanda 49:19

And it's just like I know that especially now, given the state of the world, like people are also really looking to sports for happiness, like to have something to believe in. And so this is just like another like added piece for them. But it's also like they're human and also they're children. Agree. And also y'all not in bed with them. So like mind your business.

Bonnie 49:41

Like, come on, peeps. And I feel like that was the second 24-second shot clock, and it was great.

Amanda 49:46

Much I feel like I was up here preaching. It's just like it's weird. People are not going around asking Dwana Bonner and Alyssa Thomas questions like that. Like and in in the Dallas presser, when AZ was asked that question, I understand why he asked the question, but this is unprecedented. It wasn't stuff that other couples were being asked before. Like, you got Tosh and Izzy on the Liberty, Dwana Bonner and AT on Connecticut, and then eventually uh Phoenix. Like, I think just like let them tell you.

Bonnie 50:18

You know what I mean? Like, I need to ask. If AZ wants to say something, she'll say it.

Amanda 50:23

And Paige right now is in Croatia uh visiting Nika Mule. And I do this, of course, is just speculation, but I wouldn't be surprised if she planned that. Yeah. So that Aisy could have her moment in Dallas because they did have like some media days and there were some other teammates there, not everyone. Like, I don't think Arique was there. But like other teammates were there for Media Day, and Paige notably wasn't there. And I I do feel like that was also strategic. Or it might have been just Media Day for the draftees, you know. But still, or the new players rather, but sure.

Bonnie 50:55

Still, I think Paige is a good person and she's has good intentions. Even her visiting Nico Mu Mu Mule. I always fuck up her last name.

Amanda 51:04

Which is also really fucking devastating that she tore her ACL again. No, again. Again. A year later. Crazy.

unknown 51:10

Okay.

Amanda 51:10

Oh my god, is that everything? That was everything. That was pretty good. Okay. That was pretty good. And that was another episode of Chasing the W.