WEBVTT - Steph Yang Cannot Represent You in a Court of Law 0:00:01.040 --> 0:00:03.960 I packed my car. I packed my car it'sad to 0:00:04.040 --> 0:00:05.159 God and grabbed. 0:00:04.840 --> 0:00:09.319 My dunks coffee. Able to get this, I packed my CA. 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:13.600 I apologize to everyone. 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:18.279 Welcome to good game with Sarah Spain, where a bunch 0:00:18.280 --> 0:00:21.400 of massholes have already claimed the Connecticut's son as their team. 0:00:22.160 --> 0:00:23.280 I can hear them now. 0:00:23.600 --> 0:00:26.520 I packed my CA outside the garden, grabbed my Dunk's 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:30.120 coffee to watch the squad wicked time. Okay, that was 0:00:31.000 --> 0:00:34.080 deeply embarrassing and I'm sorry to understand why I never 0:00:34.120 --> 0:00:34.920 made it to SNL. 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:37.239 I promise I have better accents than that. 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:42.280 One helped me Affles and others either way, bad accent 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:44.400 or not very cool scene to see that sold out 0:00:44.440 --> 0:00:46.880 game at TEDD Garden. On today's show, we're going to 0:00:46.920 --> 0:00:49.280 talk with Athletic staff writer Steph Young about whether the 0:00:49.400 --> 0:00:52.480 NWSL is doing too much and what she's learning about 0:00:52.479 --> 0:00:56.080 the San Diego Wave hiring Landon Donovan, Plus a roller 0:00:56.080 --> 0:00:58.480 coaster of a ride for a US Women's national team legend, 0:00:58.720 --> 0:01:00.920 and a blockbuster nw USL trade. 0:01:01.000 --> 0:01:02.680 But first, here's what you need to know. 0:01:02.720 --> 0:01:08.600 Today in NWSL soccer, some big player moves. The Seattle 0:01:08.680 --> 0:01:12.440 Rain have acquired midfielder Jalen Howell and fifty thousand dollars 0:01:12.440 --> 0:01:15.720 in allocation money from Racing Louisville in exchange for Ford 0:01:15.800 --> 0:01:18.720 Bethany Balser. Howell was the number two overall pick in 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:21.200 the twenty twenty two draft, and she's served as Louisville's 0:01:21.200 --> 0:01:22.399 captain since last year. 0:01:22.840 --> 0:01:24.640 Bethany Bosser's trajectory a little different. 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:26.880 After going undrafted in twenty nineteen, she signed with the 0:01:26.959 --> 0:01:29.000 Rain and went on to win Rookie of the Year 0:01:29.000 --> 0:01:32.520 in her debut season. She went to Spring Arbor University 0:01:32.560 --> 0:01:35.280 and is the first ever Naia player to compete in 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:37.800 the NWSL, and she's developed into a good one, one 0:01:37.840 --> 0:01:40.680 of the Rain's most consistent contributors. Her thirty three goals 0:01:40.720 --> 0:01:43.560 are third most in club history. She's also known for 0:01:43.680 --> 0:01:46.200 calling out the bs that she sees. Back in twenty 0:01:46.200 --> 0:01:49.600 twenty one, back before the NWSL had a CBA, she 0:01:49.640 --> 0:01:52.680 wrote on Twitter quote, why is equal pay important? I 0:01:52.720 --> 0:01:55.120 got a fifty dollars gift card to Chipotle for winning 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:58.639 Rookie of the Year in twenty nineteen. Thankfully, these days 0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:01.200 they do have a CBA and the NWSL's Rookie of 0:02:01.200 --> 0:02:03.240 the Year is guaranteed at least five thousand dollars in 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:06.240 bonus money, which is certainly better than three burritos and 0:02:06.280 --> 0:02:09.160 Asida guac. This is good news for Racing in that 0:02:09.240 --> 0:02:12.120 they need scoring help and Bethany Baltzer can give it 0:02:12.160 --> 0:02:14.320 to them, but it's tough to tell how the players 0:02:14.360 --> 0:02:16.440 are feeling about it. After the trade was announced, both 0:02:16.480 --> 0:02:19.840 players posted on social media. Howell said she's quote shocked 0:02:19.840 --> 0:02:22.760 to say the least, but added she's quote so incredibly 0:02:22.800 --> 0:02:23.959 excited to join the Rain. 0:02:24.639 --> 0:02:26.520 Meanwhile, Bolster was a little more cryptic. 0:02:26.600 --> 0:02:29.240 She wrote quote people will write the narrative they want 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:31.960 to write, but the truth will always come to light 0:02:32.320 --> 0:02:35.480 end quote. In a separate post, she shouted out Louisville, saying, quote, 0:02:35.520 --> 0:02:37.440 I will do everything in my power to help push 0:02:37.520 --> 0:02:41.120 this team forward. Some other Racing Louisville news as Jack 0:02:41.240 --> 0:02:43.919 Harlowe joins the club's ownership group. In case you don't 0:02:43.960 --> 0:02:47.080 know who he is, looking at you, producer Alex. He's 0:02:47.080 --> 0:02:49.639 a rapper, singer and Louisville native. I really can't believe 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:52.560 you don't know who that is. Alex Catchy Catchy songs. 0:02:52.960 --> 0:02:56.320 Also in the NWSL, GOTHAMAFC fans were dealt a rollercoaster 0:02:56.360 --> 0:02:59.000 of emotions after the club announced it did sign US 0:02:59.000 --> 0:03:01.880 women's national team led Heather O'Reilly to a one day 0:03:01.960 --> 0:03:05.480 contract as an injury replacement player to play in the 0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:08.960 club's Monday night friendly match against women's Super League side Chelsea. 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:11.400 If you remember, O'Reilly spent a year playing for Arsenal, 0:03:11.800 --> 0:03:14.280 the Cross London rival of Chelsea, which made this an 0:03:14.360 --> 0:03:16.960 extra fun signing. Actually, just in case you didn't already 0:03:16.960 --> 0:03:19.160 know that, let's do a quick refresher on the legendary 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:21.839 career of the woman known as Hao. All you young 0:03:21.960 --> 0:03:24.520 is out there, start googling, because she's one of our faves. 0:03:24.560 --> 0:03:26.840 During her fourteen year tenure with the national team, she 0:03:26.880 --> 0:03:29.560 won three gold medals, competed at three World Cups, took 0:03:29.560 --> 0:03:32.600 home trophy in twenty fifteen, retired from professional soccer in 0:03:32.680 --> 0:03:35.400 twenty nineteen, but in twenty twenty two, the first year 0:03:35.440 --> 0:03:37.640 she was eligible to be inducted into the National Soccer 0:03:37.640 --> 0:03:39.960 Hall of Fame, she was on the player ballot for voting, 0:03:40.040 --> 0:03:43.040 and that same day she unretired in order to join 0:03:43.080 --> 0:03:46.560 Irish club Shelbourne FC, and only retired players are eligible 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:48.200 for the Hall. Of fame, so the organization had to 0:03:48.200 --> 0:03:50.680 retract her name for the ballot, at least for now. 0:03:51.040 --> 0:03:53.200 All that to say, we were really excited to see 0:03:53.240 --> 0:03:55.600 O'Reilly back out on the field, and Gotham fans and 0:03:55.640 --> 0:03:58.360 players were super psyched to see her play. Chelsea players 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:01.640 maybe less psyched. Less than an hour before kickoff, Gotham 0:04:01.640 --> 0:04:04.200 announced that she was no longer available for selection, and 0:04:04.240 --> 0:04:06.960 a few minutes later Hather O'Reilly posted that she didn't 0:04:07.040 --> 0:04:10.160 pass her physical. She wrote, quote, my heart is too big. 0:04:10.320 --> 0:04:14.480 The machine couldn't handle it. End quote, ultimate bummer. Chelsea 0:04:14.560 --> 0:04:16.960 went on to win the friendly three to one. Finally, 0:04:17.000 --> 0:04:19.679 before we leave the pitch, an update on Angel City 0:04:19.680 --> 0:04:23.080 defender and New Zealand national Ali Riley. Earlier this summer, 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:25.120 Riley was ruled out of the Paris Olympics due to 0:04:25.160 --> 0:04:27.640 an ongoing nerve injury, and during a Q and A 0:04:27.680 --> 0:04:30.480 with a local girls' sports organization, the thirty six year 0:04:30.520 --> 0:04:33.440 old said she's not sure if she'll ever be able 0:04:33.480 --> 0:04:35.680 to play again. She later took to social media to 0:04:35.720 --> 0:04:37.880 clarify she's not saying goodbye to soccer without a fight, 0:04:38.000 --> 0:04:41.080 writing quote, I'm not giving up and I'm not going anywhere. 0:04:41.200 --> 0:04:43.480 My goal is to play for my club and country again, 0:04:43.520 --> 0:04:45.000 and I will think about that as I do my 0:04:45.080 --> 0:04:48.200 rehab every day for as long as it takes. In 0:04:48.240 --> 0:04:51.680 basketball news, yesterday, the WNBA Seattle Storm announced that free 0:04:51.720 --> 0:04:54.720 agent forward Gabby Williams signed a rest of season contract. 0:04:54.960 --> 0:04:57.719 Williams was the one who gave USA Basketball fits in 0:04:57.760 --> 0:04:59.680 the gold medal game at the Olympics, en route to 0:04:59.680 --> 0:05:02.599 a metal for herself and team France. She was also 0:05:02.680 --> 0:05:04.880 named Best Defensive Player of the tournament and selected to 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:07.240 the All Star Five. She'll join the team back in 0:05:07.320 --> 0:05:10.440 Seattle next week. With France hosting this year's Olympics, she 0:05:10.480 --> 0:05:12.520 opted to set out the first portion of the WNBA 0:05:12.560 --> 0:05:15.000 schedule to prepare with her national team, and she'll now 0:05:15.040 --> 0:05:17.599 rejoin the Storm after playing for Seattle in twenty twenty 0:05:17.600 --> 0:05:20.479 two and a portion of twenty twenty three. Seattle's currently 0:05:20.480 --> 0:05:22.839 in the WNBA playoff picture, teetering on the edge of 0:05:22.839 --> 0:05:25.000 the top four in the standings. Williams will be a 0:05:25.040 --> 0:05:28.000 welcome addition to the veteran corps that includes Jewel Lloyd, Skyler, 0:05:28.080 --> 0:05:30.640 nigg And Smith and neck Ogo McKay. All Right, So 0:05:30.640 --> 0:05:32.400 I mentioned at the top when I was doing that 0:05:32.520 --> 0:05:35.600 terrible accent that the Connecticut Sun Los Angeles Sparks game 0:05:35.839 --> 0:05:39.320 a sellout at TD Garden and producer Alex was actually 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:40.200 at the game. 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:42.039 Alex, what do we miss? 0:05:42.880 --> 0:05:45.440 All right, y'all? So I am recording this from my 0:05:45.520 --> 0:05:49.960 car after the game, and Wow, that was just such 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:52.359 an electric environment. As a kid that grew up in 0:05:52.360 --> 0:05:55.360 New Hampshire watching sports at the Garden, it was wild 0:05:55.400 --> 0:05:58.200 to realize that this was the first time in my 0:05:58.320 --> 0:06:00.799 life that I was able to travel to that venue 0:06:01.240 --> 0:06:04.440 and watch women's sports, and more than nineteen thousand people 0:06:04.480 --> 0:06:06.880 were there with me too. One of the first things 0:06:06.920 --> 0:06:09.760 I noticed was that the Connecticut Sun traveled with their 0:06:09.800 --> 0:06:14.719 own floor, like literal home court advantage. Pretty cool to 0:06:14.760 --> 0:06:16.599 see that they were in a different state, in a 0:06:16.600 --> 0:06:20.000 different venue and still playing on their own court. I 0:06:20.040 --> 0:06:22.880 actually asked head coach Stephanie White about that after the game, 0:06:22.920 --> 0:06:25.120 and she shouted out the team staff for pulling off 0:06:25.160 --> 0:06:29.000 such a logistically challenging event. As for the game itself, 0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:33.800 listen seeing Dowana Bonner deny someone in person, it's different. 0:06:33.880 --> 0:06:36.520 Shout out to Emily Adams at the Hartford Current who 0:06:36.520 --> 0:06:39.080 did the math on this. But this was actually the 0:06:39.120 --> 0:06:41.320 first game in her five years with the Sun that 0:06:41.400 --> 0:06:44.680 Dowanna came off the bench. Emily asked White about that 0:06:44.720 --> 0:06:46.640 after the game, and I'm gonna roll that clip because 0:06:46.640 --> 0:06:47.360 it's a good one. 0:06:47.720 --> 0:06:50.480 Deb volunteered on how to come off the bench. 0:06:50.560 --> 0:06:55.760 No, she understands that it's about winning, and she also 0:06:55.880 --> 0:06:58.440 understands that there's a motion involved when it. 0:06:58.400 --> 0:07:00.040 Comes to starting or not star. 0:07:01.520 --> 0:07:03.720 And so she came to us and talked to us 0:07:03.720 --> 0:07:05.240 and she's like, look, I don't mind coming off the bench. 0:07:05.279 --> 0:07:06.480 I just want to win. I want to figure out 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:09.400 what our best lineup is, our best rotation is, and 0:07:09.440 --> 0:07:11.680 I'll be ready to go no matter what. And so 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:17.119 that's leadership, right, that's sacrifice, that's putting the team above 0:07:17.200 --> 0:07:20.960 everything else. And so I'm thankful to her for that moment. 0:07:21.120 --> 0:07:23.800 I don't know if I still like it right, you know, 0:07:23.880 --> 0:07:25.960 I think we're still trying to find out, like what 0:07:26.120 --> 0:07:27.160 is the right combination. 0:07:27.840 --> 0:07:30.640 Also, this quote from Djna Carrington, who led the Sun 0:07:30.720 --> 0:07:32.440 with nineteen points, is going to stick with me for 0:07:32.480 --> 0:07:35.160 a long time. Asked after the game about the environment, 0:07:35.240 --> 0:07:38.840 she said, quote, it felt great. It felt like what 0:07:38.920 --> 0:07:42.520 every night should feel like and so wal Tonight was 0:07:42.760 --> 0:07:46.840 the Garden's first WWNBA game. It's pretty obvious it is 0:07:47.000 --> 0:07:48.560 most certainly not going to be the. 0:07:48.560 --> 0:07:52.760 Last awesome stuff. Alex. I'm glad you made it. There 0:07:52.760 --> 0:07:54.320 are two w NBA games today. 0:07:54.320 --> 0:07:56.720 The Phoenix Mercury are traveling to Atlanta, while Las Vegas 0:07:56.800 --> 0:07:58.120 is hosting the Minnesota Links. 0:07:58.320 --> 0:07:59.080 That should be a good one. 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:01.520 Minnesota and Vegas are currently battling to secure home court 0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:03.400 advantage in the playoffs, two of the best teams in 0:08:03.440 --> 0:08:03.880 the league. 0:08:04.120 --> 0:08:04.800 Check that one out. 0:08:07.000 --> 0:08:09.720 Besides the Storm signing Gabby Williams yesterday, it was relatively 0:08:09.760 --> 0:08:12.360 quiet day in WNBA trade news, while we told you 0:08:12.400 --> 0:08:15.520 about a blockbuster trade in the NWSL, which might have 0:08:15.640 --> 0:08:19.000 you wondering which league's trade deadline came and went. So 0:08:19.200 --> 0:08:23.800 it's time for another installment of no Dumb Question. 0:08:27.520 --> 0:08:29.960 Was yesterday the NWSL trade deadline? 0:08:30.160 --> 0:08:33.760 No, it was actually the WNBA trade deadline. Weird. 0:08:34.080 --> 0:08:37.080 I haven't seen any WNBA superstars on the move, but 0:08:37.160 --> 0:08:39.880 there were a couple NWSL trades this past. 0:08:39.600 --> 0:08:41.640 Week, right, I get your confusion. Now. 0:08:41.880 --> 0:08:44.400 There was indeed a lot more NWSL trade action this 0:08:44.440 --> 0:08:47.199 week than in the WNBA, and not just Balter and Howell. 0:08:47.240 --> 0:08:49.640 We also saw Carson Pika traded to Orlando from Racing 0:08:49.640 --> 0:08:52.800 Louisville and Alexa Spanstra sent to Portland from Kansas City. 0:08:53.280 --> 0:08:55.480 Meanwhile, pretty quiet on the hoops front. 0:08:55.800 --> 0:08:58.559 That's not all that surprising, though, because big WNBA in 0:08:58.640 --> 0:09:00.680 season trades are pretty rare to pull off. 0:09:00.880 --> 0:09:02.480 Why because it's something. 0:09:02.320 --> 0:09:04.920 Called a salary cap that's the max total salary of 0:09:04.960 --> 0:09:07.400 all players that a team has on the books. For example, 0:09:07.440 --> 0:09:09.360 let's say you've got five players and one hundred dollars 0:09:09.360 --> 0:09:12.000 salary cap. Each player can only get an average of 0:09:12.040 --> 0:09:14.560 twenty dollars. Of course, you pay some players more than others, 0:09:14.720 --> 0:09:16.720 but it all has to end up at one hundred dollars. 0:09:17.000 --> 0:09:19.160 Lots of other professional sports leagues have what are called 0:09:19.200 --> 0:09:22.400 soft caps that allows teams to exceed the allotted amount 0:09:22.480 --> 0:09:24.600 for a bunch of different reasons, and if they exceed 0:09:24.640 --> 0:09:26.920 a certain amount, they could pay what's called a luxury tax, 0:09:27.040 --> 0:09:31.000 basically a penalty for each dollar that they're over the softcap. Meanwhile, 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:34.000 the WNBA has a hard cap. It's one million, four 0:09:34.080 --> 0:09:37.560 hundred and sixty three, two hundred dollars. The only reason 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:39.920 w teams can exceed that cap is if the league 0:09:39.960 --> 0:09:44.439 grants them hardship or emergency hardship exceptions. Other than those allowances, 0:09:44.600 --> 0:09:47.680 they can't go over for any reason, even a dollar over. 0:09:48.000 --> 0:09:50.400 That makes it pretty tough to find complimentary salaries for 0:09:50.440 --> 0:09:52.680 a swap. So if you remember before the All Star Game, 0:09:52.679 --> 0:09:54.640 we had the Sky sending Marina Maybrey to the Sun 0:09:54.720 --> 0:09:57.400 for Rachel bannonm and Mariah Jefferson. That was a pretty 0:09:57.480 --> 0:10:00.400 rare trade for a player with a bigger contract remakes 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.280 over two hundred k. That trade resulted both from Maybury 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:06.080 asking out and also the Sun being able to send 0:10:06.080 --> 0:10:07.240 over two players in return. 0:10:07.679 --> 0:10:11.120 So why do NWSL teams have more freedom to spend? 0:10:11.600 --> 0:10:14.920 Well, the NWSL has this thing called allocation money. Well 0:10:14.920 --> 0:10:16.280 what is allocation money? 0:10:16.440 --> 0:10:18.440 Yeah, that's a great question, And like I said, there 0:10:18.440 --> 0:10:20.680 are no dumb questions, But there are especially no dumb 0:10:20.800 --> 0:10:24.080 questions about the NWSL's allocation money because even the smartest people. 0:10:23.840 --> 0:10:25.079 In the room still struggle with that one. 0:10:25.080 --> 0:10:27.720 It's pretty tricky, but basically, it's an extra sum of 0:10:27.760 --> 0:10:30.360 cash that doesn't count towards the salary cap, and it 0:10:30.400 --> 0:10:33.559 can go towards paying high level players that meet certain criteria. 0:10:33.920 --> 0:10:35.920 This includes players that have had say, more than three 0:10:35.920 --> 0:10:38.400 appearances for their national team in the previous two years, 0:10:38.520 --> 0:10:41.360 or domestic players who have completed at least five seasons 0:10:41.360 --> 0:10:44.320 in the NWSL. The league's actually in the process of 0:10:44.400 --> 0:10:47.240 phasing allocation money out, but teams still have the option 0:10:47.360 --> 0:10:49.559 to use what they have left until December of twenty 0:10:49.600 --> 0:10:52.640 twenty six. Allocation money's also historically been in the way 0:10:52.760 --> 0:10:56.640 NWSL teams have paid international transfer fees. That's when they 0:10:56.640 --> 0:10:59.480 pay money to an international club to bring their top 0:10:59.520 --> 0:11:01.880 talent to the States to play for their team, and 0:11:02.040 --> 0:11:05.120 teams can simply trade allocation money to other teams instead 0:11:05.120 --> 0:11:07.320 of players to sweeten or even out deals. 0:11:07.880 --> 0:11:11.840 That makes sense, But wait, I'm still a little confused 0:11:11.880 --> 0:11:14.000 about why the WNBA doesn't have a lot of trades 0:11:14.040 --> 0:11:14.840 at the deadline. 0:11:15.040 --> 0:11:16.800 Can you explain it to me? Like I'm five? 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:20.679 Yeah, long story short, it's hard to trade big name, 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:23.480 highly paid players in the WNBA and have the salary 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:25.560 numbers match up to avoid one of the teams in 0:11:25.600 --> 0:11:28.920 the trade exceeding that hard cap. That's why most trades 0:11:28.960 --> 0:11:32.360 involve bench players with similar lower salaries, and that's why 0:11:32.400 --> 0:11:34.599 we just don't see that much movement in the WNBA 0:11:34.880 --> 0:11:35.760 during the season. 0:11:35.520 --> 0:11:37.560 At all, with trades and especially at the trade deadline. 0:11:37.679 --> 0:11:40.559 Got it good. We're gonna take a quick break. 0:11:40.600 --> 0:11:42.439 When we come back, We're gonna talk soccer and a 0:11:42.520 --> 0:11:44.760 side of Battlestar Galactica with The Athletic. 0:11:44.800 --> 0:11:51.199 Step Young joining us now. 0:11:51.240 --> 0:11:53.880 She's a staff writer for The Athletic covering professional women's 0:11:53.880 --> 0:11:56.520 soccer and the US women's national team, and a regular 0:11:56.520 --> 0:11:59.440 contributor to the Full Time with Meg Lenihan podcast. She 0:11:59.480 --> 0:12:02.040 played soccer at MIT. She's a fan of Fried Okra, 0:12:02.160 --> 0:12:04.800 and last week she narrowly avoided death when she almost 0:12:04.880 --> 0:12:06.480 washed down her meal with a giant's wig from a 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:08.960 bottle of hot sauce. Fun fact, She's got her law 0:12:09.000 --> 0:12:12.679 degree from Boston College, which makes her Steph Young esquire. 0:12:13.559 --> 0:12:15.920 Steph, thanks for coming on, Thank you. 0:12:16.200 --> 0:12:20.240 I need to make a point. I have not passed 0:12:20.240 --> 0:12:22.840 the bar in Massachusetts. I cannot represent you. Don't ask 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:23.920 me for legal opinions. 0:12:24.400 --> 0:12:26.839 I had no idea that that was your background. First 0:12:26.880 --> 0:12:31.000 of all MIT, and then like super impressive, I mean, 0:12:31.480 --> 0:12:34.560 and then here you are covering soccer, which a lot 0:12:34.559 --> 0:12:36.640 of recovering lawyers actually go into sports. 0:12:36.679 --> 0:12:37.680 So I guess that checks out. 0:12:38.280 --> 0:12:41.440 Yeah, there's a lot of disgruntled ex lawyers in sports writing, 0:12:41.480 --> 0:12:44.160 like you'd be shocked by. It's very disproportionate compared to 0:12:44.200 --> 0:12:46.440 like the population. So something's happening there. 0:12:46.679 --> 0:12:50.120 Yeah, good readers, good writers, and get sick of going 0:12:50.120 --> 0:12:52.199 to court and or arguing things and decide to argue 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:52.959 sports instead. 0:12:54.000 --> 0:12:55.040 Okay, important questions. 0:12:55.040 --> 0:12:57.679 First, your name on social has always confused all of us. 0:12:57.720 --> 0:12:59.480 What is thrace? Is it a brace? 0:12:59.559 --> 0:13:02.960 But fore no, it's embarrassing. It's a reference to a 0:13:02.960 --> 0:13:06.079 Battlestar Galactica character, but it's also a name of historical 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:08.720 region in ancient Greece, So take your pick. 0:13:09.200 --> 0:13:11.760 Okay, but the Battlestar Galactica one is what you were 0:13:11.800 --> 0:13:13.040 going for. Yeah. 0:13:13.200 --> 0:13:16.000 Yeah, And then I started writing under the name Freelance, 0:13:16.080 --> 0:13:18.600 and then it's such a hassle to kind of change 0:13:18.600 --> 0:13:20.840 all the associations with the name when you built some steam 0:13:21.400 --> 0:13:23.520 and you know, it was the same reason why I 0:13:23.520 --> 0:13:25.640 didn't change my name when I got married. It's like, 0:13:25.960 --> 0:13:27.760 also it would be a little weird because my wife 0:13:27.800 --> 0:13:30.400 is Waldeman Freed, and I don't think Steph Waldman Freed 0:13:30.480 --> 0:13:31.160 really suits me. 0:13:31.800 --> 0:13:35.960 But it sounds like a professor. Okay, so it's just 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:39.559 it's you and Dwight Schrute. Bears beats Battlestar Galactica. 0:13:39.640 --> 0:13:43.120 Bears beats Battlestar Galactica. 0:13:43.440 --> 0:13:47.120 Yes, that's how we'll remember it. And then also, why 0:13:47.160 --> 0:13:48.880 exactly are you a horrible soccer goose? 0:13:49.280 --> 0:13:52.080 Oh that's just a reference to geese kind of being 0:13:52.120 --> 0:13:57.320 anarchists in general. And the header of my Twitter it's 0:13:57.360 --> 0:14:00.360 from a It's a game called untitled Goose game, where 0:14:00.400 --> 0:14:02.560 you are a goose who goes around annoying people. This 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:07.960 goose is holding glasses hostage. And it's usually a reference 0:14:08.000 --> 0:14:09.920 to my partner in crime at the Athletic Midlin, a 0:14:09.960 --> 0:14:13.199 hand who I annoy and delight in equal measure. 0:14:13.240 --> 0:14:14.960 I'm sure, perfect, perfect. 0:14:15.040 --> 0:14:17.800 So many of our long standing questions have been answered already, 0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:20.680 let's get to some new questions. We are very much 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:23.120 still riding an Olympic high. US women's national team went 0:14:23.160 --> 0:14:26.480 from their lowest ever fee for ranking pregames to right 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:28.680 back up where they feel most comfortable, number one in 0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:31.320 the world. Should the team actually be the favorite for 0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:33.960 every international tournament going forward until something changes? 0:14:34.520 --> 0:14:39.360 No, absolutely not anything can change between any tournament. I 0:14:39.440 --> 0:14:42.760 mean for any team you go from the World Cup 0:14:42.800 --> 0:14:46.680 to now huge swing. I look at stuff like Mexico 0:14:46.840 --> 0:14:51.240 not qualifying during the last CONCA CAFF qualifiers and then 0:14:51.320 --> 0:14:53.880 having a friendly and beating the United States. It's not 0:14:53.960 --> 0:14:55.880 quite the same, but you know what I'm talking about. 0:14:56.120 --> 0:14:59.520 Anything can happen the investment. The margins are so small now. 0:15:00.240 --> 0:15:01.840 Hate the term like the world has caught up. The 0:15:01.840 --> 0:15:04.520 world's been caught up for a while, like you need 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:06.720 to catch up to where we are already are in 0:15:06.720 --> 0:15:09.760 the narrative, So like it really is going to come 0:15:09.800 --> 0:15:14.280 down to like much finer margins than at least amongst 0:15:14.360 --> 0:15:18.200 probably the top ten fifteen twenty teams, rather than like 0:15:18.240 --> 0:15:20.600 who can invest the most. Now it's a lot more 0:15:20.600 --> 0:15:21.440 complicated than that. 0:15:21.880 --> 0:15:23.960 In Spain is still a very good side that we 0:15:24.880 --> 0:15:26.320 thought in advance of the Olympics. 0:15:26.320 --> 0:15:27.600 It's very difficult for teams. 0:15:27.640 --> 0:15:29.680 Teams have never won both a World Cup at an 0:15:29.680 --> 0:15:33.200 Olympic in the same back to back years, so I 0:15:33.280 --> 0:15:34.960 think there are some people who still might see them 0:15:34.960 --> 0:15:38.280 as a better team if they were to go head 0:15:38.280 --> 0:15:41.040 to head, although like you said, it really is dependent 0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:43.400 on every single tournament who's available for each team who's 0:15:43.400 --> 0:15:46.280 healthy and all of that. Obviously, the Triple Espresso front 0:15:46.280 --> 0:15:48.560 three of Trinity, Rodman, Mouse, Swanson and so Smith are 0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:51.880 major faces of this team, alongside another youngster in Naomi Germa. 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:54.520 Those feel like the leaders going forward. I was listening 0:15:54.600 --> 0:15:57.760 to an episode of Full Time with Meglenahan and almost 0:15:57.760 --> 0:16:01.520 cried when you admitted that we might not be seeing 0:16:01.520 --> 0:16:03.280 Alyssa they or the next time we come around to 0:16:03.320 --> 0:16:05.960 a major international tournament, because even though she's incredible, she 0:16:06.000 --> 0:16:08.160 would be thirty nine for the next World Cup, which 0:16:08.240 --> 0:16:10.160 is a lot of pressure to put on a body 0:16:10.320 --> 0:16:14.760 at that age to be your main keeper. But who 0:16:14.800 --> 0:16:18.280 are then the true leaders of this team, not just 0:16:18.320 --> 0:16:20.520 in play, but in voice and everything else going forward? 0:16:20.520 --> 0:16:23.920 If we start to lose some of those standbys. 0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:27.080 I actually don't feel pretty, you know, any trepidation from 0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:29.720 a leadership standpoint. It's pretty clear by now that there's 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:32.480 the next generation of leadership, not just on the way 0:16:32.520 --> 0:16:34.720 but kind of in place. We see it with Naomi Gherma, 0:16:34.760 --> 0:16:39.800 who's like the obvious number one, like armband candidate, she's 0:16:39.800 --> 0:16:43.760 worn it before. I think Tiana Davidson quiet leader. I 0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:46.080 think we might still have roosevel in there. She is 0:16:46.120 --> 0:16:48.040 twenty nine and she does tend to get beat up 0:16:48.080 --> 0:16:52.080 in that midfield, but she still be here. You know, 0:16:52.120 --> 0:16:54.640 I think Trini Rodman kind of underrated. 0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:55.160 Leader up there. 0:16:55.560 --> 0:16:58.440 You need to have that balance between someone who's maybe 0:16:58.440 --> 0:17:01.440 in the more quiet HEADSPACEAOMI or a Tyrna, and the 0:17:01.560 --> 0:17:04.720 someone who's there to just be like take the energy 0:17:04.760 --> 0:17:06.720 to one hundred and ten percent, And that feels like 0:17:06.840 --> 0:17:07.800 a Trinity Rodman. 0:17:08.160 --> 0:17:08.760 Yeah. 0:17:08.960 --> 0:17:10.800 Yeah, I think there's leadership all over the field, So 0:17:10.840 --> 0:17:12.800 in that aspect, I'm actually not worried at all. 0:17:13.200 --> 0:17:14.000 Yeah. 0:17:14.040 --> 0:17:16.119 Do you expect this iteration of the team in the 0:17:16.160 --> 0:17:18.000 next couple of years to be as involved in social 0:17:18.000 --> 0:17:20.679 and political stances. We have an election coming up, We 0:17:20.760 --> 0:17:25.120 will have all those conversations around Corbin Albert or other 0:17:25.160 --> 0:17:27.399 intersections with this team, And it feels like in the 0:17:27.440 --> 0:17:29.919 past it was very clear that they were going to 0:17:30.040 --> 0:17:32.760 lead not just their own team, but the world sort 0:17:32.800 --> 0:17:35.080 of in making sure there was equal pay and all 0:17:35.119 --> 0:17:38.119 sorts of other major issues that intersect with women's sports. 0:17:38.320 --> 0:17:40.719 Do you see those representatives on this squad? 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:45.320 Maybe maybe not as much. I spoke to Tuna Davidson 0:17:45.359 --> 0:17:48.879 about this before the Olympics, where you know, she didn't 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:51.240 say this, but it was implied. The personal is political, right, 0:17:51.240 --> 0:17:53.080 That's kind of the base adage that you learn in 0:17:53.160 --> 0:17:56.080 like poly PSI. And she was talking about how there's 0:17:56.119 --> 0:17:59.600 not as many out queer athletes on the team at 0:17:59.600 --> 0:18:01.919 the moment and how that could kind of affect the 0:18:01.960 --> 0:18:04.840 calculus of who's going to speak out on what, and 0:18:04.880 --> 0:18:07.439 it could be the same for any other issue. And 0:18:07.520 --> 0:18:10.560 I do think that this team will always have some 0:18:10.840 --> 0:18:14.880 politicization around it, just because the nature of how we 0:18:14.960 --> 0:18:18.840 treat women women in athletics, roles sports, the role of 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:21.040 women's sports in our world. They're going to make it 0:18:21.080 --> 0:18:22.760 a political topic whether we like. 0:18:22.720 --> 0:18:23.159 It or not. 0:18:23.520 --> 0:18:25.960 In terms of the team taking the lead and speaking 0:18:26.000 --> 0:18:30.280 out on those political issues. Yeah, I do think we are, like, 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:32.560 let's see what happens over the next two or three years, 0:18:32.560 --> 0:18:34.440