The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz - Good Follow - What Is Going On Between Angel Reese And Chicago? Could Caitlin Clark Be Unrivaled? & More

Episode Date: September 9, 2025

Today on Good Follow, Ros and Angel dive deep to figure out what on earth is going on between Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky. Angel is calling out players by name, saying she needs more from the organization, and then publicly apologized! Why did they give her a half-game suspension? What is going on with her back? Then, Ros and Angel talk money moves in women’s basketball, specifically with Unrivaled’s historic jump in valuation. Could Caitlin Clark be Unrivaled? Finally, Ros gives her DraftKings pick of the week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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With a towing capacity of 3,500 kilograms and a weighting depth of 900 millimeters, the Defender 110 pushes what's possible. Learn more at landrover.ca. You're listening to Draft Kings Network. Hey, what's up, everyone, welcome to Good Follow, presented by Drag Kings. I'm Roz Gold on Wode, and that is my girl. Angel McCartrey is back with us again.

What's going on, Angel? How you doing? What's going on, guys? Don't forget to subscribe, like, comment, follow. Angels, I'm getting straight to the business. She said, don't forget to subscribe, like, follow, comment, all the things. But I just feel like I can't even keep up with you. You've been all over New York City, all the escapades.

I'm loving it here, man. Like, this is your city where you grew up. I'm from Queens. It's amazing here, man. It's New York Fashion Week. Can we get a close-up on the nails? What? Bada-bing, Bada-a-Bong.

Look at all that bling. Rose, you've been bling, blinging, man. I can't keep up with that. I am so, thank you for, okay, because I'm in my nail-girlie era, and, like, I created these nails. even came into the nail shop with my own gemstones. No way. That's amazing.

When I walked in, they was clearly annoyed. It was like this girl again. No, but I'm really interested. Thank you. These are my fashion with nails. I love it. Thank you. They're also celebration nails because I have so many things going on, including

Happy birthday to you. I can't even open this box. Happy birthday, dear Angel McHawdrey. Look at this, guys. Look what she did. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. We are turning up tonight, Ross.

Happy birthday to you. We're doing this. Happy birthday. Angel McCawdrey's birthday is Wednesday. Are we telling our age, Ross? Dross. It's up to you, big girl. We're 39. Don't hang on to the 30s, child.

We're hanging. Hanging. Thank you so much. Yeah, from the whole good follow family. Thank you guys. I love you guys. All right. So for your birthday present, guess what I have for you?

What? A whole lot of mess. Love that. All right, guys, let me take you through today's show. The Chicago Sky and Angel Reese debacle. And unrivaled, they are on a rocket. 10xed their value and their latest fundraise. and Caitlin Clark is out for the season

for the rest of the WNBA season so could Caitlin Clark be unrivaled? All right. And Angel, this is where you would say, don't forget. This is the cue. I forget to like, subscribe, comments. Tuesdays and Thursdays are episodes. Thank you guys for having me here, Ross.

And happy birthday again, Angel. Thank you so much. She was overzealous. We opened the show. I was like, welcome to good followers. I was like, subscribe, subscribe. Please comment, engage. You had one job.

All right. All right. No, we got through that. All right, let's get to the topics. It's been chaos in Chicago. Child, it is a mess. An article came out in the Chicago Tribune. I'm going to try and break it all down for you

for those who might already know or need to catch up. Here it is. So an article came out in the Chicago Tribune quoting Angel Reese and her frustrations with the Sky Organization. I'm not settling for the same shit we did last year.

We have to get good players. We have to get great players. That's non-negotiable for me. And she went on. to name names. Here it is. She names players specifically like Courtney Vanderslu. We can't rely on Courtney to come back at the age she's at.

I know she'll be a great asset for us, but we can't rely on that. All right, child, so it didn't end there. Teammates started to come out responding. Here we go. Sluat definitely felt some kind of way to that, as she was called out by name. And she said, contrary to what people say, think my age is actually not a factor. I'm coming back during an interview on a TV broadcast, actually.

She said that. And also Sluke's wife, Allie Quigley, took to Instagram stories. So, Allie clocked that. And she posted a list of Sluits accolades with the words, friendly reminder. And then Rachel Bannum had this to say about the article. I think I just don't really care. I'm so over all of this shit. If I was younger, it would have affected me more, but I'm grown.

own and I just don't care. So, yeah, it's messy. It's apathy starting to set in. And then Ariel Atkins, who, mind you, she defended Reese earlier in the season. She told the Sun Times, ownership handled it as they see fit. They have full support from our team. And this is in response to Angel's punishment. So full support for the punishment ownership gave Angel.

Mind you, this is coming from Ariel Atkins, the one who, when it was like peak, hate on Angel Rees season at the top of the season where she started out poorly self-admittedly was like a bad start for her literally national pundits coming in to throw tomatoes

and Ariel Atkins on the podium publicly stepped up and had her back and now you're seeing her here saying ownership has the support of our team all right that's everything Angel you're caught up. Oh my gosh. What is your reaction?

Okay, I'm the other angel from Baltimore just like Angel Reese we went to the same high school so I've known Angel since eighth grade. Ross, what's the saying? It's not how we say. It's how we deliver it. How we deliver it. Angel, this is coming from Big Sis. Have you ever had a losing season, Ross? Of course. Me, Diana, Sue, Simone, Tamika. I can go down the line. Maya Moore. We've all had losing seasons before. That is what happens. You have to be patient. I was in Atlanta. There was a young team called Las Vegas Aces. I'm dapping the fives. There's this young kid called Asia Wilson. She's crying because they did not make the playoffs. We have a good team making the playoffs.

I said to her, I said, be patient. It's coming. Is the rest history? So we all have to go through those steps sometimes. But here's the main thing. You're not the only one having a bad season. Your teammates are having a bad season too. But here's the difference.

Is your teammates, they don't have a million dollar deals, endorsement deals. They don't have Shaq advocating for them, right? So even though they're having a losing season, one of your teammates might not even see $50,000, $100,000 in their bank account. So you have to take the good with the bat and know that even though you're having to lose the season is how you say it, but you're so blessed.

You have everything in front of you. So as a leader, what you do, you go to the front office at the end, you go see your GMs, hey, what can we do? Who can we bring in? What vets can we bring in? You know, Courtney's coming back. That's how you do it, Angel, the future.

What do you think on that, Ross? Do you think it was too early? in her career to be delivering this message, too? Like, does she have the clout for that? Sure. She can deliver. I'm all about saying what you feel, right? We don't hold stuff in, but it's just how we say.

You never want your teammates to feel like, because they're already looking at you, like you have everything, right? Like you said, they don't have a million-dollar endorsement deals, but they're having a losing season two. You know what I would do, Angel? I would get one of my endorsements to say, give me an extra $100,000 so I can give all my teammates 10 just to show to my care.

I would do stuff like that. That puts you in a limelight of like, wow. Let's set this girl up. The owners will look at you like the GMs and then they'll make sure they set you up for success. But when it's like I got to take care of me and don't make it sound like it's just all about you, especially when you're such in a blessed position

that other girls will never see. Because they're losing too. Yeah, no, I think there's a sensitivity that, you know, Angel could move with. And I'm willing to give some grace here too because, again, this is a 23-year-old. Right. You know, so in unprecedented shoes,

like unprecedented attention, money-making, like popularity. Like, we haven't even seen anything quite like this. This is an unprecedented time for women's sports. Yes. So I feel like there's no blueprint in this. And I think for the most part, she has a track record of being really positive on her teammates, uplifting, sharing the shine with teammates publicly. I don't, she has no track record as far as I'm looking in a public setting down.

playing teammates. This was a misstep. And this is something she can learn from. In fact, actually, I think Angel right away recognized that this was wrong or it was it was not the right way and therefore she apologized publicly. It was a public misstep. Therefore her apology was public. And so I actually took a few notes.

Like the missteps for me, timing. I think this is an easier message to digest in the off season, not in season. I don't miss step number two calling teammates out by name and especially Courtney Vandersloot I want to come to you after this because you calling out Courtney Vandersloot this is literally a legend of the game

I'm sure she didn't mean but you could have delivered this message without ever saying her name and this is literally someone who was a two-time champion in fact has brought a championship to the very organization that y'all are playing on she has literally delivered them The Chicago Sky, a championship. You are a second year player.

There is a nuance about how you need to speak about someone that great, even if they're towards more of the latter part of their career. And I felt that she was missing the respect factor there. Can I say this, Ross? To the young players, we don't mention age to us legends, okay? We know we're getting older. We don't need a reminder from y'all. Let me tell you this.

I used to tease swing cash and them, see, Burr, like, y'all are still stretching. over there, come on. And then I had Kelsey Plumman, I'm teasing me. I'm like, wow, look at this reverse thing because you're going to get old one day and you're going to see how it feels when you're trying to come back. We're trying to get our bodies together. But like you said, she's a legend. You respect your legends as they are. And that's what you got to do. Yeah. But here's the other side of this, though. Angel wasn't wrong in a lot of ways. So I took notes. So Angel's not wrong in that she's handled her individual business. She's a two-time All-Star. How many years has she been in the league too. So every year.

Yeah. Rewriding record books. She leads this team in points, rebounds, assists. Like, so this is somebody who's done her part on the court. Has it led to winning? No. Not yet. Not yet. She's not wrong. The franchise has not supported her with stability. Every single season, different coaches, different rosters. She's not wrong. The team constructed a roster this season that collectively and individually has underachieved. Underachieved. She's not wrong.

It is valid to have concern about any 37-year-old coming back from ACL injury, full stop, period, no matter who it is. And I say 37 because next season, Sleut will be 37. And she's not wrong that the sky have made many blunders, especially around having a new practice facility. At first, they didn't even commit to it. Right. They've got them practicing in a rec center. And they finally did commit to making a dedicated practice facility, but it's been heavily delayed, delayed, delayed, delayed. to the point where it will not be ready for this off season,

which is critical because you want to recruit players during this free agency at 26 where everybody's a free agent. And you can't use it as a recruiting tool. And you're thinking about Angel's window. And she's probably thinking, the time is now, y'all, let's go. Right, right. So organization, y'all got to step it up for these girls. I mean, they deserve it.

You can't have Angel Reese in these type of women in a rec center. Like the value, right? I heard you could work out at your lunch break and see the Chicago Sky practice. Oh, no. We ain't doing that. We passed those days. That's crazy.

Those are our times. What do you think about the teammates' responses? Bling, bling. Every time I come around your city, bling, bling, your season, your shot. The NFL is rolling. And every touchdown brings you closer to a payout with Draft King's Sportsbook,

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slash total security to learn more. Conditions apply. Oh my gosh. She makes responses. It just shows disarray, right? And it just shows this organization. And we don't want to see that. Like, we're believers, you know our time. What happens behind closed doors stays behind

closed doors. That was a lot of issues when I played in Atlanta, but you wouldn't really know it. Because we didn't air our dirty laundry. So you guys have got to know, stay professional and keep your stuff behind clothes doors. Yes, say what you feel. So you don't think her teammates, you think her teammates were wrong or right because they clearly seemed like their feathers were ruffled and kind of barked back.

I think they felt like once she was able to say how she said it, we're not saying you wrong, Angel, it was just the way you said it. They just went on and said whatever they had to say without caring. So y'all got to get that together. Where's the ownership at? And it also shows you there's a weakness in the locker room because the right vets too would have nipped this in the butt, Would a hat said.

Ross, shameless plug. Once again, to these owners, y'all put the money out, but y'all got to learn basketball. You don't win championships were all young.

You don't win championships with all old. You mix a combination of vets and young. And had you have a good vet, none of it. Hello? Yeah. Angel's still available.

The locker room would be organized and set, not because we're but because we just know how to, it's an aura of respect around. Say what you. feel, but we respect each other while we say what we feel. Absolutely. So that could

have been handled in the locker room. However, it was not for the Chicago Sky. So here's what actually ended up happening. After the article was published, Angel Reese apologized in a post-game press conference publicly. She said, I didn't intentionally mean to put

my teammates down. I want to apologize to my teammates for the article and how it was misconstrued. But after the apology, the Chicago Sky put out a statement denouncing Angel's comments and gave her a half game suspension. So now

they've taken it to the world, out of the locker room, into the world, suspending her not just even for a normal game, for a really interesting half game. And now the question is what do you make of the punishment? Why a half game? Does it de-escalate or escalate the situation? Ross, what is that

a half game? I've never seen that before. And if I'm a 22-year-old and I'm suspended for half game, I'm coming out half-time, like... Because it's like Okay, I was a spin this Here I come, let me wait in half time I'm texting on the phone in the locker

What are we doing? If you punish, just do the game Make your point And let's keep it moving Half game Then I'm coming out with an attitude Because if I'm a 22 Euro I'm gonna come out with an attitude

Well, what is the point of the half game? Is it to make sure she doesn't miss a game On her record or something? I'm like, was there a strategic reason So she could get paid for the game? That's a good question But what is that? Have you ever seen that?

I don't know. suspension? But it felt petty. It felt small. And for me, overall, I just feel like the punishment didn't fit the crime. I feel like this should have been handled in-house and move forward, team meeting and move forward, which were all steps that did happen. They did have a team meeting. Also, Angel Reese did publicly apologize. And like, it was a public misstep and a public apology. I think the fact that she, this is not something that has repeated itself. This is a first-time situation. and she's 23 I kind of feel like

I wouldn't have made it a public suspension I would have just like maybe made a statement that we see it we don't like it you know we've handled it meeting

Angel has is being regarded within the team she's doing certain things and we appreciate the apology boom and move forward and instead it escalated it

and so it felt performative you know it felt like and there's a lot of conversation at like, are there different bodies of power positioning themselves within this conversation? That's what it looks like, right, Ross? Absolutely. So let's continue. When her half game suspension was up, Angel was then ruled out for the second half of another game, this time due

to back injury. So, the tea is hot. It's messy. I don't know what's happening in Chicago. So postgame, Tyler Marsh's comments on Angel's back felt like they weren't telling the whole story. And this isn't the first time that this happened. She reported it to us during pregame. And so, you know, in conjunction with the medical staff, angel medical staff, it was, we ought to be as cautious as possible. So that was the decision.

First of all, he said, like, it sounded like he threw under the bus a little, like, she reported this to us before the game. Like, he don't believe in the injury. I'm going to need coach, you to come up. Hey, we talked about it. She has a back injury. Like, where's the confidence? She talked about, like, Chicago, get,

can I cuss on here? Yeah. Chicago. Get your shit together. It's a mess. Has it been a mess since you were playing? I mean, when Kansas was there, the last time I played on Kansas was there, it seemed like a beautiful organization.

They were just figuring out practice facilities, but they won a championship. They won a championship, but there have been a number of players who have axed their way out of there. Sylvia Fowles, Elena Del Don, Marina Mabry, Collier Copper. So it is interesting.

But just to continue to finish, this up earlier this season though she was out for an extended period of time with the back injury like she missed seven straight games with the back injury actually she on august 21 the sky played at the liberty it was just her second game returning back from the back injury and she was so she had been so happy about coming back talking about i love the game and actually that game was interesting because she and camilla cardoso combined for 43 points 25 rebounds and the sky shocked the Liberty at Barclay Center and win. So, I mean, it was triumphant for them.

So pre-game of that game, like I'm there. I'm the color commentator for the Liberty. We're in the media scrum, and she speaks to us before the game. And she shared this answer that I thought was interesting, and I got it on tape. The question was, what did you learn or what are you taking from your second year in the WNBA? Let's listen. Put myself first. Prioritask myself.

This is a business. And I had to learn to put myself first. second year in the league. I probably didn't do that last year and just try to go out there and play through every damn thing. And I can't always do that. I have to prioritize myself.

And when everybody else wants me out there, I can't do that. Oh, Lord. We got to work on how we just, how we sound, right? Hey, guys, I'm working, you know, just to be a better teammate. I want to get healthy for my teammates.

You know, I want to play an Olympic team this year. So I'm really working hard. And just prioritizing a lot of things. Boom. Does that sound a little different, but it's still the same, but it sounds a little better. It's just, Angel, we got to work on just how we deliver. And call me because Carl Ross, we, like, our vets are here to help. You know what I'm saying?

I know you got the PR people and they just do the brand thing. They try to get the money and all that. But when it comes to imaging and how you basketball talk and how to be a leader, like, call us. Because we'll tell you how to phrase this stuff and the aura that needs to be behind it. Yeah. I mean, what I make of this is that there's just a lot of tension mounting in the Chicago Sky. On both sides, there are lessons that could be learned. For the Chicago Sky, they need to be really careful that they don't alienate a fan base that there's a huge fan base that really locks in and taps in for Angel Reese. You want to make sure you stay aligned. They want to make sure they hold themselves accountable as a fan base and kind of move out of this reputation of being a franchise that is playing from behind

and can nurture the growth of young players and also bring in new talent and attract new talent. On Angel's End, this is a learning opportunity. She had many missteps, as we've noted, and delivery, maybe some help from PR where there's a bit more accountability versus finger pointing. There you go. And understanding of delivery of message,

whether the message is true or not. And I think you said something that was valuable. Like, look, when you step exists in a certain pedestal, which angel does, there's certain responsibilities that you absolutely have the agency to decide I'm going to take on or not. I think angels capable of taking it on. Absolutely. I think she can. I don't think she, I think there are many great athletes

who have transcended even their sport and have decided I will take on the responsibility that comes with that. I'll be a role model. I'll be a spokesperson for the team. I'll take the hit. I'll be graceful. There are some that have shied away and said, I'm not the face of this.

Or I'm not no role model. Yeah. I think Angel's capable of stepping up. She's capable. That's such a great point, Ross. She's capable and she has it. We're just going to clean up. young. And like you said, it's just a little missed up. But I want the fans to know it was just

a small mistake. Don't hold this against her for the next 20 years because y'all don't know how to let stuff go. Let it go. Let her learn from this and learn how to be a good leader, like you said. With that, we move on. We'll be back. Coming up, we make our Draft Kings picks of the week. We'll be right back. at home or a protein latte at Tim's. No powders, no blenders, no shakers. Starting at 17 grams per medium latte, Tim's new protein lattes, protein without all the work, at participating restaurants in Canada. Hit pause on whatever you're listening to and hit play on your next adventure. This fall get double points on every qualified stay. Life's the trip. Make the most of it

at Best Western. Visit bestwestern.com for complete terms and conditions. Welcome back to Goodfollow. Today's episode is presented by Draft Kings. It's now time for the Draft Kings pick of the week, presented by Draft Kings. This week, I got my eye on the Aces Sparks matchup. The Sparks need this win to remain in playoff contention. However, we've seen the Aces climb to the two-seed and win 14 in a row, which is why I pick them to come out on top.

My players to watch are Asia Wilson, who set the record this season with 13, 30-point games and counting, and is the force driving the aces win streak. And on the other side, it's Deerica Hamby, who does all of the dirty work, especially in the paint, and has been averaging 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists a game. All right. This segment is presented by Draft Kings.

Draft Kings, the crown is yours. Yee! all right let's get to it some unrivaled talk they got the crown right now they got the money crown they got all that stuff

coming in let's talk money moves in women's basketball world real quick before its first season unrivaled was unrivaled was valued at $35 million

well guess what just before the second season after a second round of funding the league has multiplied its valuation tenfold and now sits at a valuation of $340 million.

Oh, my God. 10x that. Unrivaled has the highest average salary in professional women sports and provides equity to its players. God, dang those first round of players. That equity is tenfold now with a raise across the board for unrivaled staff.

So how can they build on all of this in season two? I mean, first of all, can we start stretching rounds? Are we coming back? Sheesh. I should have taken, I worked on rivaled last season as a broadcaster. I should have taken my premium in equity. Oh, that's not too late.

Not that it was offered. It's not too late. I mean, you're one of the faces of it. But, I mean, this just goes to show you the growth. The brands are there. They're adding more seats to the stadium. Everybody wants to see an arrival in the offseason. Nobody has to really go overseas anymore.

It's just a win-win, man. Paige Beckers will take the court. She's got a contract with them, so that'll be exciting. They plan to travel a game. So that's cool. And that'll be a bigger arena. They're adding seats to their current mainstay flagship arena in Miami, which is huge.

Because that place, they could have fit twice that capacity in there. It was 800 last season. Could they snag in Asia or a Caitlin? It kind of feels with Caitlin Clark now who has officially called it quits on the season. Not quits up. She's out for the season. It's been officially ruled that way. Tough season for her and that she was just injured through it.

Unrivaled seems like the perfect place for her. She's going to have to come back and get in shape. So it could be a really good move. Which would be a perfect place for the investors and the ratings and the views. viewers and all the things. And, you know, as we saw all these WNBA teams going up in valuation, $300 million, $300 million, $200 million, $200 million, all that meant for unrivaled was that the league was raising with it. So you see how a rising tide lifts all boats. But guess what? We'll be here to cover it and discuss it with all of you as our show is coming to an end right now. But we

drop Tuesdays and Thursdays. So definitely come kick it with good follow. She's Angel. I'm Roz. And we'll see you next week. Thank you. Thank you. You know what I'm