HomeStans

Whew, quite a few headlines around the WNBA this week! Today, we discuss:

• Fever vs. Aces series
• Napheesa Collier's comments on WNBA officiating, pay and leadership
• Cheryl Reeve's fines and suspension and noticing those who have not voiced support (looking at you, Nate Tibbetts)
• Dallas Wings' Chris Koclanes is fired
• We find out while recording that Jane Goodall has passed away :( RIP
• Aces vs. Mercury finals match-up

We also mention Chris' good friend, Bonnie Ford and her very profound statement on Collier's statements. Mia mentioned Ford's book "Choosing to Run" about runner Des Linden. It's an AMAZING read. Here's a link to buy: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/choosing-to-run-des-linden/1141726885?ean=9780593186640

Mia is bravely putting her COVID-induced, stuffy voice on display to bring you the latest in 2025 WNBA Semifinals, wild coaching shakeups and why the Jonas Brothers have been dominating WNBA Twitter in the last few days.

Chapters:00:00-Introduction and Game Two Overview

01:26-Phoenix Mercury vs. Minnesota Lynx Recap

04:10-Las Vegas Aces vs. Indiana Fever Analysis

09:36-Coaching Shakeups in the WNBA

13:05-Sandy Brandello's Surprising Firing

23:33-Fashion and Coaching in the WNBA

28:14-Cultural Shifts in Women's Sports

Articles mentioned:

Ben Pickman for the Athletic: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6656968/2025/09/24/new-york-liberty-coaching-candidates-sandy-brondello/Emma Childs for Marie Claire:

https://www.marieclaire.com/fashion/sandy-brondello-new-york-liberty-head-coach-work-style/

And then there were four! Chris and Mia break down the first round of the WNBA playoffs and the winners of Rookie of the Year, Most Improved Player, Coach of the Year and Co-Defensive Player(s) of the Year.

What went wrong with the New York Liberty? How will Mia survive the Seattle Storm getting so close to knocking out the Aces? We answer these burning questions and more!

Happy WNBA Playoffs to all who celebrate <3

In this solo episode, Mia summarizes the first games of the first round of the 2025 WNBA playoffs and what storylines are particularly entertaining about each matchup.

HomeStans will be uploading these shorter playoff recaps throughout the postseason in addition to the usual episodes!

Cheers to the most wonderful time of the year to those who celebrate!

OK.... wow! There are quite a few moving parts with this one. We took a look at the potential outcomes for the Connecticut Sun after their current ownership, the Mohegan Tribe, decided to sell.

Will they stay in Connecticut? Will the WNBA have their cake and eat it too? Are there some bids being made in bad faith? We get into it!

On this week's episode, we dive deep into one of our favorite topics when it comes to the WNBA: the officiating.

While fans, players and coaches complain about the refs in every sport, something feels a little different in the W. We did some digging into how the refs in the league get trained, how the model differs from their male counterparts in the NBA and what's being done to address the issue.

Articles referenced:

• Fever's Cunningham fined again for comments about WNBA refs: https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/46131834/wnba-2025-power-rankings-best-case-scenarios-playoffs-seeding
• How WNBA referees are scouted, trained, and held accountable, explained: https://www.sbnation.com/2025/1/3/24330571/wnba-officiating-referees-womens-basketball-cheryl-reeve-liberty-lynx-caitlin-clark-monty-mccutchen
• WNBA officiating faces scrutiny heading into All-Star break: https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/45740425/wnba-all-star-break-officiating-criticism

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It may be fantasy football draft season, but we wanted an excuse to talk about some of our favorite WNBA players. On this episode of HomeStans, we hold our 2025 (for fun/means nothing/randomly timed) HomeStans WNBA draft.

Who's taking the gold: Team Chris or Team Mia?!

We thought that talking all things WNBA with renowned sports journalist Christine Brennan would be the perfect way to conclude our Book Club series, where we've done a deep dive into her book, "On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports."

We talk about how Iowa—the state and the school—shaped Clark, why the league wasn’t fully prepared for her arrival, her Olympic snub, her approach to covering women’s sports and much more.

Huge thanks to Christine for joining us! You can buy her book here:https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/On-Her-Game/Christine-Brennan/9781668090190

You guys... we didn't even get into half of the things in this book over our three-part series discussing it.

On the third and final installment of our "On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports" book club, we covered Caitlin Clark's first season in the WNBA and the challenges and successes that came with it. We talked pay disparity in the W (and we'll never stop), the significance of chartered flights for player safety and the coaching/player dynamics within the Indiana Fever in the 2024 season.

And for those who want to hear even more about this topic... you will NOT want to miss our next episode. We talk to an EXTREMELY special guest. That episode drops Monday (8/18) morning.

In this episode of HomeStans, hosts Mia Hunt and Christine Selk, dive deeper into Christine Brennan's recent book about Caitlin Clark.

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In the second installment of the Brennan book review, we dig into the three main controversies covered in "On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports." We discuss the hip check, the accidental eye poke and the 2024 Olympic snub, all while relating our discussions back to the complexities of player-media dynamics and the broader implications for women's sports. Just something light!