Podcast Summary: How to Give a Sht About Women's Basketball, with Comedian and Super-Fan Morgan Murphy*

Pablo Torre Finds Out – April 12, 2024

Overview

In this engaging episode, host Pablo Torre is joined by Emmy-winning comedian and avid women’s basketball fanatic Morgan Murphy to explore the cultural explosion of women’s basketball, its crossover into mainstream America, and what it feels like to see a once-niche passion become the country’s hottest show. The conversation dives deep into why people are suddenly obsessed with the women’s game, the role of Caitlin Clark as a transcendent star, the complexities of fandom in the social media age, and the challenges and joys of letting new fans into the fold.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Comedy, Gender, and Sports Fandom

• Morgan Murphy opens with reflections on how her comedy blends sports, being a woman, and societal perceptions of age and relevance.
  • “Only women and professional athletes truly know what it's like to be considered irrelevant by 40... if you saw a headline that said ‘still doing it after 40,’ it was about a lady, or Tom Brady.” (03:00, Murphy)
• Pablo remarks on the challenge of making women’s sports interesting to skeptical audiences, a hurdle that’s rapidly vanishing in 2024.
  • “We're trying to tell everybody that we're gonna talk about women's sports and not bore you… Which is a thing that feels more and more plausible to lots of people who never thought that was plausible before.” (01:09, Torre)

2. Morgan’s Basketball Roots & Regrets

• Murphy reminisces about her dream of hoops greatness, regretting not having the “psychotic sports parent” experience (like Azzi Fudd’s dad taping her hand for skill development).
  • “That's my biggest regret in life, is that nobody taped my hand to my body… what would I have been if somebody had?” (05:28, Murphy)
• She shares how discovering comedy eventually replaced her basketball ambitions.

3. The Sudden Popularity of Women’s Basketball

• Pablo and Morgan dissect the experience of longtime fans “suddenly” finding their passion on the biggest stage.
  • “What's it like when the thing that you loved and it felt lonely to love, it suddenly becomes one of the biggest TV shows in America?” (06:39, Torre)
• Murphy compares evangelizing women’s basketball to trying to get friends to try a sandwich for years, only to have them excitedly “discover” it later.
  • “There is that frustration… if you love Caitlin Clark but you don't know who Maya Moore is, that's a tell on yourself.” (07:09, Murphy)

4. Social Media’s Role & The ‘Gentrification’ of a Fandom

• Murphy discusses how social media both amplifies toxicity and exposes more people to the game, making the fandom both more visible and more contentious.
• Pablo likens joining the women’s basketball craze now to the ‘gentrification’ of sports fandom.
  • “I feel like a gentrifier… why am I starstruck meeting Caitlin Clark?” (13:34, Torre)

5. The In-Person Experience – Purity of Fan Passion

• Murphy describes the energy at the Final Four as pure and positive, very different from typical men’s sporting events.
  • “Women's sports in person… imagine going to a football game and everyone you wouldn't want to sit next to isn't there. It's only the people who care.” (15:35, Murphy)
• She shares stories of diehard fans, like an 83-year-old woman who’s attended 20 Final Fours alone.
  • “Helen, next to me on the plane, 83, blissfully unaware… she just, all the attention is just nothing but joyful to her.” (15:37, Murphy)

6. Caitlin Clark and the ‘Steph Curry Effect’

• The conversation delves into why Caitlin Clark has become America’s basketball darling.
  • “Those deep threes… what Steph was to the NBA, those deep threes, a lot of people had not seen that before.” (18:21, Murphy)
  • “No women could do that… in a very literal sense.” (18:32, Torre/Murphy)
• Murphy speculates the next “novelty” moment will involve a woman routinely dunking, triggering another wave of public interest.
  • “Once we have a player who sort of dunks casually, that will be another thing.” (18:41, Murphy)
• The unique media/TV aspect is examined:
  • “There are a couple of ways we can talk about women's basketball. One is, of course, on the level of it as a sport… and the other level is as a TV show.” (09:11, Torre)

7. South Carolina, Dawn Staley, and Dynasties

• Pablo emphasizes not to ignore South Carolina’s dominance and Dawn Staley’s coaching legacy, paralleling her to Nick Saban.
  • “The best coaching job at Dawn Staley… maybe the Nick Saban of like women's college basketball.” (20:19, Torre)
• Murphy recognizes the unique narrative of team greatness vs. individual star power.
• Dawn Staley’s postgame grace:
  • “I want to personally thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport.” (22:17, Staley, quoted by Torre)

8. Race, Representation, and Cultural Tensions

• Pablo and Murphy don't shy away from how race and media narratives intertwine in Caitlin Clark’s rise and Angel Reese’s role.
  • “When the auditorium fills up… you're also going to get people who are, like, really into this because she's white… that's Great White Hope, right?” (27:05, Torre)
• Murphy notes that players can't control who latches onto them:
  • “Caitlyn is not responsible for the noise. Nobody is. Very few people are responsible for the noise that's made about them.” (27:59, Murphy)

9. The Angel Reese Angle & Trolling as Entertainment

• Murphy and Torre praise Angel Reese’s provocative, trash-talking persona and discuss her ability to compartmentalize hate and show up as her authentic self.
  • “I love Angel Reese for this game. I love Caitlin Clark for this game.” (30:16, Murphy)
  • “I'm unapologetically me.” (31:18, Reese clip)

10. Generational Savvy & Media Cynicism

• Murphy notes newer players are more comfortable using media for attention and engagement, while older fans and athletes get caught up in the noise.
• Staley is hailed as a “sage” who leads with “grace and wisdom” in a media circus (32:15).

11. Controversy, Negativity, and Sports Media Nonsense

• Pablo and Morgan skewer the overblown reactions to hypothetical debates and the “empire of garbage” that is sports media.
  • “Sports media is an empire of garbage.” (39:46, Torre)
  • They react to Diana Taurasi’s famous “Reality is coming” for Caitlin Clark entering the WNBA (40:29).
• The conversation identifies a healthy evolution: women’s sports are being discussed with the familiar absurdity previously reserved for men’s sports, measured by debates and hot takes.

12. What’s Next for Caitlin Clark and the WNBA?

• Murphy predicts Indiana is the perfect landing spot, especially teaming with Aaliyah Boston, whose genius will benefit from the new fan influx.
  • “Every single eyeball… following her [Clark] to Indiana and going, wow… is this the Shaq and Kobe? Is this the new thing?” (41:51, Murphy)
• Murphy is excited that conversions will happen: people who tune in for Clark will discover the league’s existing stars.

13. Closing Reflections: Managing the Noise and Joy

• The challenge is staying true to what you love and not being swept up in online drama.
  • “It's actually kind of difficult to just stay the course and remember, I care about this and I love this, and not get involved in the noise.” (44:47, Murphy)
• Pablo admits to feeling starstruck meeting Clark, marveling at the genuine thrills new fans experience for the first time—mirroring what longtime fans have known all along.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Morgan Murphy:

  • “Only women and professional athletes truly know what it's like to be considered irrelevant by 40… we age at exactly the same rate.” (03:00)
  • “Women's sports in person… imagine going to a football game and everyone you wouldn't want to sit next to isn't there.” (15:35)
  • “That's my biggest regret in life, is that nobody taped my hand to my body.” (05:28)
  • “Caitlyn is not responsible for the noise… It’s not like the noise is in reaction to, like, an earnest statement that she's made.” (27:59)
  • “Every single eyeball… following her [Clark] to Indiana and going, wow… is this the Shaq and Cope [Kobe]? Is this the new thing?” (41:51)

• Pablo Torre:

  • “We're trying to tell everybody that we're gonna talk about women's sports and not bore you.” (01:09)
  • “Why am I starstruck meeting Caitlin Clark?” (13:34)
  • “Sports media is an empire of garbage.” (39:46)

• Dawn Staley (via clip):

  • “I want to personally thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport. …She’s going to lift that league up as well.” (22:17)
  • “If you considered yourself a woman or, and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play.” (32:51)

• Angel Reese (via clip):

  • “I'm unapologetically me.” (31:18)

• Diana Taurasi (via clip):

  • “Reality is coming. …There’s levels to this.” (40:29)

• Lynette Woodard (via banquet speech):

  • “I am the hidden figure. But no longer… unless you come with a men's basketball and a two point shot—” (38:47)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Comedy & Sports Fandom: 00:30–03:10
• Basketball Childhood Regrets: 04:40–06:39
• Sudden Popularity / Sandwich Analogy: 07:09–09:18
• TV Perspective & Gentrification: 11:26–14:10
• In-Person Experience: 14:31–17:30
• Caitlin Clark's Phenomenon: 18:02–25:22
• South Carolina & Coaching Greatness: 20:19–22:50
• Dawn Staley’s Speech: 22:17
• Race & Media Narratives: 27:05–29:54
• Angel Reese on Trash Talk & Hate: 29:33–31:34
• Don Staley as a Sage: 32:15–34:24
• “Taurasi vs. Clark/Beckers” WNBA Take: 35:07–37:47
• Sports Media “Garbage”: 39:46–41:02
• Clark Next Steps & Indiana: 41:51–44:32
• Final Reflections: 44:32–46:18

Tone and Language

The episode is witty, accessible, irreverent, and thoughtful—mixing deep fandom with comedic candor. Both Pablo and Morgan are self-aware, blunt, and occasionally profane (“give a shit” is said repeatedly), skewering sacred cows and embracing both the joy and the drama of women’s basketball’s big cultural moment.

For longtime fans, the episode is a cathartic acknowledgment of a community finally being seen. For newcomers, it’s a roadmap—welcoming, if a little wry—of how to join the ride, ignore the trolls, and simply love the game and the women elevating it.