WNBA fans bemoaned ESPN on Monday for its in-game interview with Indiana Fever coach Christie Sides, with some calling for the move to cease.
With the Fever down 64-61 against the Connecticut Sun early in the fourth quarter, Sides — who is in her second season as Indiana’s head coach — covered her ears to hear the questions being asked while keeping an eye on the action, according to video captured by Awful Announcing.
As the Fever put up two more points at the conclusion of Sides’ interview, some viewers took to X to criticize the timing of the Q&A and what it brings to the programming overall.
“Hate it! @WNBA @espn stop doing this! The fans don’t want it and I know the coaches don’t want to do it!” one user posted.
Another griped, “To me, regardless of sport, these in game interviews are worthless. No coach or player is saying anything earth shattering. It’s intrusive and annoying. Brings nothing to the broadcast.”
“I absolutely hate this. I hated it with the Aces the other day too,” a separate user wrote. “That coach wasn’t feeling it.”
What the user was referring to transpired last week, when Aces head coach Becky Hammon’s in-game exchange ended with an awkward pause following a question.
Hammon, coming off back-to-back WNBA championships with the Aces, later told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that she experienced difficulty hearing broadcasters Tiffany Greene and Debbie Antonelli.
“I didn’t hear the question. I heard the first one and then there was just this man super loud in my ear,” Hammon said. “There was no guy on the call. I couldn’t hear [Greene and Antonelli] at all.”
Monday was a rough night for the Fever in every facet, with Indiana dropping its fourth straight game in the 88-84 loss.
Prized rookie Caitlin Clark, the No.1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, earned a technical foul after yelling at officials over a steal by the Sun’s Alyssa Thomas.
“A little frustration of how the game was reffed. But it is what it is. That’s out of your control. I thought our team put ourselves in position to make some plays to try and win down the stretch and the Sun always came up with big plays,” Clark said postgame.
The Seattle Storm (1-3) host the Fever on Wednesday.
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