Retired WNBA legend Tina Charles shares who to watch in FIBA World Cup

0:00WNDA legend Tina Charles retired in May after a 15 year career as a player but wasted no time getting back in the game. She is breaking down the action as a studio analyst with TNT sports for viewers of the FIBO women's basketball world cup. That is underway right now in Berlin and she joins us now. Welcome. Well, thanks considered. Thank you. Thank you for having me. So you asked us off to a dominant start clinched a ticket to the knockout stage yesterday with big win against Chakia, what is standing out to you? Who is standing out to you? For me, it's just the team in its entirety, right? Like I think they're in a really good space or place. What I like is that we've seen different versions of this team already. Like we've seen them dictate games with their pace, depth and defense, but we all feel seen them have to grind one out. That Italy game tested them and then you saw how they responded against Chakia. To me, that's what you want going into single elimination. Like you know, you can win when everything is going well, but now you also know you can win when it's not. What are you seeing from other teams? What other countries are standing out to you?

1:00The other team that stood out to me is definitely France and just the way they're able to play at a high level. Gabby Williams leading that team. But just the fact that she's able to lead the team consistently, they're able to play at a high level. There's no drop off regardless of who's in the game. You have Dominique Malonga, you have Marine, Joe Hannes. They have a three-headed monster over there and they're sniffing out gold. You know, I think they're ranked number one right now over USA. So it was really great to see how the gap is closing and I think it's just really great for women's sports, for women's basketball fans alike. One of the interesting things with a tournament like this is how quickly a team can gel, right? These are all standout players in the WNBA playing on their own teams. There's been a lot of high level competition in the WNBA this year. There's been a lot of tension. Are you seeing any of that affect them as teammates? Or do you feel like they're clicking? No, I feel like they're clicking. I mean, you have to know when you're playing for USA, you have to redefine what a good game is, right? Like who you are to your WNBA team may only be needed for five to ten minutes.

2:04And so you definitely have to check your ego. You have to become a complete player. It's sometimes uncomfortable because only one or two players get to have their normal role and play the way that naturally that they play. Yeah. As we get into the knockout round, who's one player we should keep an eye on that you think is the key to success for USA? One player to keep an eye on and this tough. You can do two or three. All right. Two. Yeah. I will say Brianna Stewart, who's a stabilizer for USA, who does a lot of things outside of scoring with her leadership, facilitating running the floor hard, defense rebounding. She's just an all around player. And I'll say Jackie Young. She's been the most dependable player for USA, the most consistent when you need a big moment, when you need that rebound. The way she's able to attack closeouts, you know, her game doesn't depend on just one thing. Chelsea Gray, who's the leader of the team and just the big charge that she took against Italy, just sacrificing her body. It just really shows that it's all about just making place that impact winning.

3:07And you can't forget the young intern crew, as they call themselves coming off the bench and keeping pace high and changing the energy. Every person on that team matters, regardless if you play five minutes or zero minutes, right? It's the energy you're coming with when the players are coming off the floor and imploding them and making sure that everybody's locked in. Everybody has a role. Specifically, we started the conversation talking about how people have different roles on a team like this than they would normally with all the focus on Caitlin Clark, not being on the Olympic roster, being on this roster. What has caught your eye about her role on the team? What's caught me eye about Caitlin Clark is just her poise. You know, being when she comes in as the point guard, just the attention that she draws just because of her shooting range, but how she's able to use that attention to create for others and her teammates around her. But, you know, she's a great player. She plays at a high level. She holds herself to a very, very high standard. And as I've said it before, it's not fair to isolate her from USA basketball with what she does and what the team is doing. It's all about the one. That's what's so special about USA is that it's not about bringing your name.

4:12Tina Charles is among many other things, a three time Olympic gold medalist and the WNBA's all time leading rebounder. She's covering the FIBA World Cup for TNT. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you for having me.