12:33 AM ET
ESPN staff
As if the already entertaining slate of games at the 2023 NCAA women’s Final Four needed any additional charm, Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi provided quite the viewing experience Friday of the two semifinal games.
The two WNBA legends welcomed a bevy of stars to “The Bird and Taurasi Show” during the No. 3 LSU Tigers 79-72 win over the No. 1 Virginia Tech Hokies and the No. 2 Iowa Hawkeyes 77-73 upset of the No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks.
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First up was former NBA player and current North Carolina A&T golfer JR Smith. They touched on topics ranging from his college curriculum and even threw it back to his days at the McDonald’s All American Game. Smith broke down how Carmelo Anthony and his high school coach, who happens to be current UConn Huskies men’s basketball head coach Dan Hurley, influenced his decision to go to the NBA.
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2:18
JR Smith opens up about decision to skip college and jump to the NBA
JR Smith talks about the 48 hours after the McDonald’s All American Game during which he decided to not attend UNC and jump straight to the NBA.
Then, rapper and LSU fan Lil Wayne hopped on and said that a collaboration with Flau’jae Johnson could be coming sooner rather than later.
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Lil Wayne looking to ‘connect musically’ with LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson
Lil Wayne explains that Kim Mulkey has attempted to connect him with LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson for a music collaboration.
They also welcomed Seimone Augustus and Sheryl Swoopes to discuss the new realities of college basketball.
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Sheryl Swoopes weighs in on how NIL affects college sports
Sheryl Swoopes explains that NIL deals have blurred the lines between collegiate and professional sports.
The first game was rounded out with Louisville Cardinals star Hailey Van Lith opening up about her “Viking Princess” nickname.
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Hailey Van Lith reacts to ‘Viking Princess’ nickname
Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird ask Hailey Van Lith how she feels about her nickname.
Current UConn Huskies stars Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd stopped by to open up the second game of the night and voiced their approach to slow down Caitlin Clark.
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How would Paige Bueckers defend Caitlin Clark?
Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd, Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi break down how they would defend Iowa star Caitlin Clark.
Later, Lisa Leslie talked about the future of college basketball with Juju Watkins’ decision to play for the USC Trojans.
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Lisa Leslie hopes Juju Watkins can turn USC around
Lisa Leslie shares why she chose to play at USC and her hopes that Juju Watkins can turn the program around.
Doris Burke was the final guest of the night. She and Taurasi broke down Clark’s historic 41-point performance in real time.
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What makes Caitlin Clark special?
Doris Burke and Diana Taurasi analyze Caitlin Clark’s greatness during her performance against South Carolina.