Kelsey Plum Wanted More Smoke With Spike Lee After Aces Loss to Liberty
The Las Vegas Aces are now down 1-0 during their WNBA Semifinals (and 2023 WNBA Finals rematch) series against the New York Liberty after losing 87-77 on Sunday.
It was a thrilling game between two star-studded teams in front of an energetic crowd at Barclays Center. Perhaps the most notable fan in attendance was New York icon Spike Lee, who has built a sort of mid-game rapport with Liberty star guard Sabrina Ionescu.
While Lee and Ionescu had another courtside interaction during Sunday's game, Lee was also seen speaking with her opponent as a clip of Lee sharing some words with Aces standout guard Kelsey Plum caught a lot of attention on social media.
Kelsey Plum and Spike Lee jawing 😂😭 pic.twitter.com/bia3ebWjzg
— Women’s Hoops Network (@WomensHoops_USA) September 29, 2024
Since there wasn't audio of what appeared to be trash talk between Lee and Plum, there was no way of knowing what was said.
That is, until Plum spoke out about the exchange during the Aces' postgame press conference.
When asked about the interaction, Plum turned toward Aces head coach Becky Hammon next to her and appeared to ask if she knew what was said. When Hammon said she didn't, Plum turned back to the microphone and said, "I can't say exactly what was said, but I told him that he should talk louder," per Sara Jane Gamelli.
"But it was all well and fun, and it's really cool that he's here. Even last round was really cool that he was here," Plum continued. "I know he's a big sports fan, so it says a lot that he's in the building and that he respects the game. And so yeah, I was just having fun."
Kelsey Plum on her sideline chatter with Spike Lee
— Sara Jane Gamelli (@SaraJGamelli) September 29, 2024
“I can't say exactly what was said, but I told him that he should talk louder. But it was all well and fun and really cool that he's here, even last round was really cool. I was here. I know he's big sports fan.”@Ballislife pic.twitter.com/scorK01EFd
Plum wanted to hear even more from Lee during Sunday's game. Perhaps he'll take that feedback to heart during the Aces and Liberty's next matchup on Tuesday.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.