LaChina Robinson
Appearances
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
It's so good to see you. It's great to see you. You look fabulous. Thank you. You too. Always suited and booted. I'm trying.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
It's one of my favorites. I don't want to age myself, but this is my 23rd straight Final Four. What? Yes.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I don't know. I don't know. It means I'm old. Because Gino Auriem is in his, oh, straight.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
You've seen a whole lot of G's in 23 straight. Yeah, I have, actually.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
But that means I've seen Tampa a number of times as a Final Four venue or site. And I actually was reminiscing with Candace Parker in the lobby of the hotel where Tennessee won in 08. Yeah. Over Stanford. I was there. That was the Candace Wiggins era. Yes.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Oh, yes.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And I was asking her, I was like, do you remember? Because she said, I don't remember anything about the city, but I remember everything about the game itself. And I was like, really? She said, no, I don't remember hotels, data, anything like nothing feels familiar to me. But I said, so you remember everything in the Stanford game?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
She was like, more so the LSU game because the Stanford game wasn't that close.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I was like, oh, y'all already controlled the whole time? Candace always has jokes. I'm going to have to get her for that one. But you want to see the difference?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
They used to do that. I don't know if they still do the dinner. They don't. They bring all the teams, the four teams together and have a night, have a dinner. That used to be, that was fire. I was on the red carpet for a few of those. Oh, really?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
diana's the only player men's or women's that makes me a little nervous oh colby bryant too yeah and i'm always a little bit goofy you know what no diana's so different off the court than she is on i know yeah i mean i've had i've interviewed her a few times and i'm always just blown away by how nice she is she's like thanks so much i appreciate you and i'm like
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
It's just the same monster that shows up on the court and is like, you know, acting a fool. But yeah, she's actually really sweet off the court.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Well, I honestly wish it was more competitive. Yeah. You know, the fact that it was a 30-point game at the end, I just did not necessarily see that coming. But I did feel like UConn was playing very well coming in. So I'm not surprised at all that they won, even though I'm always going to stay true to my bracket. I did pick South Carolina to win.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Um, but what I was thinking, you mentioned all the Yukon alum and I ran into Asia Jones and Tamika, Tamika Raymond, Williams, Jetter. Don't kill me, Tamika. Tamika Williams. Um, and I was just thinking about like how dominant they were and the level of excellence they played with on the court. And I think Tamika Williams shot like 70 for syphilis. Like they never missed a layup.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Swing cash is not here, but obviously she was on that same Soonberg. And I haven't seen that version of Connecticut, not even the 2016 Stewie last championship, like their last championship. I haven't seen that level of excellence from Connecticut since then. And there have been a lot of questions, including myself. Could they get back there? Right.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Like everyone's like, oh, you know, I've been doing this a long time. You know, I don't know. Connecticut's regime may have gone, even though they were still getting to the final fours. the championship is still the standard.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
But the way this team played reminded me of a lot of those old teams where they were winning three in a row and, you know, just winning championships every other year from the early 2000s, really through 2010 or 2016 when Stewie was done. But, yeah, so it was very interesting. Yeah. And to see that level of excellence with the UConn Huskies team again.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Yeah, I mean, the precision timing on the cuts, the screens. I thought the screening action in particular was tough for South Carolina early, like whether they were going to switch or try to chase. Like they were very good with the timing of their screen so that they got a lot of mismatches and were able to take advantage of that. But yeah, their defense was really good too.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And in the first half in particular, I thought where their defense stood out to me was in the paint. South Carolina had some opportunities right around the rim that I thought could have helped them momentum-wise in the first half. And they were missing shots with two feet in the paint. And you got to give a lot of credit to Sarah Strong. Because I often have to recheck her height.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I think she's 6'2". Yeah. And she was battling it out. While Dawn has a full rotation of posts she can put in the game who are obviously tough, scrappy, can get on the glass. Joyce Edwards included coming off of the bench tonight, Fagan starting.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
chloe but she was contesting a lot of shots in the paint and um taking away those easy buckets for south carolina in the first half i thought was key so to your point yukon's defense was also just very effective okay i want to hear your thoughts on this because yukon had an incredible game from az fun who was great in tampa and i also think paige while she didn't shoot great was highly impactful
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Someone else said that. Someone else said that to me because the game ended and Don't forget she had 22 points in the game. I think she had a high scoring game in the game before. Yeah. And as did AZ. And when the game ended, someone who I was sitting with was like, oh, Sarah Strong's the most outstanding player. And I was like, really? I thought it was AZ's fud.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And I think it could have gone either way. Either way. First of all, a freshman performing at such a high level. I mean, the poise, the toughness. I am blown away by her. Yeah. Period. Point blank. But what I think it was with AZ and Roz, you've had injuries as a player. So you get this part of it.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
She started to trust her body on defense and we can look at points all day long, which she's a sharpshooter. She can score, you know, she's starting to get that timing in with her shot. But she was taking risks on defense. She was lunging. She was in the passing lanes.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
You know, she was picking players like she was trusting her body to really move in a way on the on defense that gave that team a lot of momentum. And those were the things that maybe most people saw. I know I saw in in voting her, you know, the most outstanding player. But honestly, it could have gone. I thought it could have gone either way.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Did she take after Allison a little bit? Like, be sure her mom... She does.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
You keep it, but on the surface, she gonna give you the straight. Right. And I see...
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
But, you know, so that was something that stood out to me. Shout out to Allison, who was one of my childhood heroes. I wanted to go to Harvard because of her. And the fact that we text now during games and stuff, I'm like, I can't believe that I get to
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And so that was only was it that he heard it was respect for the for the the parity. And that's a great point, Roz, because I do agree with you that it's been injuries that have been in the way of UConn somewhat. But it's also that everyone else in the country has gotten better. Right. There's more parity. There are more teams competing.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
UConn wasn't just getting every All-American out of high school like they used to at some point. And so I think you do have to consider that.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I agree. And the game has grown even in terms of the styles of play we see, right? And this is nothing against the teams of old because we wouldn't be here without the foundation that the teams have had success way back to the AIAW days and
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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The La Tech days and the Western Kentucky, like all those teams that you don't hear as much about that have been a part of the growth of college women's basketball over time. But yes, Dallas, the game just seems like there's closer contest. There's more parity. There's more talent going to different places. There's, to me, more variety in style of play.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
You know, we've got YouTube and technology that's grown in terms of how these players are training and how they're preparing their bodies and minds for college.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Yeah.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And so you love to see it. And you're absolutely right. It makes it much harder now to have that kind of dominance. Tennessee, obviously, that goes without saying.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
There's just not enough positive words to say about Paige as a player or as a person. We have just watched her blossom her game on the court through the resilience of the injuries, through the perseverance. We've watched her become a spokeswoman in the face of the game of college women's basketball. But I think what I learned
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
in this year in particular, really this stretch of games in the NCAA tournament and in the postseason, is that Paige has the ability to rise to the occasion. There were questions about whether or not she was WNBA ready because she doesn't shoot enough and she's a pass first and does she take over enough? All those conversations that we have about great players.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And I don't know that people were giving her the grace of what she was working back from with injury. But she showed us that she can shoot that thing. Like she can score the ball and under duress, in crunch times, in big games.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
So I just love that she took center stage and the story couldn't have ended more perfectly for her journey with all that she's been through than to have a national championship.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
Me and Paige have nothing in common. I can't shoot, okay? So I don't know where Ross is going right now. No, no, no.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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Well, first of all, thank you so much. I appreciate all those kind words, but You know, I said I've been to 23 straight Final Fours, and what I can say is the journey was lonely in those early years because I didn't see a lot of people that looked like me in the room.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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Even Gino Auriemma commented in his presser, and he was like, I don't know that I've ever seen this many women in the room at a Final Four, and he's obviously been in a lot of them. And so it really came from a passion for wanting more diversity in the coverage of women's basketball. But also, I know how amazing it has felt to live my dream of covering the sport.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And I want to help more people reach their dreams. It's kind of the way I've always been wired. I am a natural encourager. I just am really always pretty much optimistic and like to help people when they need help.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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And so, you know, starting this program, which is a nonprofit, we just wanted to really target our attention in a small group of women that we can help to elevate and transition into sport broadcasting because it can be lonely. Right. And no one gives you the playbook. And all of our paths are different in terms of how we got here.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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But if I could even just do a little bit to to add to the diversity of the coverage of women's basketball so that the media looks more like the players on the court. Right. That's what we want to see over time. And that's what I wanted to do. So it's really been an honor for me and a blessing to to be a part of the journey of all the women you named and so much more. Yeah.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And yeah, just trying to pay it forward.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
100.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
No, Raj, you're right. This business is very subjective. And You and I both, probably me more than you, have heard so many no's and I've heard a lot of reasons why I don't fit in this world, right? I'm always reminded of all the things I'm not and very rarely was I ever praised for what I was. And so I think it really comes from an inner resilience for sure.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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For me, it's also my faith in God and knowing that no decision that anyone could ever make is going to take me off of my destiny. If a door closes, it was meant to close, right? If a door opens, it was meant to open. Like, you know, people to me are just kind of the conduits of whatever it is that God really wants to do in my life.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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And so when you take that personal out of it, you realize that your journey is already predestined and all you can control is your work ethic. You can work harder than everyone. You can be knowledgeable. And for you and I, when we step into that seat, especially as Black women, we know we have to be excellent.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
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to open the door for the next black woman coming after us or the next woman coming after us. So I carry that burden, if you will, with great pride, as do you have, of showing up and being great. And I take on the challenge. And because we love women's basketball so much, it's easy. Like this is the dream. This is literally a dream for me.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I've always wanted to do this, you know, like to cover women's basketball at the highest levels. And I have at this point. So I am very happy with my career and glad that I can help others find their dream and to, you know, ascend to the places that they dream of being in this business.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
And I will always be here for you.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Good Follow - LaChina Robinson Joins The Show, Uconn Wins NCAA Championship + 2026 Preview, WNBA Mock Draft & More
I'm a phone call away. I'm here for you too. My girl, like my real sister. I know. I love you. I love you too. Thank you for having me. Thank you for coming.