Stay ConnectedSheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby sit down for real conversations with powerful women about what it takes to be at the top of their game and the best at their craft. They discuss the hard work, the obstacles, and how life sometimes has its own plans while you’re busy working on your own.
Swoopes and Tee know first-hand there are levels to the sh*t women go through, and have no problem going there.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby get ready for a WNBA Finals that will crown a first-time champion, regardless of who takes it home. The Golden State Valkyries take on the Atlanta Dream. How did a second-year expansion team make it all the way to the top? And what happens when the league’s best defense runs into Angel Reese and an Atlanta team that hasn’t lost a game all postseason? Neither host is ready to pick a winner, but Sheryl wants this series to go seven, and Terrika needs it over before Halloween. Before signing off, Sheryl gets personal with a plea to listeners, especially Black men, to stop putting off doctor visits and go get checked.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby start with their guilty pleasures: Sheryl's 2 a.m. poker session and Terrika's roulette night in Vegas. Then guilty takes on a whole new meaning in the Street Level segment. From there they turn to the WNBA playoffs, from the Lynx's early exit to Dallas's turnaround, before getting into why Indiana's drama is STILL the story even with the Fever eliminated. They dig into Amber Cox's statements and why it turned Kelsey Mitchell's restrained but painful exit interview into a heartbreaking moment. They also run through who's left in the WNBA playoffs—because we're not going to let non-basketball drama take us off of the WNBA beat.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby break down who showed up in the first round of the WNBA playoffs and who didn't. Sheryl, a three-time MVP, talks about what it means for MVP candidates like A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart to perform in the postseason, and the duo discuss Olivia Miles' adjustment to her first playoff series and Angel Reese's defense. They also go through their awards ballots, share picks for Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player, and close with a mantra about making decisions based on where you're going--regardless of who might hate it when you get there.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby are joined by two of their Sigma Gamma Rho sorors: award-winning director Okema T. Moore, a three-time American Black Film Festival winner, and producer Nicole "Sassy" Harrison, who went from offering to fetch Okema's coffee to a full IMDb page and VFX credits in a single year. They get into Love Zuri, the festival favorite that brought them together, and What Kim Saw, a vertical thriller made for Juicy Shorts, a new Black woman-owned streaming platform. Okema explains why she refused to use AI to create an AI character, why Black women need sponsors and not just mentors, and how she walked away from a six-figure Wall Street job at 36 to chase this dream. She also opens up about living fully out loud, including calling off her wedding two months out: "I said I don't 'cause I knew I didn't." Plus, Terrika gets ready for her last-ever Connecticut Sun broadcast, and Okema gives Sheryl her flowers.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby are joined by Naismith Hall of Famer Van Chancellor, the Houston Comets head coach who won the WNBA's first four championships (1997–2000), was named Coach of the Year three straight times, and coached Sheryl for a decade in Houston and to Olympic gold in 2004. Van talks about the Comets' return to Houston, how he'd build a contender today, and why managing three superstars was 80% of his job. The admiration runs both ways: Van calls Sheryl possibly the greatest small forward ever, and Sheryl tells him he made her a better human, not just a better player. And after two years of Terrika trying to get dirt on Sheryl, Van finally delivers it, from her shopping habits to her Coke-and-Snickers pregame meal.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby break down Cathy Engelbert's retirement announcement, timed to slip out while the media's attention was on FIBA in Berlin (nice, Cathy!), and run through the names being floated to replace her. They also dig into Team USA's uneven start at FIBA, including the ugly shooting night against Italy. The duo saves their sharpest words for Linda Cohn, who suggested A'Ja Wilson was intimidated by Caitlin Clark before flipping her stance entirely, and Sheryl and Terrika don't hold back on media members rendering opinions on a sport they aren't actually qualified to be talking about.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby cope with the fact that Athletes Unlimited basketball is paused for 2027. It's a bummer! They also weigh in on DeWanna Bonner signing with the Dream (LOVE it) for another title run, and turn to the ridiculous criticism of A'ja Wilson's and Kelsey Plum's stepping away from FIBA. What's with people still scrutinizing players' personal needs? No is a complete sentence. Take the note: FIBA break is a break, and Terrika means it.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby set the table for the playoffs: all eight teams are in, but the seeding fight is where it gets interesting, and a potential Atlanta–Indiana matchup has both of them poppin' popcorn. They get into Angel Reese's 26 rebounds (breaking Chamique Holdsclaw's 23-year-old record), why Minnesota is Terrika's pick to win it all, and who's got the most to lose in the first round. The duo also opens their early awards ballots — A'ja Wilson for MVP, Olivia Miles for Rookie of the Year, Janelle Salaün for Sixth Player of the Year — and a true toss up for Coach of the Year. Before tip-off, they shout out Natasha Cloud, check in on Gary, Indiana, and say goodbye to THE Dolly Parton.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby sit down with Shaniqua McClendon, Senior Vice President of Political Strategy (you heard that "senior" here first) at Crooked Media, for a conversation that is equal parts eye-opening and unfiltered. It's primary season and we've still got a long way to go until November. The trio digs into what sustainable civic engagement looks like for Black women who are... exhausted. Shaniqua doesn't hold back on what accountability must look like in a post-Trump America — and spoiler: somebody needs to go to prison.
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On this episode of Levels to This, Sheryl Swoopes and Terrika Foster-Brasby take issue with the people driving the "WNBA is Drama" storyline—even though they seem like they've never even watched a game. That includes the manufactured debate about transgender women "taking over" a league that hasn't had one in 30 years. Terrika shares a personal story and the receipts on how few trans athletes exist anywhere in sports. They also break down DiJonai Carrington's ejection, the history behind the "white privilege" post that followed, and why outside uneducated commentary is fueling an already lit fire. Sheryl and Terrika keep coming back to the same thing: the basketball stories are piping hot and not enough people are talking about them.
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