Recap: ESPN’s Big Three Shine in Disney+'s "Vibe Check"

Vibe Check, the latest series from Disney+ and ESPN, promises sports discussion where women will be front and center. The show stars a trio of voices affectionately known as ESPN’s “Big Three": Elle Duncan, Chiney Ogwumike, and Andraya Carter—probably best known for their work covering the WNBA.

The Vibe Check set is not the standard studio desk design; rather, it features a large sofa and armchairs more familiar to afternoon talk shows. Elle helps set the tone igniting various discussions among her co-hosts. She is an adept host who displays an authenticity here that is welcoming and seems up for just about anything. In this first episode, she inexplicably ends up doing a set of pushups—but more on that later.

The trio starts the show with a segment called “Three Big Things," the first being a discussion of Candace Parker’s WNBA jersey #3 retirement ceremony during the weekend’s game between the Los Angeles Sparks and the Chicago Sky. “Three" would pop up quite a bit during the debut. Chiney hypes up Parker’s legendary career on the court, offering her impressive stats, while Andraya builds on the accolades with additional facts about her performance before focusing on her leadership and evolution into an entrepreneur. As they discuss her impact on the current generation of WNBA players, the conversation flows naturally into a breakdown of the impressive weekend performances by current stars Angel Reese and A’ja Wilson.

I appreciated Andraya’s pacing—laying out their stats with enthusiasm to match the high-energy clips we were seeing, yet with enough distinction that I could absorb the impressive numbers she cited. Then, the three put the performances in context during a quick-paced, yet not frenetic, conversation. And thankfully, it wasn’t yet another debate fest (that would have killed the vibes). That’s not to say I don’t anticipate the show will have deeper discussions of sports topics, but it is clearly a show designed to let the hosts unpack a topic rather than set each other up for a hot take fest.

Fittingly, the theme of “three" continues with the final item of “Three Big Things." The hosts explore the WNBA’s planned expansion—three new teams: Cleveland, Detroit, and Chicago will join the league before 2030. They discuss the hope that this growth will positively impact player salaries as negotiations approach. They also touch on the potential impact on roster size as the schedule increases. Chiney, having served on the WNBPA, is sure to bring unique insights into the complexities of expansion and negotiation as the WNBA continues to evolve.

The mid-afternoon slot gave the new show the opportunity to break the news of the 2025 WNBA All-Star roster during its June 30th debut. Elle reveals the All-Star starters with a clue-based guessing game between her co-hosts. The one who guesses the most names correctly wins—leaving the loser to drop and do five pushups. Andraya is so quick to guess—so quick, in fact, that Elle’s “dad jokes" within the clues don’t get to shine as much as they should (or should they?). Andraya very quickly jumps ahead 3-0—even beating out Chiney in guessing her own sister. However, Chiney stages an epic comeback to tie the game, and with no tiebreaker in place, she declares Elle is doing the pushups. Elle obliges while her co-hosts discuss the list versus their expectations.

One of the most touching moments of the episode comes when Chiney FaceTimes her sister to tell her, “Congratulations, you’re an All-Star starter." Chiney jokes about not being the “official" messenger, but her sister replies, “Honestly, I prefer this." Watching the sisters celebrate together felt raw and joyful—it even inspired a call to my own sister. There’s something powerful about that bond.

Next, the Big Three sit down with Robin Roberts—not in the comfy studio, but maybe in a large meeting room within the studio complex. With a nod to the show’s title Vibe Check, she shares her perfect vibe: riding in her car listening to her jams, which she explains are R&B or disco. But the trio wants to know how she gets in the zone for early mornings, and Robin shares that Sister Sledge’s We Are Family gets her going when that 3:30 a.m. alarm sounds. She connects with Andraya over meditation. As we are shown highlights from Robin’s career at ESPN’s Bristol campus, she reflects on the culture shock of moving from Atlanta to Bristol in the dead of winter, the gratitude she holds for every opportunity, and her continued drive for more.

Robin opens up about her groundbreaking role as the first Black woman to anchor SportsCenter and the responsibility she felt to perform well to keep the door wide open for others. She describes the fear that accompanied that responsibility and talks about the mission board she created as a child in Mississippi, with the word “success" boldly written across it—although misspelled. A fun moment comes when Elle, feeling a bit overshadowed by the others—including Robin’s lesser-known bowling accomplishments—defensively lists her own sports achievements.

The Big Three surprise Robin with an album of her ESPN looks. Watching her light up at photos over her storied career—especially the times she calls out various colleagues like Dick Vitale—is pure joy. The women try to get her to reveal the most famous person in her phone, without success, although it seems she tips her hand with a few anecdotes about Michelle Obama and President Obama. She even recounts the challenge of interviewing him while his views on same-sex marriage were under the spotlight and she wasn’t out yet.

The show wraps with a namesake segment: “Are You Vibin’?" Elle asks three questions, with Chiney and Andraya answering simultaneously after a countdown to see whether or not they’re vibin’. Today they were asked by a couple from the sports world, then a pop culture one. They weren’t vibin’ on the WNBA team that surprised them the most—split between Valkyries and Dream—but were totally aligned on the NBA trade that has surprised them the most so far, citing the Celtics’ moves. Finally, “Would you rather have Beyoncé in your group chat or financial advice from Oprah?" It seemed the consensus ended up siding with Chiney’s answer of Beyoncé—explaining she’d just get the financial advice from her, too—but no one seemed eager to make a solid declaration.

Today’s debut of Vibe Check—the second ESPN series exclusive to Disney+—was a celebration of sisterhood. Talented women delivering insightful sports talk with an infectious chemistry that reminded me of the best times with gal pals. It served as an oasis, a comfortable place to step away for a moment from today’s mom stresses and delight in sports with an added layer of women celebrating women.

New episodes of Vibe Check arrive Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays on Disney+. Recently, it’s also been re-airing on ESPN 2.