Chicago Sky and WNBA
Chicago Sky news, scores and features, as well as coverage of the WNBA and women’s college basketball.
“You gotta be scrappy,” Dana Evans said. “You have to have something to you, and I think that’s what makes the group special.”
Under interim coach/general manager Emre Vatansever, the Sky have gone 8-12 with two losing streaks of four games or more.
It’s not that the Sky are playing below their capabilities. This team was not built to be successful. At its best, the Sky could barely make the playoffs. If the season ended today, they wouldn’t.
The Sky (12-20) dropped 1 1/2 games behind the Sparks in the battle for the eighth and final spot in the WNBA playoffs.
We also asked which Bears running back excites you most — Khalil Herbert, D’Onta Foreman or Roschon Johnson — and whether or not the Sky will make the WNBA playoffs.
The result left the Sky (12-19) a half-game behind the Sparks in the battle for the eighth and final playoff spot.
Since interim coach/general manager Emre Vatansever took over for James Wade after his abrupt resignation, the Sky have gone 5-9. Their most recent three-game losing streak has them on the brink of falling out of playoff contention with just 10 games left in the season.
The Cubs co-owner also has an ownership stake in the WNBA’s Sky.
“It’s one of those trades that worked out for both teams,” Mystics GM Mike Thibault said. “Kah has become a focal part of their team, but she still would have looked good in our uniform.”
“We weren’t prepared well, and that is my responsibility,” interim coach/general manager Emre Vatansever said. “I take ownership of that. I could have prepared them well, and I didn’t.”
“Experiences are your best teachers,” Courtney Williams said, “being so close, getting our feelings hurt by the end of the game. We are just going to keep getting our feelings hurt until we figure it out.”
“We forced them to have a high level of communication,” Sky interim coach/general manager Emre Vatansever said. “That shows us in the game that we can talk to each other during huddles, during actions. That was our goal.”
“When you look at the fifth and sixth seeds, you only have three wins [separating us],” coach/general manager Emre Vatansever said. “We’re right there.”
In the Sky’s 12 victories, the bench averaged 20 points while shooting 43.7% and 44% on threes. In their 16 losses, it averaged 17 points, shooting 36% and 27.5% on threes.
This year, Copper’s second act has been even more dominant. Through the Sky’s eight games since the All-Star break, Copper is averaging 24.4 points, and she scored a career-high 37 points against the Aces two weeks ago.
After three straight games eclipsing 100 points, the Sky lost 88-79 to the Lynx.
“I wanted to verbalize that there should never be a situation where her character is misinterpreted or anything involving the past is brought up in a situation that she had nothing to do with,” Elizabeth Williams said.
Hebard will serve her suspension Tuesday as the Sky host the Lynx at 7 p.m.
The teams combined to commit 54 fouls, but it was the Sky (12-15) who maintained an edge in late-game composure and secured a 104-96 victory.
“Hopefully, we opened some eyes to how good it can be and how beneficial it can be for each organization and, most importantly, the community,” Wings president and CEO Greg Bibb said.
For the Sky — a team who, if the season ended today, would just narrowly make the playoffs — a trade should, at the very least, be a consideration.
“We need to take care of business,” interim coach/general manager Emre Vatansever said. “We play Seattle and Los Angeles on the road now. That’s our focus.”
Beyond the 2023 season, there’s nothing but uncertainty regarding Copper’s status in Chicago unless the Sky can sign her to a deal.
While the Sky puts off addressing the two of the most critically important roles to a professional sports franchise — coach and general manager — questions about their roster only grow more concerning.
Dana Evans led the Sky with 23 points, shooting 7-for-11 from the field, including 4-for-6 from three-point range. Marina Mabrey added 19 points and Alanna Smith 14.
“You always take the call,” Chatman told the Sun-Times. “But I’m also not chasing a chair.”
The Sky (11-15) shot 55.1% overall and 58.3% from three-point range and finished with 24 assists on 38 field goals.
In her first season with the Sky, Mabrey entered Friday averaging career highs across the board, putting up 14.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 29.8 minutes.
Taurasi hit the mark with 8:23 remaining in the third quarter against the Atlanta Dream on Thursday night.
Friday marks 11 weeks since Harrison had surgery to repair a tear in her left meniscus, which the Sky’s new forward said came out of left field.
Smith leads the Sky in rebounds per game, averaging 6.8, to go with her 9.5 points and 1.6 blocks.
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