Just a couple of weeks ago, many were prepared to hit the panic button on the Chicago Sky. A popular preseason favorite, the Sky quickly found themselves toward the bottom of the league standings after a seven-game losing streak dropped them to 2-7.

On the outside, the record and injury list provided reason for alarm. But within the team, there was no panicking. For James Wade and his players, it was always about the next game.

The Sky found solace in the 2020 Connecticut Sun, who started the season 1-6 only to storm back and knock Chicago out of the playoffs. The Sun were an example that a slow start doesn’t define a team, and especially one that’s missing key players on the floor in Candace Parker, Allie Quigley and Stefanie Dolson.

“That was an example for us, like hey, we still got a lot of season left,” said Wade, Chicago’s head coach and general manager. “Let’s recommit ourselves to what we want to do, let’s get healthy, let’s not press the panic button, try not to rush people back. Let’s take our time and try to learn, just try to win the next one. We just started focusing on the next game.”

It helped that the Sky weren’t getting blown out during their losing streak. Every loss but one was by single digits and two went to overtime. Those close games undoubtedly prepared the Sky for what came next.

Chicago’s offense has been off the charts during its current seven-game win streak. With their 91-68 win over the Liberty on Thursday night, the Sky set a new franchise record for consecutive wins. In two weeks, the Sky have gone from the bottom of the WNBA standings to fourth place at 9-7.

During this most recent stretch, the Sky are averaging 90.7 points per game compared to just 76 points through the first nine games of the season. They’re also shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from the 3-point line as opposed to 38.3 percent from the field and 31.5 percent from beyond the arc to start the season.

The Sky are also taking far better care of the ball with Parker and Quigley back in the mix. Chicago is averaging 23.7 assists and just 13 turnovers in its last seven games, a dramatic shift from the 17.3 turnovers they were committing per game in the early portion of the season.

“You have all these pieces that complement each other, and if you take a few of those pieces away, you’re left more empty,” Wade said. “The shooting percentages, the turnover numbers that went down are attributed to having 90 percent of our roster here.”

The Candace Parker effect

The Sky are 8-0 this season when Parker is on the floor. Parker’s elite ability to make plays and demand a defense’s attention creates opportunities on the court that otherwise wouldn’t be there. She is a true generational talent who’s capable of playing any position and she has one of the greatest minds in the game. Simply put, it’s no wonder the entire game plan changes when she is on the court.

Chicago plays through Parker and she touches the ball on nearly every possession. Parker has the size and skill set to get the ball off the glass, push it herself and initiate offense, forcing opponents to pay attention to her at all times.

.@Candace_Parker was on 🔥 last night!

Vote for your favorite #skytown players for @ATT @WNBA All-Star 2021 ⭐️

➡️ https://t.co/infK4rwjzh pic.twitter.com/nXAxks09dO

— Chicago Sky (@chicagosky) June 23, 2021

A basketball great like Parker can make her teammates better and increase their confidence.

“She’s won at every level, she’s carried a team on her shoulders,” Wade said. “It makes all of our other players think that they have the potential to be great or that they are great, and it puts them on a level of comfort knowing that a player like her has their back.

“You look at players that have influenced the game and changed the game like she has, they make you have to guard them differently and change your whole game plan. She is a playmaking 5, for the most part, that handles the ball. There’s just no way you can prepare for that.”

Ruthy Hebard’s emergence

One of those players operating with a ton of confidence right now is Ruthy Herbard. The second-year forward was thrust into a bigger role earlier in the season because of the Sky’s depleted roster and delivered while playing nearly 28 minutes per game.

Hebard’s offense was crucial in Chicago’s fifth-straight win over the Sun on June 19 when she made a couple of buckets in the fourth quarter to seal the Sky’s 91-81 win. The forward finished with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor.

A positive outcome of the early season struggles is that players like Hebard got valuable in-game experience, giving Chicago more quality depth options when the results matter even more later in the season.

“Ruthy stepped up big. I don’t know if she could do that if she didn’t play as much as she did during the earlier part of the season,” Wade said. “It helps their confidence, it helps the team’s confidence in them. Now that we have a few of our leaders back, it’s only going to make for a deeper team and makes us more versatile.”

Allie Quigley, bench star?

Allie Quigley has been a steady and consistent force for the majority of her career in Chicago. It is no surprise the Sky were hurting without her veteran leadership, calming presence and scoring ability.

During the seven-game win streak, Quigley has been the Sky’s leading scorer, averaging 14.3 points per game on 49 percent shooting from the field and 49 percent from the 3-point line.

Q shooting through ALL of the traffic. 🔥@alliequigley | #skytown

⭐️: https://t.co/infK4rNUqP pic.twitter.com/GDVQE3PPqe

— Chicago Sky (@chicagosky) June 24, 2021

And Quigley has been doing it all while coming off the bench. Wade’s strategy to have her be a part of the rotation is not something all three-time All-Stars would embrace.

“Allie is special. It doesn’t change when we play her or where we play her from, we’re going to play for her. Our offense is going to be predicated on her,” Wade said. “It is easier for us to put her in there and run plays for her after the game has changed a little bit.”

The X-factor: Free throws

Here is a stat we don’t talk about enough: Free-throw numbers. The Sky are the best free-throw shooting team in the WNBA, finishing 87.2 percent of those shots this season. Quigley leads the way, shooting 95 percent from the line during the Sky’s seven-game win streak.

During their win streak, the Sky are getting to the line nearly twice more per game. That might not seem like a huge deal, but over the course of the season, that efficiency and consistency can help push a team over the edge. The Sky’s ability to knock down free throws will help them secure close games down the stretch.

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.