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Why the Chicago Sky’s turnaround is the real deal

(Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)

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.

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.

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.

WSL and WSL2 Clubs Vote in Favor of English League Expansion

Chelsea FC attacker Aggie Beever-Jones celebrates a goal during a 2025 WSL match.
Despite previous proposals, the expanding WSL will not forgo relegation. (Chris Lee - Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

The Women's Super League (WSL) is growing, with the UK league's top two flights deciding in a Monday expansion vote to enlarge its top tier from 12 to 14 teams ahead of the 2026/27 season.

The number of matches played each season will also balloon from 22 to 26 games to accommodate the incoming clubs, as will established cup competitions.

Monday also saw the WSL vote down a prior proposal to temporarily suspend the relegation and promotion process to accommodate this expansion, deciding instead to adopt a "two up, one down" model for the second-tier WSL2 next season.

As such, the top two finishers of the 2025/26 WSL2 season will automatically join the higher-tier WSL, while the WSL's last-place team will battle the WSL2's third-place club in "a high-profile, high stakes match" for the final spot in the top flight.

After reaching 14 teams, both leagues will return to relegating the last-place WSL finisher while promoting the WSL2's top team for the following season.

Along with the increased investment in club infrastructure, a 14-team WSL keeps pace with the global women's game — most notably, the NWSL, which will become a 16-team league in 2026.

"Our priority was to find a route that would benefit the whole women's game pyramid, and we believe this next evolution of women's professional football will raise minimum standards, create distinction, and incentivize investment across the board," said WSL Football CEO Nikki Doucet.

WNBA Teams Offset Injuries, EuroBasket Departures with Short-Term Contracts

Golden State Valkyries rookie Kaitlyn Chen dribbles the ball up the court during a 2025 WNBA preseason game.
2025 WNBA draftee Kaitlyn Chen returned to the Golden State Valkyries to offset EuroBasket roster departures. (Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)

With EuroBasket set to tip off on Wednesday and injuries mounting league-wide, WNBA teams are filling out dwindling rosters with more short-term contracts — and calling back some familiar faces along the way.

While some European standouts withdrew from EuroBasket consideration — including Phoenix's Satou Sabally and Seattle's Gabby Williams — others, like New York's Leonie Fiebich and Golden State's Temi Fagbenle, will join their national teams for the regional FIBA tournament through the end of June.

Due to these planned absences, WNBA teams temporarily suspend their EuroBasket players' contracts, allowing squads to add others to their rosters.

Players signed due to temporary absences are technically on rest-of-season deals, though the agreements can end whenever the missing athletes return.

In contrast, the league requires that teams release any hardship signings due to injury once squads tally enough healthy original players to satisfy the WNBA's 10-athlete roster minimum.

Featuring a lineup stacked with international talent, Golden State made the most transactions this week, temporarily suspending four regular contracts as 2025 EuroBasket stars departed for the annual competition.

To bolster their depleted bench, the Valkyries brought back 2025 WNBA Draft Cinderella pick Kaitlyn Chen and recent training camp participant Laeticia Amihere on short-term contracts, in addition to guard Aerial Powers and forward Chloe Bibby.

Elsewhere, after losing forward Maddy Siegrist to injury and temporarily suspending the contracts of centers Teaira McCowan and Luisa Geiselsöder, Dallas acquired center Li Yueru from Seattle — with the Wings possibly needing additional hardship signings in the coming days.

The Storm snagged two future draft picks in the Saturday deal — a second-round selection in 2026 and a third-round pick in 2027.

Ultimately, teams are striving to find a balance between stocking up and maintaining consistency, all while operating under the WNBA's roster constraints — with further league expansion fast approaching.

WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Conference Play Comes Down to the Wire

Seattle Storm forward Ezi Magbegor tries to defend a jump-shot from Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier during a 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup game.
Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx will advance to a second straight WNBA Commissioner's Cup final with a Tuesday win. (Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

The 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup will wrap up its conference play on Tuesday, as both Eastern and Western teams battle for a ticket to the in-season competition's championship game — and a cut of the $500,000 prize pool.

With 12 of the league's 13 teams facing off across Tuesday's WNBA courts, the results will set the stage by minting the two squads who will battle in the July 1st final showdown.

Reigning Commissioner's Cup champs Minnesota have the West's easiest path, as a win over the Las Vegas Aces will send the Lynx to a second straight final.

Should the Lynx fall to the Aces, however, Seattle can grab the Western Conference berth by beating the Los Angeles Sparks.

Meanwhile in the East, a surging Atlanta could land a trip to the final by topping New York, while the Liberty need both a win over the Dream plus a loss by the Indiana Fever to clinch their own return ticket to the Cup's grand finale.

If New York does take down Atlanta, the Fever could advance to the team's first-ever Commissioner's Cup final by beating the struggling Connecticut Sun.

How to watch Tuesday's 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup games

All of Tuesday's six WNBA games count toward the 2025 Commissioner's Cup tally.

The action begins with the Atlanta Dream tipping off against the New York Liberty while the Indiana Fever battles the Connecticut Sun at 7 PM ET, live on WNBA League Pass.

Chicago Sky Star Angel Reese Files Trademark for ‘Mebounds’ to Silence Internet Trolls

Chicago Sky star Angel Reese grabs a rebound during a 2024 WNBA game.
Chicago Sky star Angel Reese is trademarking a term often used to criticize her play. (Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

Chicago Sky star Angel Reese made headlines this week, with the second-year WNBA forward announcing that she has trademarked word "mebounds" — a slang term opposing fans use to describe Reese rebounding her own missed shots.

"Whoever came up with the 'mebounds' thing, y’all ate that up, because mebounds, rebounds, keybounds...anything that comes off that board, it's mine," Reese said in a TikTok video on Saturday.

"And a brand? That's six figures right there," she continued, referencing her trademark application. "The trolling — I love when y'all do it because the ideas be good!"

Currently averaging 11.9 boards per matchup, Reese is leading the WNBA in rebounds for the second straight season.

Her rookie campaign saw Reese average 13.1 boards per game, a rate that set a single-season league record. She also blasted through the WNBA's consecutive double-double record last season, claiming it with 10 straight before extending it to an impressive 15 games.

Along with the average rebounds record, Reese also broke the single-season total rebounds record previously held by retired Minnesota Lynx legend Sylvia Fowles — a mark that was later surpassed by 2024 MVP A'ja Wilson following Reese's season-ending wrist injury.

"Statistically, all the rebounds that I get aren't always just mine," Reese added in her Saturday social media post. "They're the defense's, too, or somebody else on my team."

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