Chicago Sky must back up preseason optimism with results | Opinion

CHICAGO — It’s easy to talk big in the preseason, to style yourself as a team that’s going to be competitive and have championship aspirations. When you’ve bumbled around as badly as the Chicago Sky has for most of its existence, however, you don’t get the benefit of the doubt. You want to prove you’re serious about winning, that you’re going to do more than the bare minimum?

You’re going to have to actually do it. “We knew that earning the respect of (free agents) and retaining players that were here was going to take some real sincerity and a genuine plan from our end of who we wanted to be,” Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca said during the team’s April 30 media day. “Looking at our roster now, you see more of an athletic group, shot-creating group, some more size, more versatility than we've had over the last couple of seasons,” he said.

“We’re really going to go after being a very, very competitive group. ” Chicago Sky hasn't been model franchise The Sky was always going to be under the microscope because of the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, which more than quadruples most salaries and raises the minimum standards for all teams. Chicago has long been considered one of the W’s worst-run franchises, practicing in a suburban rec center until this season, running off a Who’s Who of star players and making questionable personnel decisions across multiple front offices.

As for the long-awaited practice facility, it still isn’t done. Originally expected to open in December 2025, it’s been delayed for a second time, with Pagliocca now saying it will be ready in “late spring, early summer. ” Then, on April 6, the Sky confirmed all the worst opinions of the franchise by trading Angel Reese , a fan favorite who was supposed to be a franchise cornerstone for years to come.