The 2026 season has been one of disappointment for the Chicago Sky. With a record of 9-18, the Sky sit in 13th place, five spots out of a playoff spot. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t reasons to still watch the team.
After splashy free-agent signings and trades to bolster the Sky’s roster, two problems have weighed on Sky all season long: injuries and late-game collapses.
The Sky started the season with key players on the injury list: Courtney Vandersloot, Azura Stevens and DiJonai Carrington. Then, in just the fourth game of the season, Rickea Jackson went down with an ACL tear.
Vandersloot and Steven have returned, and Carrington is expected to return soon. But Skylar Diggins then joined the injury list with a knee injury. The Sky have not had a clean injury report all season.
The other major issue is that no lead is safe with the Chicago Sky. The last two games before the All-Star break illustrated this problem. Against the Atlanta Dream, Jordin Canada’s buzzer-beater layup stole the game from the Sky.
Then in New York, the Sky were up seven with less than a minute to go. Turnovers, fouls, and Sabrina Ionescu shooting out of her mind meant that New York won the game 95-94.
This all may seem bleak, but it’s not unwatchable. There are still plenty of reasons to watch the Sky.
Playoffs? Playoffs?
The Sky haven’t made the playoffs since 2023, and this year seems unlikely to end the drought. Chicago would need to go on a huge winning streak to get to the eighth spot in the WNBA standings, but it’s not out of the question.
Of the team’s 17 remaining games, the schedule includes seven games against teams that are already out of the running for the playoffs, plus two games against Washington, the team currently in eighth. A winning streak now will help the Sky gain tiebreakers against teams who are also fighting to make the playoffs.
Considering how close so many of the Sky’s losses have been, it’s not out of the question. However, the other big question for the Sky is if it makes sense to try and make the playoffs, considering how strong the 2027 draft will be.
Chicago has two first-round draft picks thanks to the Angel Reese trade, and a first overall pick could get Juju Watkins, a generational player.
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DiJonai’s debut and the Skylar saga
Though Carrington signed with the Sky in April, she’s yet to make her debut for Chicago thanks to a foot injury sustained in the 2025 playoffs. Sky coach Tyler Marsh indicated before the All-Star break that she is close to being back on the court, and she’s been in practice with the team.
Diggins is a bigger question mark. In early July, she was moved to the bench, and then to the injured list with an ongoing knee issue. She told The IX Sports on July 18 that she’s been progressing. Marsh told Chicago State of Mind on Monday that Diggins is more week-to-week than day-to-day.
Diggins was one of the Sky’s biggest signings in the offseason, and she’s still a huge fan favorite. It’s worth watching to see if she makes it back to the court in a Sky uniform.
Can they learn how to finish out a game?
Of the Sky’s 18 losses this season, 10 were clutch losses, meaning they were within five points of winning in the final five minutes of the game.
“We’re frustrated. We feel like we’re a better team than our record shows,” Courtney Vandersloot said after the loss to New York. “We’ve had a difficult time closing out games. We feel like we should have won a few, so we’re frustrated, of course, but we do have a lot of belief in the locker room and what this team can do. We know we have another second half of the season. We’re focused on just closing out games, doing a lot of the same, but closing out games and finding ways to win.
One way they could do that is by limiting fouls late in the game. Right now, the Sky are 11th in the league in fouls, getting called for 21.5 fouls per game.
Another is to find more success at the free-throw line. Making just 76.5 percent of its free throws, Chicago is ranked 13th in the league. Fixing these details can help the Sky find crucial points in tight games.
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The young ones
One of the brightest spots of the Sky’s season has been the emergence of Sydney Taylor. The undrafted free agent went from a camp contract to the starting lineup with her electric scoring. She and Diggins lead the team in scoring with 14.2 points per game, and she scored a career-high 31 points in the loss to New York.
“She gave us a big boost offensively,” Marsh said after the game. “That’s who she is, that’s the capabilities that she has. She’s got a long, long future in this league. We’re glad that she’s part of the sky, and we hope that that’s the case for a long time.”
First-round draft pick Gabriela Jaquez has had an up-and-down season, dealing with injury early in June and getting moved out of the starting lineup as Taylor emerged as a star. But she’s still shown plenty of what inspired the Sky to use their first pick on her. She can score, she can steal and she can be a pest to players bigger and more tenured than her.
Aicha Coulibally played well enough to get her developmental contract converted to a traditional contract at the end of June. Defensively, she’s aggressive and has no problem with the physical nature of the league.
Could a Sky player get moved at the trade deadline?
The WNBA trade deadline is August 2, so the next few days could be interesting for WNBA fans — or torturous, depending on who your favorite player is. While the Sky could be involved, the size of the contracts the team has could make moving anyone difficult.
While Diggins has voiced her issues with the Sky’s treatment of her, she has a contract worth $1.8 million. She also has a complicated history in the WNBA, having played for four different teams in her 12-year career. Diggins won’t be an easy player to move.
Almost every other player falls into one of two categories: a young player the team sees potential in, or an older player with a large – and in the case of Rachel Banham, guaranteed – contract.
