Seven days into free agent negotiations, several teams are well on their way to solidifying their 2025 rosters.
The three-team trade agreed to by the Sparks, Aces and Storm established a clear direction for those franchises. On Tuesday, league sources confirmed a trade that will send Alyssa Thomas to the Phoenix Mercury, which all but guarantees their roster will see a major shakeup this season. In Chicago, news has been scarce.
Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca and new coach Tyler Marsh met with unrestricted free agent Courtney Vandersloot and restricted free agent DiJonai Carrington last week in Miami. Since then, the only free-agent news surrounding the franchise is that Pagliocca has been in talks with several general managers regarding the possibility of dealing the No. 3 overall pick, multiple league sources told the Sun-Times.
The Sky are at a crossroads.
Down one path is an opportunity to draft another foundational piece that will push the Sky into year three of a rebuild that was forced upon the organization after all of their championship-winning players departed in rapid succession. In the opposite direction is a chance to return to playoff contention but it would require dealing the No. 3 pick.
Current mock drafts project UConn guard Paige Bueckers will be selected with the No. 1 overall pick. Notre Dame guard Olivia Miles has moved up to No. 2 after it was initially believed she would fall to the Sky. While many believe USC’s Kiki Iriafen is the best available player after Bueckers and Miles, French center Dominique Malonga has separated herself enough to earn heavy consideration at No. 3.
If the Sky draft based off need — a point guard or shooting guard — Notre Dame guard Sonia Citron might jump out to some as an obvious choice. History would indicate that the wise choice would be drafting the best available player, which in this case would likely be Malonga.
The Sky’s only hope of landing a player like Vandersloot is if Pagliocca can immediately turn their losing roster into a winning one. He does that by moving the team’s lottery pick to get an experienced shooting guard or two-way wing.
After missing out on Loyd, Pagliocca could pursue a player like Mystics guard Ariel Atkins. Other intriguing players worth pursuing in a trade could include Liberty guard/forward Betnijah Laney-Hamilton or Sparks guard/forward Rae Burrell. The latter two options may not be worth the No. 3 pick, but they could undoubtedly contribute to a quick turnaround for the Sky.
In one year, Pagliocca has managed to regain valuable draft capital, including a second first-round pick (No. 10 overall) in the 2025 WNBA draft and two first-round picks in next year’s draft. Pagliocca also secured a pick swap with the Sun in 2026, which could amount to a lottery pick, considering the state of their roster with Thomas on the move. All of these picks have come at a lofty price, mainly trading away franchise player Kahleah Copper a year ago and guard Marina Mabrey in July.
Both players forced those trades and thus propelled the franchise further into its rebuild status.
If Pagliocca doesn’t see a path toward signing Vandersloot, holding on to the No. 3 pick is advantageous for the Sky. But, as long as he has a shot at signing Vandersloot, expect the No. 3 pick to remain on the table in trade talks.