Analyst Predicts Sky’s Protected Players in WNBA Expansion Draft
With the upcoming WNBA Expansion Draft coming soon, the league's two newest teams (the Portland Fire and the Toronto Tempo), will have the chance to select players that go unprotected by all of the other 14 teams.
As reported by Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com, "With so many WNBA veterans headed to unrestricted free agency with the new CBA certain to massively increase salaries, teams are expected to be allowed to protect only five players each rather than last year's six."
The Chicago Sky will have to declare who is available for either the Portland Fire or the Toronto Tempo to take in the upcoming WNBA Expansion Draft. Pelton took that opportunity to predict who the 2021 WNBA champions will end up protecting.
Who Could Sky Protect?
Considering the two first-round rookies that Chicago took in the 2024 WNBA Draft both are under contract for at least one more season, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso are protected in Pelton's projection.
Reese is a two-time WNBA All-Star and has led the league in rebounding both years that she's played in the league. Cardoso has been the Sky's starting center during the same time frame.
Another player under contract that Chicago is likely to protect in Pelton's mind is guard Hailey Van Lith. A former teammate of Reese's during their time together at LSU, Van Lith is also a recent first-round pick that the Sky chose not to part with.
A fourth player Pelton believes Chicago could prevent either Portland or Toronto from taking is Asja Sivka. She is the other first-round pick from the 2025 WNBA Draft that the Sky selected.
Ariel Atkins, who played for Chicago last season but is a free agent, is the fifth player protected by Chicago in Pelton's prediction. A former WNBA champion with the Washington Mystics (2019), Atkins could still re-sign with the Sky, giving them a veteran guard in their starting lineup.
Who Would Sky Leave Unprotected?
One of the players who took the court for Chicago in 2025 already announced she is taking a coaching job with her alma mater, UCLA. Michaela Onyenwere stated that she will not be returning to the Sky (or the WNBA) in 2026.
Rebecca Allen, Rachel Banham, and Kia Nurse are also among the unprotected players for Chicago in Pelton's prediction. All three are looking for their next contract in the WNBA. Thus, a new home could be on the horizon for either one, or all three, of these athletes.
The Sky's other main rookie last year, Maddy Westbeld, was not protected in Pelton's prediction. Westbeld had an impressive game in the team's season finale against the New York Liberty.
The status of another veteran guard with championship experience remains a question within the organization. Pelton did not predict that Courtney Vandersloot will be among the Sky's protected players, but she was not listed as an unprotected player either.
Elizabeth Williams and Sevgi Uzun are two more names that the Sky did not protect from Portland or Toronto in Pelton's article.
The WNBA Expansion Draft for the Fire and Tempo has not been scheduled yet. However, it will take place after the league agrees on the next collective bargaining agreement and before the 2026 WNBA Draft.
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My name is Scott Conrad and I am a Contributor for the Chicago Sky with Sports Illustrated.com. I am also a Contributor with FanSided on NinerNoise, as well as Da Windy City. In addition, I am the Site Editor/Expert for The View from Avalon. I spent two seasons (2015 & 2016) with the Tampa Bay Times as a Correspondent covering high school football. I am a two-time published author with more work to come. In my teenage years, I started watching both MLS and WNBA start in 1996 and grow to be the juggernauts they are in their respective sports. Much love to the career on and off the court for fellow-Napervillian and former Sky forward Candace Parker. Outside of the sports journalism world, I am a travel volleyball coach. I accepted the Head Coach position with Greater Cincinnati Volleyball Club for their U13-2 team. In terms of active sports, I play volleyball, soccer, softball, kickball and train in mixed martial arts.