The Only Two Deadline Trades Sky Have Ever Made
This week's WNBA trade deadline is almost upon us and the Chicago Sky have had a plethora of names discussed in the media as potential targets by playoff hopefuls.
With just their eighth win of the season on Tuesday night, the Sky are more realistically sellers this time than buyers. For a franchise that has been in the league since 2006, not many deals have been made near the WNBA trade deadline.
In case that trend changes on Thursday, here is a reminder to Sky fans and the rest of the WNBA world of a pair of trades Chicago has made this time of year in the past.
1. The Sky trade Armintie Price to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for Tamera Young. (August 12, 2009)
You don't have to look much further than one of head coach Tyler Marsh's assistants for the list. In the Sky's first-ever trade deadline deal, Price and Young trade homes.
Though it did not help Chicago make the playoffs that season, adding Young set them up down the road for future success. It was four seasons later (in 2013) when the Sky finally made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.
Young was a part of the 2014 Sky team that lost to the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA Finals. During her last full season with Chicago, she averaged a career-high 45% from the floor.
Having a former player on the Sky's coaching staff is an asset. Young's experience of being traded at the deadline can help any new incoming athlete adjust to their new home at Wintrust Arena.
2. Chicago sends Marina Mabrey and a pick to the Connecticut Sun for Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, and picks. (July 17, 2024)
The Sky traded Marina Mabrey along with their second-round pick in the 2025 Draft and received a pair of players from the Sun: Rachel Banham and Moriah Jefferson. In addition, Connecticut's 2025 first-round draft pick, and the right to swap 2026 first round draft picks with the Sun were included in the deal.
Both Chicago and Connecticut are at the bottom of the WNBA standings and playoffs seem bleak. The Sky and the Sun fared better at this time last season.
Mabrey has expressed her desire on more than one occasion to be traded from the Sun and since this trade, Jefferson has been released by the Sky.
Assuming that Chicago finishes better than Connecticut, this trade is favorable since the rights to swap picks in the 2026 WNBA Draft can happen per the terms of last season's trade agreement. The extra second-round pick makes this deal valuable for the Sky's future, too.
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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.