The 2024 Chicago Sky season was the franchise's 19th season in the Women's National Basketball Association, and their first season under head coach Teresa Weatherspoon.
The offseason was marked by major coaching and roster changes. In October 2023, the team hired Weatherspoon as head coach, replacing interim head coach Emre Vatansever. The team also hired Jeff Pagliocca as general manager, separating this role from the head coaching position for the first time. Several starting players from previous seasons including Kahleah Copper, Alanna Smith, Courtney Williams, Astou Ndour-Fall, and Julie Allemand departed in free agency and trades. The Sky signed their own former first-round draft pick Diamond DeShields. Acquiring the 3rd and 7th picks in the 2024 WNBA draft through trades, they drafted high-profile college stars Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese.
The season tipped-off on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, against the Dallas Wings in Dallas. Despite preseason predictions that they would be among the league's worst teams, the Sky had a promising start to the season with a 3–3 record in May, including a stunning win, 90–81, over the New York Liberty. In the 9th game of the season, a 79–71 win over the Washington Mystics, starter Elizabeth Williams suffered a season-ending knee injury. Cardoso, who herself had suffered a shoulder injury during the preseason and missed the first six games of the season, was slotted into the starting lineup to play alongside another rookie, Reese. In the first half of June, the Sky consistently struggled with bad starts to games. After the 12th game of the season, an 81–83 loss at Washington, their third loss in a row, Lindsay Allen and Chennedy Carter replaced Dana Evans and Diamond DeShields in the starting lineup. The Sky's performances improved with the new lineup and it stayed intact until the WNBA break for the 2024 Paris Olympics. In the last game before the break, Chicago scored another surprising win, 93–85, against the reigning champions Las Vegas Aces, and entered the Olympic break in eighth place with a 10–14 record. The following day, Chicago traded Marina Mabrey and the team's second round pick in the 2025 WNBA draft to the Connecticut Sun in exchange for Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, the Sun's first-round 2025 draft pick, and the rights to swap 2026 first-round draft picks.
After the break, Michaela Onyenwere entered the starting lineup in Mabrey's place. However, the Sky struggled with poor form and the unavailability of key players, posting a 3–13 record in August and September. Their top scorer, Carter, missed several games due to illness, and later due to a foot injury. Other injuries to Reese (broken wrist), DeShields (sprained ankle), and Cardoso (shoulder pain) forced significant changes in the rotation. The Sky were still in running for the last playoff spot until the final day of the season; however, they finished with a five-game losing streak and ultimately missed the playoffs, finishing in 10th place with a 13–27 record. Nonetheless, Chicago set a franchise record for average attendance, drawing 8,757 fans per game.
After the season, Chicago fired Weatherspoon.
Transactions WNBA draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country 1 3 Kamilla Cardoso South Carolina 1 7 Angel Reese LSU 2 13 Brynna Maxwell Gonzaga
Transactions DateTransaction October 31, 2023 Hired Jeff Pagliocca as General Manager January 17, 2024 Extended Qualifying Offers to Robyn Parks, Rebekah Gardner, and Morgan Bertsch February 1. 2024 Signed Lindsay Allen February 2, 2024 Renounced the rights to Astou Ndour-Fall February 5, 2024 Signed Diamond DeShields February 6, 2024 Acquired Brianna Turner and Michaela Onyenwere, the third overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, Chicago's own 2025 second round pick, Phoenix's 2026 first round draft pick, and the right to swap 2026 second round picks in exchange for Kahleah Copper and the rights to Morgan Bertsch. February 8, 2024 Signed Taya Reimer to a Training Camp Contract Signed Kysre Gondrezick to a Training Camp Contract February 9, 2024 Signed Chennedy Carter to a Training Camp Contract February 15, 2024 Renounced the rights to Kseniya Malashka February 19, 2024 Acquired the 8th pick in the 2024 Draft in exchange for Julie Allemand and the rights to Li Yueru March 14, 2024 Acquired the New York Liberty's 2025 and 2026 second round picks in exchange for the rights to Rebekah Gardner April 14, 2024 Acquired the Minnesota Lynx 7th pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft and the rights to Nikolina Milić in exchange for Sika Koné, the 8th pick, the Sky's 2025 second round pick, and the rights to swap first round picks in the 2026 draft. April 19, 2024 Signed Kamilla Cardoso, Angel Reese, and Brynna Maxwell to Rookie Contracts Renounced the rights to Robyn Parks May 10, 2024 Waived Taya Reimer May 13, 2024 Waived Brynna Maxwell June 28, 2024 Waived Kysre Gondrezick July 17, 2024 Traded Marina Mabrey and the team's second round pick in the 2025 WNBA draft to Connecticut Sun in exchange for Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, the Sun's first-round 2025 draft pick, and the rights to swap 2026 first-round draft picks Signed Kaela Davis to 7-day contract Released Kaela Davis and signed to rest-of-season contract Signed Elizabeth Williams to an extension through 2025
Roster changes
Additions PersonnelReasonFormer team Lindsay Allen Signed Minnesota Lynx Rachel Banham Trade Connecticut Sun Kamilla Cardoso Draft South Carolina Chennedy Carter Signed Free Agent Diamond DeShields Signed Dallas Wings Isabelle Harrison Return from Injury Chicago Sky Moriah Jefferson Trade Connecticut Sun Nikolina Milić Trade Minnesota Lynx Michaela Onyenwere Trade Phoenix Mercury Angel Reese Draft LSU Brianna Turner Trade Phoenix Mercury
Subtractions PersonnelReasonNew team Morgan Bertsch TradePhoenix Mercury Kahleah Copper Trade Rebekah Gardner Trade New York Liberty Ruthy Hebard Free Agency Minnesota Lynx Sika Koné Trade Marina Mabrey Trade Connecticut Sun Astou Ndour-Fall Free Agency Robyn Parks Renounced Rights — Alanna Smith Free Agency Minnesota Lynx Taylor Soule Free Agency Courtney Williams Free Agency
Roster
Depth chart Pos.StarterBench PG Lindsay Allen Moriah Jefferson SG Chennedy Carter Rachel BanhamDana Evans SF Diamond DeShields Michaela Onyenwere PF Angel Reese Isabelle HarrisonBrianna Turner C Elizabeth Williams Kamilla Cardoso
Schedule Pre-season
| 1 | May 3 | @ Minnesota | L 81–92 | Lindsay Allen (17) | Angel Reese (9) | Lindsay Allen (3) | Target Center7,010 | 0–1 |- | 2 | May 7 | New York | W 101–52 | Marina Mabrey (20) | Brianna Turner (8) | Dana Evans (7) | Wintrust Arena3,132 | 1–1
Regular season
| 1 | May 15 | @ Dallas | L 79–87 | Marina Mabrey (19) | Marina Mabrey (9) | Dana Evans (6) | College Park Center6,251 | 0–1 |- | 2 | May 18 | @ Dallas | W 83–74 | Diamond DeShields (16) | Elizabeth Williams (10) | Marina Mabrey (8) | College Park Center6,251 | 1–1 |- | 3 | May 23 | @ New York | W 90–81 | Marina Mabrey (21) | Angel Reese (9) | Marina Mabrey (7) | Barclays Center12,049 | 2–1 |- | 4 | May 25 | Connecticut | L 82–82 | Marina Mabrey (23) | Mabrey, Reese, Williams (5) | Diamond DeShields (5) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 2–2 |- | 5 | May 28 | Seattle | L 68–77 | Dana Evans (13) | Angel Reese (12) | Allen, Evans (4) | Wintrust Arena7,807 | 2–3 |- | 6 | May 30 | Los Angeles | W 83–73 | Marina Mabrey (20) | Elizabeth Williams (11) | Marina Mabrey (7) | Wintrust Arena7,911 | 3–3
| 7 | June 1 | @ Indiana | L 70–71 | Chennedy Carter (19) | Angel Reese (13) | Chennedy Carter (6) | Gainbridge Fieldhouse17,274 | 3–4 |- | 8 | June 4 | New York | L 75–88 | Chennedy Carter (16) | Angel Reese (10) | Marina Mabrey (5) | Wintrust Arena8,277 | 3–5 |- | 9 | June 6 | @ Washington | W 79–71 | Chennedy Carter (25) | Angel Reese (11) | Dana Evans (4) | Capital One Arena10,000 | 4–5 |- | 10 | June 8 | Atlanta | L 80–89 | Cardoso, Evans, Reese (13) | Angel Reese (13) | Dana Evans (5) | Wintrust Arena8,804 | 4–6 |- | 11 | June 12 | Connecticut | L 75–83 | Angel Reese (20) | Angel Reese (10) | Evans, Mabrey (5) | Wintrust Arena7,815 | 4–7 |- | 12 | June 14 | @ Washington | L 81–83 | Chennedy Carter (16) | Angel Reese (14) | Allen, Mabrey (3) | Entertainment and Sports Arena4,200 | 4–8 |- | 13 | June 16 | @ Indiana | L 83–91 | Marina Mabrey (22) | Angel Reese (13) | Angel Reese (5) | Gainbridge Fieldhouse17,274 | 4–9 |- | 14 | June 20 | Dallas | W 83–72 | Carter, Mabrey (19) | Angel Reese (18) | Allen, Evans, Mabrey (4) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 5–9
| 15 | June 23 | Indiana | W 88–87 | Angel Reese (25) | Angel Reese (16) | Lindsay Allen (7) | Wintrust Arena9,872 | 6–9 |- | 16 | June 27 | Las Vegas | L 83–95 | Marina Mabrey (21) | Angel Reese (11) | Lindsay Allen (5) | rowspan=2| Wintrust Arena9,025 | 6–10 |- | 17 | June 30 | Minnesota | L 62–70 | Chennedy Carter (15) | Angel Reese (16) | Lindsay Allen (7) | 6–11
| 18 | July 2 | @ Atlanta | W 85–77 | Chennedy Carter (26) | Angel Reese (19) | Carter, Mabrey (4) | Gateway Center Arena3,260 | 7–11 |- | 19 | July 5 | @ Seattle | W 88–84 | Chennedy Carter (33) | Angel Reese (10) | Marina Mabrey (7) | Climate Pledge Arena10,725 | 8–11 |- | 20 | July 7 | @ Seattle | L 71–84 | Chennedy Carter (21) | Angel Reese (14) | Allen, Mabrey (6) | Climate Pledge Arena11,283 | 8–12 |- | 21 | July 10 | Atlanta | W 78–69 | Chennedy Carter (19) | Angel Reese (13) | Carter, Mabrey (5) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 9–12 |- | 22 | July 11 | @ New York | L 76–91 | Chennedy Carter (22) | Isabelle Harrison (12) | Lindsay Allen (7) | Barclays Center17,758 | 9–13 |- | 23 | July 13 | New York | L 67–81 | Marina Mabrey (21) | Angel Reese (16) | Marina Mabrey (7) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 9–14
| 24 | July 16 | @ Las Vegas | W 93–85 | Chennedy Carter (34) | Angel Reese (10) | Allen, Mabrey (4) | Michelob Ultra Arena10,396 | 10–14
| 25 | August 15 | Phoenix | L 65–85 | Dana Evans (14) | Angel Reese (15) | Lindsay Allen (6) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 10–15
| 26 | August 17 | @ Los Angeles | W 90–86 | Lindsay Allen (16) | Kamilla Cardoso (14) | Lindsay Allen (6) | Crypto.com Arena16,551 | 11–15
| 27 | August 18 | @ Phoenix | L 68–86 | Angel Reese (19) | rowspan=2|Angel Reese (20) | Chennedy Carter (6) | Footprint Center14,267 | 11–16
| 28 | August 23 | @ Connecticut | L 80–82 | Chennedy Carter (19) | Lindsay Allen (6) | Mohegan Sun Arena8,910 | 11–17
| 29 | August 25 | Las Vegas | L 75–77 | Chennedy Carter (25) | Angel Reese (22) | Lindsay Allen (5) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 11–18
| 30 | August 28 | Washington | L 70–74 | Michaela Onyenwere (15) | Angel Reese (14) | Kamilla Cardoso (6) | Wintrust Arena8,763 | 11–19
| 31 | August 30 | Indiana | L 81–100 | Michaela Onyenwere (20) | Angel Reese (11) | Lindsay Allen (6) | Wintrust Arena9,445 | 11–20
| 32 | September 1 | @ Minnesota | L 74–79 | Kamilla Cardoso (22) | Angel Reese (19) | Lindsay Allen (6) | Target Center8,421 | 11–21
| 33 | September 3 | @ Las Vegas | L 71–90 | Michaela Onyenwere (15) | Angel Reese (16) | 3 players (3) | T-Mobile Arena18,394 | 11–22
| 34 | September 6 | Los Angeles | W 92–78 | Angel Reese (24) | Angel Reese (12) | Chennedy Carter (7) | Wintrust Arena9,025 | 12–22
| 35 | September 8 | Dallas | W 92–77 | Chennedy Carter (28) | Kamilla Cardoso (11) | Chennedy Carter (6) | Wintrust Arena8,704 | 13–22
| 36 | September 11 | Washington | L 58–89 | Chennedy Carter (16) | Cardoso, Harrison (8) | Lindsay Allen (5) | Wintrust Arena7,948 | 13–23
| 37 | September 13 | @ Minnesota | L 66–83 | Chennedy Carter (17) | Kamilla Cardoso (10) | Allen, Carter (5) | Target Center8,810 | 13–24
| 38 | September 15 | Phoenix | L 88–93 | Chennedy Carter (20) | Michaela Onyenwere (9) | Allen, Banham (7) | Wintrust Arena8,577 | 13–25
| 39 | September 17 | @ Atlanta | L 70–86 | Rachel Banham (22) | rowspan=2| Isabelle Harrison (11) | Lindsay Allen (4) | Gateway Center Arena3,335 | 13–26
| 40 | September 19 | @ Connecticut | L 54–87 | Isabelle Harrison (13)