2019 Chicago Sky season

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2019 Chicago Sky season
Head Coach James Wade
Arena Wintrust Arena
Attendance 6,749 per game
Results
Record 20–14
(.588)
Place 3rd (Eastern)
Playoff Finish 5th Seed; Lost in 2nd Round to Las Vegas
Team Leaders
Points Diamond DeShields – 16.2 ppg
Rebounds Jantel Lavender – 6.9 rpg
Assists Courtney Vandersloot – 9.1 apg
Media
Television WMEU-CD (The U Too)
ESPN
ESPN2
NBA TV
Chicago Sky seasons
< 2018 2020 >

The 2019 Chicago Sky season was the franchise's 14th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The regular season tipped off on May 25 and concluded on September 8.[1] On August 22, the team clinched a playoff berth for the first time in three seasons.[2]

During the offseason, Amber Stocks was dismissed by the team as general manager and head coach.[3] In November, James Wade was announced as the team's new head coach. Wade was previously an assistant with UMMC Ekaterinburg and the Minnesota Lynx.[4][5]

Three Sky players, all guards, were named as reserves to the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game: veterans Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot, and second-year player Diamond DeShields.[6][7] The Sky finished the season second in points per game, but second-to-last in points allowed.[8] DeShields was team's leading scorer with 16.2 points per game, and Vandersloot broke her own all-time record with 9.1 assists per game.[9] Vandersloot and DeShields were named to the first and second All-WNBA Teams respectively.[10]

In the first round of the 2019 WNBA Playoffs, fifth-seeded Sky hosted the eighth-seeded Phoenix Mercury, whom they defeated 105–76 in a single-elimination game.[11] They lost their second-round single-elimination game on the road to the Las Vegas Aces by a score of 93–92 in the final seconds.[12]

Transactions

WNBA Draft

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See also: 2019 WNBA draft

The Sky made the following selections in the 2019 WNBA draft:

Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country
1 4 Katie Lou Samuelson  United States Connecticut Huskies
2 15 Chloe Jackson  United States Baylor Lady Bears
3 27 María Conde  Spain Wisła Can-Pack Kraków (Poland)

Trades and Roster Changes

Date Trade
February 1, 2018 Re-signed F Cheyenne Parker[13][14]
February 2, 2019 Re-Signed G Allie Quigley[15][16]
February 14, 2019 Signed F Evelyn Akhator to Training Camp Contract[17][18]
Re-Signed G Jamierra Faulkner[19][18]
February 18, 2019 Re-Signed G Linnae Harper[20]
February 19, 2019 Signed C Victoria Macaulay to Training Camp Contract[21]
February 27, 2019 Re-Sign C Astou Ndour[22][23]
March 19, 2019 Signed G Hind Ben Abdelkader[24]
April 30, 2019 Signed F Leslie Robinson to Training Camp Contract[25]
May 7, 2019 Waived F Leslie Robinson and F Pallas Kunaiyi-Akpanah[26]
May 20, 2019 Traded their second round pick in the 2020 WNBA draft to Los Angeles in exchange for C Jantel Lavender[27]
May 21, 2019 Traded C Alaina Coates to Minnesota in exchange for Minnesota's third round pick in the 2020 WNBA draft[28]
August 22, 2019 Waived G Chloe Jackson and signed C Kayla Alexander[29]

Additions

Player Date Former Team
Jantel Lavender May 20, 2019 Los Angeles Sparks
Kayla Alexander August 22, 2019 Free agent

Subtractions

Player Date New Team
Alaina Coates May 21, 2019 Minnesota Lynx
Chloe Jackson August 22, 2019 Free agent

Roster

Chicago Sky roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs
C 40 United States Alexander, Kayla 6' 4" (1.93m) 195 lb (88kg) (1991-01-05) January 5, 1991 (age 34) Syracuse 6
G/F 2 United States Copper, Kahleah 6' 1" (1.85m) 155 lb (70kg) (1994-08-28) August 28, 1994 (age 30) Rutgers 3
G 1 United States DeShields, Diamond 6' 1" (1.85m) 163 lb (74kg) (1995-03-05) March 5, 1995 (age 30) Tennessee 1
C 31 United States Dolson, Stefanie 6' 5" (1.96m) 231 lb (105kg) (1992-01-08) January 8, 1992 (age 33) Connecticut 5
G 21 United States Faulkner, Jamierra 5' 6" (1.68m) 138 lb (63kg) (1992-03-09) March 9, 1992 (age 33) Southern Mississippi 4
F/C 7 United States Lavender, Jantel 6' 4" (1.93m) 185 lb (84kg) (1988-11-12) November 12, 1988 (age 36) Ohio State 8
C 45 Spain Ndour, Astou 6' 5" (1.96m) 150 lb (68kg) (1994-08-22) August 22, 1994 (age 30) Spain 3
F 32 United States Parker, Cheyenne 6' 4" (1.93m) 193 lb (88kg) (1992-08-22) August 22, 1992 (age 32) Middle Tennessee 4
G 14 United States Quigley, Allie 5' 10" (1.78m) 140 lb (64kg) (1986-06-20) June 20, 1986 (age 38) DePaul 10
G 33 United States Samuelson, Katie Lou 6' 3" (1.91m) 169 lb (77kg) (1997-06-13) June 13, 1997 (age 27) Connecticut R
G 22 United States Vandersloot, Courtney 5' 8" (1.73m) 145 lb (66kg) (1989-02-08) February 8, 1989 (age 36) Gonzaga 8
F 15 United States Williams, Gabby 5' 11" (1.8m) 172 lb (78kg) (1996-09-09) September 9, 1996 (age 28) Connecticut 1



East: ATL • CHI • CON • IND • NY • WAS | West: DAL • LA • MIN • PHO • SA • SEA
Head coach
United States James Wade (Kennesaw State)
Assistant coaches
United States Carla Morrow (Tulsa)
United States Bridget Pettis (Florida)
Player development
United States Emre Vatansever
Athletic trainer
United States Meghan Lockerby
Strength and conditioning coach
United States Ann Crosby (Western Michigan)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

WNBA roster page

Season overview

Prior to the start of the season, new head coach James Wade prioritized improving defense as a key goal for the Sky this season.[30] In the previous season, the Sky had recorded the league's worst defensive rating.[31]

The Sky lost their opening game against the Lynx on May 25, 2019, but won their home opener a week later against the Storm. After a road loss to the Mystics, the Sky proceeded to win four straight games. After a home loss to the Fever, the Sky faced the league-leading Sun, and surprised their opponents with a blowout 93–75 win.[32] With a loss at home to the Mystics on June 26, Chicago held a 6–4 record ten games into the season.

On a three-game road trip from June 28 to July 2, the Sky lost three games against the Storm, Sparks, and Aces, dropping to a 6–7 record.[33] The Sky won 5 out of their next 6 games, however, and improved to an 11–8 record before the All-Star break. The only game they lost during this period was a July 10 home game against the Lynx, which they lost by one point. The stretch also included a one-point win against the Dream on July 17.[34]

Three Sky players—Diamond DeShields, Allie Quigley, and Courtney Vandersloot—were named as reserves in the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game on July 27. Most of the team (all but three players) made the trip to Las Vegas for All-Star Weekend to support their teammates.[35] DeShields won the Skills Challenge during All-Star Weekend, but Quigley failed to repeat as Three-Point Contest champion.

On July 30, on a road trip to face the league-leading Sun, the Sky faced problems with canceled and delayed flights and did not arrive in their hotel until 4:45am on the day of the game.[nb 1][36] They rebounded with a win in their next road game against the Dream and improved to a 12–9 record.

During a 101–92 comeback victory against the New York Liberty on August 7, the Chicago Sky scored 42 points in the fourth quarter, the highest of any WNBA team since the league moved to a four-quarter format in 2006.[37] Allie Quigley scored 22 points in the game, and Jantel Lavender double-doubled with 20 points and 10 rebounds.[37][38] With this win, the Sky matched their previous season's win total of 13.

Over their next four games, the Sky faced the two teams directly above them in the standings—the Las Vegas Aces and the Los Angeles Sparks—twice each. They split the series evenly with both teams, achieving a 15–11 record. Their home game against the Aces was marked by officiating controversies and a conflict between Liz Cambage and Cheyenne Parker, which resulted in technical fouls for both players.[39]

In their remaining five games in August, the Sky went 3–2, for an overall record of 18–13. This stretch included both a convincing home 85–78 win over the top-seeded Washington Mystics and a surprise home loss to the low-seeded Dallas Wings.[40][41][42] In September, the Sky scored 100 points in two straight games with wins over the playoff-bound Phoenix Mercury and Connecticut Sun, before losing their last regular season game on the road to the Mystics. Finishing the season with a 20–14 record, they finished the season as the fifth-seeded team.[43]

Game log

2019 pre-season game log
2019 pre-season schedule

Regular season

2019 game log
2019 season schedule

Playoffs

2019 playoff game log
Second Round: 0–1 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 September 15 Las Vegas Aces L 92–93 DeShields (23) Ndour (8) Vandersloot (12) Thomas & Mack Center
7,981		 0–1
2019 playoff schedule

Standings

Template:2019 WNBA Eastern Conference standings

Playoffs

Template:2019 WNBA Playoffs

Statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage  TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per game Team leader League leader

Regular season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Diamond DeShields 34 34 30.2 39.9 31.6 83.6 5.5 2.4 1.3 0.4 16.2
Allie Quigley 34 34 28.6 49.3 44.2 87.0 3.0 2.5 0.8 0.2 13.8
Courtney Vandersloot 33 33 30.0 45.2 29.0 85.0 4.3 9.1 1.4 0.5 11.2
Jantel Lavender 23 22 26.9 49.0 22.2 90.5 6.9 1.1 0.3 0.6 10.0
Stefanie Dolson 34 34 25.0 51.9 36.1 89.8 5.6 2.2 0.6 1.0 9.3
Cheyenne Parker 34 0 19.7 45.9 27.8 84.2 5.8 0.9 0.7 1.2 8.8
Astou Ndour 21 11 17.5 49.2 42.4 72.2 4.2 0.7 0.5 0.7 6.8
Kahleah Copper 34 0 14.8 38.7 30.6 77.1 1.9 0.9 0.4 0.1 6.7
Gabby Williams 33 2 16.0 41.4 17.1 72.5 2.2 2.1 0.7 0.2 5.6
Kayla Alexander 3 0 6.7 75.0 0 75.0 2.3 0.3 0 0 3.0
Katie Lou Samuelson 20 0 7.7 31.6 27.6 80.0 0.9 0.4 0.3 0.1 2.4
Jamierra Faulkner 13 0 5.5 33.3 11.1 50.0 0.3 0.8 0.2 0 1.3

Awards and honors

Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
Allie Quigley WNBA All-Star Selection July 15, 2019 [6]
Diamond DeShields WNBA All-Star Selection July 15, 2019 [6]
WNBA All-Star Weekend Skills Challenge Champion July 26, 2019 [44]
All-WNBA Second Team October 6, 2019 [10]
Courtney Vandersloot WNBA All-Star Selection July 15, 2019 [6]
WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week August 26, 2019 [45]
Peak Performer: Assists September 9, 2019 [46]
All-WNBA First Team October 6, 2019 [10]
James Wade Coach of the Year September 11, 2019 [47]

Notes

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References

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