WNBA landscape taking shape, leaving the Sky in a free fall

The WNBA landscape is taking shape after the first two days of free-agent signings, and, upon initial review, the Sky have fallen to the bottom rung.

Every team in the league is chasing the Las Vegas Aces after Becky Hammon’s squad capped off a historic season by becoming the first team since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001 and 2002 to win back-to-back titles.

The New York Liberty chose continuity. By applying the core tag on Breanna Stewart, who plans to re-sign, according to reports, and agreeing to terms with Jonquel Jones, they bring back the starting lineup that took them to the 2024 Finals. After going 11-29 last season following Sue Bird’s retirement and the departure of Stewart in free agency, the Seattle Storm have taken three steps forward, eschewing a rebuild to jump right back into the competitive mix with one key signing — point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith.

Meanwhile, the Phoenix Mercury added point guard Natasha Cloud and, according to ESPN, are one of two potential landing spots for two-time MVP Elena Delle Donne. The Sparks, Indiana Fever and Washington Mystics are the only teams that appear to be in worse shape than the Sky at the moment.

So while two teams that missed the playoffs last year — the Storm and Mercury — appear to have taken a step in the right direction, the Sky have not.

Their failure to sign Diggins-Smith was a blow. But not re-signing Courtney Williams and Alanna Smith, two major factors in the Sky fumbling their way into the playoffs in ’23, puts the team in a worse position than last season, when the franchise maintained that it wasn’t rebuilding. Even worse, the Sky are without the draft capital that other struggling teams such as the Sparks, Mystics and Fever have.

Former Sky coach/general manager James Wade overpaid in every sense for guard Marina Mabrey.

Her salary is close to the league’s max even though she doesn’t have a single All-Star nod, and the four-team trade for her included five draft picks, two of them first-rounders. Wade also gave the Dallas Wings the right to swap 2025 first-round picks.

Annoyed that the topic continues to come up?

Well, that’s because it continues to haunt the Sky and will once again in 2024 if they fail to make the playoffs. The Wings finished fourth in the league standings last year and re-signed Most Improved Player and two-time All-Star Satou Sabally. They are shaping up to be a playoff team.

And if the Sky sputter to the bottom of league standings, they could be sending a high lottery pick to the Wings in 2025.

There is one sliver of hope for the Sky left in the free-agent market — 2016 MVP Nneka Ogwumike.

According to Ogwumike’s sister Chiney, who works for ESPN, she has narrowed her decision to three teams: the Storm, Sky and Liberty.

Signing with the Liberty would present an interesting situation. Ogwumike put up numbers in 2023 that rivaled her 2016 MVP season, so there’s no reason she can’t start for the Liberty. But with the return of Stewart and Jones, along with New York signing Betnijah Laney to an extension last year, one star would have to come off the bench.

The Storm appear to be the most seamless option for Ogwumike.

With Jewell Loyd, Diggins-Smith and Ezi Magbegor, who’s coming off her first All-Star season, Seattle could easily finish atop the league standings with the addition of Ogwumike.