New Chicago Sky general manager and coach James Wade will make his coaching debut against his former employer.
The Sky, who unveiled their 2019 schedule on Tuesday, will open their season on the road against the Minnesota Lynx on May 25. Wade, whom the Sky hired last month, served as an assistant coach for the Lynx for the last two seasons.
After playing the 2017 WNBA champions, the Sky will return home on June 1 to the Wintrust Arena to host the defending 2018 WNBA champion Seattle Storm.
The back-to-back games against two of the best teams in the WNBA will be a grueling test for the first-year coach, but Wade is excited for the challenge.
“There’s no better way to measure ourselves right away than to start off against the Lynx, the 2017 WNBA champions, on the road and then come home, get even better, and welcome the 2018 WNBA champions,” Wade said in a statement.
As formality, the Sky will face each team three times with the Washington Mystics — which are led by former Sky star Elena Delle Donne — as the lone exception. The Sky will play the Mystics on four occasions — twice at home and two times away. Their final road matchup against the Mystics will be their season finale on Sept. 8.
The Sky’s longest road trip is three games. They’ll visit Seattle, Los Angeles and Las Vegas from June 28 through July 2.
Next season, the Sky’s roster will be headlined by guards Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot. They were among the best three-point shooters in the league last season, averaging 42 percent and 39.8 percent, respectively. Guard Diamond Shield, who was named to the 2018 all-rookie team, and forward Gabby Williams are also expected to return.
On top of bringing back most of their key players, the Sky hold the fourth overall pick in the draft in April.
