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Report: Sky Fire HC Teresa Weatherspoon; Coached Angel Reese in WNBA rookie season | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

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According to The Chicago Sky, head coach Teresa Weatherspoon has been fired after just one season at the helm Chicago Sun-Times' Annie Costabile.

The Sky finished the season 13-27 and missed the postseason for the first time since 2018.

According to Costabile, the players “outwardly” supported the first-year head coach throughout the season, but interviews with the team leaving revealed a “disconnect.”

“Several players noted the changing style of play throughout the year and mentioned the learning curve as a first-year coach,” Cosabile wrote.

The Sky were in a playoff position for most of the season and had a chance to clinch a postseason berth at the end of the year, but Chicago lost 12 of their final 14 games, sealing their fate.

While the players noted the discrepancy between Weatherspoon and their squad, Sky also struggled with circumstances beyond their control, namely the many different injuries throughout the season. Chicago played just two games with a fully healthy roster, and star rookie Angel Reese suffered a season-ending injury in early September.

Reese was outspoken on social media following Weatherspoon's firing.

“You had a hard job. All the crazy circumstances we've been through this year and when your back was against the wall you always believed,” Reese wrote on X. “I came to Chicago because of YOU. “You were an unsung hero in my life.”

Angel Reese @Reese10Angel

I am heartbroken. I am literally at a loss for words knowing what this woman meant to me at such a pivotal point in my life. She was the only person who believed in me. The one who trusted me. Many don't even know what it's like to be a black woman in sports when no one believes in it…

It was only three seasons ago that the Sky won their first WNBA championship, but they have suffered a number of setbacks since then. James Wade, who led Chicago to the title as the team's coach and general manager, left midway through the 2023 season and the Sky were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

The Sky endured an unsuccessful offseason in the free agency market, which ultimately led to star guard Kahleah Copper requesting a trade before the start of the regular season.

Even though things look bleak for Chicago right now, the team has a young roster that appears to be on the path to a bright future.

In the backcourt, 25-year-old Chennedy Carter led the Sky with 17.5 points per game. Reese, whose play in 2024 likely would have resulted in a Rookie of the Year award without Caitlin Clark, fits in well with fellow rookie Kamilla Cardoso upfront.

Chicago will now begin another coaching search to find the right person to lead a talented young group into a new era of Sky basketball.

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