Chicago Sky rookie forward Angel Reese penned an emotional social media post on Thursday night, lamenting that Teresa Weatherspoon had been fired as the team’s head coach.
The Sky hired the Hall of Fame guard last October and was at the helm when the franchise selected Reese with the seventh overall pick during the 2024 WNBA Draft.
Chicago had made the playoffs five straight times entering the campaign but had the second-worst season in team history this year, finishing 13-27. The only campaign in which the Sky finished with more losses or a worse winning percentage was their inaugural 2006 season, when they went 5-29 (.147 winning percentage).
The organization stunned the Association with its first championship in 2021 after going just 16-16. It then went a franchise-best 26-10 in 2022 before falling in the semifinals. Chicago dropped below .500 at 18-22 last year and was eliminated in the first round of the postseason.
Reese had a monster rookie year, earning an All-Star nod and posting league highs in rebounds per game (13.1) and offensive rebounds (172) while ranking second in total rebounds (446). The former LSU star finished 12th in MVP voting, was second on the Sky in minutes (32.5) and steals (1.3) per contest and placed third in scoring (13.6 points per game). Reese also shot 39.1 percent from the field and 73.6 percent from the free throw line but missed the final six games of the year after suffering a wrist injury.
Weatherspoon had lots to deal with in her first and only season at the helm — including the Angel Reese-Caitlin Clark rivalry and the aftermath of guard Chennedy Carter’s controversial flagrant foul on Clark in June. When it came down to it, though, the results weren’t there, and a 13-win season wasn’t good enough to warrant keeping the former five-time All-Star around for 2025.
