The Chicago Sky released their schedule for the 2025 season on Monday.
The WNBA expanded its schedule to 44 games in the regular season, a Monday release from the league read. The WNBA had previously expanded the 2023 season's schedule from 36 games to 40. The Sky will play six games in May, including two at home and four on the road, according to the Sky's release.
The Sky will have plenty to prove in what could be another transitional season for the team. Chicago went 13-27 during its 2024 campaign, ending a year with plenty of new faces with their first spot out of the playoffs since 2018. The Sky hired head coach Tyler Marsh, a former assistant for the Las Vegas Aces and Indiana Pacers, in early November. With a handful of first-round picks during the 2025 WNBA Draft, Chicago will have the opportunity to continue ushering in a new era of Sky basketball from Games 1-44.
Getting an early view of the league's future
The Sky will get a clear view of the stars of tomorrow when they take to the court for their first handful of regular season matchups.
In their first seven games, Chicago will face the Indiana Fever, Los Angeles Sparks and Dallas Wings. The Sky went a combined 7-4 against the three squads last season, including a season sweep over Los Angeles and a 1-3 record against the Fever. Indiana has held top 3 selections in the last three WNBA Drafts, including the No. 1 pick in 2023 and 2024.
The Dallas Wings earned the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft last month. Los Angeles holds the second pick in this year's draft, followed by Chicago at No. 3 and the Washington Mystics at No. 4. Should the stars align, Dallas can pair a highly-touted star in UConn guard Paige Bueckers with a roster that features a solid center rotation and a four-time All-Star in guard Arike Ogunbowale.
A late-January trade with the Seattle Storm paved the way for Los Angeles to pair former Stanford star Cameron Brink with Tennessee forward Rickea Jackson, who earned an All-Rookie selection after playing in 40 games and starting in 35 for the Sparks last season. Indiana used a handful of first-round selections to build what could be its contending roster for the future, including two star-studded selections in 2023 and 2024 that each earned spots in the All-Star game in their first seasons. Indiana has since hired former Sky assistant and Coach of the Year Stephanie White to take up their head coaching duties in November.
Chicago can face the three teams with two blossoming stars of their own.
The big duo of forward Angel Reese and center Kamilla Cardoso earned spots on the WNBA All-Rookie team following promising seasons of their own. Reese, a former standout in the Big Ten and SEC, averaged a league-leading 13.1 rebounds per game on her way to an All-Star selection in her first season. Cardoso took second place on the Sky with 7.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per contest. With the right pairings in this year's draft, the Sky can take one step closer to fulfilling their sky-high potential among some of the league's brightest young players.
From the start to the cup
A handful of must-win early-season matchups can shine a light on the Sky's prospects in this year's Commissioner's Cup.
Chicago will take on the Fever and the New York Liberty in its first two games of the season and the Commissioner's Cup. They faced both squads during last year's Cup matchups, finishing with a Cup record of 1-4 and tying with the Mystics and Atlanta Dream at last place in the Eastern Conference Cup standings. Guard Chennedy Carter played an instrumental role in the Sky's lone Cup victory last season, scoring 25 points as she relentlessly drove to the interior for contested scores.
The Liberty have proven they can roll with the best with them in Cup games in years past. They made the Commissioner's Cup Championships two seasons in a row, taking a 19-point victory over Las Vegas in 2023 before falling to the Minnesota Lynx the year after. The first-time WNBA champions went a perfect 5-0 in Cup games last season and 23-12 over the Cup's four-season history. Indiana went 3-2 in its Cup run last June. It took close wins over the Sky and Mystics but fell to the Liberty and Connecticut Sun.
The Sky must stay competitive against both teams before rounding out their Cup schedule. Their game against New York will kick off a three-game road trip featuring the Dream and Sun. They will return home for their final Cup game against Washington. The Sky and Fever will play once more at Wintrust Arena and twice more at Gainbridge Fieldhouse following their lone Cup matchup, giving plenty of time for the two midwestern squads to build upon a budding rivalry in what could be defining seasons for the both of them.
A challenging stretch to end a transitional season
A home bout against the Storm in August will kick off a tough stretch of games to end off what could be another transitional season for the Sky.
Chicago will face the Aces, Liberty, Sun, Storm, Mercury and Fever in its final 11 games of the year. All six reached the WNBA playoffs last season, with New York, Las Vegas and Connecticut advancing to the semi-finals. A handful of All-Stars remain under contract between five of the six squads, including three on the Aces, according to Spotrac. Former Chicago guard Marina Mabrey, who averaged 18 points per game in two matchups with the Sky last season, will suit up against her former squad in early September.
Six of Chicago's final ten games will be on the road, including in a three-game road trip against the Fever and Aces. The Sky went 7-13 in road games last season and 0-5 in their final five road matchups. Staying competitive in what could be a tough stretch of games can ultimately determine whether Chicago can jumpstart another playoff streak and how strong their foundation is for the foreseeable future.