Here’s why Kahleah Copper being traded to the Phoenix Mercury wasn’t as puzzling as you think.
Life with the Phoenix Mercury is different for Kahleah Copper. Her mid-free-agency trade was not something she ever imagined, but the chance to elevate was too good to pass up.
Kahleah Cooper spent seven seasons with the Chicago Sky before her February 6 trade to the Phoenix Mercury uprooted her foundation. However, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN, during a recent media session, Kahleah revealed that after seeing how Chicago approached free agency, she asked for a trade for the chance to compete and to do what was best for her.
Copper explained that she was happy with the decision to move on. “I’m just glad that we were able to come to an agreement and both come out in a win-win situation,” she said. ” I think it was what’s best.”
Kahleah Copper’s first official press conference with the Mercury is in the books. Biggest takeaway (imo): Copper’s desire to be in a highly competitive situation dictated this trade.
She said she’s looking forward to playing three games against the Sky this season.
#Mercury Kahleah Copper on what led to the trade & what Chicago means to her: “This is not what I expected… seeing it unfold… Wanted to compete and wanting what's best for me… Chicago definitely holds a special place in my heart. The fans. Everyone in the organization -…
Kahleah also shared that having access to top facilities – a common theme from WNBA free agency – was a significant draw in her decision. Here’s what she said about the importance of investing in women:
“I think it’s important to invest in women. Invest in women and you see the results that come out of it. People want to play there. People want to come and be a part of something special like that. But, like I said, that’s something I’ve never experienced. So, seeing those plans and seeing what’s in the works, I’m excited to be able to be there.”
This rebuild entails trades, signings and a splash in free agency.
On Monday, the Sky announced they signed guard Diamond DeShields, who was drafted by the Sky with the third overall selection in the 2018 WNBA draft. DeShields spent four seasons with the Sky and averaged 13.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 113 total games. DeShields played for the Phoenix Mercury in 2022 and sat out last year with the Dallas Wings due to injury.
“We are very excited to bring Diamond back to Chicago and cannot wait to see her on the court again this season,” Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca said. “She is an all-around dynamic player with incredible athletic abilities and championship experience that can add to our roster in a Sky uniform once again.”
We have acquired Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, 2024 First Rnd (3rd overall), 2026 First Rnd Pick, 2025 Second Rnd Pick, and the rights to swap 2026 Second Rnd picks from the @PhoenixMercury.
In exchange, we have traded Kahleah Copper and Morgan Bertsch.
Rebuilding a team often comes with sacrifice, and the Sky announced on Tuesday they were executing trades. The Sky acquired Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, the third pick this year, a 2026 first-round pick, a 2025 second-round pick and the rights to swap 2026 second-round picks from the Mercury. In exchange, the Mercury welcomed Kahleah Copper and Morgan Bertsch to their roster.
The Sky tip off the 2024 regular season on May 15 against the Wings.
Kahleah Copper switching teams is a bold move, and the WNBA should be on notice.
Kahleah Copper was supposed to be part of the Chicago Sky’s future. Now, just five months after signing an extension and four months after participating in an introductory press conference for new head coach Teresa Weatherspoon, Copper has been traded.
Copper and Morgan Bertsch are reportedly headed to the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for forwards Michaela Onyenwere and Brianna Turner and four draft picks, including the No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft.
The move is a bit of a shock, considering the Sky won a championship in 2021, made the playoffs in 2022 and 2023 and still had several pieces to compete for another ring prior to free agency.
We have acquired Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, 2024 First Rnd (3rd overall), 2026 First Rnd Pick, 2025 Second Rnd Pick, and the rights to swap 2026 Second Rnd picks from the @PhoenixMercury.
In exchange, we have traded Kahleah Copper and Morgan Bertsch.
For basketball heads everywhere, the WNBA playoffs are an out-of-body experience.
The WNBA playoffs are here. This is when regular season records mean nothing, and wins mean everything. It’s buzzer beaters, emphatically blocked shots, “what did I just see?” moments and scoring so good you’ll need a pulse check.
For basketball heads everywhere, this is an out-of-body experience. The level of play is elevated, and so are the expectations.
Will the Lynx fly too close to the Sun? (See what I did there?) Will the Liberty crush the Aces’ chances of winning back-to-back titles?
The WNBA playoffs are more exciting than ever because of their new format
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What’s good, family? It’s Sykes, once again, delivering another edition of Layup Lines into your inbox. Today, let’s talk about the Chicago Sky.
The WNBA’s defending champions find themselves in a precarious situation. They’re down 1-0 to the New York Liberty after losing Game 1 on their home floor.
Nobody can really blame them — Sabrina Ionescu was absolutely brilliant. Marine Johannes’ passing is still sending shockwaves through the basketball world. Nobody expected them to play as perfectly as they did down the stretch, but it happens. Sometimes, you lose a game you’re supposed to win. That’s what happened with the Sky.
In a best-of-3 series? That’s normally OK. You’ve still got two games to make it up. But the Sky are going to have a tough time doing that now. Why? Because of the W’s new playoff format.
Everyone lauded the league for going away from single elimination games in round 1 and getting rid of the bye-week. Ultimately, it means more games. More games mean more chaos — more drama. And that’s a good thing.
Just look at the situation the Sky is in right now. They’ve essentially lost homecourt advantage.
Under the new rules, the first two games are played at the higher seed’s court. The lower seed gets the final third game in the series. The Sky will have to beat the Liberty on the road in order to advance and defend their title — that’s if they can beat them at home.
That’s a tough road to take for the champs. Can they do it? Absolutely. They’re the champs. They’ve got Kahleah Copper (We think?????) and Candace Parker. They can do anything.
But will they? We’ll see.
That’s the drama everyone loves. That’s the intrigue that brings eyes to the table. And the more eyes on these games, the better. Because it’s great basketball.
Buckle in, everyone. We’re in for a wild ride.
The Tip-Off
Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Bronny James’ recruitment is, apparently, underway. Obviously, dude has already pulled offers from places like North Carolina A&T and UNC Central, but he was never going there.
Now, it’s getting serious. Penny Hardaway and Memphis are reportedly sending an offer his way. Our Bryan Kalbrosky wrote about how this is just the start to what will almost certainly be a chaotic process.
“In addition to Oregon and Memphis, there are several other schools with reported interest in landing a commitment from Bronny. On3 reports that USC has offered Bronny a scholarship as well.
But now that there is apparently an offer letter extended to the four-star recruit, expect several other high-major universities to get involved and do the same. The madness has officially begun.”
We’ll have to keep it locked on this one. No idea where Bronny is going, but teams will no doubt be pulling out all the stops to get him. We’ll see how it ends.
Shootaround
(Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
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With the defending champs beginning the postseason in a quest for a repeat title, they might need every edge they can get when they play at home. Before the Sky took on the Liberty (-10) in Game 1 of their first-round matchup, head coach James Wade had a unique and motivating message for the hometown fans in Chicago.
Get your beer, chests, and faces ready folks:
James Wade has a request for Chicago Sky fans in the playoffs: "I wanna see a lot of people with beer, just chugging it everywhere. Hairy chests with 'Chicago' logos on it and painted faces everywhere."
In a playoff atmosphere in Chicago, I don’t think any part of Wade’s request is unreasonable (or unlikely). It’s sure to be a raucous vibe during every home Sky postseason game at Wintrust Arena in the coming weeks.
Some of the WNBA’s biggest superstars are gearing up to take the center stage this week as the 2022 playoffs begin in just over 24 hours. But before they prepare to handle business on the court, business away from the hardwood is already thriving.
On Monday, it was announced that the Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson, the 2020 WNBA MVP, had signed a sponsorship deal with Ruffles to become the brand’s first-ever female athlete.
And on Tuesday, reports surfaced that the Chicago Sky’s reigning WNBA Finals MVP Kahleah Copper had inked a deal with Gatorade, where she will join teammate Candace Parker as a sponsor.
If you don’t already know the names and faces of Kahleah Copper and A’ja Wilson, you’re a casual (just kidding). Regardless, you’re going to become more familiar with the two even if you don’t necessarily follow the WNBA.
Although, there’s a good chance that you are, seeing how the WNBA’s viewership numbers continue to grow.
#WNBA on ESPN presented by Google scores its most-viewed regular season since '08
• Up 19% through 25 games vs '21 regular season
Sunday's @seattlestorm vs @LVAces: • 852K average viewers • Most-viewed @WNBA game across all networks since '08
Each sponsorship announcement coming just ahead of the WNBA playoffs is certainly planned and it wouldn’t be surprising if some of the brands’ advertisements ran during commercial breaks of games.
Wilson and Copper will only add to the continued growth of the league.
That proved to be the case again on Friday night, as the Sky took on the Atlanta Dream (-7.5) at Wintrust Arena. With Parker unfortunately missing the matchup because of an injured knee, a rousing team performance from Atlanta unexpectedly pushed the champs to their limits.
But try as the Dream might, Kahleah Copper (23 points, 10 boards) simply wouldn’t let the Sky fall to a middling .500-ish squad:
Thanks to Copper’s trademark brilliance, the Sky would eventually prevail in a tight 106-100 overtime win. A valiant all-around effort from the Dream gone by the wayside, which the Sky’s Twitter account hilariously made light of after the game:
Las Vegas Aces will meet the Chicago Sky in WNBA action on Saturday afternoon from Wintrust Arena.
Las Vegas Aces will meet the Chicago Sky in WNBA action on Saturday afternoon from Wintrust Arena.
The Aces are coming off two 100-point victories in their last two games and come into today’s game with a 7-1 record on the season. As for the Sky, they’re coming off a 95-90 win over Indiana as they go for their fifth win of the season today.
This will be a good one this afternoon in the WNBA, here is everything you need to know to watch and stream the action.
WNBA odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook. Odds were last updated Saturday at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Las Vegas Aces (-1.5) vs. Chicago Sky
O/U: 171.5
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The countdown to opening night of WNBA’s 26th season has officially reached single digits. Training camps are well-underway, preseason games are happening and rosters are being trimmed to their regular-season form in preparation for the W’s May 6th start.
And while the fringe roster players are sweating out the days of training camp, wondering what their futures as WNBA players hold, the established players and team leaders are gearing up for what they hope will be a magical season. There are a select few who have the power to make that happen, we call those MVP candidates.
We take a look at the elite players’ odds to win the MVP award, while also pinpointing the sleepers and longshots.
