Bombshell free agency prediction pairs Angel Reese with key member of Aces’ championship core originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Angel Reese wants the Chicago Sky to demonstrate that they are serious about building a WNBA championship contender. This spring, the Sky will have the opportunity to do so.
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Granted, difficult collective bargaining negotiations between the WNBA and the WNBPA loom over what will be the wildest free agency period in league history — not to mention the start of the 2026 season. But the sheer number of players who are set to hit the market will make this a decisive offseason in Chicago, where Reese has pressured the organization to go big and go bold — or the two-time All-Star may well demand a trade.
The potential volatility of the coming free agency period will see star players make surprise moves. To that end, The Athletic believes that Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young would be a potential fit in Chicago — where Tyler Marsh, a former assistant on Becky Hammon’s staff in Vegas, is entering his second season as the Sky’s head coach.
MORE: Aces’ Jackie Young lands a new job after WNBA Finals victory
As Sabreena Merchant and Ben Pickman point out, Young changed representation last year. Unlike the other members of the Aces’ core — Chelsea Gray, Jewell Loyd, A’ja Wilson and even Hammon — Young is not a Klutch Sports client, and The Athletic posits the possibility that Young will make a Kelsey Plum-like decision and consider leaving Las Vegas in search of a chance at being the first option elsewhere.
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Young, a four-time All-Star and a three-time WNBA champion at only 28 years old, averaged 16.5 points and 5.1 assists per game during the regular season. But she reached another level in the playoffs, where she averaged 20.4 points per game and set a WNBA Finals record by scoring 21 points a quarter during Game 2 of the eventual four-game sweep over the Phoenix Mercury.
The Sky’s #1 area for improvement is their backcourt. Ariel Atkins could depart in free agency, while Rachel Banham just turned 32 and Courtney Vandersloot is returning after missing much of the 2025 season with an ACL injury. With Reese’s future still uncertain, Young’s star power would provide a big boost to everyone in Chicago — if the Sky can convince her to leave the Aces, that is.
