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The Chicago Sky announced a pair of trades with both of the WNBA's newest expansion teams days ahead of the Friday's expansion draft.
The Sky are sending a second-round pick (No. 17 overall) in the 2026 WNBA Draft to the Portland Fire in exchange for the No. 21 pick and the Fire not selecting any player from Chicago’s unprotected list in the expansion draft. Similarly, the Sky are also sending another second rounder (No. 26 overall, which they originally acquired from the New York Liberty) to the Toronto Tempo with the same agreement that they will not select a Sky player in the expansion draft.
This means on Friday, April 3, neither expansion team will add a player currently on the Sky's roster. Chicago still has three picks (No. 5, 21 and 32 overall) in the upcoming WNBA amateur draft, which will take place on Monday, April 13.
The Fire and Tempo will fill out their rosters for the first time in Friday's expansion draft, alternating picks as they select from a designated pool of available players from all 13 -- or in this case, 12 -- other teams.
Portland will pick first in the expansion draft after Toronto won a coin toss and instead opted to receive the sixth overall pick in the WNBA draft. The two teams will participate in a snake-style draft with up to six picks per team over two rounds. The Fire and Tempo can each select one impending unrestricted free agent, meaning the bulk of their selections will be players on rookie deals, restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents.
The move makes sense for all parties, as the Sky essentially found a way to protect their entire roster and keep their team intact while Portland and Toronto get to stockpile another draft pick in a deep 2026 draft class.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chicago Sky swap draft picks for WNBA expansion protection
Continue reading...
The Sky are sending a second-round pick (No. 17 overall) in the 2026 WNBA Draft to the Portland Fire in exchange for the No. 21 pick and the Fire not selecting any player from Chicago’s unprotected list in the expansion draft. Similarly, the Sky are also sending another second rounder (No. 26 overall, which they originally acquired from the New York Liberty) to the Toronto Tempo with the same agreement that they will not select a Sky player in the expansion draft.
This means on Friday, April 3, neither expansion team will add a player currently on the Sky's roster. Chicago still has three picks (No. 5, 21 and 32 overall) in the upcoming WNBA amateur draft, which will take place on Monday, April 13.
TRADE ALERT
The Sky have reached agreements with the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo ahead of the Expansion Draft. As a result, neither team will select a player from Chicago’s Unprotected List in the Expansion Draft.
Our 2026 WNBA Draft picks remain:
No. 5 overall… pic.twitter.com/SJAWG09T4q
— Chicago Sky (@chicagosky) April 1, 2026
The Fire and Tempo will fill out their rosters for the first time in Friday's expansion draft, alternating picks as they select from a designated pool of available players from all 13 -- or in this case, 12 -- other teams.
Portland will pick first in the expansion draft after Toronto won a coin toss and instead opted to receive the sixth overall pick in the WNBA draft. The two teams will participate in a snake-style draft with up to six picks per team over two rounds. The Fire and Tempo can each select one impending unrestricted free agent, meaning the bulk of their selections will be players on rookie deals, restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents.
The move makes sense for all parties, as the Sky essentially found a way to protect their entire roster and keep their team intact while Portland and Toronto get to stockpile another draft pick in a deep 2026 draft class.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chicago Sky swap draft picks for WNBA expansion protection
Continue reading...
