Angel Reese is heading to Atlanta, and pretty much everyone except the Sky is a winner in the deal
By Lindsay Gibbs Apr 7, 2026 at 10:28 am ET • 4 min read 
Getty Images On Monday, the Chicago Sky shook up the WNBA on the opening day of free agency by trading Angel Reese to the Atlanta Dream for Dream's 2027 and 2028 first-round picks. It was a stunning move that CBS Sports' Jack Maloney rightfully graded an "F" for the Sky front office.
But while Sky fans should be reeling, the trade is absolutely fabulous news not only for Reese, but for the league as a whole. It takes one of its most marketable stars and prolific young talents out of basketball purgatory -- aka the rec center in the suburbs that the Sky use as a practice facility -- and puts her into a good market with competent ownership and a great new coach. It also adds a renewed spark to Reese's rivalry with Caitlin Clark, something that a lot of fans can't get enough of.
As the WNBA moves into its marquee 30th season, fresh on the heels of signing a landmark CBA that raised salaries more than 400%, the league should send Chicago general manager Jeff Pagliocca a thank you card and bouquet of roses.
Why it's great for Angel Reese
Let's start with Reese herself. According to ESPN, Reese did not request this trade. However, she had expressed frustrations with the Sky toward the end of last season in an interview with the Chicago Tribune.
"I'm not settling for the same shit we did this year," Reese said in September. "We have to get good players. We have to get great players. That's a non-negotiable for me.
"I'm willing and wanting to play with the best. And however I can help to get the best here, that's what I'm going to do this offseason. So it's going to be very, very important this offseason to make sure we attract the best of the best because we can't settle for what we have this year."
Reese's comments weren't great -- she threw her teammates, including Courtney Vandersloot, under the bus, which is a no-no, and the Sky suspended her for half a game. But she also wasn't wrong to question the directionless Sky front office. The organization has been in a free fall since its surprising 2021 WNBA championship.
The Sky have had four head coaches in four years and the team's roster-management decisions have been baffling to say the least. Last offseason, the Sky traded the No. 3 pick, a 2027 first-round pick swap and a 2027 second-round pick to the Washington Mystics in exchange for All-Star guard Ariel Atkins. While Atkins has proven to be a solid third or fourth option on a championship roster, she's hardly a centerpiece. And the No. 3 pick in the 2025 draft turned into Sonia Citron for the Mystics, who had an All-Star season her rookie year and even gave Paige Bueckers some slight competition for the Rookie of the Year award.
Drafting Reese in 2024 gave the Sky a surge in popularity and relevancy, and Reese's production has been phenomenal, but the team has gone a combined 23-61 and missed the playoffs in the last two years. In 2025, Chicago finished tied for last place in the league despite Reese averaging 14.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals and once again leading the league in rebounding and making her second straight All-Star team.
You simply do not want one of the biggest names in the sport wasting away on a team that is struggling to achieve mere competency. You want them on a true contender.
Dream come true for Atlanta... and the WNBA
Enter the Atlanta Dream. In Atlanta, Reese will be surrounded by the type of electric shooting and playmaking that will perfectly complement her talents. Assuming they re-sign in free agency later this week, Reese's primary co-stars will be Allisha Gray, who finished fourth in MVP voting last year, and Rhyne Howard, a three-time WNBA All-Star who was on the All-Defensive Second Team in 2025. Last year, the Dream hired long-time Florida Gulf Coast coach Karl Smesko, and it turned out to be an inspired move. The team went 30-14 and earned the No. 3 seed in the WNBA playoffs.
Unfortunately, they didn't win a series, so there is still work to do. But here's where this gets more fun: The Dream were upset in the first round by the Indiana Fever.
Of course, the Fever went on their playoff run last season without Caitlin Clark, who missed most of the season with injury. But the thought of having Clark and Reese both playing on talented teams with real hopes of winning a championship? That has to have WNBA executives jumping for joy.
Clark and Reese are both big draws on their own. But since their college days, the sight of the two facing off has led to explosive viewership numbers. In 2023, 12.3 million viewers tuned in to watch LSU defeat Iowa in the national championship game. It was the most-watched women's college basketball contest of all-time.
Last season, the opening-day game between the Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever drew 2.7 million viewers, becoming the most-watched WNBA regular-season game in 27 years. But the actual game itself? A complete dud. The Fever won 93-58. In fact, the Sky only had one win over the Fever in the past two seasons, and a lot of the games were lopsided.
Now? Well, with Reese and Clark both on ascending teams, there's hope their teams can develop a true rivalry -- one that is far more about basketball stakes than cultural ones.
It might take some last-minute shuffling of the broadcast schedule to get the Dream vs. Fever games the same marquee spots that Sky vs. Fever games received the past two seasons, but it certainly seems well worth the effort.
The Sky made a very questionable move on Monday, one that leaves a chasm on their roster and in their fanbases, and leaves genuine concerns about whether the organization has the leadership in place to re-fill it. But it gave a wonderful gift to everyone outside of Illinois.
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