On a packed night at Wintrust Arena, the sound hits you first — the bass of the music, the crowd roaring when Angel Reese is introduced.

This year, there have been more of those nights than ever, and the numbers tell the attendance story. But they also reveal plot twists worth watching as the Sky — and the league — ride a wave of change.

Attendance rising

Rising attendance at Wintrust is no longer a flash in the pan. Back in 2019 — before civilization shut down and then opened its eyes to professional women’s basketball — 6,748 fans were filing in on an average night.

Today, that number is up to 9,471. It’s even higher than in 2022, when the Sky had one of the league’s most exciting teams and a chance at the title. That’s right: a significantly larger crowd is showing up for a drifting, 8-24 team than for a contender. And there’s more good news to come.

The Sky have sold out seven games this season, including two at the United Center. Both set franchise attendance records. For a team with a 25% win rate to sell out more than 40% of its home games is saying something. But will that momentum survive without Angel Reese?

The Reese Effect

Reese has missed the last seven home games with a back injury, and Wintrust attendance has dropped to an average of 7,560. No shocker there. She returned to practice this week, but with no real shot at the playoffs, there’s no reason to rush her back. Whether she plays again this season is an open question. So is the Sky’s place in a hyper-growth league.

Competing in the hyper-growth era

The Sky’s growth is solid, but elsewhere, it’s exploding. The expansion Valkyries are on pace for the highest attendance in WNBA history. Caitlin Clark’s Fever and Ellie the Elephant’s Liberty are regularly filling NBA arenas. Despite their steady growth, the Sky rank ninth out of 13 teams in attendance. That’s a dynamic for Sky fans to keep an eye on.

In the league’s hyper-growth era, real progress for the Sky may pale next to other franchises with deeper pockets and bigger arenas.

What the naysayers are naying

The naysayers will tell you the league’s attendance wave is riding on a handful of stars like Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers. And there’s truth to it: the Sky’s two United Center sellouts were against Clark’s Fever, and two of their five Wintrust sellouts came against Bueckers’ Wings.

But is it really bad for a league to be driven by young stars? Especially when more are on the way — Azzi Fudd, Olivia Miles and Flau’Jae Johnson all have national followings and are set to join the league next year.

That is, as long as there’s a league to join.

The CBA wild card

The league and players’ union still need to agree on a new collective bargaining agreement, but they left their All-Star weekend meeting with very different takeaways. The league called the talks “constructive.” The union called them a “wasted opportunity.”

Union secretary Elizabeth Williams told the Sun-Times this week that players remain “adamant” about resolving salaries first, before moving on to other issues. She thinks the latest meeting hinted the league might finally be getting that message.

“It gives me, like, this much hope,” she said, holding her thumb and forefinger a sliver apart.