{"id":574599,"date":"2026-04-09T21:02:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T21:02:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/574599\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T21:02:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T21:02:08","slug":"how-many-balloons-does-it-take-to-woo-a-star-and-the-skys-other-pressing-free-agency-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/574599\/","title":{"rendered":"How many balloons does it take to woo a star? And the Sky’s other pressing free agency questions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Now that the Sky<\/a> traded<\/a> their biggest star to the Dream for mediocre draft picks years into the future, the question is: What\u2019s next?<\/p>\n

One part of the plan is to swing for the fences in free agency, per a source familiar with the team\u2019s thinking.<\/p>\n

Most of the league\u2019s best players are available, though some have announced they\u2019re staying put. The Liberty\u2019s Big 3 of Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones recommitted to New York. Reigning MVP A\u2019ja Wilson said she\u2019s returning to Las Vegas.<\/p>\n

And many top free agents have already been \u201ccored\u201d by their current teams, meaning they can only move via sign-and-trade.<\/p>\n

Those players: Kelsey Plum, Kelsey Mitchell, Ionescu, Arike Ogunbowale, Napheesa Collier, Allisha Gray, Ezi Magbegor, Bridget Carleton and Marina Mabrey.<\/p>\n

Could any of them end up on the Sky? Well, if you think anyone would trade Napheesa Collier for the Sky\u2019s best assets \u2014 Kamilla Cardoso, the No. 5 pick in the 2026 draft and a bag of magic beans from Atlanta \u2014 feel free to keep pondering that list.<\/p>\n

If not: Consider the core players dead to us. <\/p>\n

On to the more attainable ones.<\/p>\n

Stars who are shopping around: Skylar Diggins, Nneka Ogwumike, Satou Sabally.<\/p>\n

Stars whose current team is salary cap-constrained, making a bigger offer elsewhere plausible: Jewell Loyd, Emma Meesseman.<\/p>\n

Stars who may not fit their current team\u2019s future: Brittney Sykes, Gabby Williams, Brionna Jones, Natasha Cloud, Azur\u00e1 Stevens, Brittney Griner, Courtney Williams, Tina Charles, DeWanna Bonner.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with the point guard spot. Team sources say veteran Courtney Vandersloot is progressing well, but standard ACL recovery time suggests she won\u2019t be ready for opening day.<\/p>\n

Which means general manager Jeff Pagliocca should be targeting Skylar Diggins.<\/p>\n

It wouldn\u2019t be the first time he\u2019s tried. The Sun-Times reported in 2024 that Pagliocca made aggressive pitches to both Diggins and Ogwumike. Neither was interested.<\/p>\n

How many balloons will it take to change that? (If you missed it: The Lynx ordered a fancy balloon bouquet to welcome Ogwumike to her free agency visit, then the balloon company leaked a photo.)<\/p>\n

Nneka Ogwumike had a meeting with the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday\u2014and it was leaked by a balloon company.<\/p>\n

Amazing Balloons MN was first to report the news when the company posted and quickly deleted a video setting up a balloon arch around a sign with her name.<\/p>\n

More \u2b07\ufe0f<\/p>\n

\u2014 Front Office Sports (@FOS) April 8, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sky\u2019s pitch can focus on things that have changed since 2024. Like renderings of their new training facility in Bedford Park,<\/a> or a Top 10 Courtney Vandersloot Dimes highlight reel.<\/p>\n

Or maybe they should skip the slideshow and just drop a sack of cash on the table.<\/p>\n

Thanks to the league\u2019s new TV deal, WNBA salaries have risen dramatically, and some rebuilding teams are hoping it will help them add talent.<\/p>\n

The maximum salary is now $1.19 million, up from $214,466 in 2024. That means stars like Diggins and Ogwumike, who have taken pay cuts in the past to play for preferred destinations, may be less willing to do so.<\/p>\n

The Sky have plenty of cap space to offer max contracts.<\/p>\n

The problem is that other teams \u2014 especially the Valkyries, Fire and Tempo \u2014 can pay them the max, too. Money alone won\u2019t sell the biggest stars on a team coming off two losing seasons, with an unproven coach and a practice facility whose completion timeline keeps shifting.<\/p>\n

However, money might attract players unlikely to receive a max offer elsewhere. Think Brittney Griner, DeWanna Bonner, and Natasha Cloud. If their next-best offer is $800,000, they might look past the Sky\u2019s shortcomings.<\/p>\n

That, Sky fans, is far more likely than Diggins taking her talents to Wintrust. That, or the front office trading away a truckload of assets for Marina Mabrey \u2014 again.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s think happier thoughts for a moment.<\/p>\n

Imagine the Sky somehow land one of the elite: Diggins, Ogwumike, Sabally, or Sykes. That immediately changes the narrative and softens the blow of losing Angel Reese.<\/p>\n

Even bringing back a semi-star like Stevens or Courtney Williams<\/a> \u2014 both of whom left Chicago in recent years \u2014 would signal confidence.<\/p>\n

But if they strike out again? If the league\u2019s best choose expansion teams over them?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a bandwagon in Atlanta you can get on.<\/p>\n

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\"Chicago<\/p>\n

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If the report from Front Office Sports holds, the Sky would add another young building block to a team that sorely needs scoring and star potential. But they would lose a two-time All-Star, and potentially more, depending on how the deal shakes out.<\/p>\n

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With Reese shipped off to the Dream, the Sky can target a \u201cstretch\u201d big in free agency. The problem is they don\u2019t have a compelling pitch for why the best ones should join them.<\/p>\n

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A core qualifying offer is a fully guaranteed one-year deal worth the supermax, which is reported to be $1.4 million in the new collective-bargaining agreement.<\/p>\n

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