5 candidates to be the new Chicago Sky coach — including a few ‘let’s try something different’ options

With the Chicago Sky eliminated from the WNBA playoffs, the team’s front office now faces the most important task of the year: filling the empty offices left by former coach and general manager James Wade, who unexpectedly departed the team midseason to take an assistant coaching job with the NBA’s Toronto Raptors.

The Sky already made the critical decision to separate the coach and general manager roles, which All-Star guard Kahleah Copper confirmed during exit interviews Monday.

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“I know for sure the positions are going to be separate, which is great,” Copper said.

The Sky were the last WNBA team with a dual coach/GM position, a status that both players and interim coach/GM Emre Vatansever criticized in the second half of this season.

That era came to an end Wednesday, when the Sky announced Vatansever would not retain either title.

As the Sky begin their coaching search, here are five options for the front office to consider.

The obvious choice: Teresa Weatherspoon

Weatherspoon should be on the top of any team’s list of coaching candidates — and according to a Chicago Sun-Times report, she became a top target for the Sky immediately after Wade’s departure. Most recently an assistant for the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, she would bring a balance of experience as a Hall of Fame player, college head coach and assistant in the pros.

As a player, Weatherspoon won an NCAA championship at Louisiana Tech and an Olympic gold medal in 1988, then became a five-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Defensive Player of the Year. She returned to her alma mater and coached the Lady Techsters to a 99-71 record and two NCAA Tournament appearances from 2008-14.

As an assistant for the Pelicans from 2020-23, she was well-regarded by players as a development-focused coach who worked with young stars such as Zion Williamson.

Weatherspoon was an initial candidate for the Phoenix Mercury head coaching job during the 2021-22 offseason but removed her name from the running after the Pelicans made her a new offer. When the Pelicans reportedly released her in June, it was met with disappointment by WNBA fans — but it also opened the door for another WNBA front office to pursue her.

A familiar face: Olaf Lange

If the Sky are looking for familiarity, they can’t find a more consistent option.

Lange served as a Sky assistant from 2019-21 in a nearly three-decade coaching career. His resume includes stints with the German, Russian and Australian national teams, the WNBA’s San Antonio Silver Stars and New York Liberty and UMMC Ekaterinburg. He has been part of two FIBA EuroLeague championships, five Russian championships, five German championships and a WNBA title with the Sky in 2021.

Lange was well-regarded in Chicago as a players’ coach — and he would be well-equipped for the Sky’s transition into a new era with his familiarity with Copper and her strengths.

The main issue would be prying Lange away from the Liberty, for whom he has worked as an assistant to his wife, Sandy Brondello, for the last two seasons.

‘Let’s try something different’: 3 other options

Katie Smith

If the Sky are looking for a coach who trained under the best, they can look north to Minnesota Lynx assistant Smith.

A seven-time All-Star and two-time WNBA champion with the Detroit Shock, Smith has been the lead assistant to legendary coach Cheryl Reeve since 2020. She started her coaching career as an assistant with the Liberty in 2014 immediately after retiring from her 14-year playing career. Besides Reeve, Smith has been an assistant under Bill Laimbeer, learning from two incredibly successful — and incredibly different — coaches.

Smith replaced Laimbeer as the Liberty’s head coach in 2018, and a dismal two-year stint ended with a 17-51 record. But that was a different era for the Liberty, who have seen a massive shift since their 2019 sale ushered in a new “super team” era that offered improved resources and backing that Smith never saw during her time as head coach.

The league saw a successful promotion of an assistant this season when Latricia Trammell, previously an assistant for the San Antonio Stars and Los Angeles Sparks from 2017-22, led the Dallas Wings to the playoffs. Smith could be the next assistant to make that jump.

Kenny Brooks

Another place for the Sky to seek coaching talent is the college ranks. Brooks has coached Virginia Tech since 2016,lifting the Hokies from WNIT competitors to an NCAA powerhouse. They reached the Final Four this year as a No. 1 seed.

Before his current role, Brooks was the head coach at James Madison — his alma mater — from 2002-16, similarly elevating the program from the WNIT to the NCAA Tournament.

Brooks is untested at the professional level, making him a riskier option — but if his ability to produce consistent success at the NCAA level can transition to the WNBA, he would be a worthwhile candidate.

Pokey Chatman

Some fans have called for the Sky to look backward for their next coach: Chatman, currently a Seattle Storm assistant, coached the team from 2011-16.

She led the Sky to their first WNBA Finals in 2014, drafted former star Courtney Vandersloot and scouted out Allie Quigley when she fell through the cracks of the league and landed in Europe. Chatman finished with a 106-98 record in Chicago, then went to the Indiana Fever and struggled through three losing seasons.

For an organization propelled forward by new ownership and leadership, the Sky are unlikely to circle back to a former coach, but expect to hear Chatman’s name in offseason conversations — at least among fans.