The Chicago Sky waived Hailey Van Lith Monday, news that reverberated throughout the larger WNBA community (and likely more than a few teams). Van Lith was drafted by the team as the 11th overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
Though she is a popular player and had plenty of name recognition from her days playing with Louisville, LSU, and TCU, Van Lith didn't have the strongest rookie season with the Sky. It wasn't clear if the organization had the capacity and/or desire to develop her game to the next level, or if there was something else going on behind the scenes. She averaged 3.5 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 12.4 minutes of play for the team last year.
The Sky, like the rest of the WNBA, have the option to sign two players to developmental roles this season. That would be a bit of a step back for Van Lith, and it's not immediately clear if the team hopes to retain her on their roster. In fact, the decision to waive her rasies plenty of questions, and some of those don't have clear answers.
The Sky chose to protect their entire draft from the Tempo and Fire
One of the biggest questions that's hung over the Sky is why the team opted to strike deals with the Tempo and Fire that ended up leaving their entire roster protected from the teams during their respective Expansion Drafts. It's possible the Sky hadn't yet decided to waive Van Lith, but it's also hard to deny that she would have benefitted from having the opportunity to land a roster spot on either team if they had left her unprotected.
Both the Tempo and Fire would have benefitted from having a player with Van Lith's name recognition on their rosters. The Fire have appeared less interested in bringing players on board for name recognition alone, but Van Lith would definitely put bodies in seats in both Toronto and Portland.
Who will sign Hailey Van Lith?
Several outlets have reported that multiple teams are in conversations with Van Lith, but it's not exactly clear who they might — and which teams have enough room on their rosters to bring her on. The Valkyries are weighing their own potentially dramatic cut this season,
Will Hailey Van Lith stay in the WNBA?
It's possible, even probable, that teams will offer Van Lith a developmental player contract that would keep her in the WNBA and give her the spot to make a roster this or next season. But that decision will also come down to whether Van Lith feels that's an appropriate contract for her, and what other players teams are hoping to sign.
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