The Sky are at a pivotal point in the team’s development. After successful rookie seasons from Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso in 2024, the Sky were desperate to accelerate their rebuild, so they signed several veterans in free agency and traded a lottery pick for Ariel Atkins. The vision didn’t pan out, and the Sky finished the season with a losing record and a frustrated Angel Reese. This offseason will be all about fixing past mistakes and building a more competitive team.
The Sky have already taken one important step in the right direction, adding Latricia Trammell to Tyler Marsh’s coaching staff. Trammell will add experience and a defensive focus that the team should immediately benefit from.
Latricia Trammell has been in the WNBA for a while
Latricia Trammell made her debut in the WNBA coaching ranks in 2017 as an assistant for the San Antonio Stars. From 2019 to 2022, she worked as an assistant for the Sparks, working with stars like Nneka Ogwumike, Candace Parker, Chelsea Gray, and Seimone Augustus. After that, Trammell took over as the Wings’ head coach for two seasons. The Wings made it all the way to the semifinals in 2023, but only won nine games during an injury-ridden 2024 season. Trammell was let go after two seasons and joined Lynne Roberts’s coaching staff in Los Angeles for the second part of the 2025 season.
Trammell’s impact on the Sparks was felt immediately. She added much-needed WNBA experience to a new coaching staff and helped with the team’s defensive struggles. Trammell should have a similar impact on the Sky. Chicago struggled immensely on both ends of the floor this past season, finishing 12th in offensive rating and 13th in defensive rating.
Trammell should help with the latter. While she was in charge of the Sparks’ defense from 2019 to 2022, Candace Parker was named the 2020 Defensive Player of the Year, and Nneka Ogwumike and Brittney Sykes combined for four All-Defensive team selections. Interestingly, Parker wasn’t named to an All-Defensive team in 2020 despite being named DPOY.
Her time with the Sparks also gave Trammell valuable experience working with star forwards, which will be helpful when it comes to developing Reese and Cardoso in Chicago.
Moreover, Trammell will add WNBA experience to a coaching staff trying to navigate a difficult period. She is one of the most experienced members of the Sky’s coaching staff. Tyler Marsh was an assistant for the Aces from 2022 to 2024. Before, he worked as an assistant coach in the WNBA. Rena Wakama only entered the WNBA coaching ranks this year, but has some experience at the college level and with the Nigerian national team. She will also be a head coach in Unrivaled this winter. Tanisha Wright, meanwhile, has plenty of WNBA experience. She is a former head coach and former player.
Adding a new assistant coach to the staff alone won’t be enough to cause a turnaround for the Sky, but it is an important step in the right direction. Combined with the right free agency moves, it may be just what the Sky need.