The Sky’s front office made some questionable decisions recently. They had the third overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, but traded it for Ariel Atkins. The Mystics used that pick to draft Sonia Citron, who proved to be more than ready for the next level and was named an All-Star in her rookie season. The trade was supposed to send the Sky into win-now mode—a strategy that failed spectacularly and could cost them Angel Reese.
Chicago won only 10 games, but won’t even get to reap the small benefit of that. The Sky traded their 2026 first-round pick to the Lynx for the eleventh pick in this year’s draft, so they will miss out on the second-best lottery odds in a stacked 2026 WNBA Draft. Chicago still has a lottery pick, as it will get Connecticut’s top pick. However, they now have the lowest odds to win the lottery and secure a franchise-altering number-one pick.
Though unlikely, the Sky still have a small chance to win the lottery. Winning the top pick and drafting Olivia Miles to be the team’s point guard next to Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso could completely change the franchise’s future outlook. If Chicago doesn’t defy the odds to win a pick above number five, it is unlikely that Miles will still be available. The Lynx, Storm, and Mystics could all use a point guard of her caliber. Winning the lottery would also provide the Sky with another option. If they want to stand by their win-now approach, they could trade the top pick for a true star player.
Last but not least, winning the lottery will make fans more likely to forget or forgive some of the questionable decisions the Sky’s front office has made recently.
Teams with low odds rarely win the lottery
In the last ten years, the team with the best odds won the lottery with only two exceptions. The Los Angeles Sparks had the best odds to win the 2025 draft lottery, but the Wings ended up with the top pick and drafted Paige Bueckers. Dallas had the second-best odds that year. In 2022, the Atlanta Dream also had the second-best odds and won the lottery over the Indiana Fever.
2012 was the last year that the team with the lowest odds won the top pick. The Sparks had the worst odds behind the Tulsa Shock, Minnesota Lynx, and Seattle Storm, but still won the number one pick and drafted Nneka Ogwumike. In the NBA, the Dallas Mavericks only had a 1.8% chance to win the top pick in the 2025 draft, but still won.