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With the WNBA free agency moratorium period lifted and players officially able to sign new contracts, there were a flurry of free agent moves that had already been agreed upon. The Chicago Sky were among the most active teams in free agency, bringing back veteran point guard Courtney Vandersloot, and also signing veteran guard Kia Nurse. The Sky also finalized a trade with the Connecticut Sun involving veterans Rebecca Allen and Lindsay Allen, as per Annie Costabile of The Chicago Sun-Times.
The full details of the trade include the Sky receiving Rebecca Allen while sending Lindsay Allen and the rights to Nikolina Milic to the Sun.
Rebecca Allen had just been traded to the Sun from the Phoenix Mercury in the sign-and-trade deal involving Alyssa Thomas going to Phoenix.
Where do the Sky and Sun go after the trade?
Looking at the trade from the Sky’s perspective, this is a team that is looking to compete next season. They were in the playoff race last year until Angel Reese went down with a season-ending wrist injury. With a foundational duo of Reese and Kamilla Cardoso in the frontcourt, and bringing back Courtney Vandersloot, the Sky are looking to make the postseason.
With Rebecca Allen, the Sky get a wing player capable of spacing the floor and bringing solid defense. She was hurt last season with the Mercury and was limited to only 18 games. When she was able to play, she averaged 7.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists with splits of 42.1 percent shooting from the field and 35.7 percent shooting from the three-point line.
From the Sun’s perspective, they’ve likely hit the reset button. In the early days of WNBA free agency, the Sun have lost four of their five starters from last season. Thomas and Tyasha Harris were both moved in the aforementioned deal to Phoenix, Brionna Jones signed with the Atlanta Dream, and DiJonai Carrington was involved in a sign-and-trade to the Dallas Wings.
Lindsay Allen provides the Sun with a veteran presence, but it’s hard to see the Sun being a competitive team this upcoming season. She’s in the final year of a two-year contract she signed with the Sky ahead of the 2024 season.
The Sun also received the rights to Nikolina Milic, but she will be 30 years old at the start of the season, and it’s difficult to envision how she might fit in with a rebuilding roster. There’s also no guarantee that she comes over to the WNBA this season.
Milic sat out the 2024 season while focusing on overseas commitments. She had previously played two seasons for the Minnesota Lynx. She appeared in a total of 70 games while averaging 5.9 points and 2.7 rebounds while shooting 49.8 percent from the field and 31.8 percent from the three-point line.