Grading the Chicago Sky trade that sends Angel Reese to the Atlanta Dream

Angel Reese traded from Chicago to Atlanta, expert weighs in

Women’s basketball analyst Meghan McKeown breaks down the shocking trade sending Angel Reese to Atlanta, what Chicago gains in return, and what it means for both teams moving forward.

On to the next for the Chicago Sky. Another star player has come and gone. 

The Sky traded Angel Reese, the two-time WNBA All-Star and face of the franchise, to the Atlanta Dream on Monday. It was a massive move, and it 

Here are our grades for Atlanta, Angel Reese and the Sky in Monday's trade that shook the WNBA. 

Atlanta Dream

Grade: A

This is such a no-brainer.

The Dream had Brionna Jones, Brittney Griner, Naz Hamilton, Allisha Gray and Brittney Griner last season under first-year head coach Karl Smesko. Atlanta went from a 15-win team to a 30-win squad. Smesko is doing something right in Atlanta.

Smesko likes to shoot a lot of 3-pointers and play position-less basketball. Reese doesn't fit into the shooting aspect. But, its no secret she had been working on that part of her game in Year 2 with the Sky.

The Dream get an elite defender who will ignite massive interest as one of the most popular players in the world to pair with a winning roster and give up draft picks to do it. That's a win for the Dream.

Angel Reese

Grade: A

Reese's time in Chicago came with the accolades on the court, but she was also successful off the court. She invested in Chicago, helped rebuild basketball courts around the city and inspired a generation of hoopers that came to see her play in the best women's pro basketball league in America.

It didn't matter where Reese went. Fans were going to follow. She's one of the most popular women's basketball players in the world.

She also wants to win. She can do that in Atlanta and gets out of a situation in Chicago that has a cap on how much she can grow with an organization that has zero direction.

A third WNBA All-Star honor is most likely coming for Reese, and she gets to do it in a city where her own personal brand can flourish.

Chicago Sky

Grade: D

You know what they say: When you have the chance to trade the All-Star face of your franchise who has supercharged interest in Sky basketball nearly overnight, brought in fans nationwide and became of the best defensive players in the WNBA for pennies on the dollar, you just have to do it.

Reese wasn't a great fit for Chicago right away because of how the team was built. She became an elite defender next to Kamilla Cardoso, but it wasn't Reese's fault that the team was built primarily with defensive players to play for an offensive-minded coach.

In return for a defensive stalwart, the Sky get first-round picks in 2027 and 2028, which will most likely be late picks because Atlanta is now built to win now. Those picks might pan out, but the Sky haven't been historically great at drafting players. Reese and Cardoso were outliers. The Sky have found stars – Elena Delle Donne, Sylvia Fowles, Kahleah Copper, Candace Parker and more – but those stars either left quickly or publicly wanted out. The tensions between Reese and the Sky brass were well-documented, but even then she never asked to be traded.

This is mismanagement of a WNBA roster. The Sky swung to compete right away in 2025 but turned in the worst season in franchise history. Now, they have two draft picks to use that start in 2027. Mind you, that 2027 pick is the Sky's only pick because the team sent its original 2027 pick to Washington to acquire Ariel Atkins.

This trade is a step backwards, which isn't always a bad move if steps forward come after. The picks they acquired could become cornerstones, but that's not a given.

The Sky haven't proven they can take a step forward under the current list of decision makers. What's become a constant with the team, it remains to be seen what comes next.