Why is Jaelyn Brown not playing tonight vs Chicago Sky? Wings guard's status explored (May 18)

Chicago Sky and Dallas Wings meet in a rematch of the WNBA opening day clash at Dallas' College Park Center in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday evening. It's set to be an enticing affair, with the hosts riding high after a convincing 87-79 victory, be looking to extend their winning streak. However, they will have to do it without guard Jaelyn Brown, who's out with a nasal injury.

Meanwhile, the Sky go into the game as the underdogs but will hope to pick up their first win under Teresa Weatherspoon. The Dallas Wings have won three of their last five meetings with Chicago Sky, whose last win, 104-96, at College Park Center came in 2023.

---

What happened to Jaelyn Brown?

Jaelyn Brown is dealing with a nasal fracture. She presumably sustained it during training but bravely started in Wednesday's season opener against the Chicago Sky.

While the injury may have hampered her scoring ability (going scoreless with 0-3 FG and 0-1 3Pt attempts), her determination was evident with contributions of two rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes on the court.

She will undergo a procedure on Thursday to repair the fracture and is expected to miss about a week.

---

Who will start in place of Jaelyn Brown against the Chicago Wings?

An undrafted rookie in 2020, Brown honed her skills overseas, playing in France, Sweden, Hungary, Mexico and Turkey before signing a training camp deal with the Dallas Wings.

As one of the key contributors of the team, Brown stared in both the Wings' preseason games and eventually replacing starter Satou Sabally who sidelined for the first half of the season.

Being without Jaelyn Brown is a tough blow for the Wings, who had a league-leading No. 4 net rating last year. Following the news, coach Latricia Trammell has a big decision to make regarding her starting lineup.

However, Brown's absence presents a golden opportunity for Sevgi Uzun, Maddy Siegrist, Jacy Sheldon and Lou Lopez Senechal to step up and potentially claim increased playing time.

Jaelyn Brown's college career at California was marked by consistency. As a senior in the 2019-20 season, she averaged 15.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists while starting every game and playing over 31 minutes per contest.

---

How to watch Dallas Wings and Chicago Sky?

As with all three WNBA games taking place on Saturday, the clash between the Wings and Chicago tips off at 8 p.m. ET and will be televised on NBA TV, BSSW and MARQ. For additional live sports and WNBA coverage, check out Fubo.