Chicago Sky pull off shocker with Minnesota Lynx swap ahead of WNBA Draft night

Chicago Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca keeps making moves hours before the start of the 2025 WNBA Draft. The Sky wasn't that active in free agency, but they are planning on adding some talent in the draft.

After bringing Ariel Atkins in a surprising trade that sent the No. 3 overall pick to the Washington Mystics, the Sky pulled off another exchange to add one more selection to their portfolio.

The team's official X (formerly Twitter) account shared that the franchise agreed to extinguish the Minnesota Lynx's right to swap the latter's 2026 first-round selections. The Lynx sent their 2025 first-rounder to the Sky, while Chicago sent its 2026 first-round selection to the 2024 WNBA Finals runners-up.

This move leaves the Sky with the No. 10 and No. 11 selections in the first round of the 2025 draft. They have been linked with several players leading up to the big night, including Sofia Citron, Saniya Rivers and Aneesah Morrow, to name a few.

The Sky added two major names in 2024, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso, and the front office has seemingly put more focus on adding young talent through the draft after reuniting with Courtney Vandersloot and adding Atkins via trade.

It's unclear who they'll pursue with back-to-back picks, but the Chicago Sky have plenty of options.

Chicago Sky GM raves about Saniya Rivers' traits ahead of 2025 WNBA draft

Chicago Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca made positive comments about Saniya Rivers' traits that make her a terrific prospect for many teams in the WNBA. On Thursday, he said she could be an impactful player for multiple franchises.

"She can probably handle one, two, three, a little bit of four at times, she's got a lot of length. Maybe the best overall athlete in the draft and she's got a lot of length too.

"She's proving she can guard multiple positions, which always matters in our league, because you can cause some problems with point guard-wings. So you got to pay attention to players like that," Pagliocca said.

With Angel Reese leading the way, the Chicago Sky has a bright future. They are trying to combine youth and experience to challenge for the championship in the upcoming WNBA season.

They aren't considered among the favorites to dethrone the New York Liberty, but a good draft would give them real chances to make a noise in the postseason.