WNBA trade deadline comes and goes with no further changes to Sky roster

The Sky’s 18-point loss to the Mercury on Sunday — which came three days after a 20-point loss to them — was the most glaring example this season that their roster doesn’t work.

There have been signs of it. But former Sky guard Marina Mabrey’s three-point shooting — while inconsistent — coupled with Chennedy Carter’s ability to create for herself masked how poor the team’s offense is.

There’s no running from an 0-for-14 mark from beyond the arc, which the Sky shot Sunday. But whether the Sky should make changes and whether they can are different questions. On Tuesday, the WNBA trade deadline came and went without any news from general manager Jeff Pagliocca.

The answer to whether Pagliocca should’ve made another trade to help the Sky’s lackluster offense is, of course, yes. But after moving Mabrey — at her request — the Sky were without any considerable trade assets.

The same week that Mabrey was traded to the Sun, guard Dana Evans shared her discontent with her role in coach Teresa Weatherspoon’s system. There were trade talks involving Evans, but they cooled.

Evans alone wouldn’t bring the kind of return the Sky need. Any trade Pagliocca would’ve tried to make likely would’ve had to include draft picks.

The Sky’s issue at the trade deadline was that they’re far from a team that’s one player away from a deep postseason run. They also lack the kind of player who could move the needle for a title-contending franchise.

That answers the second question: There was no viable trade for Pagliocca to make ahead of the deadline.

At this point, Pagliocca is navigating the Sky through a precarious situation because he didn’t choose it himself. They aren’t in tank mode, but they also aren’t in a highly competitive position. They’re narrowly ahead of the Dream for the final playoff spot.

Of course, Pagliocca is directly responsible for this team. But in his first year, this team is still dealing with the residual damage left by former coach/general manager James Wade’s efforts to bypass a full-on rebuild.

Look no further than Pagliocca trading away the Sky’s franchise player, Kahleah Copper, to regain draft stock lost by Wade in the trade for Mabrey. Five months later, he was forced to trade Mabrey. The positive return remains to be seen.

Rachel Banham, one of the guards acquired for Mabrey last month, has been touted by Weatherspoon as the answer to the team’s three-point issues. She went 0-for-4 on Sunday and has shot 26.7% from three since joining the Sky.

Pagliocca’s acquisition of the Sun’s 2025 first-round pick and the rights to swap 2026 first-round picks was the most lucrative part of the Mabrey trade. It’s also another indication of Pagliocca’s direction.

He’s stockpiling draft picks to rebuild with young talent and acquire more experienced talent in future trades.

The Sky’s saving grace right now is the fact that the Wings aren’t in the playoff picture. Another ramification of Wade’s trade for Mabrey was giving the Wings the right to swap 2025 first-round picks.

Because the WNBA’s lottery odds are based on combined records for the previous two seasons, it bodes well for the Sky if the Wings finish behind them in the standings.