The Sky got poached again.
The Mercury signed Sky development player Maddy Westbeld to a rest-of-season contract Tuesday, the second time this season another team has plucked one of Chicago’s development players.
Unlike the Lynx’s signing of Chloe Bibby, though, this one won’t affect the Sky’s rotation.
Westbeld appeared in only three of her allotted 12 games this season and last played June 20 against the Wings. Injuries prevented her from carving out a role.
She entered training camp with a foot injury that initially kept her sidelined, then injured her thumb around the All-Star break and had been working her way back.
“We drafted her injured, and she came in and worked her tail off,” coach Tyler Marsh said. “She played through injury most of last year, took some time to recover over this past offseason, and then showed some spurts this year at times when she was healthy.”
Westbeld became a meaningful part of the locker room since being drafted in 2025. Marsh routinely described her as an all-time great teammate, and the two also bonded over their faith.
“She just approached it with a level of maturity that most rookies don’t,” Marsh said. “She’ll always have a special place with me and with this organization.”
The Sky technically had the right to match the Mercury’s offer and convert Westbeld to a standard contract, but they did not have the cap space to do so.
Asked whether the Sky might sign another development player for the rest of the season, Marsh said they would do “what makes sense.”
Only nine games remain, but one benefit of adding another development player is that the Sky would retain that player’s rights for next season.
The Sky drafted Westbeld in the second round in 2025, but injuries kept her sidelined for most of this season.
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The playoffs are a pipe dream at this point. But the Sky have promising young players to work with.
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Kamila Cardoso had a double-double to lead the Sky.
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