Former Sky guard Marina Mabrey did not leave the organization quietly.
In fact, very few of the Sky’s former stars who requested trades have remained quiet. One week ago, 2021 WNBA Finals MVP and Olympic gold medalist Kahleah Copper returned to Chicago for the first time since being traded in February. She detailed contributing reasons, the main one being that the Sky would not be able to help her become the player she wanted to be.
Mabrey’s reasons included her fit with the organization. She was extremely critical of the Sky in a recent interview about her new home with the Sun.
“Being part of a team like this that is so disciplined with a championship mindset, I haven’t been part of that yet,” Mabrey told reporters in Boston ahead of the Sun’s 69-61 win over the Sparks in front of a sold-out TD Garden.
Before Mabrey was traded to the Sky in 2023, she played three seasons for the Wings.
Her comment is as much an indictment of the Wings and Sparks as it is of the Sky, though the Sky triggered the trade request. On Friday, they’ll face the Sun for the third time this season and the first since Mabrey was traded in July.
“Marina was a great player and teammate for us,” Sky forward Michaela Onyenwere said. “Going into that, we know she’s a great shooter. She’s a three-level scorer. She can get down to the basket and post up smaller guards, can have a quick trigger off the screens. It helps that we played with her for the first half of the season.”
The Sky are 1-2 since trading Mabrey and inserting Onyenwere into the starting lineup. The Sun are 2-1 in their first three games since adding their new sharpshooter.
In her debut, Mabrey shot 7-for-12 from the field and 3-for-5 from three-point range, finishing with 17 points in an 18-point win over the Wings.
Mabrey significantly improves the Sun’s title hopes. In the first half of the season, they were tied with the Sky for ninth in the league in three-point percentage. It’s a small sample size, but in the three games since returning from the Olympic break, they jumped to fourth in the league, shooting 38.5% from three.
The Sky, meanwhile, have had their lackluster offense exposed. Aside from Mabrey and Chennedy Carter’s ability to create for themselves, the Sky have depended heavily on their rookie bigs.
“The three-point line has been our Achilles’ heel,” Onyenwere said. “Especially last game. As guards, we talked about how we have to make shots. We’re putting a lot of pressure on our bigs to do a lot. We have to be able to be confident and make those shots.”
The issue is the Sky are without a consistent shot-maker. Onyenwere emphasized the guard unit is “putting in the work every day.” Onyenwere is the strongest three-point option in the starting backcourt. She’s a 32% career three-point shooter who averages only 2.4 attempts.
The Sky’s reality is precisely as Mabrey painted it: They are not a championship franchise and haven’t been since their title roster imploded in 2022.