Celebration of the Sky’s 2021 WNBA championship, the franchise’s first, will officially conclude with a ring ceremony and banner unveiling scheduled for May 24.
The ceremony will be held ahead of their 7 p.m. game against the Indiana Fever. Sky players, coaches and ownership will receive their rings in an on-court ceremony before watching as the banner is unveiled and raised to Wintrust Arena’s rafters.
“This ceremony and banner unveil for Chicago’s run to the championship represents a bridge that connects 2021 to 2022 for us,” coach/GM James Wade said. “Momentum is about confidence and now if there are ever times we lack confidence, the only thing we have to do is look up.”
Diamond DeShields and Stefanie Dolson are the only players who were part of the Sky’s championship roster that ended up on new teams after free agency. Dolson’s New York Liberty play against the Minnesota Lynx on May 24 but DeShields and the Phoenix Mercury are off.
The Mercury will be in the middle of a three-game road trip and play the Los Angeles Sparks on May 25. Their schedule leaves open the possibility for DeShields to be in Chicago for the ceremony.
Chicago’s mask and vaccine mandates were lifted on Feb. 28. The United Center no longer requires masks but proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours is still mandatory.
Sky President/CEO Adam Fox said as the season approaches he expects teams will get direction from the league, but the NBA and the United Center are a good guidepost for what Sky fans can expect for the WNBA season. Fox said the team will keep the website updated on COVID-19 protocol but it’s too soon to say definitively what the requirements will be. At the end of the 2021 season masks and proof of vaccination/negative tests were required at Wintrust Arena.
As far as the Sky’s first championship ring goes, there is a small group that has seen the final ring. Wade was involved in the design process, but Fox said when it’s presented on May 24 players and coaches will be surprised.
“[The ring] is something we think everyone will be proud of,” Fox said.
