Chicago Sky assistant coaches are Emre Vatansever, Tonya Edwards and Ann Wauters. Emre has been appointed interim head coach in July 2023.
After the departure of James Wade, Vatansever will be stepping in as the acting manager and coach. Vatansever initially joined Chicago as a player development assistant trainer in 2017,
After coming into existence in 2005, the Chicago-based franchise played its first professional match in 2006 under the tutelage of Dave Cowens.
For the first six years of their participation in the WNBA, they failed to reach playoffs on any occasion until 2013, when Pokey Chatman led the Sky to its first playoff berth.
Then in 2021, Wade led Chicago to their first major victory by securing the WNBA championship title. They beat the Phoenix Mercury in the Finals by 3-1 to win the trophy.
Chicago Sky Head Coach
Chicago Sky announced that James Wade had stepped down from his position as head coach on 1st July 2023.
Wade has decided to join the NBA side Toronto Raptors as an assistant coach, which means he will no longer be Chicago's general manager and head coach.
Besides, James earned over $750,000 a year from Chicago Sky head coach salary. Becky Hammon made history in 2022, becoming the first WNBA coach with an annual salary of $1 million.
James, who had been with the Sky for four years, led them to their first WNBA championship in 2021. The 47-year-old sought a new opportunity and left for the greener pastures as Darko Rajakovic, the new head coach of the Raptors, welcomed Wade to his coaching staff.
Wade will surely be a valuable addition to the Raptors' coaching team. Despite the contrasting nature of the NBA and WNBA regarding physical demands and intensity, his expertise and winning mindset shall triumph for good.
Talking about his days in Chicago since taking the top job in 2019, Wade never finished outside the top three in the league conference ranking, finishing 1st twice in 2020 and 2022.
During his time with the Sky, James Wade led the team for four seasons and oversaw 124 games. Throughout those games, he achieved a record of 74 wins and 50 losses, resulting in a winning percentage of .597 in regular season matches.
Emre Vatansever Is The Interim Manager
Vatansever was hired as the new caretaker head coach and manager of the Chicago Sky following Wade's exit.
Since the club's establishment in 2005, six individuals have managed the franchise before him, and he will now become the seventh person to take on this responsibility.
Emre Vatansever Chicago Sky tenure began in 2017. Vatansever became a member of Amber Stocks' coaching panel, serving as a player development assistant coach.
Besides, Emre has had coaching experience in various teams before. He was previously the head coach at Cukurova Basketbol and worked as an assistant coach for Yakın Doğu Üniversitesi and Galatasaray.
Vatansever began his coaching journey in the WNBA, where he served as a coaching intern for the Seattle Storm from 2015 to 2018.
Before Emre and James, among the other Chicago coaches, Pokey Chatman is the sole individual to guide the team to playoffs. Dave Cowens, Bo Overton, Steven Key, and Amber Stocks all were unable to clinch playoffs with the Sky.
Chatman holds the record for the longest tenure, having guided the team for six seasons. Under her leadership, the team made it to the WNBA Finals in 2014 and the WNBA Semifinals in 2016. Unfortunately, they suffered defeat in both instances.
Chicago Sky Coaching Staff
Chicago Sky coaches in 2023 are:
- Emre Vatansever - Interim Head Coach
- Ann Wauters - Assistant Coach
- Tonya Edwards - Assistant Coach
- Ann Crosby - Strength and Conditioning
- Bria Adams - Head Athletic Trainer
- Veronica Carmazzi - Director of Sports Medicine
The Chicago Sky coaching panel has Emre Vatansever as their new lead man. He accepted the position of impermanent head coach alongside the general manager duty at the team.
Now that Vatansever has transitioned from assistant coaching duty straight to the head coaching assignment, Ann Wauters and Tonya Edwards are the only two remaining associate coaches. The franchise will soon be seeking a third assistant to join the coaching staff.
Wauters began her stint at the Sky in January 2022. She is a retired WNBA player who spent over two decades playing for several franchises in the league.
The 6-foot-4 center played for multiple American and European professional teams, namely the Cleveland Rockers, Seattle Storm, New York Liberty, and San Antonio Silver Stars.
Besides, Tonya Edwards Chicago Sky span from 2021 has been successful thus far. Edwards capitalized on a golden opportunity to lift the WNBA championship title in his debut season at the club.
As the assistant coach, the Michigan homegrown has racked up a number of trophies, including her first WNBA glory in 2016 with the Los Angeles Sparks.
The 1999 WNBA All-Star previously served as the head coach of the Alcorn State Lady Braves basketball team for seven seasons until 2015. Edwards then joined Los Angeles Sparks assistant coaching team in 2016, where she toiled for two years.
Similarly, Strength and Conditioning coach Ann Crosby Chicago Sky spell is in the 17-year running since she first joined in 2006. Before joining the Sky, Crosby was in charge of the strength and conditioning training for all 18 sports teams at the University of Illinois-Chicago.
Bria Adams joined the Sky as the head athletic trainer in May 2021. Adams served as the assistant athletic trainer for Florida State Women's Basketball during the 2020-21 season before being recruited by Chicago.
In addition, Adams has also worked for South Carolina State University, Texas State University, and the University of California, San Diego.
Meanwhile, Veronica Carmazzi, the visionary behind Rigazzi Mobile Wellness, assumes the responsibility of spearheading the franchise's Sports Medicine Department.
Chicago Sky Owner
The owners of the Chicago Sky are:
- Michael J. Alter - Principal Owner
- Harvey Alter - Co-Owner
- John Rogers - Co-Owner
- Margaret Stender - Minority Owner
- Nadia Rawlinson - Operating Chairman
Chicago Sky team is owned mainly by Michael Alter, who has the largest share. There are also other owners of the franchise, including Harvey Alter, John Rodgers, Margaret Stender, and Nadia Rawlinson.
In 2005, Michael, a Chicago resident and the president of a real estate company called the Alter Group, took over the majority right of the club and subsequently became its chairman.
Additionally, Alter, a Harvard University graduate, holds a position as a founder and board member of City Year Chicago, which operates the renowned City Year Youth Service Corps program.
Margaret Stender also joined Michael as the first team president of the Sky in 2005 and held minority ownership. Stender possesses a sharp business sense and has previously played basketball at the college level.
She has extensive experience in the corporate business world, having spent 21 years working for renowned companies, including PepsiCo, Quaker Oats, Rand McNally, and AT&T.
On the other hand, Harvey Alter and John Rogers are the remaining proprietors of the 2021 WNBA champion side. Harvey, who holds the position of Executive Vice President at the Alter Group, is actively involved in the daily operations of the Chicago Sky women's basketball team.
Moreover, in January 2023, the club released a statement saying that a Silicon Valley executive, Nadia Rawlinson, is included in the Sky's ownership group.
Nadia has accumulated over 20 years of exceptional experience in human resources strategy and development on a global scale, building a successful career.
Other than that, an American singer and songwriter, Michelle Williams, is also among the group of minority shareholders in the team.
Furthermore, in June 2023, a group of eight investors purchased a ten percent stake in the Chicago Sky team, valuing it at 85 million USD, becoming the second most valuable WNBA franchise only behind Seattle Storm.
A group of people have invested in the Chicago Sky, including Mary Dillon, the head of Foot Locker and Laura Ricketts, who co-owns the MLB team Chicago Cubs.
Also, other investors are Laura Desmond, the CEO of a digital advertising platform called Smartly.io, and Tina Tchen, the former CEO and president of Time's Up.
