IT’S GOING DOWN TO WIRE
Sky must cut one player to reduce roster to 12 before deadline Monday
Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca’s first few months on the job have been a whirlwind.
All that stands between him and the start of his first WNBA season — after a slew of franchise-shifting moves between February and May — is cutting the Sky’s roster to 12 players. After waiving forward Taya Reimer, Pagliocca will have to part ways with one more player before the deadline Monday.
That decision likely will come down to guard Kysre Gondrezick or rookie Brynna Maxwell, whom the Sky selected with the 13th overall pick in the draft last month.
Gondrezick and guard Chennedy Carter are the two players signed to training-camp contracts, which means the Sky could waive them with no hit to their salary cap. Having not been signed to her rookie-scale contract yet, Maxwell also can be waived without consequence.
Through camp and the Sky’s two preseason games, Carter has appeared to solidify her place in coach Teresa Weatherspoon’s system. She played 24 minutes in their loss to the Lynx and finished with 12 points, two rebounds and two steals. Against the Liberty, she had 11 points, two rebounds and two steals.
Carter’s ability to push the pace in transition, attack the rim and make impact plays defensively make her an invaluable asset on this roster.
‘‘When I was [overseas], I took the time and steps to lock in and become a better player mentally,’’ Carter said. ‘‘You’re gonna see on the court.’’
The Sky drafted Maxwell because they needed a shooter who could help them space the floor. Maxwell shot 46% from three-point range and averaged 13.8 points in her last two college seasons.
A knee injury suffered during camp has prevented Maxwell, who will be out for up to four weeks, from showing the Sky what she can do. She played six minutes against the Lynx, finishing with two points, one rebound and one assist, and sat out against the Liberty.
Weatherspoon described Maxwell as one of the most competitive players she has seen. But the Sky need bodies, which raises questions about the likelihood of her being one of their final 12 players.
The Sky aren’t in a position to keep both Gondrezick and Maxwell via hardship contract, either. A team is only eligible to sign a player to a hardship contract if its roster drops below 10 available players.
If the Sky sign Gondrezick, they will have 11 available players after making their final roster cuts, given rookie Kamilla Cardoso’s injury. If they were to sign Maxwell, they would be at 10 available players, which still would prevent them from petitioning the league for a hardship contract.
If the Sky waive Maxwell, it’s unlikely she would get picked up by another team because of her injury. So there is the potential for her to rejoin the Sky in the future.
Gondrezick would provide the Sky with some much needed floor spacing. Originally drafted by the Fever with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Gondrezick played only 19 games for them before being waived. Former Sky coach/GM James Wade signed Gondrezick to a training-camp contract in 2022 but waived her before the cutdown date.
Gondrezick finished with nine points against the Liberty, going 3-for-4 from threepoint range, in 12 minutes.
‘‘If [Gondrezick] is sitting with her feet set, every one of our players is looking for her,’’ Weatherspoon said. ‘‘If she has her feet set, it’s almost a bucket every time.’’
Given Maxwell’s injury, it seems likely the Sky will sign Gondrezick to fill the final spot.