The spouse
Edwige Lawson-Wade stayed awake recently to watch the conclusion of the Chicago Sky’s game against the Minnesota Lynx live, a narrow three-point loss decided in the closing minutes. She admits she regretted the decision the next morning. She spent the last few months an ocean away from the Sky in Montpellier, France, and far from their coach, her husband, James Wade while the Sky played through a unique 2020 season in the WNBA wubble in Bradenton, Fla. Games usually didn’t end until around 3 a.m. local time in France, then she had to wake at about 7 a.m. to get their 4-year old son, Jet, ready for school.
“I was exhausted,” she said with a laugh during a phone interview earlier this month. “So I told James that will be the last game live I will be watching. I’m going to start a new routine, I’ll drop off my son to school and then I will watch the games.”
Lawson-Wade is used to spending time apart from her husband. She is the general manager of a French professional basketball team. In addition to being the Sky coach, James is an assistant for a team in Russia. But they’re not used to being separated by this much distance. When the Sky play home games at Wintrust Arena, Lawson-Wade usually is watching from the crowd, sometimes preferring to attend games alone if she wants to pay attention to details. The two debrief after she watches each game, and she gives her husband feedback or listens to him vent.
But they never spend this much time apart, especially after getting to spend so much time together when sports went on hiatus in March. Although some families accompanied players and coaches into the WNBA bubble, it never was a serious consideration for the Wades; they thought it would be too hard on their son.
Instead, technology helped carry them through. Edwige sends James so many videos of Jet that sometimes Jet takes the initiative and tells her to film something to send. When the Sky had an early tipoff, they’ll watch it live, but she makes sure to go over the results of every game with him. FaceTime also was crucial, including one time when Edwige caught Jet just playing with his toys while James was on the other line being told what Spiderman was doing.
“It’s so amazing that they’re so far from each other but they’re kind of playing together,” she said.
The Sky’s season ended Tuesday with a loss in the first round of the playoffs to the Connecticut Sun, which means the Wade family will be reunited soon. Even though Edwige could feel the days getting longer for her son, she tried to avoid spending too much time counting down until the end of the season, especially considering she was gearing up and hopeful for a deep Sky playoff run.
“We should all be proud of what they’re doing,” Edwige said. “I don’t think people understand how hard it must be for them to stay in that bubble because we see from outside and we see videos where they’re having fun, but I’m pretty sure they miss a lot — their friends, their family, even their pets and being able to see something else.
“It’s a unique experience, but I’m hoping it’s the last time it happens. Even if it’s working and they’re having a season, it’s a lot of sacrifice that they are all doing.”