CHICAGO, IL — A dominant performance on offense and defense led the Chicago Sky to a blow out victory in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals over the Phoenix Mercury 86-50 on Friday night at Wintrust Arena.
It was a huge win for the Sky if they hope to reach their goal of hoisting up their first WNBA championship trophy on Sunday afternoon after Game 4.
The city of Chicago was hyped for this game with a sold-out crowd of over 10,000 faithful fans there to cheer on their team and hometown superstar Candace Parker.
If they close out Phoenix on Sunday, a player that has emerged as a serious nationwide fan favorite is Kahleah Copper. She could be a candidate for the Finals MVP trophy for her invaluable effort in this series. Similar to how we saw NBA’s Kemba Walker and Damian Lillard be the talk of a playoff series, Copper joins that group. She has been a thorn in the side of the Mercury all series.
The mastermind behind the family-like nature of this team and the terrific work ethic of each player is Sky head coach James Wade. Wade took on the responsibility of making a WNBA legend like Parker feel welcomed back in Chicago and in the locker room as well.
He also made sure the other players like Courtney Vandersloot, Allie Quigley, Diamond DeShields, and others were comfortable with Parker there. The task of coaching and managing personalities is never an easy one.
Wade navigated through injuries to Parker and Quigley, losing streaks, and criticism of his intelligence on and off the court. He never backed down or ignored it, but confronted issues head-on especially those who unfairly joked and made fun of his diction at times.
The racially incentive tones that those criticisms carry was a big weight. Yet, Wade handled it with class, style, and an understanding that no matter what you accomplish; there are those who only see a Black man instead of a coach who’s earned his way to being both a head coach and a general manager of a franchise.
For the past few seasons, there has been attention on a topic that surrounds the lack of Black coaches gracing the sidelines in the WNBA, especially Black women head coaches. Currently, there are only four Black head coaches in the WNBA that consist of Noelle Quinn, Vicky Johnson, Derek Fisher and Wade. Creating more opportunities for that is what the league claims to be working towards moving forward.
Just one win away, Wade is on the verge of making history as being one of the few Black coaches to guide his team to a WNBA championship.
“I think about it and you know this is something we can’t escape,” he said. “We live in this skin so we have to represent, because the world is unfair to us in the chances we don’t get. You get proud of these moments, and sometimes I have to act like I’m suppose to be here, even though life has told that I’m not. It means a lot.”
Parker, who has a fantastic player/coach relationship with Wade, is also on the verge of making history after Game 4. She will put herself in some elite company as a superstar to win championships with multiple franchises. We’ve only seen current Lakers superstar LeBron James and Hall of Fame center Shaquille O’Neal accomplish such a feat in their NBA careers.
“It says a lot about our league, in terms of it doesn’t matter where you come from or what you look like… you’re capable of having an opportunity to lead a team,” Parker said about Wade coaching their team. “So I think that speaks volumes of where we’re at and to do it in Chicago I think is the biggest thing.”
If the Sky can win that first WNBA championship on Sunday, let it not just reflect the hard work, dedication, and patience it took to accomplish such a milestone. We must also focus on the fact that when Black coaches are given an opportunity, much like their counterparts, they can rise to the occasion in grand fashion.
