This week: Monday was another example of why I am glad I don’t try to break news in this newsletter or socials.
At 12 PM we learned that the Sky had waived the 2025 11th draft pick, Hailey Van Lith. When I shared it on Instagram (not what I consider breaking the news), I noted that despite there being two more teams this season and the new CBA requiring 12 players on the roster, the W just does not have enough spots for all the talent. The MNBA has a maximum of 15 players on their rosters. Most commentators think she’ll land somewhere. THEN, I swear, 5 minutes later, the Sky announced the signing of Tasha Cloud. WHEW! That was a whirlwind 5 minutes.
SPORTS! I love ‘em.
— Veronica
The Chicago Skylars Got its Cloud
The Chicago Sky have players named Skylar and Cloud. The merch is making itself.
Who did we get: Natasha “Tash” Cloud is a guard and 10 year vet. She is also a 2019 WNBA Champion, WNBA Peak Performer in Assists (2022), Three-Time All-Defensive selection, and Dawn Staley Leadership Award recipient. Her career stats are 8.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game. Solid. She’s also fun to watch. And should be much more fun now that she’ll be playing for us. Tash also won the 2025 WNBA Skills challenge in an amazing show! I tell ya, fun.
The problem: Alissa Hirsh at the Sun-Times points out that adding Tash is great because DiJonai and Courtney are still hurt. But what happens when they are both healthy? Again, the Sky front office makes a move that looks great and is exciting, but once you stop posting IN ALL CAPS, you realize it might not be as brilliant as you felt.
The extras: WNBA socials were on fire the past few weeks speculating as to why Tash wasn’t signed. So much that she made a statement that her silence was intentional.
A lot of W players are outspoken, but this past off season, Tash seemed to kick it up a notch. Here she is using her platform and moment in the spotlight to point out how much this country is wasting on war when we have so much need right here. Tash endorsed Mayor Zohran Mamdani and after his win, helped promote initiatives, going as far as being part of a marketing campaign for Mayoral Municipal Madness. Which for my inner Leslie Knope is genius.
What happened: The free agency period was fast & furious. Did Tash get left unsigned because of political views? Or did she ask for too much? Did she hold out for more but get lost in the mix? Considering how the W has roots in political activism, it feels like it was just an issue of the squished calendar. On the other hand, as more money gets into women’s sports, that brings more conservative decision makers. Who knows. We may never really know.
What’s next: Tash is coming to Chicago. A city that is well suited to welcome an outspoken political athlete. She’ll join Elizabeth Williams in being a public advocate for many issues. Maybe she’ll partner with Mayor Johnson? He could use it. But most importantly, maybe, just maybe she’ll trade in that Yankees jacket for a Cubs or White Sox one. But really, if there is a city for an athlete to get and be political, Chicago is at the top of the list. We are a union city. We are at the roots of May Day and the workers rights movement. Tash has been vocal about their support of Palestinian rights and Cook County has more Palestinians than another other county in the USA.
We gotta talk about the WER exclusion policy
When the current resident of the White House decided to sign an executive order to “keep men out of women’s sports,” it reverberated around sports, including women’s rugby. For the record, at Support Women’s Sports, we believe that all women are women, trans women are women, trans girls are girls. Women’s rugby is known to be one of the most inclusive sports around. Frankie de la Cretaz reported on how the White House’s move trickled down to US Olympics which then trickled down to Women’s Elite Rugby, a league that is in its second season.
Women’s Elite Rugby: By being in a formal agreement with US Rugby, WER was left to either leave that partnership or uphold the exclusionary policy. As you can see from their Instagram post, they chose to stay.
Most of their other posts have comments from fans upset about WER continuing to enforce a rule that goes against the entire ethos of rugby itself.
WER teams are not independently owned. Rather they are all part of an organization owned by a number of investors. This makes it practically impossible for teams to hold the league accountable.
The problem: This leaves players and fans in a quandary. Do you sit out in opposition to the ban? I attended a match last year and while Chicago got its butt kicked, I loved the game. I even got a hoodie as a holiday gift. I love it.
But does wearing it signal my acceptance of the ban?
This is where the “keep politics out of sports” rant misses the mark. The White House injected politics into sports. So here we are. The fact that the Chicago Tempest moved from Northwestern to Benedictine helps with any sort of boycott.
What’s next: I honestly don’t know. The Tempest lost 78-22 over the weekend. We have yet to win a match in team history. We’re at it again this weekend. You can watch on the Women’s Sports Network. Do a web search for tickets.
Other news
The Chicago Stars got shut out by Portland, 0-2. Highlights happened off the pitch with Coach Beard being the Steam Starter and the Triple Espresso babies finally meeting.
The Chicago Winds wind down their home season on Saturday against the Atlanta Truth at 5 PM. Let’s goooo!
The Chicago Bandits made their draft picks. Shout out to supporter Kat who alerted me an OU player is headed our way.
While this newsletter and the larger project of supporting women’s sports is my passion project, I still need to buy groceries and buy nachos at games.
An additional way to support this newsletter is to subscribe, share on socials, and forward to your friend who keeps inviting you to women’s sporting events.