Ever since joining the team on a training camp contract, Chennedy Carter hasn’t wasted much time proving her value. Within months, she was leading the team in scoring with a 17.5 points-per-game average. Just consider her 33- and 34-point performances against the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces in addition to her agility and quickness, which gave the team a much-needed boost. She ranked second in the WNBA in fast break points (3.7) and was the only guard among the top ten in points in the paint. However, despite her on-court success, the Sky chose not to extend a qualifying offer, making her an unrestricted free agent… Months have passed since then, and she’s still unsigned.

A valuable asset, still overlooked. But why did the team not extend a qualifying offer? The answer lies within two caveats: The offensive style and Carter’s locker-room identity. Here’s the thing:

Their offense was the second-lowest-scoring team last season. They also received the second-worst offensive rating and scored the fewest 3-pointers, while failing to utilize Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso, leading to stagnancy. Chennedy Carter’s presence helped fill these holes as she created shots for the Sky to pick up the pace in transition. However, her style was not ideal for the team. You see, she needed the league’s fourth-highest usage rate (28.4) to sustain her scoring. That means the team’s offense catered to isolation guard play, which left players like Reese and Cardoso disengaged. But things don’t end here.

Carter’s fit with the team became a question after her dissolution of trust within the locker room under the former head coach, Teresa Weatherspoon. Post this, the Connecticut Sun and Golden State Valkyries were seen as a better fit for the player, but no WNBA team has shown much interest in her so far. Regardless, this isn’t the first time the player has been left without a team. Similar instances have taken place before as well.

It all began on March 29, 2020, when she declared for the WNBA Draft, forgoing her senior season. The Atlanta Dream would select her with the No. 4 overall pick. “I think she wants to win, and she wants to be the best,” Coach Nicki Collen said back then, and Carter wasted no time proving Nicki Collen right.

In her rookie season, she became the youngest player in WNBA history to score 30 points in a game, dropping 35 against the Seattle Storm at just 21 years old. She even made a strong case for Rookie of the Year. But just days later, she sustained an ankle injury in a loss to the Connecticut Sun. Though her game was affected, she still managed to earn a spot on the 2020 WNBA All-Rookie Team.

You might think she would’ve taken a step forward in Year 2, right? But that’s not what happened. Just a few months after the 2020 season ended, the Dream suspended Carter for “conduct detrimental to the team.” As a result, she never played for them again and was eventually traded to the Los Angeles Sparks for the 2022 season. It looked like a fresh start, and for a while, it was. She played in 24 games, starting in two, and averaged 8.9 points per game. But in March 2023, the Sparks waived Carter and paid her $86,701 as owed salary. It all came after she was benched for poor conduct during the season, and once again, Carter found herself without a team. And for the entire 2023 season, she remained unsigned.

Then came 2024, when the Chicago Sky gave her a shot under head coach Teresa Weatherspoon. Carter made the most of it. “I love being here. I enjoyed the season. It was fun. It was special. If Chicago wants me back, I’m interested in coming back,” she’d say in the exit interview. But since the team has not extended her the contract, fans have some thoughts on the situation. What did they say?

Fans speculate as Chennedy Carter reflects on patience

It has been near-3 months since the Chicago Sky revealed they weren’t re-signing their leading scorer of the 2024-25 season. The team will be heading to the training camp soon, but there is still no update. So when fans questioned the Windy City, one was quick to note, “Y’all mad at Chicago about Chennedy. It’s 12 other teams who haven’t signed her, so who’s really the problem?”

The 26-year-old’s lack of a contract offer came as a surprise, considering that a qualifying offer is for a year, which is also a non-guaranteed terms deal, meaning very little risk to the team that offers it, unlike the Sparks, who paid her an advance salary. So, the question is: What went wrong?

According to WNBA insider Annie Costabile, sources claim that the Chicago Sky was motivated by Carter’s off-court issues that led to her being cut from the team. “Players were unhappy with the dynamic created in the locker room last year due to Carter’s behavior, which went unchecked by former coach Teresa Weatherspoon,” Costabile revealed in her report in January. That seems to have mattered to other teams as well.

“I really liked her personality and watching her play. But the fact that none of the players who know her are campaigning or recruiting for her says a ton to me,” penned another spectator.

As evident, Carter has been an elite scorer and ball handler. She was even believed to turn things around for Dream when she was drafted. But the guard can play physically and hardly bite her tongue. Remember the shoulder-check to Cailtin Clark or calling her out on Threads soon after? “Beside three point shooting what does she bring to the table man,” she had written. The instances only seem to add to the reasons cited by teams and fans are starting to believe the same.

“The problem is that the Sky were one of the few teams that she fit in and had a role. Her as a 6th man for the Dream could be some trouble, but pretty sure she’s not going to find a team this season,” added another user.

When Carter left Dream, fans started to hear about an infamous incident. Per reports, during a game against the Aces in 2021, the guard was approached by a fellow teammate to be told to ‘improve her attitude’. Carter did not take it well. It led to an argument, being benched, and eventually, being off for the whole second half. The reputation has been around ever since, and her situation now isn’t helping the case.

“Excellent point,” one added in response to the first tweet. A few more agreed. But there was also a varied perception that fans weren’t just going to let slip by.

“Why are we assuming that chennedy can’t decide to not take the offers she was given and no gms have offered her a contract,” one argued. Carter has been faring well as a player on her part. She also had good chemistry with the Sky roster. “my dawg fasho , got all my teammates,” she had written last season as Angel Reese celebrated with her. Sky’s GM Jeff Pagliocca even shared that Carter could “impact the game at the highest level.”

So while there is truth to the pattern Carter has seen over the years, there is also a possibility that she hasn’t accepted any offers that may have come her way yet. According to the Chinese Women’s Hoop Show, Carter dropped 52 points in a game in China recently. She even added eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals to seal the win.

And evidently, Carter isn’t demotivated. She has taken the task into her own hands and now often uses social media to boast about her own records. From posting her scoring prowess on X to responding to fans’ theories on her departure, she answers it all by herself. So, while the Sky are moving on and Carter is ending up in a familiar situation as in 2023, nothing is stopping her from carving out her own name. What do you think?