The Chicago Sky’s freefall just hit critical mass. It wasn’t just Angel Reese’s searing honesty, but a public outcry that has now snagged the entire front office in its grasp. “She needs to get the hell out of there,” an anonymous WNBA executive said. “You’re gonna suspend your best player just because she’s putting pressure on you to get better?” That’s the scathing verdict aligning with the 40.7% players who voted the Sky as the worst-run franchise in the WNBA.

Still and all, Reese’s comments have now been turned into a soap opera of sorts by the media and the franchise alike. She was suspended for the first half of the Aces game and not one teammate backed her. But is this all just locker-room bickering? Or is someone, or something, deeper to blame? According to CBS reporter and analyst Andrew Haubner, the real culprit is the Sky’s GM, Jeff Pagliocca. Haubner didn’t hold back in the recent episode of his podcast ‘No Cap Space WBB’. Let’s dig into why the man once credited for rebuilding the roster and claiming that the Sky is “always going to be in win-now mode,” now stands accused of steering it into a crash.

According to Haubner, the Sky’s problems boil down to one trait: stubbornness. Placing the franchise’s current chaos squarely at the GM’s feet. he pointed out that Jeff Pagliocca’s rise was anything but conventional. He started as a JV high school coach before carving out a career as a player development coach for NBA and WNBA stars. That climb, Haubner noted, gave Pagliocca the conviction that his way is always the right way. “When you’re someone like him… something you’re doing is right and it affirms your worldview,” Haubner explained.

With this, several other facts about Pagliocca have come to light and the internet has exploded, demanding explanations or a resignation.

Angel Reese fans target the Chicago Sky GM for mismanagement of the team

Reese’s recent standoff with management only widened the cracks. She had already called out Courtney Vandersloot, demanding better teammates. Haubner connected those dots, saying, “The relationship between him and Courtney Vandersloot appears to be such that Courtney Vandersloot is the mouthpiece in the locker room for what Jeff Pagliocca wants.”

As Haubner had highlighted, Pagliocca did experience a sudden high in his career. He never played basketball but guided by him film obsession, he soon founded a development gym called the ‘Evolution Athletics’. His early clients included NBA veteran Evan Turner, and, by 2021, WNBA stars like Diamond DeShields and Stephanie Dolson. Then, a year later, Courtney Vandersloot reached out, kicking off their professional partnership.

Though Chicago had just won the championship, turmoil followed as Candace Parker left, Gabby Williams almost quit WNBA, and James Wade went to the Raptors. Amid this chaos, Pagliocca, formerly the Director of Player Development, became the franchise’s first standalone GM. And early on, some successful picks followed, capped off by Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese that had the Sky circling the contender conversation for the first time since 2021. As Sky owner Nadia Rawlinson said, “[He] was the mastermind of us going from zero draft picks to some of the best picks we could’ve gotten in the draft…Now it’s time for things to gel.”

That success of building a business from scratch and even developing championship players created a mindset where outside criticism now simply bounces off Pagliocca’s mind. In Haubner’s words, “there is a stubbornness that can occur when people are that type of self-made.”

That revelation flipped fan opinion, with many praising Reese. One viral comment summed it up: “Angel Reese single-handedly pulled the covers back from the Chicago Sky’s Wizard of Oz shell game. How they actually want a championship is the 9th wonder of the world.”

Fans then began dissecting Pagliocca’s background. One pointed out that he never played high school or college basketball. They also drew a harsh comparison to Lisa Leslie, who was once rejected for WNBA coaching roles despite being a legend. “A legend gets told no, but somehow the ‘film guy’ walks straight into the front office with absolutely no knowledge or experience whatsoever,” the fan wrote.

The comments track. After all, despite all the fanfare, as the 2024 season unfurled, it was clear that the Sky was not at all ready to prove themselves. The blame, though? It was fully passed on to the then-HC Teresa Weatherspoon. As per Haubner, the GM needed a clean slate, especially after the Chennedy Carter incident. The ex-Sky coach was dismissed after just one season, leaving even the likes of Becky Hammon confused.

Back then, Hammon pulled no punches in making sure the front office knew of their incompetence. “I mean, I don’t know how you make that make sense. It doesn’t make much sense to me,” Hammon said. “I though they overplayed their roster, meaning I thought they were in a rebuild. Trade away all your pieces. I don’t know what you expected out of that roster. I thought she got the most out of that roster. Any organization that thinks you gonna create culture and flip things upside down … in less than a year, I don’t think you have realistic expectations”.

GM Pagliocca defended the move, calling it a “time to make a change” for the organization. He denied any major friction, insisting Weatherspoon “wasn’t difficult to work with,” while stressing the team wanted “structure, discipline, and accountability” from the next hire.

However, Reese, along with other players, expressed heartbreak and dismay publicly. Reese called Weatherspoon an unsung hero. Even Haubner claims that if Weatherspoon had still been with the team, Reese would not have publicly lashed out. The reason? Weatherspoon was the one who heard Reese’s suggestions and kept her accountable. As Haubner further added in his article, “In the wake of getting rid of the one coach on staff who knew how to get through to Reese better than anyone”.

Another fan piled on, saying, “Yeah, that’s crazy. Why wouldn’t you hire a former player? At the very least, it shows a level of seriousness and gives the look that you want to win.” And another Chicago supporter delivered perhaps the sharpest blow: “What’s going on in Chicago is a reason why there should be more women coaches and executives in women’s sports. Most female collegiate or better athletes know a ‘Jeff’ and know that they specifically target women’s sports. Jeff is the drama.”

Thankfully, the WNBA seems to be headed in that direction. The percentage of women head coaches between 2021 and 2022 had increased by a decent 16.6%. That marked the first time that the league had more than 50% female HCs. And notably, woman presidents make up 75%, a figure that outpaces all other professional leagues. However, the absence of patriarchy cannot be justified by these numbers. The age-old norms lurk in the deepest corners and even the most blatant things go unnoticed at times. So, clearly, there is still a long way to go.

Also, the backlash isn’t just digital noise. Sky fan support has cratered. A recent poll showed only 14 percent of Chicago residents now identify as fans of the team. This is a shocking figure in a sports-obsessed city. Some critics went further, questioning why Pagliocca was hired in the first place. “Jeff is a classic case of DEI hire! No merit at all! Clown,” one fan blasted.

So, as the team collapses on and off the court, fans see Pagliocca’s resume less as a badge of honor and more as the root of their woes.