The WNBA Chicago Sky on Monday traded F Elena Delle Donne to the Mystics, and the franchise is losing "not only one of the faces of the WNBA, but one of the most marketable female athletes in the country," according to Danny Ecker of CRAIN'S CHICAGO BUSINESS. The Sky can be "easily drowned by the plethora of sports and entertainment options in the Chicago market," but growth on the business side, while "modest by professional sports standards, has been stark for the Sky" since they drafted Delle Donne in '13. Ticket sales have risen by 27% since then to a "franchise record of 7,009 per game at Allstate Arena" last season. The Sky also "signed a landmark five-year local TV deal with Weigel Broadcasting shortly after drafting Delle Donne," putting the team in 8 million local TV homes. The Sky said that they also "ranked in the top three of the WNBA's 12 teams in sponsorship revenue last year." Delle Donne has had "plenty to do with that progress" as a "highly marketable athlete." The Sky "smartly put their marketing chips on her." It started "immediately, when the team launched a 'Delle Donne deal' season-ticket offer after she was drafted." The team will "continue to beat the drum that they are a family-friendly, easily accessible entertainment option at bargain prices," but filling Delle Donne's shoes off the court "will be at least as difficult a task for the Sky as replacing her dominance on the floor" (CHICAGOBUSINESS.com, 1/31).
