Skylar Diggins’ patience appeared to run out after the Chicago Sky lost to Toronto on June 7 and slipped into a brutal stretch following Rickea Jackson’s season-ending ACL injury. In a tense media session, Diggins pushed for more leadership and called out a “l
For the Chicago Sky, it’s the kind of swing that makes the air in the room feel tight before anyone even asks a question. After a season start that had looked like progress, the losses have piled up—and Sky veteran Skylar Diggins’ frustration finally spilled into her answers.
Chicago began the season with a 4-1 record and seemed to have turned a corner from a disappointing 2025. The shift took a major hit when the team lost newcomer Rickea Jackson for the season to an ACL tear in her left knee. After Jackson’s injury, the Sky lost six of its last seven, including an 85-68 loss to Toronto on June 7.
Following the Tempo game, Diggins and teammate Azurá Stevens took roughly four minutes of media availability. Diggins did answer questions, but her tone came out curt. She sat with her sweatshirt hood over her head and her hand on her face.
“We gotta have more maturity and more leadership on and off the floor,” Diggins said. “If it was just versus one team, I’d understand that, but now it’s been struggles. That’s a trend of ours. It’s disappointing. Really is. It’s frustrating.”
She added that the problem can’t be temporary because the competition doesn’t pause. “The games ain’t gonna slow down, and teams gone keep getting better and better around us, so we gotta figure out how we’re gonna turn this corner here. It’s been an extremely frustrating experience.”
When asked about Chicago’s execution of its half-court offense and what the message was to the team at halftime, Diggins sidestepped those topics. The Sky veteran told on-site media to ask head coach Tyler Marsh about those points.
Stevens, asked about Chicago’s rebounding efforts, offered her own take first. “Rebounding’s pretty simple. Just gotta turn and hit your man,” she said. “I don’t know. It’s pretty much effort. I don’t think there’s a lot of skill behind rebounding. Just gotta hit your man and push back.”
Diggins then jumped in, putting more weight on the effort—and on accountability—while emphasizing what she believes is missing. “Like (Azurá) said. effort all around needs to go up. and we have to get out of that loser mentality that we have. ” Diggins added. She continued. using a tone that sounded less like analysis and more like a warning to herself and the team: “‘Aw. here it goes again. Here it comes again.’ You know, we’re pros. We have to all step up being pros. starting with myself and figure it out because the games are gonna keep coming … That’s a heart thing, and that’s what we lack right now.”.
The sequence of events makes the stakes feel immediate: a 4-1 start. an ACL tear to Rickea Jackson ending her season. and then a stretch where Chicago lost six of its last seven. including June 7’s 85-68 defeat to Toronto. In that context. Diggins’ focus on leadership. maturity. and mental toughness sounded less like a slogan and more like the team’s urgent reality—right now.
Chicago Sky Skylar Diggins Rickea Jackson Azurá Stevens Tyler Marsh ACL tear Toronto June 7 WNBA season