LAS VEGAS — Khaalia Hillsman was at home in Chicago when she got a call from her agent that she would be joining the Sky on a hardship contract. Taylor Soule was finishing up schoolwork for her master’s degree when she got the same news.
Within hours, both were on flights to Los Angeles to join their new team.
‘‘You know how they say, ‘Stay ready so you don’t have to get ready’?’’ Hillsman said. ‘‘That’s what I try to do.’’
Sky coach/general manager James Wade signed both players after his roster was depleted by injuries. The WNBA’s rule for using emergency hardship contracts requires a team to fall below 10 available players.
The Sky fell to nine available players when Rebekah Gardner (broken foot) and Morgan Bertsch (sprained ankle) were injured May 26 against the Mystics. Kristine Anigwe’s departure June 4 to compete for Great Britain in Eurobasket dropped them to eight.
Anigwe will miss between six and eight games. The Sky will need to release one contract when they get back to 10 available players, which could happen when Anigwe or Bertsch returns. Wade said Sunday that Bertsch is progressing, but her availability remains day-to-day.
In the meantime, Hillsman and Soule are capitalizing on the moment by hitting the ground running. They each played a minute in garbage time Friday against the Sparks.
‘‘This is only my first year, so I’m trying to learn the ropes,’’ Soule said. ‘‘I’ve been around a lot of great vets who have given me great advice.’’
The Lynx selected Soule with the 28th overall pick in the WNBA Draft in the spring. She appeared in both of their preseason games before being waived.
Hillsman, on the other hand, graduated from Texas A&M in 2018. Since going undrafted, she has had training-camp stints with the Storm (2018), Dream (2022) and Sun (2023).
Hillsman has played overseas since graduating, most recently in Turkey. That’s where Wade saw her.
‘‘I thought we needed a big that kind of gave us a little muscle, that can move people around and go rebound,’’ Wade said. ‘‘She was one of the leading rebounders in Turkey this year, so I thought she was someone that could fit in.’’
Wade said Soule was someone he had his eye on. After the Lynx selected her, he saw her play when the Sky played them in the WNBA’s first preseason game in Canada on May 13.
‘‘She showed us in Canada why we liked her because she wouldn’t allow us to get into sets,’’ Wade said. ‘‘[She] fit the way we play. People spoke of her character, as well as her energy. They are both really good teammates.’’
Hometown team
Hillsman is no newcomer to Chicago. She grew up in the city and won two state titles (2012, 2014) while in high school at Whitney Young.
She was a five-star recruit coming out of Whitney Young and said the opportunity to play for her hometown team is important to her — but even more so to her family.
‘‘My family is in shambles right now,’’ Hillsman said. ‘‘I’m just trying to seize this opportunity. I want to come in and help the team as much as I can — not just for me, not just for my teammates, not just for my coach but for my family.
‘‘This is a really big deal to me, playing for my hometown, being from Chicago.’’
