Allie Quigley knows a thing or two about firsts.<\/p>\n
Her decade-long career with the Chicago Sky can be told through first-time accolades. The first Sky player to be named Sixth Woman of the Year. The first player \u2014 WNBA or NBA \u2014 to win four All-Star 3-point contests. Most importantly, captain of the roster for the first WNBA title in franchise history in 2021.<\/p>\n
And so it was no surprise, among all of the firsts, that Quigley was the player reserved to set one final team precedent.<\/p>\n
The Sky retired Quigley\u2019s No. 14 jersey Wednesday night at Wintrust Arena, recognizing the guard\u2019s impact on the franchise as a three-time All-Star and WNBA champion. She is the first Sky player to have her number retired, a reflection of the deep impression made on her hometown team from 2013-22.<\/p>\n
A native of Joliet, Quigley played the majority of her basketball in Chicagoland \u2014 first with Joliet Catholic, then with DePaul and finally with the Sky. Although she never has been one to embrace the spotlight, Wednesday\u2019s game offered Chicago an opportunity to fully celebrate Quigley\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n
Pregame, every seat in the arena was decorated with a towel displaying Quigley\u2019s jersey. Breaks in the game were punctuated by tribute videos. And the No. 14 dotted the crowd \u2014 on jerseys, on shirts, on posters held aloft by fans.<\/p>\n
Quigley selected two people to speak during the halftime ceremony: Sky owner Michael Alter and wife Courtney Vandersloot. Propped up on one crutch while recovering from a season-ending ACL injury<\/a>, Vandersloot fought back tears while delivering a speech about how she would recount stories of Quigley\u2019s career to their daughter, Jana, who was born in April<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cMy life\u2019s mission that Jana will not only know how great of a shooter her mom is \u2014 the purest and best-looking jumper the game has ever seen \u2014 but also how strong her float game is, how sneaky her handle is, and even though she was the sweetest person on the floor, she had a little nasty to her,\u201d Vandersloot said. \u201cI will make sure she understands her mom\u2019s loyalty, commitment and absolute team-player mentality is what every franchise dreams of when choosing their players.\u201d<\/p>\n Quigley spent as much of her speech talking about her wife as she did about her own career, hyping up the crowd to give out a signature \u201cSloooooot\u201d chant. But for a decade, that\u2019s how it worked \u2014 Quigley and Vandersloot and the Sky just went together.<\/p>\n Quigley said she never took a free-agency meeting with another team. It was always the Sky. And long before Wednesday night, Quigley and the Sky had become synonymous with one another \u2014 a partnership that defined a career and a franchise.<\/p>\n Photos: Chicago Sky retire Allie Quigley\u2019s No. 14 jersey during halftime of win<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u201cI\u2019ll always remember bringing a championship to this city,\u201d Quigley, 39, said. \u201cTalking about it will never get old. I still can\u2019t believe I grew up 40 miles from here and got to play for my hometown team.\u201d<\/p>\n Quigley joined the Sky in 2013 after struggling to find her footing in her first five years in the league. Chicago was always the right fit for the sharpshooter. She shot 39.4% from 3-point range over her career, hitting her peak in the championship run in 2021 with 45.4% efficiency.<\/p>\n Quigley remains the franchise 3-point leader with 504. She retired<\/a> as the team\u2019s all-time scoring leader with 3,723 points, although Vandersloot broke the record<\/a> this season.<\/p>\n Quigley is still tied to the Sky. Vandersloot returned to the franchise<\/a> after two seasons with the New York Liberty. Although Vandersloot will be sidelined for the remainder of the season, she remains a crucial leader for a roster in transition.<\/p>\n The last two years have served as an elongated \u2014 and somewhat understated \u2014 goodbye to basketball for Quigley. In a column for The Players\u2019 Tribune<\/a> published June 10, the former guard joked that she accidentally completed an \u201cIrish goodbye\u201d when she opted not to announce her retirement in 2023 despite not signing a new WNBA contract. It took two more years for Quigley to make her departure official.<\/p>\n\n