NBA Legend Dwyane Wade Joins Ownership Group of WNBA's Chicago Sky

NBA legend Dwyane Wade confirmed he has joined the ownership group for the WNBA's Chicago Sky.

"We all talk about support, and support looks different for everyone," he said to ESPN's Alexa Philippou. "And so instead of tweeting out and saying 'go support the W,' instead of showing up at the game and supporting, I wanted to take it to that next level, and this was the next level for me."

The Chicago Sun-Times' Annie Costabile reported in June that the 13-time All-Star had shown interest in buying a stake of the Sky. He had attended a team practice and met with principal owner Michael Alter and vice president of basketball operations Ann Crosby.

Given his success in the NBA and his connection to the city as a Chicago native, bringing Wade aboard will help the Sky continue to increase their footprint in the Windy City.

Winning a WNBA title with Candace Parker at the fore was a transformative moment. The Sky's popularity exploded as a result of that success.

However, there's still a lot of work ahead in order to carry that momentum through to the years ahead.

For example, the Sky continue to practice at what is a public recreation center in Deerfield, Illinois, which doesn't exactly reflect well on the organization. Practice facilities are quickly becoming a big tool in the arsenal for teams that want to attract marquee talent.

Fair or not, it wasn't great for the Sky's image when head coach and general manager James Wade left in the middle of this season to accept an assistant coach position with the Toronto Raptors.

And James Wade's exit came after a number of key stars from the championship-winning squad moved on. Parker, Courtney Vandersloot and Azurá Stevens all left as free agents, with Allie Quigley stepping away from the game this year. Fans probably don't need to be reminded Finals MVP Kahleah Copper is due to be a free agent as well.

Dwyane Wade can be a great public ambassador for the Sky, but his arrival is more important as a signal ownership is fully committed to building this into a world-class franchise.

Wade told Philippou he wants the team to be a "big part of the of the city, just like the Cubs, just like the White Sox, just like the Bulls."

The 41-year-old also contrasted this with becoming a minority owner in the Utah Jazz.

"I'm going to enjoy this process, probably even more than the NBA process, because this one is not ready-made," he said. "This one, it has so much room for improvement and growth, and I just want to be additive to this entire league. Hopefully, we can do that. All of us."