The Chicago Sky weren’t aiming for the stars, but they have hardly managed a takeoff either. Offensive uptick, veteran presence, multi-dimensional potential in young talents– Jeff Pagliocca and Tyler Marsh were ready to make some noise. But for all the off-season hype, Teresa Weatherspoon might as well be smiling from afar. 2 wins. That’s all the Windy City franchise stands with, 8 games in, and one can’t help but question if the front office let their best gems slip.

On Tuesday, the Sky added their 6th loss of the season, to slip down to the 11th spot. To make it worse, they are to continue without their trusted veteran, Courtney Vandersloot. Yes, Angel Reese showed up with a 17-point, 11-rebound performance, but just how far could the Chi-Town Barbie rally the team ahead? With Sloot sidelined, the Sky has a dent in the backcourt depth, while the defensive lapses are glaring. Each game’s a struggle, and Seerat Sohi isn’t biting her tongue, discussing the franchise’s off-season moves.

“When you look at where Chicago Sky was last season versus where they are now, there was so much more scoring when they were good,” she said on The Ringer WNBA podcast. Though they have a blend of veterans in Rebecca Allen, Kia Nurse, and Ariel Atkins to show the way, it was last year’s athletes from Sky that seemingly left a lasting impact. 

The franchise may not have made the playoffs, but they fared decent. They were 10-14 at one point, before the injuries took over. Kamilla Cardoso, Angel Reese, Chennedy Carter– they all fell one after another. The latter of the lot even had the best run of her career, leading the Sky in scoring with an average of 17.5 points. Plus, they had to let go of Marina Mabrey mid-season after she requested a trade. Unfortunately for the Sky, the young guard was averaging 4.5 assists with 14 points. 

Right now, Tyler Marsh is hardly left with the same talent to carry the offensive load. “They just lost a lot of talent last year,” Sohi added. “When I really think about it now, they didn’t actually replenish. If you look in a vacuum, Chennedy Carter and Marina Mabrey are probably better than Courtney Vandersloot and Ariel Atkins.”

Despite Atkins averaging 13.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists for the roster this season, she is nowhere close to Carter. Moreover, the reporter feels Atkins has been over-tasked as the team lacks efficient scorers. Among Rachel Banham and Moriah Jefferson, who were brought in exchange for Mabrey, the latter has struggled with injury, while Banham has stepped up to score 5.4 points, 0.4 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. However, clearly, that hasn’t been enough. 

With 93.5, they rank 12th in the league in offensive rating. The other end hasn’t been much pleasant, either, placing them in the same spot. Carter was their best bet, and she was willing to return, too. But Pagliocca & Co. decided against it. Meghan L Hall, who had joined Sohi on the podcast, believes it may have been a missed opportunity.

“You have Chennedy Carter who is not only a heck of a scorer, but she’s a facilitator as well. Can play defence too. You’re missing that kind of production with Courtney Vandersloot,” she added. The guard has settled to playing overseas now while the Sky figure out how to navigate this slump. The criticisms are getting louder, and all they can do is proceed strongheaded. 

Teammate and Veteran stands in support of Angel Reese

While Angel Reese has been pinned by fans as an easy target to be blamed for Chicago Sky’s losing streak so far, head coach Tyler Marsh had cleared the air in a post-game interview. He addressed Reese’s performance in the game against Indiana Fever and said, “No, I think that we struggled as a team. I don’t think Angel struggled tonight, I think we struggled as a team.”

Moreover, Reese opened up about the online trolling and abuse that she suffered after the second Fever-Sky game came to a close. And while she was expressing herself in a press meet, Ariel Atkins took the centre stage to defend her.”This is a 23-year-old kid. And the amount of crap that she gets on a day-to-day, she still shows up,” Atkins said. “So, whatever questions y’all got about our team, basketball-wise, we appreciate it. But all the other nonsense, like, it’s irrelevant. We’re here to play basketball and do what we do.” 

And while other players do not get the same scrutiny as Reese, it is also probably because the fans expect so much more from the athlete. The Chi-town Barbie has immense potential to lead the Sky. Marsh has acknowledged. And she is aware of the fact too. But as the roster undergoes a rebuilding phase with the new head coach, he and the team need to urgently swim out of their miseries and onto the brighter side.