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Kahleah Copper, Diamond DeShields at the heart of Sky’s explosiveness

By Nicholas Niendorf

UNCASVILLE, CT - AUGUST 12: Chicago Sky guard Diamond DeShields (1) defends Connecticut Sun guard Courtney Williams (10) during a WNBA game between Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun on August 12, 2018, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. Connecticut won 82-75. (Photo by M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
UNCASVILLE, CT - AUGUST 12: Chicago Sky guard Diamond DeShields (1) defends Connecticut Sun guard Courtney Williams (10) during a WNBA game between Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun on August 12, 2018, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. Connecticut won 82-75. (Photo by M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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The Chicago Sky are in a strong position to make the playoffs in no small part due to the play of Kahleah Copper and Diamond DeShields.

Kahleah Copper and Diamond DeShields are two sides of the same coin—affecting games through the same manner, but with different approaches.

The duo have emerged as the embodiment of a budding culture within first-year head coach James Wade’s squad. A culture that has enabled a team that used to collapse under pressure into one that managed to bounce back from a four-game losing streak by going 5-1 before the All-Star break.

The Sky now possess a resiliency that has been missing from Chicago for some time now, and at the heart of it all is arguably the most athletic pair of wings in the league. When the two sub in for one another, it is hard not to notice the similarities—a pair of 6-foot-1 scoring machines with rockets for legs who prefer to take hardest defensive assignment on any given night.

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DeShields, has cemented herself as the go-to scoring option for the Sky, nabbing her first All-Star appearance largely on the back of her ability to grab a bucket any second of the day. She has scored 19 or more points in eight different contests, and is seventh in the league in scoring.

Copper, on the other hand, has only played more than 20 minutes in a game three times this season. But that playtime is not for lack of production—she has been Chicago’s most consistently impactful player off the bench this season and has thrown herself into the Sixth Woman of the Year conversation.

“I love her,” DeShields said after Chicago’s July 17 victory over the Atlanta Dream. “I think Kah [Kahleah Copper] and I feed off of each other and not just myself, but I think our entire team feeds off of her energy and when she comes in and does what she did tonight—and she’s been consistent doing all season—it picks us up, it makes us raise our level and we need her. She is just as important as anybody on our team. Everybody has their role and she’s a star on her own, so she’s huge.”

When DeShields sits, Copper immediately fills in the role as the team’s go-to scorer. Both Copper (24.9%) and DeShields (26.6%) have comparable usage percentages, and they both average similar scoring and free throw shooting numbers per 40 minutes. They may not play the same number of minutes each game, but when they do play, they shoulder the same load.

Perhaps most important for Chicago’s offense is that they are both lethal in the pick and roll.

Their methods, however, differ greatly.

ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 3: Kahleah Copper #2 of the Chicago Sky handles the ball against the Atlanta Dream on August 3, 2018 at the McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 3: Kahleah Copper #2 of the Chicago Sky handles the ball against the Atlanta Dream on August 3, 2018 at the McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Copper does her damage exploding right off screens and reading the defense from there. She is quick to decide whether or not she is going to settle for a jumper or attack the rim. DeShields often pokes and prods the defense first, dipping and angling her body to get defenders on their heels before using her burst to get space or get to the bucket.

While the two attack the pick and roll different, the results are the same: buckets.

Among players with at least 20 possessions in the pick and roll, both players rank in the top 20 in the league for points per possession. Among that group, Only DeWanna Bonner, Erica Wheeler and Brittney Sykes are scoring at DeShields’s volume in the pick and roll, per Synergy.

The tandem is capable of not only getting to the rim after screens, but they are also threats pulling up off the dribble. Defenses have had to adjust to the pair’s ability to both step into space for jumpers and pullup with a defender in their grill.

In Wade’s pick-and-roll-happy system, players like Copper and DeShields are essential. Nearly 24% of the Sky’s offense comes in the pick and roll, more than any other playtype. Copper and DeShields have been the maestros in a third of those possessions per Synergy.

Even on defense, where both players are highly regarded, the two wings differ.

Where Copper’s playtime possibly downplays what she can do on offense, it allows her to embrace her role as a defensive stopper.

Copper is not a gambler, prefering to play ball handlers straight up rather than going for steals. It is rare when players can get by Copper on sheet athleticism—screens are usually needed and pass outs out are more common. Her defensive numbers bely how great of a season she has had on that end of the floor, likely due to the Sky’s improving, but still dicey defensive performances.

DeShields has been less consistent there this year, although that is likely due to her offensive load. She is not quite the defender Copper is just yet, at least not in terms of being able to lock in on a possession-by-possession basis. DeShields still flashes top-tier ability both on and off the ball, but is still learning how to do it as the primary option on the other end.

Still, a tandem of Copper and DeShields is one of the more fearsome sets of wings in league on defense, and an absolute force as a two-way duo. They have given Wade the chance to have at least one explosive two-way scorer on the floor for 40 minutes a night.

How they use that explosiveness on a play-by-play basis may differ, but their impact on the court has continued to translate to wins.

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