There's still a lot of basketball left to play this season, but it's starting to feel like the Chicago Sky won't be enjoying most of it.
Not that the team won't be on the floor, because they will. And, yes, the Sky has been playing without Courtney Vandersloot and DiJonai Carrington, two players who more than have the ability to shift a narrative when they're neeed to. The Sky is also playing with Rickea Jackson, who tore her ACL and will be out this year.
But: even with all of that in mind, it's becoming increasingly difficult to rationalize what's going on.
The Sky's Monday night game against the Connecticut Sun could have been an opportunity to set the record straight. Chicago had the chance to get back on a path toward winning a few games in a row. They came into the match on a five-loss streak and ended up increasing that to six (the Sky lost that game 92-63).
The dramatic loss couldn't come at a worse time: though they've been losing lately, a lot of those games have been pretty close. Monday's game was the first major defeat the Sky has suffered recently, which likely made it all the more painful. Getting close to beating the Dallas Wings should have meant the Sky could handle the Sun, who are ranked 15th in the league (out of 15 teams), but it absolutely did not.
Monday night's game offered a Skylar Diggins who didn't hit a basket, as well as more officiating concerns. Tyler Marsh recently said he can never get an answer when he sends texts asking for explanations about why a foul was or wasn't called, but even that shouldn't mean the team is doing this badly at this point in the season. The Sky's roster is strong, and the talent is deep: so, at this point, it's time for them to figure it out.
The Chicago Sky plays the Portland Fire next
The next two games won't be as easy as some Sky fans might think. Though the team beat the Portland Fire in early May, the Fire is a stronger, grittier team than they were back then. Portland has proven that they're playing to win this season, and they're actually pulling a good bit of those wins off. The Sky will host the Fire Wednesday and Friday this week, offering a reintroduction to a new team that's still focused on proving everyone wrong.
Perhaps there's something in there for the Sky to learn, too.
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