The Chicago Sky (10-14) ended the first half of the WNBA season going 4-3 to move up to No. 8 in the WNBA standings.

Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca made a trade right at the start of the All-Star break, sending Marina Mabrey to the Connecticut Sun in exchange for draft capital and two guards (Moriah Jefferson and Rachel Banham) in return.

Here are the top takeaways from the first half of the season.

Defensive identity taking form

Head coach Teresa Weatherspoon preached at the beginning of the WNBA season that the Sky’s identity will be transitional with defense leading to offense and wanting to punch first. While that identity was rocky at the start of the season, it started to take form shortly before the All-Star break.

In the 4 wins, the Sky found ways to create turnovers and push the ball up in transition, especially in their 2 wins against the Atlanta Dream on July 2 and July 10. In both victories, the Sky racked up 27 fast break points and 43 points off of turnovers while tallying 17 total steals. 

“We were exactly who we are,” Weatherspoon said after the July 2 85-77 win. “We’re a defensive team first into offensive runs, and that’s what got us back. We believed that we could get back in it. Didn’t get rattled at all. Just got the ball and pushed it up the floor.”

Chennedy Carter played a large role in getting the transitional game back on track in the July 10 78-69 win. She led the way with 6 fast break points and 8 points off turnovers out of her total 19 points. She’s found ways to tap into that defensive identity that Weatherspoon has wanted to see out of her guard group especially.

“The coaches are putting me in a great position to showcase what I can do,” Carter said after the win. “They’re putting me on the best defenders on the other team. So I’m able to show my athleticism when they’re trying to get that lob over me or just trying to get quick steals. I think that I’m a guard who is very quick, and that helps us on defense. If I get steals and I’m getting active, it’s going to help us in transition.”

Rookies crashing the glass, showing range

Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso said when they were drafted back in April that no one was going to get rebounds off of them in the paint. Both rookies have made that statement true as they sit at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively in offensive rebound average amongst all WNBA players.

Reese had an All-Star worthy first half, breaking records and winning WNBA Rookie of the Month awards. She broke the WNBA record for most consecutive double-doubles in the July 7 84-71 loss to the Seattle Storm. She set a new record with 15 consecutive double-doubles before it was snapped in the 81-67 loss to the New York Liberty on July 13.

Cardoso has started to get her footing in the WNBA and it showed in the July 7th game against the Storm with an all-around performance. While she only put up 6 points, she racked up 8 rebounds and set a career-high with 4 blocks. Consistency started to show as she picked up a double-double in the following game against the Atlanta Dream on July 10.

“I feel like my game is starting to come together,” Cardoso said after the July 10th win.

“It’s not an easy task to be on the glass and box out these players that are very strong and very swift and savvy down there,” Weatherspoon said on July 10. “They’ve taken it on themselves to make sure they grab that rebound and give us an opportunity to run.”

Not only are the rookies finding their footing crashing the boards but they’re testing the waters with their shooting range. Reese knocked down her first career 3-pointer against Seattle on July 7 while Cardoso has started to stretch her shooting range up to the free throw line with quick jumpers. Cardoso has now incorporated 3-10 footers to be about 28% of the shots she takes and makes about 31% of said shots. While her bread and butter is right at the rim, the versatility is expanding.

Reese is on a faster track to expand her shot range. She’s found comfortability in the 10-16 foot and larger range. While her shooting is just 31% from that range, she’s pushing herself by taking those shots and making herself more versatile by working on that range. 

Offensive production still needs work

While everything else is starting to take form, the actual offensive production was stagnant until the July 16 93-85 upset win over the Las Vegas Aces – with those 93 points representing a season-high. The Sky as a team are in the bottom tier when it comes to shooting percentage. They sit at No. 11 with their 42.5% shooting from the floor and sit at No. 9 with their 3-point percentage of 31.4%.

That lack of offensive versatility was showcased in the two losses to the New York Liberty: 91-76 on July 11 and 81-67 on July 13. On July 11, Carter took a majority of the team’s shots to rack up 22 points whereas on July 13, only two players reached double-digit scoring. Reese also struggled inside in both games, shooting just 26.6% across both games.

The Sky have seen other players in Michaela Onyenwere and Isabelle Harrison have their spurts to contribute offensively, but it hasn’t been consistent due to the amount of minutes both forwards have played. Those minutes grew in the win against Las Vegas with both of them seeing the floor for 14 minutes a piece and contributing a total of 17 points.

With the loss of Mabrey in a trade, the Sky lost their biggest deep shooting threat. However, both Banham and Jefferson have the ability to shoot from 3-point range as they are shooting 36.9% and 39.5%, respectively, from the arc. With two new additions and the possibility of more before the WNBA trade deadline on August 20th, the Sky could find new personnel to help fill in the lacking offensive production.

Stats and Notes

• Dana Evans reached 100 career made three-pointers vs. ATL (July 2)
• Angel Reese surpassed Tamika Catchings for 7th on the all-time rookie rebounds list with 286 vs. Las Vegas
• Angel Reese surpassed Natalie Williams for 5th on the all-time rookie offensive rebounds list with 110 vs. New York (July 13)
• Chennedy Carter reached 1,000 career points vs. New York (July 11)