When two-time WNBA champion Courtney Vandersloot decided to return to the Chicago Sky in free agency, it felt like a storybook reunion. After spending the first 12 years of her career building the franchise’s identity, her homecoming carried weight. Vandersloot herself admitted it was the chance to play alongside the team’s young cornerstones — Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso — that fueled her decision. “Having two post players like that, young stars, is a point guard’s dream,” she said with genuine excitement, envisioning the possibilities of feeding the paint and anchoring a new era of Sky basketball. But ultimately, what sealed the deal was the arrival of new head coach Tyler Marsh, whose vision convinced the Gonzaga alumna that Chicago was ready to rise again.

Yet just two games into the season, that optimism is already under strain. On Thursday night, the Sky suffered their second consecutive blowout, this time against the reigning champion New York Liberty. With new addition Natasha Cloud setting the tone and Sabrina Ionescu lighting it up from deep, the Liberty never eased off the gas, burying Chicago with a WNBA-record 19 made threes in a 99–74 rout.

For the Sky, it wasn’t just another loss — it was a painful piece of history. According to ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, Chicago’s -60 point differential across the first two games is the worst season start in WNBA history. The game followed a familiar pattern: New York stormed ahead early, leading by 21 in the first half, and while the Sky showed signs of life in a spirited third-quarter push, their offensive rhythm never materialized.

Star rookie Angel Reese, expected to be a focal point of the offense, endured her roughest outing yet. She finished 0-for-8 from the field, managed only 2-for-6 at the free-throw line, and tallied just one assist. Her 12 rebounds — including eight on the offensive glass — showed her trademark hustle, but the glaring zero in the scoring column overshadowed everything else. It marked her first professional game without a single made basket, a stat that stood out as Chicago’s offense sputtered from start to finish.

Afterward, Vandersloot, the seasoned veteran brought back to stabilize the franchise, didn’t sugarcoat her frustrations. “A lot of them are just dumb plays,” she admitted. “Offensively, we haven’t found a groove yet — [we’re] a little out of rhythm. It will come with time; we have to work on our chemistry offensively.” Her words carried the weight of experience, but also a blunt honesty: this version of the Sky isn’t yet the dream she returned for.

via Imago

The Sky’s offense indeed looks disjointed and directionless. There are set plays, yes, but no go-to scoring option has emerged yet. The team hasn’t decided whether the offense should flow through Angel Reese, Kamilla Cardoso, or Ariel Atkins.

Often, the issue isn’t even shot selection—it’s getting a shot off at all. The Sky committed 23 turnovers on the night, many of them unforced. Even when they did find decent shooting looks, too many possessions ended before they began due to miscommunication. That lack of offensive cohesion directly impacted the defense. New York capitalized with 27 points off turnovers, constantly punishing the Sky in transition. This can’t continue if Chicago has playoff aspirations.

So, Vandersloot didn’t just reflect on what went wrong—she also explained why. “We are trying to figure out spacing. We haven’t figured out how we can position our post players so it benefits us,” she said.

That spacing issue is painfully evident in both shot selection and ineffective post play. Take Reese, for example. Despite her relentless work on the glass, she shot 0-for-8 from the field and never found her rhythm. The same can be said for Cardoso, who managed just 3-for-8 shooting and six points in 23 minutes. Neither player was able to establish a consistent interior presence.

The stats reinforce Vandersloot’s point. Against New York, the Sky scored just 22 points in the paint, down from 26 in their opener against Indiana. Clearly, the Sky’s offensive scheme isn’t creating clean looks for their bigs or opening driving lanes. They’re packed in tight, often getting in each other’s way instead of stretching defenses.

So what’s the solution?

The Sky need more from Ariel Atkins and Kia Nurse

Before the season even tipped off, Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca made it clear: Kia Nurse was one of the most important offseason additions. Head coach Tyler Marsh doubled down on that theme, pointing to Ariel Atkins as a vital piece for what she could become on offense.

“We know who she is defensively, and that’s been the calling card for her since she’s been in the league,” Marsh said before the season began. “We have a lot of trust and faith in that area. But we also see a lot more room for potential on the offensive end. We want to put her in positions where she’s able to be that dynamic scorer and utilize that at all three levels.”

The intention was clear: let Nurse and Atkins stretch the floor, make defenses pay from the outside, and create breathing room inside for Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso to go to work. It sounded good on paper. But so far, that vision hasn’t materialized on the court.

Atkins, expected to grow into a go-to scorer, finished Thursday night’s blowout loss to the Liberty with just eight points. More problematic, she picked up four fouls by the third quarter, which kept her glued to the bench for long stretches—precisely when the Sky needed her most.

Nurse, meanwhile, looked more comfortable pulling the trigger on open looks against New York, but she just wasn’t connecting. When she’s missing, defenders sag off, and that collapses the spacing for everyone else. And that’s the heart of the problem. This is a Sky team that invested in Nurse and Atkins specifically to improve their spacing—to stretch defenses, open driving lanes, and free up the paint for their young bigs. That hasn’t happened.

They have pieces with potential. And for Chicago to flip the script on this rough start, execution needs to start on the perimeter. There’s still time. The season is young. But the Sky don’t have the luxury of waiting.