Sky Need to Keep Confidence for Tough Stretch
Can the Chicago Sky use their latest victory as a runway for one final hopeful run?
The Sky have shown signs of life since the return of star forward Angel Reese, but have still only won two games with their young captain back at the helm. They pulled through with a key victory over the Connecticut Sun on Wednesday, which pushed them up to double-digit wins while proving they, at least occasionally, have the means to fight all the way through. An August win over the New York Liberty, their first over the reigning champs since early in their 2024 run, sparked some much-needed hope in a lost season. Still, they have yet to defeat two of their remaining opponents, the Las Vegas Aces and the Indiana Fever, this year. Chicago was just a few jumpers away from pulling off a surprise victory against the Aces late last month. Guard Ariel Atkins put the team on her back as she racked up a season-high 30 points.
Without Reese, who will sit out with a one-game suspension on Friday, it may be tough to keep that energy going and not revert back to the Sky of old against the Fever. It may be up to Kamilla Cardoso and Elizabeth Williams, who started alongside one another in Chicago's last two matchups with Indiana, to fill in some of the gaps left by the Sky's sophomore star in her brief absence. The two proved to be bright spots during one of the more turbulent periods in Chicago's 2025 campaign and in their victory over Connecticut, but will need to be paired with consistent guard play and bench scoring to keep things going.
Defense may need to be the name of the Sky's game as they take on some of the top-ranked offenses in the WNBA. Chicago has looked better than usual on offense since Reese's return, but still has some ground to make up on the other side of the floor. They are tied with the Fever at about ninth place in the WNBA with a defensive rating of 107.4 and in eighth place with just over 82.5 opponent points per game in their last seven games. A more confident gameplan against the Sun led to allowing just 64 points, a season low for the Windy City squad, which they'll need to keep to end their 2025 campaign with a bang.
The Sky will suit up against the Fever at 6:30 p.m. CDT on Friday in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The game will be broadcast on Ion.
Alex Sabri began contributing to the BIGPLAY Network in September 2025. He also contributes to Chicago Sky on SI and FanSided's High Post Hoops. The Purdue and Cleveland State graduate has over two years of journalism experience in collegiate and professional sports, as well as local journalism, and a few more years of sports blogging experience. Though he specializes in covering Ohio sports for BIGPLAY, his interests include the NBA, WNBA, NFL, Cleveland Guardians and college football and basketball.