Jun. 25—Former Gonzaga star Courtney Vandersloot will make her long-awaited return to the basketball court Friday.
Vandersloot will play her season debut with the Chicago Sky against the Portland Fire, she told ESPN Thursday. It will be her first appearance since tearing her ACL last June.
Advertisement
“Words can’t express how excited and thankful I am to return to the floor,” Vandersloot said. “It’s been a long and challenging journey back, but I have full trust in our medical staff and the work we’ve put in to make this possible.”
Vandersloot, 37, is playing her 16th season in the WNBA. She re-signed with the Sky before the 2025 season after playing two years with the New York Liberty, where she won her second championship in 2024. Vandersloot played her first 12 seasons in Chicago.
Vandersloot is second in WNBA history with 2,886 assists, only behind Sue Bird (3,234) and nearly 1,000 more than the next active player. She was averaging 10.6 points and 5.3 assists before her injury in 2025.
Vandersloot became the first women’s basketball player to have her jersey honored by Gonzaga in 2023. She was twice the NCAA’s assists leader at GU and led the team to the Elite Eight in 2011, among other accomplishments.
