For a second straight season, the 3-point arc has become the Chicago Sky’s greatest enemy. But this year, the phenomenon is occurring on the opposite side of the court.
The Sky have (mostly) straightened out their 3-point scoring woes with the acquisition of a slew of shooters and a revamp of their offense. But they face a new challenge on defense — the Sky simply can’t stop opponents from getting hot from behind the arc.
Advertisement
In the first six games, opponents averaged a league-high 11.2 baskets from 3-point range against the Sky while shooting 42.1% — the highest efficiency in the WNBA. Those 33.6 points per game represent 36.5% of the total offense scored against the Sky. And with the Sky averaging only 22.5 points off 3s, they simply can’t keep up.
“When we’re giving really good shooters wide open shots, it’s hard to win,” guard Courtney Vandersloot told the Tribune.
The Sky (2-4) can’t beat teams if they don’t start beating them at the 3-point arc. But if the defense is going to cut off circulation at the perimeter, it first needs to diagnose the source of the problem.
While opponents are creating a league-high 2.7 3-pointers in the corners, the majority of 3s (7.8 per game) are being ceded above the break. Coach Tyler Marsh felt some of these 3s came off individual errors — players getting beat during a cross-match or losing sight of shooters when they cut off the ball or break ahead in transition.
Advertisement
But Marsh feels the 3-point flurry is a reflection of the Sky’s lack of rotational discipline.
“It starts with our ability to keep the ball out the paint as well,” Marsh said. “We’ve been trying a few different defensive coverages that put us in rotations a little bit more so we find that balance.”
Vandersloot noted that the Sky often struggle with opponents’ shooting bigs who stretch defenders such as Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese well outside of their comfort zone.
In the loss to the Phoenix Mercury, forwards Kathryn Westbeld and Satou Sabally combined for five of the Mercury’s 3-pointers. Azurá Stevens and Dearica Hamby had four 3s in a loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, and Jonquel Jones and Breanna Stewart combined for five in a loss to the New York Liberty.
Advertisement
Defending stretch bigs is a difficult task for the Sky, whose tallest players are still most comfortable defending in the paint. And despite pushing all three bigs — Reese, Cardoso and center Elizabeth Williams — to play farther from the basket on offense, the Sky prefer to keep the trio on the interior during defensive possessions. This can open up opportunities for stretch shooters to find their spots against the Sky.
“Our post players are great defenders — but they’re post defenders,” Vandersloot said. “It’s an adjustment for them to have to be able to guard the 3-point line. It’s not all on them — the guards are getting beat on 3s too — but we’ve gotten into rotations and just played a little bit undisciplined.”
Ariel Atkins pointed to screen navigation as another key issue for the Sky. Too often, defenders are getting fully hit on a screen at the perimeter, allowing shooters to gain the extra foot of space necessary to get off a good shot or make a break for their preferred spot on the arc. This typically occurs when a Sky guard takes a half-second too long deciding whether to duck under or fight through a screen — a hesitation Atkins felt herself committing throughout the early weeks of the season.
Related Articles
Advertisement
Post players are a crucial piece of screen navigation, providing constant communication about the coverages available beneath the screener to inform a perimeter defender’s decision making. Atkins noted that in-game defensive communication between post players and guards was “too passive” at the start of the season but developed into a more “aggressive” style in the two wins against the Dallas Wings. This coordination will be key for Reese and Cardoso to continue playing up to touch — a style of defense in which a post neither drops nor hedges on a screen.
But for the Sky perimeter defense to begin shutting off 3-pointers, Atkins feels the guard unit needs to make it harder for opponents to move around the perimeter. This means creating more physical discomfort for opposing guards with or without the ball.
“It’s just getting up and getting into people and not being afraid to get beat,” Atkins told the Tribune. “We just need to guard. I think we could get into people a little more. You’re going against people in this league that can give you 40 any night. You got to be locked in. You got to try to make their life hard.”
After a weeklong break, the Sky will be able to test their perimeter defense Saturday against the Indiana Fever, a team experiencing a sudden drop-off in 3-point volume from last season due to the absence of injured star Caitlin Clark.
Advertisement
The Fever (3-4) do not feature any shooting bigs, with their entire frontcourt averaging only 1.7 makes from behind the arc. And without Clark, the Fever have relied heavily on Kelsey Mitchell and Lexie Hull for long-range shooting, giving the Sky clear targets to nullify at the perimeter.
In this game and throughout the season, the Sky will have only two choices — cut off production at the 3-point arc or get stuck in yet another shootout.
