Takeaways from the Chicago Sky preseason win over Minnesota

Tina Nguyen goes 1-on-1 with Sky head coach Tyler Marsh

Training camp has begun for the Sky, and first-year head coach Tyler Marsh spoke to FOX 32's Tina Nguyen about how the team has approached its first days together.

Happy birthday, Angel Reese. The Chicago Sky opened up the 2025 Wintrust Arena slate with a win.

Here are our takeaways from the Sky’s 74-69 preseason win over the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday evening.

Courtney Vandersloot is in midseason form

After the 2024 season, it was clear the first order of business for the Sky was finding a true point guard to run the offense.

Lindsay Allen and Dana Evans worked hard to make the offense work, but the consistency wasn’t there. It was clear the Sky felt the same as they traded both Evans and Allen this offseason and brought franchise legend Courtney Vandersloot back into the fold.

What a difference it makes having a true floor general, too.

The Sky’s offense had purpose. It moved and the ball movement influenced how the offense rotated. The Lynx defense is regarded as one of the best in the league. The Sky still exploited weak points with accurate passes from Vandersloot.

It goes beyond her passing, too. Vandersloot is a talented shooter from beyond the arc, but in the midrange and at the rim. What’s more impressive is that Vandersloot is the one mentoring first-round pick Hailey Van Lith.

Vandersloot’s presence has to make plenty happy.

There won’t be many happier than Kamilla Cardoso.

Cardoso should have a bigger role on offense

If there’s anyone who would benefit the most from having a true point guard on the court, it’s Cardoso.

The second-year center out of South Carolina was in double figures on offense just 15 minutes into the game on Tuesday.

Thank Vandersloot for this. It didn’t matter if Cardoso rolled to the basket, if she stood still or backed away from the basket, Vandersloot still found her in the right spots with accurate passes. Cardoso looks improved as a finisher, too. She’s confident in using her 6-foot-7 frame in a myriad of ways.

She looked like a mismatch as a rookie. Now, with WNBA experience, she looks like a player that’s growing the ways she can exploit those mismatches.

Hailey Van Lith in crunch time is a gift

With the Sky trailing by one, 67-66, with about a minute left, Hailey Van Lith gave us the highlight of the night.

She dropped a Lynx defender and sank a go-ahead 3-pointer. It was a clutch moment for the first-round pick that lifted the Sky to a win.

That clutch gene she found at Louisville and TCU was evident on Tuesday evening. It was a moment that also sent Wintrust Arena into a frenzy.

In July, we’ll see how Ariel Atkins impacts the game

Before the game on Tuesday, Sky head coach Tyler Marsh was asked what he envisions Ariel Atkins role will be on this team.

"Score," he said bluntly.

He’s right. Atkins was taking shots confidently. She was active at the perimeter. That will pay dividends come July and the heat of the season.

Last year, when Cardoso and Reese began finding their stride offensively midseason, there was no consistent 3-point threat to complement that post offense.

Atkins brings that not only then, but immediately.

Sky Sports