Not much can slow down the Liberty at the moment.
They’ve stormed out to a 4-0 start to the WNBA season, outscoring opponents by a combined 63 points in the process.
Their offense is firing on all cylinders, with four players averaging more than 14 points per game.
And their already elite defense has taken an imposing step forward this year, more cohesive and playing with better chemistry.
But perhaps the Sky, one of the league’s most athletic teams and a side that thrives in many of the areas that make the Liberty so dominant, can provide them with their first headache Thursday night at Barclays Center.
Chicago entered Wednesday averaging 12.0 steals per game, the second most in the league.
The Sky also average 8.0 blocks per game and 39.5 rebounds per game — both second most in the league.
Their 17.5 offensive rebounds per game are the most in the league.
“[Making sure we’re] playing at our pace and our tempo,” forward Breanna Stewart said after practice on Wednesday when asked about dealing with the Sky’s athleticism. “Making sure that we can rebound and run. They’re a team that crashes the boards well, they get steals, blow up actions. Just making sure we’re getting the ball swinging from side to side and getting the shots that we want.”
The Sky are tall, long and physical.
Center Elizabeth Williams is one of the best defensive players in the league, averaging 3.0 blocks per game and 3.0 steals per game.
Forward Brianna Turner averages 2.0 blocks per game, and the Sky’s guards hound opponents outside the perimeter — Marina Mabrey and Diamond DeShields average 3.5 and 2.5 steals per game, respectively.
Then there’s forward Angel Reese, whom the Sky selected No. 7 in last month’s WNBA draft.
She starred at LSU by imposing herself inside, and the Sky average 54.3 points in the paint per game — most in the league.
It’ll be a good test for Liberty forward Jonquel Jones, who will be the tallest player on the court.
The Liberty have been deliberate in making sure to get her looks inside, and she’s averaging 1.8 blocks per game on the defensive end.
“We want to run, we want to get 3s, but making sure we control the points in the paint and get paint touches,” Stewart said. “She’s able to do everything that she does. Her ability to play inside-out. And I think as a whole for all five of us, it’s just reading and reacting. The amount of respect and selflessness we have as teammates makes it fun when we go out there, and know no matter what, there’s a good option, and we’re always gonna get a good look.”
Thursday’s clash will also test guard Sabrina Ionescu’s ability to elude defenders, particularly as she slashes to the rim. It was a point of emphasis for her this past offseason.
Ionescu has been trying to constantly change speeds in order to beat opponents off the dribble and finish around bigs in the paint, in hopes it will make her more multidimensional than primarily a 3-point shooter.
Some of the league’s best, and most disruptive, defenders await her.
“Just naturally being able to continue to use decelerating to my advantage in terms of being hard to predict,” Ionescu said Wednesday. “Obviously, bigs love to block shots, so I think being able to get into the paint, use my body, use my strength, use my height to be able to go up and around, speed up, slow down, make the timing of the blocks a little bit harder, being able get to the free-throw line, I think that’s all part of the art of being able to finish in the key.”
Beyond their physicality and athleticism, the Sky score in many of the same ways the Liberty do.
The Sky often turn defense into offense, scoring 27.8 points per game off turnovers, the third-most in the league.
The Liberty, meanwhile, score 19.3 points off turnovers per game — sixth most.
The teams are even more similar in transition.
The Sky average 17.3 fast-break points per game, the third most in the league.
The Liberty score 15.9 fast-break points per game, the fifth most in the league.
“Our transition offense is our best offense,” Ionescu said. “I think that’s a blessing and a curse, because when you’re not able to get in transition, what do you fall back to? I know something that we take super seriously now is making sure we’re also scoring in the half-court. I think we’ve been able to show great growth in that area. But being able to play super fast, it wears teams down for 40 minutes.”
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