Sky point guard Courtney Vandersloot, the ‘‘engine’’ of the team this season and a franchise icon, will miss the rest of the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee.
It’s a brutal blow for the Sky and for Vandersloot, who will have a tough road ahead coming back from that injury at 36.
Vandersloot went down five minutes into the Sky’s 79-52 loss Saturday to the Fever at the United Center on a drive to the basket. It appeared to be a non-contact injury, as her right knee gave out and she hit the floor. Two staff members carried Vandersloot off the court to the locker room.
The Sky were in disarray offensively after she left and finished with their lowest point total since 2011. Coach Tyler Marsh called it ‘‘a huge blow’’ to lose someone who was ‘‘our engine, our captain, our leader’’ and now must settle his team before a game Tuesday against the defending WNBA champion Liberty in New York.
‘‘We’ve all got to step up and be better, and it starts with me,’’ Marsh said. ‘‘I’ve got to be better for our players.’’
He likely will turn to rookie Hailey Van Lith, the No. 11 overall pick in the draft in April, to start in Vandersloot’s place. The Sky had planned to develop Van Lith off the bench, but that plan now has gone out the window.
Vandersloot was averaging a team-high 31 minutes before the injury. She was third on the Sky in scoring at 10.6 points a game and first in assists at 5.3. The injury ended her return to the Sky — she played the last two seasons for the Liberty — after only seven games.
Vandersloot is the most distinguished player in Sky history and a future Hall of Famer, regardless of the injury. The team drafted her No. 3 overall in 2011, and she has played 13 of her 15 seasons for them. She is a five-time All-Star and a two-time WNBA champion and has led the league in assists seven times.
She recently set the franchise scoring record at 3,745 points and also is the Sky’s all-time leader with 10,336 minutes played, 2,423 assists and 468 steals.
‘‘It’s heartbreaking . . . especially one of your teammates and someone that means as much as Sloot does to our team and this organization,’’ Van Lith said. ‘‘Whatever is in store for the future for this team, I trust that we will find a way to make this moment mean something in the end. . . . Hopefully we can use this to change the path.’’
After the Sky sputtered offensively in Vandersloot’s absence Saturday, including shooting 32.1% from the field as they struggled to get quality shots, wing player Rebecca Allen lamented the timing of the injury. The Sky started 0-4, then won two consecutive games and seemed to have some momentum offensively.
‘‘We’ve been really finding our identity . . . and when one of your key pieces goes down so early in a game, it’s hard to adjust and regroup on the go,’’ Allen said.
Once Vandersloot has surgery, it’ll be a huge challenge for her to get back on the court next season. She said last month she had no intention of retiring soon and told the Sun-Times: ‘‘My mentality is, as long as I can play at a really high level and compete and help my team, I’ll do this as long as I can.’’
Vandersloot has been the epitome of determination and toughness, establishing herself as one of the ultimate leaders of her era in Chicago sports. She is respected throughout the WNBA and beyond. And now she faces perhaps the most difficult test of her career.