There is a lot of ‘‘new’’ around the Sky. They have a new coach in Tyler Marsh and have added veterans to complement the core of second-year players Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso.
So it’s encouraging that the players already are enjoying spending time together. Guard Kia Nurse, who was signed as a free agent in February, said the cohesiveness already is forming around the team.
‘‘It’s a little bit on the court and off the court,’’ Nurse said. ‘‘We’re beginning to hang out with one another, getting to know each other. Some of us have played together in different spots, and a lot of us have had different experiences. But . . . knowing each other’s tendencies on the court is one thing, but knowing each other and our personalities, as well, [and] how to communicate with one another when things go [well] and when things aren’t going [well], it’s a big piece of it, as well.
‘‘It’s a lot of fun. It’s a fun group.’’
Nurse has noticed it at team dinners, on the Sky’s trip to Louisiana for their exhibition game against the Brazilian national team and when the players just talk and hang out after practice. Those moments, while seemingly mundane, are valuable in terms of building chemistry.
‘‘Huge. It’s just an understanding of one another,’’ Nurse said. ‘‘Ultimately, you play better when you’re cheering for each other and you’re cheering for what that other person is doing.’’
In basketball, that can be the difference between a team running a fluid offense and one that effectively has players declare it’s their turn to shoot. Marsh and the Sky are looking to create an offense that doesn’t depend on one person to score and can get points from different players, depending on game situations and matchups.
‘‘We just want to be that team that is able to play through our ball movement and our unselfishness to create shots for each other,’’ Marsh said.
Camaraderie can help.
‘‘There’s only one ball, so only one person’s scoring every single possession,’’ Nurse said. ‘‘But the person who makes the proper pass, the person who makes the great screen, the person who makes the right read, being able to celebrate that with one another, that makes the difference.
‘‘The ball moves, [and] whoever scores, scores at that point. Usually, it’s like a hockey assist: The person that passes to the passer is the one that makes it happen. The more we can understand that, the more we can cheer for each other, the better it is.’’
Nurse isn’t the only member of the Sky who values togetherness.
Forward Rebecca Allen, whom the Sky acquired in February from the Sun for Lindsay Allen and the rights to Nikolina Milic, said she wants to be part of an atmosphere where everybody can talk and say what’s on their minds.
‘‘There’s no hierarchy on this team at all,’’ said Allen, who injured her hamstring during the Olympics last year and had back surgery in September. ‘‘That’s a really good thing because that’s when everyone feels comfortable. And when everyone’s more together, that’s when you get the best out of the group. I really want to be part of that.’’
NOTES: Marsh was noncommittal about making any changes to the starting lineup for the preseason game Tuesday against the Lynx at Wintrust Arena.
Against Brazil on Friday, the Sky started Nurse, Reese, Cardoso, Courtney Vandersloot and Ariel Atkins. Marsh said he experimented with ‘‘a couple’’ of different lineups during practice Sunday.
• Marsh said the Sky wouldn’t make any additional cuts before the game against the Lynx.