Chicago Sky fans will have to wait a little longer before they can watch Candace Parker play in front of her home crowd.
Parker missed her fourth consecutive game with an ankle injury Friday night, robbing the hometown hero of her Wintrust Arena debut and a reunion with her former team, the Los Angeles Sparks.
The Sky characterized Parker’s injury as a minor left ankle sprain when she missed their 85-77 win over the Atlanta Dream on May 19. But Parker, who has not played since the season opener on May 15, posted an Instagram photo that revealed severe bruising before Sunday’s home opener against the New York Liberty.
Parker has not participated in team activities, instead being limited to individual workouts and rehab sessionswith the team’s training staff.
“I don’t want to do anything that would risk having Candace out long term or something that would linger,” Sky coach and general manager James Wade said. “She’s a winner, she knows what it takes to win. She’s smart enough to know what’s an intelligent choice and what’s not an intelligent choice.”
The Sky’s offseason signing of Parker made large waves in the WNBA, instantly putting the team into the title-contention picture. Her performance in the season opener — 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks — gave fans even more reason to dream about the possibilities for this team.
But Parker’s absence has slightly subdued excitement around what had been an anticipated season for the Sky (2-2). Without Parker and guard Allie Quigley, who also has not played since the opener because of a hamstring injury, the Sky lost back-to-back games entering Friday.
“We just have to step up,” Wade said. “Everybody’s going to have added responsibility and that’s it. We have to look forward to these moments because you get to figure out your team this way. When you have your back against the wall and you see who steps up.”
The Sky have two more home games after Friday’s matchup, a stretch during which Parker could make her home debut. They host the Sparks again Sunday and play the Phoenix Mercury on Tuesday before hitting the road again. But a timetable for her return remained unclear.
“Right now we’re just taking it day to day and trying to get them better,” Wade said. “They’re doing their workouts to get back on the floor as fast as they can”
Parker will miss the first chance to play against her former team.
The No. 1 pick in the 2008 WNBA draft, Parker spent the first 13 years of her career in Los Angeles before deciding to sign with the Sky. So the Sky want to make sure she is at 100% before getting back on the floor for what has the potential to be an emotional reunion.
“I know it’s something there, I know the emotions will be there,” Wade said. “This is the first time she’ll ever get to play against her team, but the thing is that we have our mindset that we want to get better every day. So to get better every day, we have to make sure the health is there.”
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