The Chicago Sky have released guard Kysre Gondrezick, the team announced on June 28.
The team will also be without center Elizabeth Williams for the remainder of its 2024 campaign. Williams had surgery to repair a torn meniscus she suffered on June 6 win over the Washington Mystics.
Gondrezick, 27, was the fourth overall pick in the 2021 WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever. She put up 19.5 points, 4.5 assists and 2.9 rebounds over her senior campaign at West Virginia in 2020-21, but her college game never quite translated to the pros.
After not appearing in the WNBA at all during the 2023 season, Gondrezick signed with the Sky in February of 2024. She played minimally in the Windy City, appearing in five games. She averaged 1.0 points, 0.4 rebounds and 0.4 total assists while with Chicago.
With Williams out and Gondrezick gone, the Sky will likely look to fill another roster spot — perhaps two — as they have 10 players currently available on their 12-person roster.
Chicago Sky Will Need Kamilla Cardoso, Other Bigs to Help Replace Injured Center Elizabeth Williams
The 31-year-old Williams started nine games for the 6-10 Sky this season before getting injured. The veteran big was averaging 10.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 27.7 minutes of action before going down with the injury. A 10-year WNBA vet, Chicago will also miss the leadership of Williams on and off the court.
With Williams out indefinitely, the Sky will likely rely more on rookie Kamilla Cardoso in the paint. Cardoso, who missed the first month of the season with a shoulder injury, has shown promise in the 10 games she has appeared in.
The No. 3 overall pick for the Sky in this year’s draft, the 6-foot-7 rookie out of South Carolina is averaging 8.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 0.8 blocked shots in 24.4 minutes per game. Together with 6-foot-3 rookie Angel Reese, the duo should see more action moving forward.
Sky Looking to Turn the Corner Under 1st Year Head Coach Teresa Weatherspoon
After finishing with an 18-22 mark in 2023, the Sky are in a rebuilding year under first-year head coach Teresa Weatherspoon.
An Olympic gold medalist and five-time WNBA All-Star as a player, Coach “Spoon” offers a unique blend of experience, grit and knowledge young team seems to be flourishing in. After winning the WNBA championship in 2021, the team hasn’t been back to the finals. Weatherspoon is looking to get the team back to the top.
“There’s a rich history here — rich, rich history and sports history,” Weatherspoon said about Chicago, via Megan Armstrong of Uproxx.
“We don’t want to compete against it; we want to complement it. There’s a lot that we want to be a part of. The Chicago Sky want to complement the sports history, and how do we do that? Between the four lines, compete, play hard, go out and win every single day to represent this organization and this city in the right way,” Coach Spoon added, also noting how her former career as a player has helped shape her current perspective as a coach.
“You don’t experience things to keep; you experience it to give it back,” Weatherspoon added. “It’s emotional for me, sometimes, when I think about it because a group of young women are under my leadership, and it’s my duty — and I love my duty, and I love my challenge — is to make sure that they are the best version of themselves. … It’s not all about the Xs and Os for me. It’s about the relationship with them.”
With a key piece now missing in the injured Williams, Weatherspoon and company will have to rally together to compensate. It’ll be interesting to see how Cardoso in particular responds.
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