The Chicago Sky used a first-round pick on TCU guard Hailey Van Lith, but up until the All-Star break, the rookie just wasn't getting out on the floor enough.
On one hand, it made sense. She wasn't shooting the ball well, so Chicago opted to go with other players at guard, including using Angel Reese as a point forward.
But the Sky are also a pretty bad basketball team, with the franchise sitting at 7-17 on the season. While not eliminated from playoff contention yet, a postseason appearance still feels fairly out of the picture, so Chicago should be doing what it needs to do to build for the future.
One such thing the team should do? Just get Van Lith some more run to see what she can do. It finally seems like that's happening.
Hailey Van Lith is playing more minutes
Van Lith has played 20-plus minutes in three consecutive games for the Sky. Her 20 minutes in the final pre-All-Star break game against the Dream was her first time hitting that mark since June 21, and if she plays 20-plus minutes in the team's next contest, she'll have her most consecutive games with that much playing time since she was drafted.
On-court impact aside, this is what Chicago needs to be doing. Not because it helps the Sky win games, but because it helps them identify what the future of this roster looks like.
Of course, it's very much worth noting that this increase in minutes comes as Ariel Atkins has been sidelined with an injury. Head coach Tyler Marsh called Atkins "day-to-day," so it's very likely she's back on the floor soon. The real test on whether the Sky have learned their lesson will come if Van Lith still gets minutes after that.
Rachel Banham and Kia Nurse are decent veteran players, but neither is going to single-handedly change the course of this — or any — Sky season. Neither is under contract for next season, while Van Lith still has two more years on her deal and a team option for a third. Just keep playing her once Atkins is back! See if she can pan out! I feel like I've been screaming this for months, but bad teams need to see if their young players can be salvaged. Maybe Van Lith winds up being a bust, but you can't know that for sure until you give her serious minutes.
HVL's got some shooting issues, but is improving as a playmaker
One thing that signals Van Lith might work out in Chicago is her improvement as a playmaker. She's averaging 5.6 assists per 36 minutes over the last three games, and last game she had five assists and just one turnover.
Van Lith's overall turnover rate this season ranks 121st in the league, but that'll happen when a rookie is trying to figure out how to be a ball-handling guard in the pro game.
What's impressive is that if you dig into the numbers, Van Lith's teammates are getting higher quality shots when she's on the floor. You can see this by looking at the team's 3-point shooting over the past three games with Van Lith on and off the floor. The team is shooting 21.4 percent from deep with her on the sidelines and 41.4 percent with her on the floor, and that's despite Van Lith going 0-for-3 from deep over the past three games. It's a small sample size, but it appears that having Van Lith on the floor is leading to easier shot attempts for her teammates.