LOS ANGELES — There is trouble on the horizon for the Sky. Their 20-point loss Thursday to the Mercury showed the warning signs.
Sure, the Mercury’s middle-of-the-pack standing doesn’t reflect the talent on their roster. But regardless of the Mercury’s three gold medalists, the Sky’s problems were exposed in their first game back from the All-Star and Olympic breaks.
The Sky’s most glaring concern is their offensive production, specifically from three-point range, without guard Marina Mabrey.
Mabrey made her debut with the Sun on Friday after requesting a trade from the Sky last month. Despite being in a significant shooting slump in her 24 games with the Sky this season, she still accounted for more than 50% of their three-pointers.
The Sky were by no means a successful three-point team in the first half of the season. They were last in the league in three-point attempts and ninth in three-point percentage. On Thursday, however, they sunk even lower, shooting 21.1% from three-point range. The Mercury, meanwhile, were 12-for-23 from behind the arc.
Still, coach Teresa Weatherspoon chose to emphasize the Sky’s poor effort at defending the three-pointer rather than to address the fact they don’t have the shooters to counter their opponents.
‘‘We can’t allow the looks,’’ Weatherspoon said. ‘‘You allow the looks, this is what happens. They had wide-open looks. We have to be better there.’’
The Sky’s last-place standing in three-point attempts this season isn’t the responsibility of one player to fix, but Weatherspoon was adamant about guard Rachel Banham being a key to the team turning that around.
It’s an odd take, considering Banham wasn’t among the Sky’s starting five Thursday until guard Chennedy Carter was ruled out with a non-COVID illness. If Weatherspoon brings Banham off the bench, her production will be diminished.
Carter traveled with the Sky to Los Angeles for their game Saturday against the Sparks, but her availability was still uncertain.
When Carter does return, Weatherspoon will have to decide whether Banham belongs in the starting five instead of forward Michaela Onyenwere.
Weatherspoon has said she likes the upgrade Onyenwere offers defensively, but her offensive production is concerning. She finished with five points and made only one of her eight shots from the field Thursday. Banham wasn’t much better, shooting 3-for-10.
‘‘I feel good,’’ Banham said. ‘‘I feel confident. I know they’re confident in me. I didn’t shoot great [Thursday], but I’m not tripping over it. The offense is going to come. It’s our defense that we need to lock in on.’’
Banham’s assertion is a reflection of her inexperience with the Sky. The team has struggled all season to find offensive consistency, and Weatherspoon’s rotations have fluctuated dramatically.
On Thursday, guard Dana Evans led the Sky with 14 points in 24 minutes off the bench. In the six games before the All-Star and Olympic breaks, she averaged 11.4 minutes.
Defense is the one thing the Sky have been able to hang their hats on this season. Their standing as the third-best team in the league in fast-break points is a result of that.
As they showed Thursday, however, the Sky won’t find much success if they neither can defend nor shoot the three-pointer. With about five weeks left in the regular season, they are running out of time to make good on Banham’s words.