Sunday wasn\u2019t Vandersloot\u2019s first game back. That moment came two days prior, when she logged 10 points and seven assists in just less than 14 minutes as the Sky dropped a franchise record 124 points<\/a> on the Portland Fire. But returning to the site of the injury held a different weight.<\/p>\n Courtney Vandersloot says Chicago Sky \u2014 \u2018under a microscope\u2019 with Angel Reese \u2014 can return to winning identity<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t a perfect day. Vandersloot racked up eight assists and played nearly 16 minutes, but the Sky couldn\u2019t keep pace with the Aces, the second-best team in the league. Still, even in a loss, Vandersloot felt a sense of relief as she left the United Center on her own terms.<\/p>\n The worst was over. The pain had not returned. And now she can get back to the main driving force of her decorated career: trying to make the most of the Sky.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want to be out there,\u201d Vandersloot told the Tribune. \u201cI want to compete and win games. That\u2019s all I can focus on. That\u2019s what I rehabbed so long to do was to be out there with my teammates. All I want is to be available.\u201d<\/p>\n Even now, Vandersloot only can describe her injury as a shock. Over the course of 15 years in the WNBA \u2014 13 of which were spent playing double-duty with offseason stints in Europe \u2014 the guard never had suffered a major injury. Vandersloot knew she wasn\u2019t invincible. But each season without an injury left a glimmer of hope that perhaps she could remain this healthy and hardy for the entirety of her career.<\/p>\n Through everything in those first two days \u2014 the pain, the scans, the medical jargon, the recovery timeline suddenly stretched ahead of her \u2014 one question beat a steady, stubborn drumbeat in the back of Vandersloot\u2019s mind: Why now?<\/p>\n More than a year later, Vandersloot figures most athletes have the same response. There\u2019s no \u201cright time\u201d for a serious injury to occur within a player\u2019s career. The key to her recovery centered on pushing away the frustration and confusion.<\/p>\n \u201cI was trying to get answers that I was just never going to get,\u201d Vandersloot, 37, said.<\/p>\n This process marked the beginning of a new era for the Sky, who invested heavily in their medical and training staff over the last year. It included the hiring of new director of health and human performance, Jessica Cohen, who handled Vandersloot\u2019s recovery.<\/p>\n Before last year, Sky players did not have access to a full fleet of trainers and medical staff on a year-round basis, often relying on outsourced care to facilitate their recovery from long-term injuries. Now, the team can offer more holistic care for injured athletes.<\/p>\n For Vandersloot, that included an extensive \u201cprehab\u201d routine before she ever underwent surgery. Vandersloot\u2019s ACL repair procedure was scheduled 17 days after her initial injury on June 7. Cohen prioritizes this wider window \u2014 which also was used on Rickea Jackson, who underwent surgery a month after tearing the ACL in her left knee in May \u2014 as a crucial step to prepare athletes\u2019 bodies for recovery.<\/p>\n An ACL injury sends the body into shock, resulting in swelling and a severely limited range of motion. Vandersloot felt her leg enter a complete shutdown. Her quadriceps muscle would not fire. Her leg refused to bend. She spent weeks working with Cohen coaxing basic movement and flexibility out of her major muscles.<\/p>\n After surgery, the real work began. Vandersloot and Cohen set a goal to return roughly a year after her surgery date of June 24. The guard returned on June 26. The 367 days between those dates were occupied with a grueling, exhaustive program that required more than eight hours a day in the gym.<\/p>\n Some athletes struggle to fill their time during a yearlong rehabilitation cycle. But that wasn\u2019t a challenge for Vandersloot, whose daughter, Jana, was born in April 2025<\/a> barely two months before her injury. Her recovery days lasted longer than an average training camp day. So Vandersloot quickly fell into a strict routine.<\/p>\n![\"Chicago](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/CTC-L-sky-sun051_234109519.jpg\")
Chicago Sky athletic trainer Jess Cohen works with Sky guard Courtney Vandersloot before a game against the Connecticut Sun on Sept. 3, 2025, at Wintrust Arena. (Chris Sweda\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n
![\"Chicago](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/CTC-L-SKY-PRACTICE2-2.jpg\")
Chicago Sky coach Tyler Marsh, left, and guard Courtney Vandersloot laugh at the end of the first day of training camp April 27, 2025, at Sachs Recreation Center in Deerfield. (Eileen T. Meslar\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n