The Chicago Sky has continued to play solid basketball season after season.
Although the Sky has only been a franchise since 2006, they continue to put on a good show and produce good players. The team wouldn’t have been as successful as they have been in the past without the Sky’s top post, Slyvia Fowles.
Before The WNBA
Before Fowles was in the WNBA, she was making a name for herself as part of the Louisiana State University team. She won many awards and led her team to many different accomplishments.
Her final season with LSU saw many great things. Fowles was named the 2007 and 2008 Louisiana Player of the Year, 2008 WBCA Defensive Player of the Year, State Farm/WBCA All-American, First Team All-American, and 2008 New Orleans Regional Most Outstanding Player.
She was also named the 2008 SEC Player f the Year, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and All-SEC First Team. Fowles set many individual school records that she can be very proud of. In her career she set a school and SEC record of 86 double-doubles. She was the fifth player in school history to reach 2,000 points and actually finished with 2,234 career points.
She is also the holder of the school record for career rebounds with 1,570, blocked shots with 321, free throws made with 494, and free throw attempts with 822. Fowles finished third in career field goal percentage with 58.4%, fourth in career field goals made with 870, fifth in career field goals attempted with 1,489, and eighth in steals with 218.
Fowles also adds being the sixth woman in collegiate history to dunk in a college basketball game when she played UL-Lafayette. Fowles took the skills she had in college and continued to develop them so she would be effective in the WNBA.
Last Season
This past season was a success for Fowles. She held the team’s highest scoring average per game and has a reputation for being a tough opponent. This season the Sky played 34 games and in those 34 games Fowles started in all of them and averaged about 32 minutes of play per game. In her 32 minutes, she averaged about 17.8 points per game. In addition to this, she also added 9.9 rebounds per game, 1.5 assists per game, 2.6 blocks per game, and 1.2 steals per game.
When some think of posts, they think of big and slow, but Fowles is definitely not big and slow. Her 6’6” frame gives her height and length, while her thin, yet strong build gives her speed and quickness.
These attributes have been imperative in her ability to steal and block shots, yet still produce and score. Fowles has also contributed to the team this past season when she went 58.2% from the field and 76% from the free throw line. Unfortunately even with such amazing play, the team was unable to make an appearance in the playoffs this season, but will continue to practice and prepare so they have a better chance of making it this season.