Chicago Sky rookie Kamilla Cardoso will miss more than a month with a shoulder injury that she sustained last Friday in a WNBA preseason game.
Cardoso played only 13 minutes in her debut before being removed in what was initially described as a precautionary measure. Sky head coach Teresa Weatherspoon had said "she'll be fine" after the team's preseason loss to the Minnesota Lynx.
She's now expected to be sidelined 4-6 weeks, according to the team, meaning she'll miss the beginning of the regular season.
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Chicago used its No. 3 selection in the 2024 WNBA Draft on Cardoso, viewing the 2024 NCAA national championship winner as a cornerstone piece for the future. The franchise then took Angel Reese at No. 7 out of LSU.
Cardoso recently told reporters that she took no break between college and professional workouts, wanting to improve her offensive skills as quickly as possible. She made one 3-pointer her entire NCAA career, though it came in a crucial situation in the 2024 SEC Tournament semi-final .
“I’m just looking forward to improving my game such as outside shooting, midrange, maybe 3s,” Cardoso said of her near-term WNBA goals. “Just keep growing.”
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Chicago has not yet announced the exact nature of Cardoso's shoulder problem or whether she'll require surgery. Separately, she endured an ankle injury in the Final Four last month against NC State, limping to the locker room before returning in the second half wearing a black leg sleeve. However, the ankle problem did not seem to limit her during her brief WNBA preseason appearance.
In her final NCAA season at South Carolina, Cardoso averaged 14.4 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.5 blocks. As a result, the 6-foot-7 post player earned All-American honors before receiving the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament recognition.
The Sky will now have to wait several weeks before being able to watch their two top-10 selections in Cardoso and Reese play together. The pair cemented themselves as two of the most dominant inside presences in the NCAA last season, additionally developing a heated rivalry during tense match ups against one another at South Carolina and LSU, respectively.
Upon being drafted to the same WNBA team, many fans were eager to see how Cardoso and Reese would mesh given their history as rivals in college. Both players swiftly shot down any notion of beef, however, insisting there was no bad blood between them.
“We’re going to do great things together on both ends of the floor,” Cardoso told reporters last week. “She’s a great rebounder, I’m a great rebounder, we’re both great finishers around the rim and we also can pass the ball. I think it’s going to be really exciting to watch us together.”
“We’re going to be fighting over rebounds, I know that,” Reese joked. “I love that though. Being able to go in and battle, being able to have a teammate where every day I know she’s going to work hard and do whatever it takes at the basket. I’m a competitor and I know she’s a competitor too.”
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