Candace Parker thriving, making history as Chicago Sky push to return to WNBA Finals

CHICAGO — Candace Parker couldn't help but sneak a peek at the tennis match on the TV on her way back to the court at Wintrust Arena. It was halftime of Game 2 of the 2022 WNBA playoff semifinal series between the Chicago Sky and the Connecticut Sun, Parker's Sky were up by 15 points and, much to her delight, Serena Williams had won the first set of her second-round US Open match against the No. 2 player in the world. Parker wouldn't know until after her own game was over — an 85-77 win in which the two-time WNBA MVP and champion dropped a team-high 22 points — that Williams eventually pulled out the upset victory in three sets, dazzling sports fans as she kept alive what was likely her final tournament run.

Parker, 36, will be sure to let you know she's a few years younger than the 40-year-old Williams, but the significance of two Mount Rushmore-level athletes playing at such high levels is not lost on her. And while Williams' career seemingly ended in the third round of the Open two days later, Parker is still standing, thriving even, with a chance to further cement her legacy and make history by guiding her Sky to a second consecutive championship, which would make them the first WNBA team to repeat since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001-2002.

Up 2-1 in the best-of-five series, Chicago can clinch its spot in the WNBA Finals with a victory in Game 4 on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN2) in Uncasville, Connecticut.

For much of the semifinals, the No. 2 seed Sky have been taken out of their comfort zone by the Sun's physical, «messy» style of play. But they've been able to power through and come away with two consecutive wins, in large part thanks to Parker's standout play against Connecticut and in the playoffs as a whole.

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