Sydney Taylor & the Construction of Mythology
The Sky guard has made the most of her opportunities this season, and in the process is crafting a lore in real time
Basketball is a game of moments, and a player’s mythology is often defined by a stitched string of them. When a career is finished, we think of their big moments, adversity, and the willingness to overcome as a definition of who they are on the court. Sydney Taylor is a long way from considering her ultimate legacy as a basketball player. But her journey with Chicago so far is indicative of a star rising, of a player seizing the moment and defining her own mythology.
In his book Hamilton: The Revolution, Lin-Manuel Miranda writes:
“Sometimes the right person tells the right story at the right moment, and through a combination of luck and design, a creative expression gains new force.”
Sydney Taylor’s luck and design have come in many ways this season. Following five years of college basketball at UMass and Louisville, Taylor went undrafted. She was a two-time All-Atlantic 10 player at UMass, but a slightly underwhelming fifth year at Louisville hurt her draft stock in 2024. She then plied her craft in Europe—first in Lithuania and then for MB Zagłębie Sosnowiec in Poland. In Poland, she averaged 22.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game, helping lead the team to the Polish Cup semifinals.
Her showing in Europe led to a training camp contract by the Chicago Sky. In a preseason game, she scored 23 points, cementing a roster spot with Chicago. This is where luck or opportunity (depending on your perspective) presented itself. The Sky have dealt with injuries all season. Star player Rickea Jackson suffered a torn ACL and was lost for the season after four games. On top of that, DiJonai Carrington (28 games missed), Azurá Stevens (9 games missed), and Skylar Diggins (18 games missed) have all missed time this year with injury.
Those absences presented Taylor with an opportunity. After registering less than 10 minutes per game in her first three appearances, Taylor was given more playing time, flashing her ability as an inside out scorer and making the Sky’s offense more potent. They have a +8.3 offensive rating and –4.4 defensive rating when Taylor is on the court, a clear representation of her impact.
On June 17th against the New York Liberty, Taylor was moved into the starting lineup on a full-time basis. In the 19 games that she’s started, she is averaging 17.4 points while shooting 40.3% from three. Among guards this season that have attempted more than 100 threes, Taylor’s starting numbers would rank as 11th highest in points per game and 5th in three-point shooting percentage.
Taylor’s usage rate of 28.7% is 7th in the league this season, indicative of the team’s trust when the ball is in her hands. The true story of Taylor’s season, however, comes specifically in the fourth quarter. She has hit two game-winning threes this season—against Golden State on August 21st and against Las Vegas on August 1st. With those shots she became the first rookie ever to hit multiple go-ahead three-pointers in a single season with under five seconds to play and is just the third player in league history to accomplish that feat.
Consider for a moment that you are a kid. You’re in your garage or a park, shooting a basketball. To amp yourself up for a moment, you pretend that the ball is in your hands and the game is on the line. In your mind the clock is ticking down...3...2...1. And in that moment, you take a jump shot, feeling either the thrill of accomplishment or the sting of failure in this fantasy scenario. That scenario has become the reality for Sydney Taylor.
In fourth quarters this year, Taylor has taken over—shooting 45.7% from the field and 42.1% from three. Her efficiency from deep increases as the moments become more tense. Deep shooting ability in these situations has also led to exploiting defenses at the rim. In fourth quarters this season, Taylor has converted 82.4% of her lay-up attempts. Her gravity as a shooter has created infinite problems for defenses, and her screen navigation and step back moves have freed excellent looks for her in a variety of scenarios, contributing to her success in the clutch.
What was once a seemingly lost season in Chicago has turned into an inflection point of the future. The rise of Taylor and the continued improving post play of Kamilla Cardoso have given Sky fans a reason to hope and to believe in the future. It’s a franchise that has needed a positive story after the negative press that came their way following the firing of Teresa Weatherspoon and the trading of Angel Reese. The franchise’s need for a palate cleanser as well as Taylor’s emergent story all factors into her budding mythology.
Taylor’s rise and her prominence this season is the stuff of a storybook. A player that was overlooked coming out of college, performed overseas, and took advantage when more playing time was presented. It’s a trajectory lifted from a movie script. Her game is cinematic in its delivery as well. Every three made feels like a devastating body blow. Her quick feet and release are all a part of this image that feels vivid in its own way.
In real time this season, we are seeing a player emerge and a reputation form with it. It’s not just that she is scoring in bunches—she has scored over 20 points in 5 of her 19 starts—but that she is doing it in pivotal moments. Often, she is diagnosing a defense, sizing up her opponent, and attacking. It’s the same mentality that enabled her arrival to begin with. There is beauty in the symmetry of it that makes basketball a poetic sport.
In Taylor, we see a star ascending that checks our theoretical boxes. She is a talented player, seemingly undaunted by any high leverage moment, and committed to the craft. Following her game-winner against Golden State, Taylor said the following about her approach:
“I live, sleep, breathe it. I love getting better, I love being in the gym. My confidence in myself growing up as a kid and getting to this level, just living out my dreams means everything to me. I think my confidence shows through my game.”
Part of myth-making is being the sort of person and player that fans want to root for. Taylor presents that as the hard worker that was overlooked once but has been rewarded for her perseverance, ensuring that she is never overlooked again.
To return to Hamilton, in the song “Non-Stop”, Leslie Odom Jr. playing the role of Aaron Burr melodically asks Alexander Hamilton:
“Why do you write like you’re running out of time? Write day and night like you’re running out of time? Every day you fight like you're running out of time.”
To this, Lin-Manuel Miranda as Alexander Hamilton replies:
“Just you wait. I am not throwing away my shot.”
Sydney Taylor, like Alexander Hamilton, has not thrown away her shot. She took it, molded it, and started to carve pieces of her lore. She has transformed herself into the simultaneous future and present of the Chicago Sky. We are witnessing mythology being formed in real time while being reminded of the type of magic that only basketball can provide.
