{"id":132511,"date":"2026-05-17T20:56:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T23:56:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/rickea-jackson-looks-empowered-on-the-sky\/"},"modified":"2026-05-17T20:56:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T23:56:14","slug":"rickea-jackson-looks-empowered-on-the-sky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/en\/rickea-jackson-looks-empowered-on-the-sky\/","title":{"rendered":"Rickea Jackson looks empowered on the Sky"},"content":{"rendered":"


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PHOENIX \u2014 All Rickea Jackson needs now are her dogs.<\/p>\n

The Sky<\/a> forward didn\u2019t bring her pups on the initial move from Los Angeles to Chicago, but she can\u2019t wait for them to arrive when the team returns from its road trip.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the only missing piece of what has otherwise been a fruitful transition.<\/p>\n

Since being traded to the Sky (2-1), Jackson has been gushing about her comfort and confidence<\/a> on her new team \u2014 and it shows. In Chicago\u2019s first three games, she\u2019s averaging 22 points per game, including a 29-point outburst in the Sky\u2019s 91-83 loss to the Mercury on Friday night. <\/p>\n

Sky assistant coach Latricia Trammell, who coached Jackson with the Sparks and now the Sky, told the Sun-Times the new system has freed her up.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes it\u2019s not the right fit for the -organization or the player or whatever the case might be,\u201d Trammell said of Jackson\u2019s time in Los Angeles. \u201c[Coach] Tyler [Marsh] has done an amazing job of playing to Rickea\u2019s strengths. She just feels more confident and comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Part of that confidence stems from her teammates.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t have the best first game shooting but they\u2019re like, \u2018I don\u2019t give a damn. Keep shooting,\u2019\u2009\u201d Jackson said. \u201cLike, \u2018We\u2019re gonna still come to you.\u2019 And to hear that means so much to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

As she\u2019s scoring and shooting more, her field-goal percentage has dipped to 39%. But Jackson isn\u2019t losing sleep over it. She\u2019s embracing the green light to let it fly from the outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I haven\u2019t shot many jump shots in forever,\u201d she said. \u201cMy percentages don\u2019t look as good as I would like them to, but it\u2019s [early in the season]. I am taking jump shots, threes. I\u2019m not just doing layups. That\u2019s what comes with the territory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson is what the Sky offense so badly lacked last season \u2014 a real shot-maker who can create her advantage off the dribble, pull up from mid-range, or get to the line. But neither Marsh nor Jackson want her to just be a scorer. Ask her what part of her game she wants to improve and she\u2019ll say: every part.<\/p>\n

She has heard what people say about her defense \u2014 that she doesn\u2019t partake in that side of things \u2014 and she\u2019s tired of it. The coaching staff believes she has the athleticism and length to be an elite defender, and she\u2019s ready to take the next step. She has been watching film with Trammell, breaking down footwork and positioning.<\/p>\n

Trammell saw positive signs against the Valkyries, when Jackson helped hold All-Star Kayla Thornton scoreless.<\/p>\n

Jackson also had five assists against Golden State, including a key find late in the game. That, for Marsh, is the next level of her game. Jackson will increasingly draw attention and defenders specifically positioned to stop her going downhill. She\u2019ll need to make the right passing reads to become even more dangerous.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s something Tyler demands of me,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cBe a playmaker, a rebounder, a little bit of everything. Him having that confidence in me makes me want to do it. And my teammates make it so easy. They\u2019re cutting off me, they\u2019re talking to me. We\u2019re growing that chemistry really well, early on.\u201d<\/p>\n

That chemistry must be a special relief for Jackson, given what she went through this past winter. She filed a protective order against dating violence after her ex-boyfriend, James Pearce Jr. allegedly chased her down in Miami, ramming his car into hers \u2014 conduct that led to his arrest on battery and stalking charges.<\/p>\n

Back then, she wrote that she feared for her life. But in team settings now, she\u2019s exuding a sense of fear\u2019s antidote \u2014 gratitude.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see a lot of adversity has lifted to where she now is enjoying [life],\u201d Trammell said. \u201cShe\u2019s got so many great support people around her, breathing life into her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just wait until she gets her dogs back, too.<\/p>\n

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Vandersloot ran through the team\u2019s sets at shootaround Sunday, looking indistinguishable from the active players. She\u2019s participating in more contact drills, too. <\/p>\n

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