Hailey Van Lith's brother sends powerful message as Sky rookie silently puts in hard work amid comeback from injury

Chicago Sky rookie Hailey Van Lith had a disappointing start to her WNBA career after sustaining an ankle injury against the Liberty earlier this month. Van Lith isn't wasting any time and has been working her way back to full health.

On Friday, NBA skills trainer Jordan Lawley shared an Instagram post showing the Sky guard putting in work on the court. Van Lith was seen together with Lawley in the photos, as he put her through practice, likely before Chicago's game against the LA Sparks on Sunday.

In one photo, Lawley was guiding her to make better shots. In another slide, he showed her performance stats from a laptop. The post was captioned:

"The Work No One Sees. @haileyvanlith"

On seeing the post, Hailey's brother, Tanner Van Lith, sent a positive message to his sister. He wrote in the comments section:

"faith over fear.."

IG comment of Hailey Van Lith's brother (via @jlawbball/Instagram)

Tanner played baseball in college for the Big Bend Community College Vikings.

Hailey Van Lith may find it difficult to become Sky starter despite her talent

Despite the Sky drafting Hailey Van Lith as the 11th pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, a starting selection is hard to come by. While her basketball talent is highly rated by Tyler Marsh, the rookie guard has only played for the team in a bench role so far.

Moreover, it appears Marsh has no plans to throw her into his starting lineup anytime soon. During his pregame press conference before the New York Liberty game last week, he gave a non-committal response when asked if Van Lith would get more playing time.

"Yeah, we'll see as the game comes," Marsh told reporters. "We've loved what Hailey's progress has been over the course of the three weeks that we've been together. And so, she's continued to be a sponge and to learn from our staff and from Courtney (Vandersloot). And so, yeah, we're looking forward to big things for her."

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Hailey Van Lith posted two points and one rebound in eight minutes for the Sky in their 97-92 win against the Dallas Wings on Thursday. Nonetheless, she will be hoping to gain increased confidence from Marsh as the season progresses.

About the author

Peter Okereke is a WNBA journalist for Sportskeeda. Since his first foray into online journalism in 2019, Peter has written hundreds of articles on Celebs, Pop Culture, Football and Basketball.
His most recent stint was at FirstSportz, where he wrote extensively on the NBA and the WNBA. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Port Harcourt and leverages his analytical skills to enhance his creativity in sports journalism.

Coming from a predominantly football nation, Peter is a die-hard Chelsea fan but fell in love with basketball after watching Kobe Bryant and LeBron James create magical moments in the NBA. This fandom is reflected in his writing, allowing him to share engaging stories and connect with fans around the world with factual insights and relatable narratives. He holds a strong, often controversial opinion that the Los Angeles Lakers are the greatest team in the NBA and that LeBron James is the greatest of all time.
When he's not writing, Peter is binge-watching movies or traveling.

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Edited by Krutik Jain