Last season, Chicago Sky All-Star, Elena Delle Donne, battled a late-season back injury and flare-ups from her previously diagnosed Lyme disease. Delle Donne only played in 16 games during the regular season, but made a comeback in Chicago’s playoff run playing in all nine games. In the offseason, Delle Donne spent a lot of time resting and took strides towards a healthier life.

“My biggest thing was trying to get healthy. I was sick last season and my back was hurt, so I had to fix both of those,” said Delle Donne.

Delle Donne’s work in the off-season paid off as she dominated Chicago’s season opening games. Delle Donne contributed to the Sky’s home opener victory against the Indiana Fever by adding 31 points and eight rebounds. She exceeded this performance by recording a career-high 40 points and grabbing nine rebounds against the Tulsa Shock on June 6^th.

“My teammates were the ones who were able to lift me up and get me to play that way,” explained Delle Donne.

Despite not playing normal minutes in the preseason, Delle Donne has played a total of 70.36 minutes in the first two regular season games.

With the 2015 regular season under way, Delle Donne looks to continue her healthy return to the court and make another run for the Championship.

“She looks healthy. I told her ‘she needs to eat a few more meals’ just giving her a hard time but she feels good and she would tell us if she wasn’t feeling good because she is so honest,” said Sky Head Coach and General Manager Pokey Chatman. “I think with everything she went through last year, it will be in the back of your mind, but I know she is doing everything she has do.”

Delle Donne and the Sky will play their next home game on June 24 at Allstate Arena.