Sky's Delle Donne could be back Thursday night

Nothing's certain, which is pretty much par for the course for Elena Delle Donne these days.

But word from the Chicago Sky is that Delle Donne, its fan favorite and leading scorer, finally could be back for Thursday's game against the New York Liberty at the Allstate Arena (7 p.m., UToo, NBATV).

She will be a game-time decision.

The 6-foot-5 Delle Donne, who is fighting a frustrating and unpredictable battle with Lyme disease, has played in only one game since June 7. In total, she has missed 17 of the Sky's 26 games while trying to tackle her latest flare-up of the disease.

She had been home in Delaware for weeks while her medical team has been adjusting her medications and tending to her relentless symptoms of fatigue. But she returned to Chicago last week and has been working out with the team and with trainers on her conditioning.

Before her health took a turn, Delle Donne, who was the WNBA's rookie of the year last season, had led the Sky to a 5-1 record, its best start. Through nine games, she was averaging a team-best 21.2 points.

Now, the Sky is 10-16 and just a half-game outside of last place in the Eastern Conference. The Sky has lost 15 of its last 20.

Head coach Pokey Chatman has indicated in the past that if and when Delle Donne does return her playing time would be limited at first, likely to around 18-20 minutes per game.