The smallness of the players isn’t what matters in these lineups, when effective, but their skill, like wing-sized players bringing more 3-point shooting than most bigs, or guard-sized players bringing more ball-handling than more wings. A bunch of defenders who, because of their quicker foot-speed, can all defend on the perimeter. That gets you to the switch-heavy lineups we often associate with small-ball.

Yet, none of these attributes are mutually exclusive with size. They just don’t traditionally come in big packages. Now, the pendulum has shifted back to “well, size is preferable given you still meet these skill requirements,” because being big will never hurt you, now that we understand ‘big’ =/= ‘slow’ and ‘unskilled.’ I’m speaking pretty generally here, but we’re just re-discovering old truths. It’s good to be bigger than your opponent on a basketball court, just like it was in 2nd grade. And, just like then, you still have to be able to do something else besides be big; it’s the “something else” that has changed into a “something else” we don’t view as being compatible with size.

Size-advantages, then, become conditional on skill. Though a size-advantage will often manifest in the traditional sense all basketball fans recognize, like a bigger player pushing a smaller player out of the way for an offensive put-back, the line between size-advantages and skill-advantages is as blurry as ever. Think about the Rudy Gobert Discourse — please, just a second — back in 2021, when the Los Angeles Clippers played five guards and wings, spaced the arc, and torched his Utah Jazz in the playoffs.

Many correctly identified the real individual issue with Gobert, beyond the team-wide lack of perimeter defense; he couldn’t take advantage on the other end. The Clippers comfortably put guards on him, and Gobert wasn’t able to go down to the block and either post them up, work them in the dunker spot, or even grab enough o-boards to make them pay. A lack of skill begs the question: Did the Jazz really have a size-advantage, then, or just a big guy out there?

The New York Liberty are eighth out of 12 WNBA teams in offensive rebounding. The are sixth in blocked shots. The traditional indicators for a team that dominates with size aren’t fully there in their statistical profile, though they do rank second in defensive-rebound rate. And yet, the team boasting MVPs and All-Stars galore wins with skill that is often inextricable from their size, over and over.

The Liberty start Breanna Stewart (6’4″) and Jonquel Jones (6’6″) in the front-court, average wingspan of about seven-feet, and that alone makes them a chore to score on in the paint. No matter what defensive coverage they’re in, typically one of them is ready to get active at the basket. You can forget about it when both are around:

Jones has the first rotation, and it’s pretty simple before her size acts as a total shot-deterrent, but Stewie’s awareness ground-coverage to get back in the play is what really stands out. She’s moving like a small guard, but ultimately contests like a big, and you can see where I’m going with this, though two contests at the rim is not quite an example of a non-traditional size advantage.

How about this play, then, where New York forces a shot-clock violation from the Indiana Fever?

Stewie makes an impromptu switch onto a driver before doubling the post, and Indiana can never reverse the ball to the weak-side of the floor. Why? Mostly because Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, a six-footer with a plus-wingspan playing the ‘2’, comes to engulf Indiana’s 5’8″ shooting guard Kelsey Mitchell before Jonquel Jones swallows Aliyah Boston up on the baseline.

New York locks up the left side of the floor on that possession, which I’ll say is about 750 square feet here (30 x 25, half the baseline). The activity and perimeter defense from all involved is an execution of small-ball principles, but in practice, they win with size the same way a post player might seal a mismatch into oblivion: taking an area of the court and overwhelming you within it.

The Liberty, thanks to the active hands and feet of Stewie and Jones, feel just as big 30 feet from the basket as they do right under it. Their aggressive switching and trapping blows up opposing offenses, and Breanna Stewart in particular is a menace here:

Poor Caitlin Clark. On the first play, she doesn’t get rid of it quick enough, and Stewie takes her lunch-money (New York trapping near the sideline is a principle this season), and on the second play, she gets it out of her hands early, only for the two-time MVP to react and deflect it, leading to a shot-clock violation. Obviously, Stewart’s instincts and hand-eye coordination here are special, but she just towers over and envelops guards on the perimeter, even six-footers like Clark.

It’s not that Stewart is big and can guard and the perimeter, it’s that she’s big and it helps her guard on the perimeter.

This is the principle that carries New York’s elite offense. You’re about to watch a play where, 1) Betnijah Laney-Hamilton gets Kelsey Mitchell on a guard-to-guard switch and backs her down causing Indiana’s D to collapse. 2) She then swings the ball, and the Liberty end up with a wide open three for Stewart, mostly because Aliyah Boston’s perimeter rotations are less than ideal, but her matchup, Jonquel Jones, is shooting 42% from three this season, so she really has no choice:

Is that a size-advantage leading to a skill-advantage? Two size-advantages stacked on top of one another? Two skill-advantages?

Head Coach Sandy Brondello frequents Laney-Hamilton as a screener/sealer type who often posts up, especially as many defenses switch guard-to-guard actions willy-nilly. Do it, and you end up with your smallest player guarding a six-footer built like one big muscle.

But perhaps the biggest key to New York’s offensive structure this season has been Jones on the perimeter. At 6’6″, she frequently acts as a fulcrum at the top of the key, and it is just incredible to watch. She’s a career 38% 3-point shooter on three attempts per game, volume and efficiency higher since she arrived in New York last year, and my people, it gets scary when teams try to defend her pick-and-pops straight up:

Opposing centers not only don’t get to protect the rim, then, but are put in rotation. Often, defenses will pre-rotate to save their bigs from getting exposed, buy the problem here is that Jones is a quick, decisive passer from the arc:

This is what happens when you roster as much top-end talent as you can imagine, as the Liberty do. But this seems like more of a skill-advantage; the only argument being that opposing bigs pulled away from the basket opens up the paint for New York’s other players to drive and score. That doesn’t necessarily indicate a lack of size, but rather a reality of well-executed 5-out spacing.

But Jones is still the center who won MVP in Connecticut with a heavy post-up load, who shoots 10% better than league-average from two in down years, but 69.5% (I’m serious) this season, in a spaced-out Liberty offense while not dealing with a lower-leg injury, as she was last season.

While the Liberty do like to maintain 5-out spacing, they’re not rigid enough to miss laughing at an idea like putting smaller, quicker defenders on her to switch things up, I guess because you gotta try something, right? Worse comes to worse, you can still double, as the Chicago Sky and Los Angeles Sparks did in their matchups this season, when their 6’7″ centers in Kamilla Cardoso and Li Yueru, respectively, were injured or on the bench. Reader, if you click to play any one of these clips, make sure it’s this one:

It’s a traditional size-advantage won by posting up that leads to skill that makes you jump out of your seat, though the fact that Jones has the skill to finish 1-on-1 post-ups is a valid argument for another day. Still, what makes Jones one of the best, most unique players hooping today is, reductively, the combination of size and skill, and that’s the same thing that makes the New York Liberty tick.

Between Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, and Brionna Jones, the Connecticut Sun have a long, big front-court that is physically imposing in a more traditional sense. They’re third in the league in rebounding, both offensive and defensive. They’re 11th in 3-point attempts per game and last in pace. Their spacing is not always ideal, but they brutalize their way past those problems on most nights anyway, and entered Wednesday’s game vs. the Liberty their equal, at 17-4. A quick look at the stats would suggest a finesse-vs-power matchup, and in the first half of the game, Bri Jones gave Jonquel legitimate problems down low, sealing and posting and making layups rarely made against Jonquel.

But these three straight possessions illustrate that all size isn’t equal.

1. Stewie helps off a non-shooter to take away the roll on a pick-and-roll, as Connecticut’s lack of outside shooting in their front-court lets New York stack the paint.
2. Jonquel Jones beating Bri Jones for a contested board, sprints the floor, seals her off, and makes a layup off a great entry pass.
3. CT runs their infamous inverted-PnR action for Alyssa Thomas, but now it’s Bri Jones’ lack of outside shooting that allows Jonquel to help in that paint. Harmless 20-footer.

You feel New York’s physicality more in those three clips, even though Connecticut isn’t physically overmatched. Jonquel Jones rebounding, running the floor, and sealing off her matchup is traditional big stuff, and she excels at that too, but there’s no help in the paint given the shooters around her on the floor. Connecticut cannot say the same, and thus, the Liberty bigs are taking up the paint, contesting shots, and grabbing boards.

Though much of that sequence is about off-ball shooting and spacing, that’s just one factor in how New York’s immense skill and smart coaching allows them to play to their size. Sandy Brondello’s team is bigger than you in the paint when they’re helping off non-shooters, sure, but they’re bigger than you on the perimeter too. They shrink you.

The New York Liberty are modern giants, with a size-advantage indistinguishable from their skill. They use the threat of paint-domination to get up the most 3-pointers in the league, and despite falling from 1st in 3-point percentage to fifth this season, they still are within decimal points of having the W’s highest offensive rating, thanks to shooting over 54% from two. Their size isn’t just for show.

But then again, neither is their skill.

The post On the New York Liberty, Who Maximize and Re-Define ‘Size’ appeared first on Swish Theory.

New York Liberty. Las Vegas Aces. A’ja Wilson. Breanna Stewart. All-Stars up and down the roster on the grandest stage, the WNBA Finals. Tap in, indeed. 

We have been treated to this matchup five times this season, including the Commissioner’s Cup Finals. The closest game was decided by 11 points. The regular season series was split, two games a piece. This is about as close as it gets, and the blowouts are indicative of one thing:

No matter how great of opposition either team faces, these truly all-time great rosters that can obliterate anyone. 

“What have we witnessed this season that could be predictive of the epic battles ahead?” I am so glad you asked.

Guard Play

Despite the MVPs at the top of the marquee, the depth of stardom goes much further here. There are six former All-Stars across these two backcourts. That is simply astounding. Even better, they all play the game in such a unique way that the mixture makes for artistry on the court. 

Seafoam SZN

Over the four regular-season meetings, Sabrina Ionescu led all players in scoring at 21.3 points per game. Even better, she was brilliantly efficient, shooting 52.6 percent from the field and 52.9 from distance on 8.5 attempts per game. While a polarizing player, it is impossible to argue with that effectiveness. Forget the Kobe comparisons, she is approaching levels of fellow Bay Area great Stephen Curry.  

While she is a dynamic passer, much of that burden has been lifted from her shoulders by Courtney Vandersloot this season. As is commonplace at this point, Sloot led the league in assists for the seventh time in her career. She is an unparalleled floor general who unselfishly bends the surroundings to her will as if she is in fifth gear. 

While not an All-Star, Marine Johannes will be on full display in this series. She is a human highlight reel and casual fans checking in for the Finals will be blown away by some of the things she attempts. 

Blazing Aces

Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray, and Kelsey Plum are a three-headed monster that no one can really prepare for. There are only so many guard/wing defenders you can throw on the court at one time without exposing yourself down low to the best player in the world. And that is the Aces problem in an extremely simplified nutshell. 

Young was the leading scorer for the Aces in this season’s series (17.8 points per game) and shot 57.9 percent from distance on 4.8 attempts per game. The evolution of her game in the last two seasons under coach Becky Hammon has been transformational for Vegas. It one of the focal points in this matchup specifically, as she is often where the Liberty are forced to try to hide the weakest defender on the floor. 

Kelsey Plum has not been the same level of supernova this season as the last, but that is not to say she has been less than elite. However, the comparison of stat lines for the season and in this series could end up making or breaking Vegas:

• Season: 18.7 points / 4.5 assists / 2.4 rebounds / 1.1 steals / 47.7/38.9/91.2 shooting splits

• Vs. NYL: 14.3 points / 4.0 assists / 2.3 rebounds / 0.8 steals / 39.3/34.8/100 shooting splits

Simply put, for the Aces to win she needs to be better. Even if better is just taking fewer shots and picking her spots better, that is fine too. So far this postseason, Plum has been better than those efficiency numbers. However, she is also averaging as many assists as turnovers, so something has to give. 

Then there is Chelsea Gray. We have reached a point where “Point Gawd” actually feels like underselling just what Gray is. Perhaps the maker of the toughest shots in the league, Gray is clutch. No moment is too big for her and on any given night she can lead the team in scoring while also dropping 10 dimes a game. No matter what answer you throw in her direction, she changes the questions.  

Defensive Dynamos

Not to focus solely on the offensive side of the ball, these are two of the top three defensive units in the league as well. Both boast a sub-100 defensive rating. Whether it be Betnijah Laney, Jonquel Jones, A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, or Alysha Clark, any of these could be the best defender in this series. 

Clark won Sixth Player of the Year in large part due to the defense she brings to the table. She is the quintessential role player who can also just erase someone on offense and will be tasked with doing just that in this series. 

Laney has been much more than this throughout the postseason. She was arguably the most important player for this team in the last round. However, she will absolutely be thrown on one of the aforementioned three elite guards for Vegas and be tasked with trying to slow them down. 

Beyond the top of the food chain, Kayla Thornton deserves a shout-out here. Long one of the few players for the Wings that knew that side of the ball mattered, Thornton is finally liberated to not be the only great defender on her team. Her reward: A’ja Wilson for 10 to 15 minutes per night. 

The Third MVP

Even beyond the last two players we will talk about, there are other MVP winners on these rosters. Unfortunately, one of them (Candace Parker) only appeared in one meeting this season and is unlikely to be cleared to play in the Finals. It is hard to say she will be missed for Vegas as she has only played 18 games this season. Vegas knows what they are more without her than with her. The other, however, is coming off a blistering hot run in the Semi-Finals. 

Jonquel Jones saw her former team across the court and mercilessly finished them. Over the four games, the former MVP averaged 15 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game. Importantly, she is the defensive anchor for this team, despite Stewart being named to the All-Defensive First Team and Laney being named to the Second Team. 

If the Liberty are to contain A’ja Wilson, it will come down to the duo of Jones and Stewart. They have made life hard for her during the regular season (relatively). Jones, unlike her frontcourt partner, has not yet won a ring. This will be her third Finals appearance. In 2019, she had an up-and-down series against the Washington Mystics. Last season for the Sun against these Aces, Jones scored in double figures every game but averaged just over eight boards per game. 

Jones left Connecticut for this opportunity, with this group, on this stage. She is thirsty for the peak of her profession and now is the time to shine. In the Commission Cup Finals, she earned MVP honors with 16 points, 15 rebounds, and two blocks. More of that would go a long way. 

Battle of Modern GOATs

We have arrived at the main event. There is no doubt about the fact that A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart are in the midst of careers that will go down as two of the best in league history. 

Between the two of them, they already have three rings, two Finals MVPs, four MVPs, two Defensive Player of the Year awards, and 11 All-WNBA team appearances (counting this year’s yet-to-be-announced honors), among plenty of other accolades. Neither has even turned 30. 

All that being said, the regular season series saw both struggle by their lofty standards. Here are the numbers. 

Wilson:

Season: 22.8 points / 9.5 rebounds / 2.2 blocks / 1.4 steals / 55.7/31.0/81.2 shooting splits

Vs. NYL: 17.3 points / 6.5 rebounds / 1.8 blocks / 0.5 steals / 48.1/0/86.4 shooting splits

Stewart:

Season: 23.0 points / 9.3 rebounds / 1.6 blocks / 1.5 steals / 46.5/35.5/85.1 shooting splits

Vs. LVA: 18.0 points / 7.5 rebounds / 2.3 blocks / 1.8 steals / 35.6/22.2/87.5 shooting splits

Throughout this postseason, they have looked like their normal selves. There is clear reason for the accolades they have earned. If I were to bet, I think both ascend to another level during this series. 

The last time these two met in the Finals, it was all Stewie. She started off the series with a 37-point, 15-rebound, four-block domination and never looked back. Both have grown drastically since then, but Wilson is notably on a whole other level now. Watching them tussle for dominance is what this league has been building to ever since those Bubble Finals. It is what the WNBA is about. Watching the two best players in the league play for the top prize is a dream come true. 

Prediction

This is going to be fun. Both coaches have condensed their rotations thoroughly, Sandy Brondello has played five players in the postseason more than 11 minutes per game. Becky Hammon, six. The chess moves may take them beyond that in this series and that will be fascinating. 

Part of me will be rooting for the Aces. Since getting into the league, A’ja Wilson has been my second favorite player, and watching her continue to rack up the accolades would be wonderful. But this feels like the New York Liberty’s time. They have gelled to perfection as the season has gone along. They beautifully weathered the challenges of the Washington Mystics and Connecticut Sun. 

New York Liberty over Las Vegas Aces in five. Sabrina Ionescu Finals MVP. She has been too much of a problem in this matchup and is made for this kind of stage. Ever since the All-Star break she has been a supernova.

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The best way to finish off a season preview series is through predictions. It gives me as a writer a way to get my final thoughts out there. Also, it gives me the means to hold myself accountable when I get plenty wrong this year. So today I will be predicting the awards, standings, and champions ahead. Let’s get started:

First-Time All-Stars – Allisha Gray, Kelsey Mitchell, NaLyssa Smith

The All-Star Game rarely lends itself to new entrants. With such a high concentration of the top players in the league, it is tough to break through into the hallowed top 24. However, with so many players joining forces on a super team and a couple of notable stars retiring last year, there is little room to break through. 

It is astounding Allisha Gray has not broken through before. She has in every sense other than a labeled accolade. As a 3-point sniper and transition attacker, Gray brings an offensive variability that the Dream will truly appreciate. Her defensive acumen fits well on the fifth-rated defense from last year. She will finally get her recognition. 

Kelsey Mitchell should have been an All-Star last year. At the end of the year, she finished sixth in scoring. Through the All-Star break, Mitchell averaged 19.0 points and 4.0 assists while nailing 42.2 percent of her long-distance attempts. If Indiana had a better reputation across the league she would have been an easy inclusion. 

Even if they do not, two of their players are going to make it impossible to ignore that this season. Mitchell is going to benefit from plenty of open looks given the reshaping of the roster. Their record will not matter if she is pushing for the scoring title. The other, bridges the gap to the next section, while I also believe she will make her first All-Star appearance. 

Most Improved Player – NaLyssa Smith

NaLyssa Smith could easily have gotten lost in the shuffle last year. The Indiana Fever were not much talked about. The player drafted just in front of her, Rhyne Howard, took the league by storm and made the All-Star Game as a rookie. 

Smith was no one’s afterthought. She finished sixth in overall rebounds and proved to be a double-double machine. She then went on to Athletes Unlimited and earned the top award in the league. She is ready to grow and take the next step. 

Playing next to Aliyah Boston (more on her later) is only going to make things easier for the Rookie of the Year runner-up. Quietly Indiana is amassing an interesting grouping of talent and Smith is going to clearly benefit from it this season. It is easy to imagine her leading the league in rebounding and double-doubles. Yes, Boston will rebound in her own right, but Queen Egbo did that last year and Smith was undeterred. 

Smith is not the kind of celebrated star that destroys highlight reels. Her work is dirty, but effective. It is why she made sense next to Mitchell’s explosive scoring. This will also behoove her to grow alongside a face of a franchise like Boston. Fans of the game, however, will appreciate the growth she makes next year. 

Coach of the Year – Eric Thibault

If you have been keeping up with my previews, you are already fully aware of how high I am on the Washington Mystics. They did not necessarily have the starry offseason that others did, but their team is absolutely loaded with elite talent. Mike Thibault, the former champion and 3-time Coach of the Year, stepped down during the offseason. This made way for his son to step up and continue the legacy.

The younger Thibault has been with the organization for a decade and has paid his dues. Coming into a team that is as established benefits from hiring a coach from within that has been along for the highs (2019 championship) and lows (missing the playoffs in 2016 and 2021). Thibault is going to be awesome in this role. 

Elena Delle Donne being on the court more regularly will make Washington one of the feel-good stories of the season. The best defensive team from a season ago added Brittney Sykes to make life even worse for opponents. Shakira Austin is going to be even better. So much feels like it is leading to big things for Washington this season and Thibault seems like the most likely individual to be recognized. 

Sixth Player of the Year – Tiffany Mitchell

This may quickly look foolish if the Minnesota Lynx end up starting Tiffany Mitchell more often than not. However, she has all of the tools to be one of the most effective spark plugs off the bench in the league. In the two preseason games, she came off the bench once and proceed to lead the team in scoring. 

After starting less than half the games in her seven seasons in Indiana, Mitchell came to the Lynx for a bigger role. Even if that comes off the bench, Mitchell is ready to show plenty more. She took a step further as a shooter last season, drilling 38.7 percent of her long-distance attempts. The sample size was small, but if that continues she will likely lead the league in bench scoring. 

While this award is typically tough to predicate, having last season’s winner and runner-up move into starting roles, as well as past winners like Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby out of the running. This is a new direction for the award and someone is going to pop off in a new way. Mitchell is ready to shine in the new role. 

Rookie of the Year – Aliyah Boston

This is no disrespect to anyone else involved. I am a big Haley Jones fan. Diamond Miller is going to get a ton of opportunities with the Lynx to shine and will benefit from Napheesa Collier being there more than last season. However, this is Aliyah Boston’s award to lose. 

It is easy to forget that Boston suffered a leg injury last year that took some of the bloom off the rose of her as a prospect. Before that, she was considered a generational talent that fans were ready for their teams to build around. That has not changed despite the continued meteoric rise of Caitlin Clark. Boston is everything a team should want to build around. 

As a junior, Boston averaged 16.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks, 2.0 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. Those numbers are clearly absurd. She will not be playing next to an All-Star-level power forward and a lethal scorer on the perimeter. Her life is going to be made easier than most number-one picks get to benefit from. 

We are in a special run of top picks. Rhyne Howard transformed a franchise. The future drafts are being hyped to another level. Boston is absolutely on that level and is going to be part of the Fever turnaround in earnest. 

Defensive Player of the Year – Brittney Sykes

This is past due. Yes, it is tough for guards to win this award. The only guards or guard/forwards to ever win it are Teresa Weatherspoon (twice), Sheryl Swoopes (three times), Debbie Black, and Alana Beard (twice). However, if there was ever someone to break that mold it is Brittney Sykes. 

Among starters who played at least 20 games, Sykes was second in steal rate. She has led the league in steals for two straight seasons and made three consecutive All-Defensive teams. Furthermore, Sykes just brought home the WNBL Defensive Player of the Year. This run of defensive dominance needs to be recognized at the highest level. 

The quiet part is that she is joining a roster loaded with defensive stalwarts. Four of the top 15 players in defensive win shares are on this team. Shakira Austin is going to be the anchor behind the rest holding everything together. This will allow Sykes to be her full bulldog self. 

MVP – Breanna Stewart

This pick breaks tradition. Since 2017, the MVP has been awarded to someone on the team with the best record in the league. While I will not be picking the New York Liberty to finish the regular season with the best record, it is going to be close. Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson were close last season (and have been for the last few years, even when Jonquel Jones won). They are likely to remain close in contention for this award as long as they remain in the league. 

So when picking between the two of them, I decided to focus on a different historical trend. No one has won back-to-back MVP awards since Cynthia Cooper took home the first two. Both of these players are playing with even more loaded teams than they have had in years past. They are both going to put up ridiculous numbers. 

Going one step further, I would predict the top three finalists to be Stewart, Wilson, and Rhyne Howard. Howard is going to be even better and the Atlanta Dream are going to push for home-court advantage in the first round. It is not too early to appreciate what kind of killer she is about to be.

Standings

1. Las Vegas
2. New York
3. Washington
4. Connecticut
5. Atlanta
6. Los Angeles
7. Dallas
8. Phoenix 
9. Minnesota
10. Chicago
11. Seattle
12. Indiana

Finals Prediction: Las Vegas Aces over the Washington Mystics

Nothing really to see here. Washington is my sleeper team of the season. However, if the bracket breaks that they have to go through both Las Vegas and New York without home court for either series, imaging coming out on top of both of those series is tough. 

These standings could be broken down into different tiers. The top three teams, to me, are the only true title contenders. Connecticut is close and remains pesky, but no one would really pick them to finish off the deal. Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Dallas feel like they are headed in the right direction but not necessarily good enough to get out of the first round. 

Phoenix could be the last playoff seed and everyone will be rooting for Brittney Griner’s return to the court. However, the overall roster feels more in line with the other also-rans. A few impressive individual talents but not quite on the level of the actual good teams.

The post WNBA Season Predictions appeared first on Swish Theory.

To build up, I will be going in reverse order from the standings a season ago. That brings us to the most talked about team from the offseason. Going into last season the New York Liberty were one of the up-and-coming franchises. They made overtures in free agency to some of the top names before landing on a solid team. With some future maybes and a solid core, 2022 was all about improvement. 2023, however, brings title favorite vibes. 

2022 Recap

For a franchise that is not far removed from the absolute bottom of the league, this season was a ton of fun in New York. Despite former All-Star Betnijah Laney being limited to just nine games, New York found success. Under new coach Sandy Brondello the team made it back to the postseason. They even took a game off the defending champion Chicago Sky. 

Even better, the progress was across the roster. Yes, Laney and Sabrina Ionescu had a magnetic connection.

Ionescu, for her part, was exceptional beyond any certain pairing. Her stats jump off the page: 17.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game on 41/33/93 shooting splits. She was the only player in the top 15 of all three major categories and the only one in the top three of two. Sabrina is absolutely the “face of the franchise” level talent that was advertised coming out of college.

The excitement went beyond Ionsecu, though. Han Xu and Marine Johannes returned to the league for their second seasons, both last playing in 2019. Xu was a physical force off the bench. Johannes provided passing wizardry that lit Twitter on fire.  Natasha Howard made her second All-Star appearance and showed what this roster could do with killed size. Stef Dolson provided a varied skillset for a big off the bench and is the dream complementary piece. 

Clearly, the table was set for the next step. Despite a step back for Rookie of the Year Michaela Onyenwere, the vision in New York was clear. They just needed to add the right pieces to take the next step. About that…

Offseason Overview

Out: Rebecca Allen, Crystal Dangerfield, Natasha Howard, Sami Whitcomb, Michaela Onyenwere

In: Kayla Thornton, Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart, Epiphany Prince, Courtney Vandersloot, Sika Kone, Nyara Sabally

2023 Draft: #30

Usually, I have written an additional section before the offseason moves, but there is too much here to go into. This is a totally different team. So before getting into the three new faces of the franchise, let’s look at the periphery first. 

Natasha Howard is the biggest loss from last season, albeit understandable. To bring in three max contract-level players, something had to give. Howard was an All-Star last season and should be a boon for her new team in Texas. Bec Allen and Sami Whitcomb came into the season as sharpshooters and left dropping around seven percentage points on their previous season’s averages. 

Crystal Dangerfield was a fun reclamation project a season ago, but she was no longer the player who won Rookie of the Year in the bubble. Michaela Onyenwere, who won Rookie of the Year in here own right, took a slight step back and was more of a casualty of cap space in all the movement than anything else. 

Beyond the standout additions, Kayla Thornton should standout more. She already showed that she can be an elite defensive stalwart when surrounded by less-than-stellar talent on that end. Now, with All-Defensive-level teammates, she is going to be a terror. Also, keep an eye on Sika Kone and Nyara Sabally coming in on rookie contracts. Along with DiDi Richards and the aforementioned Ionescu, Xu, and Johannes, there is plenty of inspiring young talent on a star-laden team. 

Stew York

It makes sense to start with the signing that was forecasted a year in advance. Breanna Stewart took a meeting with the Liberty after the 2021 season. The team even brought in one of her best friends Stef Dolson. Ultimately, Stewie decided to return to Seattle for Sue Bird’s final season. 

Now she is here and the New York Liberty are the evolution of the most dangerous skillset alignment in the league. Skilled size was the wave for years in the draft. Pairing Stewart, Dolson, and Jonquel Jones give the team arguably the most in the league. 

Stewart has shown previously the proclivity to get other bigs involved, and that was with more (respectfully) limited offensive players like Ezi Magbegor. Pairing her with a pick-and-pop big like Dolson or an MVP like Jones is going to cause matchup nightmares for anyone they face. Stewart is a smart passer, strong defender, and, obviously, a lethal scorer. 

Pairing Stewart with Ionescu unites two of the most cold-blooded scorers in the league. She, like new teammate Courtney Vandersloot, has won at the highest levels in the league. Stewart will finally be facing single defenders after being one of two lethal offensive players on her team for years. She is going to be unleashed in unprecedented fashion. 

Sun Down

The fact that Jonquel Jones moving to New York is the second biggest story for the franchise in an offseason is no slight on the former Sun. Jones may have had a down year last year but that is only graded on her own high scale. The All-Star averaged 14.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 1.1 steals per game. 

Something with the Sun felt off for much of the season, despite them making the run to the Finals. After emerging as an MVP in the absence of Alyssa Thomas, Jones, and Thomas were never able to fully mesh again. Add in the emergence of Bri Jones and something had to give. JJ forced the issue.

Now, she is playing in a more free-flowing offense. With two of the most exceptional passers in the starting lineup and a fellow MVP in the frontcourt, Jones is going to be able to breathe again. Last season likely taught her how important it would be to fit in alongside other stars. Even if her numbers dip, she is likely to be better than ever. 

Sloot There It Is

Perhaps the most surprising turn of events, Courtney Vandersloot also left her longtime home to put together something special in New York. For many, it was hard to imagine her playing anywhere other than Chicago. With wife Allie Quigley stepping away, though, it became easier for Sloot to move on from the only team she has suited up for in her 12-year career.

Vandersloot has played the last few seasons setting up a collection of All-Stars. She has led the league in assists six times, ending a five-year streak last year. While others are trying to fit in, this is the role Sloot was made for. Both she and Chelsea Gray in Las Vegas have been bandied about as point gods (or gawds, in terms of Gray) and they both have the most talent around them yet.

If you are a passing aficionado, watch Courtney Vandersloot. For the diehards, imagining her mentoring Marine Johannes is tantalizing. Oh, to be a fly on the wall during practice where they attempt to outdo each other with ridiculous dimes. 

Prediction

The hype is real. Finishing the regular season with a top-two seed is the goal given the amalgamation of talent in the Big Apple. They will send at least three representatives to the All-Star Game. I would guess they will have a season like we saw last season from Las Vegas, taking home several awards and the Commissioner’s Cup. While they are not my pick to win it all, they will be in the WNBA Finals.

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