Breaking down how Liberty could retool roster for run at title repeat

Many will be mistaken and believe the start of the Liberty’s title defense is still a few months away.

But their quest to repeat actually started last week, when the window opened for teams to meet with free agents.

Deals can’t be made official until Saturday.

The Liberty have been awfully quiet, though that’s how general manager Jonathan Kolb likes to operate.

With most of the team’s championship core under contract for next season — and the main player who’s not, Breanna Stewart, adamant that she’ll be back in 2025 — Kolb’s main challenge will be strengthening the supporting cast surrounding Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and 2024 Finals MVP Jonquel Jones.

The Liberty currently have six players under contract for next season, with a little less than $700,000 in cap space available.

Here’s a look at three of the biggest needs Kolb has to address in order to give the Liberty the best shot to repeat as champions:

Backup point guard

The Liberty are in need of a backup point guard, with Courtney Vandersloot expected to leave in free agency after spending the past two seasons in Brooklyn.

Coach Sandy Brondello moved rookie Leonie Fiebich to the starting lineup in the playoffs and sent Vandersloot to the bench.

Earlier this month, Vandersloot said she plans to explore her options during free agency. She’s prioritizing teams who make her feel valued and will allow her to have the ball in her hand and play her way.

With New York having do-it-all lead guard Ionescu, there isn’t as much of a need for a traditional pass-first point guard like Vandersloot.

Instead, the Liberty need a lead guard who can help run the second unit, especially when Ionescu isn’t on the floor.

One option who Kolb has kept in his back pocket is Rebekah Gardner, whom the Liberty traded for last spring knowing she would miss the 2024 season rehabbing from an Achilles injury.

Gardner didn’t make her WNBA debut until she was 31, but earned a spot on the WNBA’s 2022 All-Rookie Team, averaging 8.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.3 assists for the Chicago Sky.

Gardner signed a training-camp deal, which puts her in the mix as an option for a backup guard.

The Liberty could also look at other available free agents — including Victoria Vivians and Natisha Hiedeman.

Thornton’s replacement

Kayla Thornton’s departure in the Golden State Valkyries expansion draft last month leaves a glaring hole on the Liberty’s bench.

Thornton had been one of the Liberty’s most dependable players the past two seasons. She played all 40 regular-season games the past two years and registered the second-most playoff minutes among New York reserves.

The search for Thornton’s replacement should be underway.

The ideal player would be one who can be a perimeter threat and also be positioned as a small-ball four when called upon.

Alysha Clark is one player who comes to mind. The three-time WNBA champion was in Seattle for the first seven years of Stewart’s professional career.

Clark, 37, earned the league’s Sixth Woman award in 2023.

Last season with the Las Vegas Aces, she averaged six points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 40 games (18 starts). She also shot 44.3 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from deep on 3.2 attempts from 3 per game.

The Liberty could also re-sign Kennedy Burke or rely on Fiebich.

Additional frontcourt option

Jones and Nyara Sabally are the main frontcourt players the Liberty have under contract for next season. Stewart, who’s expected to re-sign with the Liberty next month, will be the third option for a big.

It wouldn’t hurt the Liberty to bolster their frontcourt with an additional option. There’s a few free agent options, including DeWanna Bonner and Cheyenne Parker-Tyus.

But if the Liberty really want to make a splash, then they could be aggressive and go after Satou Sabally, who’s requested a trade from the Dallas Wings.

Sabally is the older sister of Nyara and was college teammates with Ionescu. Satou Sabally and Ionescu have been reunited at Unrivaled as members of the Phantom.

Could that reunion be subtle foreshadowing for this summer?

It’s too early to say, especially considering the market rate set by the three-team trade centered around Kelsey Plum and Jewell Loyd.

Also, it’s noteworthy that, as tantalizing of a player Sabally can be, she also has a lengthy injury history and has eclipsed 20 games in a WNBA season only once since she was drafted No. 2 overall in 2020.

Sabally missed the first half of last season recovering from shoulder surgery. In 15 games, she averaged 17.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals. She also shot 45.2 percent from behind the arc on 5.6 attempts per game.