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You can’t top the feeling of being a champion. Bragging rights, keys to the city, and a banner all allow you, as an organization, to go into the following season as the automatic favorites to do it all over again.
It’s easier said than done, though. You can’t get complacent. That’s especially the case in a year that’s preceding major changes to the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement with players, one which is sure to change the landscape of free agent spending and the trade deadline.
The New York Liberty are coming off their first championship in their franchise’s history, beating the Minnesota Lynx in five games to wrap up what was one of the most exciting Finals series in basketball history—and, that’s simply not hyperbole.
New York had to find a way to build upon a championship-caliber roster. How do you do that when, based on the chip you just got with these players, you seem perfectly set to run it back with the same talented depth as before?
General Manager Jonathan Kolb managed to find a few ways to do just that.
Key Liberty Players OUT in 2025
Player name
2025 status
Courtney Vandersloot
Signed with Chicago Sky
Kayla Thornton
Selected by Golden State Valkyries in expansion draft
Betnijah Laney-Hamilton
Projected out for season with knee injury
As we can see, they managed to retain a good chunk of their 2024 core. Vandersloot is a huge veteran to lose in the process of free agency, but she had been relegated to the bench in favor of then-rookie Leonie Fiebich, whose perimeter game (shooting offensively, length and strength defensively) unlocked a new level of play for New York. It was a role Vandersloot embraced, but not one she saw herself retaining for the rest of her career.
Thornton was simply the victim of the Valkyries expansion draft, and she departed the team to become a potential starter for the WNBA’s newest franchise. Her defensive energy and ability to lace corner three-pointers will be sorely missed.
As for Laney-Hamilton, her status as out for the season is simply because of a knee injury and subsequent surgery received for said injury that will keep her sidelined for the next “five to six months,” per Liberty senior beat reporter Myles Ehrlich and the Liberty’s PR. It’s an unfortunate development for Laney-Hamilton, who just wasn’t herself during the 2024 playoffs. During the team’s media day, Kolb stated that the team would be suspending Laney-Hamilton’s contract for the 2025 season, which guarantees she can’t take the court, even if rehab goes ahead of schedule. Originally slated to be an unrestricted free agent next winter, this procedural move will instead make her restricted, meaning the Liberty have the right to match any potential contract offer sheet to retain her talents.
Key Liberty Players IN for 2025
Player name
WNBA Experience
Natasha Cloud (via trade)
10 years
Rebekah Gardner (did not play in 2024)
2 years
Isabelle Harrison (free agency)
7 years
Marine Johannès (free agency)
3 years
One of these names is obviously not like the other. Johannès is returning to New York after a year away competing in the Olympics and for Çukurova Basketbol in Turkey. The sharpshooter who likes to lift off from deep off one leg is going to provide some much-needed scoring to their bench and will be a great facilitator to add alongside two other additions to the rotation: Gardner and Harrison.
Those two will be helping to alleviate the holes left behind by Thornton and Laney-Hamilton, with both projected to back up key starters in Stewart and Fiebich.
Gardner deserves a huge bounce-back year after having to watch the Liberty championship on the sidelines as she rehabbed a torn Achilles injury following a trade between the Liberty and Chicago Sky last offseason. The 34-year-old guard will provide a ton of experience to New York’s bench.
Of course, the marquee addition for New York was trading for Cloud from the Connecticut Sun in exchange for their 2025 and 2026 first-round picks. She is the perfect addition to a roster now missing Vandersloot. Cloud’s a natural facilitator who also isn’t afraid to use her jumper, and she’s also a great defender who will help to hide some of Sabrina Ionescu’s misgivings on that end of the ball (though Ionescu’s continued commitment to improvement on that end of the court should be noted).
Liberty draft class
Player name
College/international team
Adja Kane
Landerneau Bretagne Basket
The Liberty had one pick in this year’s class, and Kolb did what he does with so many of New York’s picks as of late: he took a young, international player that he knew wouldn’t be coming over anytime soon to essentially stash them for the future. Kane will not be a factor for the team in 2025.
Strengths and Weaknesses for the New York Liberty in 2025
One of their strengths going into this season is just how deep they’ve made themselves. A huge struggle against the Lynx in the Finals was how much better their bench was matched up against the Liberty’s, which struggled to find their shooting stroke with Minnesota’s excellent off-ball defense.
“We’ve learned from last year,” Sandy Brondello said at training camp. “Like, yeah, we’re the champions, but we’re not satisfied. Repeating is really hard, but embracing the opportunity that we have and knowing [that]there are areas [where]we played well, but we know there are other areas we can continue to excel in, and that’s our focus.”Another strength is going to be their guard play this season. With the addition of Cloud and the re-signing of Johannès, they’ve solidified one of the best guard rooms in the entire league. If Cloud and Ionescu start, we should expect to see a bench unit featuring Johannès, Gardner, Kennedy Burke, Marquesha Davis, and Jaylyn Sherrod.
A weakness for them could potentially be Breanna Stewart’s shooting from deep. Last season, she saw her percentages from long range take a tumble, going from a solid 36 percent from three-point range on 5.8 attempts per game to an abysmal 30 percent on 4.1 attempts. She did seem to be playing through injury—she had a small arthroscopic procedure on her right meniscus at the conclusion of Unrivaled—so that could explain why she wasn’t getting the height necessary on those jumpers.
But, if she does manage to bounce back and get back to her career average of 36 percent from there, she’d help to space the floor even more—adding another long range weapon to what Jones, Ionescu, and Fiebich can provide as starters alongside her.
Another weakness for New York might be chemistry. They are going to have to see how well their new acquisitions mesh, so there might be growing pains to begin this season as they jell with one another. However, several players having participated in Unrivaled together—specifically, Ionescu and Cloud literally sharing time as Phantom teammates—should do wonders for speeding up that process.
Way too early prediction for the Liberty in 2025
In an interview I conducted with WNBA champion and now Old Dominion head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones, a lot of emphasis was placed on just how difficult it is to repeat as a champion in the WNBA. For teams like the Los Angeles Sparks, Houston Comets, and Las Vegas Aces, it came down to having elite talent and being completely unselfish in their approach to winning games. No egos, just hooping with teammates you’ve grown to trust beyond belief.
If New York wants to repeat, they have to lean on veterans like Stewart, Jones, and Ionescu to lead the way. If they’re playing unselfishly, that play will translate to their newest teammates. That’ll land them atop the league again, and it feels like a safe prediction to say that they’ll be right back in the Finals for another round of Lynx versus Liberty.
But, I reserve the right to withhold series outcome predictions until this fall.
