The New York Liberty had their busiest stretch of the season this past week, playing three games—all of which were closer than what they looked like they should have been on paper. That included an eight-point win over a winless Storm team, a one-point win over a Sky squad that’s dealing with injuries and then a loss to the Sky on Sunday that saw Chicago come back from 19 points down to win.
The Liberty are not firing on all cylinders at the moment. Based on this roster, these are the types of games that New York should be winning comfortably. Yes, the team is 4-2 and its biggest nemesis in the battle for the title, Vegas, had its own struggles on Sunday, barely getting past the Fever. Still—something is not working as designed.
What Has Gone Wrong?
Of course, going 2-1 over a three-game stretch is not bad, but it’s the way New York went 2-1 that is a little bit worrisome.
Against Seattle, New York had a strong first quarter, with the team shooting 62.5% from the floor. But the Liberty let Seattle back into the game, and the Storm hung around all contest long. Jewell Loyd put up 26 points, exposing some weaknesses in the backcourt defense.
Then came the Sky games. In the first one, the Liberty played one poor half of basketball and trailed 43-35 at halftime. Perimeter defense was again an issue, as the Sky shot 6-for-11 from three in the first half. New York came back to win by one, but the signs were there.
On Sunday, the Sky shot 39.1% from three and the Liberty shot 24%, which was one of the big differences in the game as Chicago erased a 47-30 halftime deficit. In the second half, the Sky shot 60.6% from the floor and 75% from deep.
The common denominator: The Liberty have struggled to defend the long ball.
Liberty opponents are shooting 35.7% from deep this season, making New York fourth-worst in the league at defending against the three. Isolating just the past week, that number jumps to 43.3%, with only one team worse—the Aces (which is a discussion for another day).
Part of the issue comes with the Courtney Vandersloot–Sabrina Ionescu backcourt pairing. The Liberty have played 138 minutes with the two on the floor together and have allowed 103.02 points per 100 possessions in those minutes, per PBP Stats. In 52 minutes with just Ionescu and no Vandersloot, that drops to 90.57, and then in 49 minutes with Vandersloot and no Ionescu, it is 90.82.
It is a small sample size, but the numbers do suggest that the Vandersloot–Ionescu backcourt has had some issues defensively in these early runs. It will be something to monitor as the season goes on.
Marine Johannès Returns!
Johannès is back! The French star has played two games so far for the Liberty, with 21 minutes of action in both. After going 1-for-4 from the floor in her first game, she had 11 points on 5-for-10 shooting in the second.
There will be plenty of time to break down Johannès and her game as the season progresses, but for now, we can look at how the team has used her. With Vandersloot now on the roster, there is not as much of a need for Johannès as the ball-handler, and that has been true so far as she has just four assists through two games. To put that in perspective, she averaged 3.4 assists per game last season for the team.
When it comes to how Johannès is being used in terms of positions, the team is mostly using her as an off-guard. Johannès has played 22 minutes next to Vandersloot with Ionescu off the floor, 16 minutes with Ionescu on and Sloot off and four minutes with both the guards on the floor with her. Johannès has yet to play without a primary ball handler on the floor beside her, and it is doubtful that she will have to, barring injuries or foul trouble.
It will be interesting to see if more Vandersloot–Ionescu–Johannès lineups will be run this season. The Liberty ran those three plus Kayla Thornton and Breanna Stewart in a game, which is really small but also potentially really fun. Those lineups might also exacerbate the perimeter defense concerns, though, so it will be interesting to see how everything shakes out.
Next Week in Seafoam
A shortened two-game week is coming up for the Liberty after Wednesday’s contest against the Lynx was postponed due to hazardous air quality in New York. Now, the Liberty will face the Dream on Friday and Wings on Sunday.
Theoretically, this should not be too tough of a week for New York. The Dream are talented but have not been able to put it together just yet, sitting at 2-3. Meanwhile, the Wings have a great big three with Arike Ogunbowale, Satou Sabally and former Liberty big Natasha Howard, but injuries have left them weak everywhere else.
With the Liberty’s talent, a 2-0 week is within reach, but the Dream and Wings games both feature opponents with good backcourt scoring, so fans could see New York’s Achilles heel strike.