The 2023 WNBA All-Star Weekend was a fitting ending to the New York Liberty’s first half of the season. Team Breanna Stewart took down Team A’ja Wilson in the All-Star Game in primetime. The day before, Sabrina Ionescu won the three-point contest with an unprecedented 37-point performance in the final round.
The Liberty had three players (Stewart, Ionescu and Courtney Vandersloot) selected for the All-Star Game, second only to the defending champions’ four (Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray), which fully demonstrated New York’s overall talent and strength.
When it comes to competitive basketball in the first half of the season, however, the theme should be ‘one superteam and several good teams.’
The defending champion is in its own tier
The Aces’ consistent dominance was on full display before the break, topping the league with a 19-2 record. Las Vegas led the league in scoring at 94 points per game on a WNBA-best 50.5% shooting from the field.
The Aces’ two losses in the first half came against the Connecticut Sun and Dallas Wings. In both road losses, the Aces were dominated on the boards and in the paint. However, it took a combination of efforts on both ends to take down Vegas.
Fans saw that firsthand in the Liberty’s first game against Vegas on June 29. The Liberty lost their rhythm offensively due to the Aces’ high-pressure defensive adjustment and were overwhelmed in transition.
It was the first battle between the clubs, and the Liberty understand they have time to grow from their mistakes.
“Obviously, when you look at our overall goal for the year, it’s to win a championship,” Stewart said at the beginning of the season. “I think we all agree in that. But that being said, that’s not going to happen today, tomorrow, or the next couple of weeks. What’s gonna happen is we’re going to create a standard and, you know, strive for excellence, and that’s what’s gonna help us get to that point.”
New York is slowly improving, but has an issue with throwing leads
The Liberty were universally labeled a superteam after adding stars Stewart, Vandersloot and Jonquel Jones in the offseason.
Despite a deep and versatile roster on paper, the team did not open the season as smoothly as the public expected. Jones and Vandersloot dealt with injuries in camp, which contributed to the team’s early lack of chemistry. They lost to the Washington Mystics on Opening Day in a visually ‘they-need-more-time’ way. That night, players struggled to execute game plays and embrace each others’ playing styles and habits.
That us when New York’s MVP candidate stepped up. Breanna Stewart carried the team to wins with multiple high-level individual performances, including a franchise-record 45 points against the Indiana Fever and a near 5×5 game against the Sun.
With more experience on and off the court, this veteran team improved on both ends. Players had a better understanding of defensive strategies, which turned into effective stops against opponents. Offensively, the team gradually found a balance between individual and team offense, constantly creating easy buckets through ball movement. Led by Vandersloot (8.7), New York averaged a league-best 24.4 assists at the break.
The Liberty finished the first half of the season with the W’s second-best record of 14-4. However, they struggled to maintain leads and close out some of their games.
Five of the 18 games were decided within four points, and New York held a double-digit lead at one point in three of those five games, including a 19-point lead in a loss against the Chicago Sky and a 20-point lead in a narrow victory against the Phoenix Mercury.
One of the Liberty’s biggest concerns in those games was their bench performance. Five of the team’s regular starters contributed an average of 71.1 of their total 87.8 points per game (81%). The team relied heavily on its stars, particularly Stewart, who was:
- First in rebounds (9.8 per game)
- Second in scoring (21.1 points)
- Fourth in minutes (34.4 per game)
- Fifth in steals (1.7 per game)
All these stats point out the importance of starters, but also highlight adjustments the team must make. To reduce the burden on the starters, the rotation needs to be more balanced. Fans started to see that as all ten Liberty players played against the Dallas Wings on Wednesday. Also, reserves should be more aggressive and creative on the offensive end. Marine Johannes and Kayla Thornton have proven their ability to compete at a high level. Trusting them to build on the work the starters do can pay off in the long term for the team.
“Are we playing to the Aces’ standard?”
The Liberty have enough talent to win it all, and they can persuade themselves into thinking “we just have to be the best of ourselves.”
However, there is currently a visible target to chase, and that’s the dominant defending champion. To no one’s surprise, the Aces are the current favorite to win the WNBA championship.
Even though the Liberty (15-5) only trail the Aces (20-2) as of now—though the Sun (16-6) are close behind—there are gaps to fill until New York is capable of challenging them in the playoffs.
Though every win matters, New York must take every opportunity to elevate their game to Las Vegas’ standard.
That is a better way to stay motivated for the Liberty — “Are we good enough to beat the Las Vegas Aces in a five-game series?”