The Liberty begin a two week road trip. First up, the resurgent Seattle Storm.
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
The road gets tougher from here. The New York Liberty took on the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday, but lost Jonquel Jones to an ankle injury midway through it. Despite NY’s best efforts, they weren’t able to close the door and suffered their first home loss since last year’s WNBA Finals.
The opponent tonight is feeling pretty good. The Seattle Storm were on the road Friday night to face the Las Vegas Aces and came away with an incredibly impressive victory.
Where to follow the game
My9 on TV, FOX Local and Liberty Live on streaming for the locals. NBATV for the out of towners. 7:00 p.m. ET.
Injuries
Jonquel Jones left Thursday’s game with a(nother) right ankle injury, and two days later, we got a rough injury update. Per the team, Jones “avoided serious injury” but will nonetheless return to game action in four-to-six weeks. Oof.
Meanwhile, Leonie Fiebich is currently in Eurobasket and got to kick it with a friend and icon
From one sniper to another! Leonie Fiebich dapping up Dirk before a EuroBasket game
: @FIBA pic.twitter.com/OX2FJxZtUT
— Alford Corriette (@alfcorriette) June 21, 2025
Katie Lou Samuelson is out for the season with a torn ACL.
The game
I’m all in on the “Gabby Williams to the All-Star Game” campaign! Gabby had her first career double-double on Friday as she scored 18 points, grabbed a career high 12 rebounds, and played her usual brand of awesome ball. In addition to the excellent defense, this is the first time in her WNBA career where she’s an integral part of the offense to this degree. She’s paid it off to the tune of .493/.435/.824 shooting splits in 34 minutes a night. Without Leonie Fiebich, the Liberty are a bit shorthanded at the small forward position. Kennedy Burke has started most of the time and Sandy Brondello has to figure out how to get her activated as a starter. That could start with playing at a faster pace, which is something the players noted in postgame on Thursday night. When the Liberty move the ball around and get shots at the rim, they’re able to control the game and play to the best of their abilities.
The matchup at the four should be spectacular. Nneka Ogwumike has looked a lot more comfortable in her second season with Seattle and is a machine in the high post.
Nneka will be matched up against a Storm icon. Breanna Stewart provided Seattle fans with so much joy and wonderful basketball during her time there and it’s always a good time when she’s back in town. Stewart has started to shoot well in recent games and that’s a TREMENDOUS sign for the Liberty. If Stewart can consistently knock those shots down, it will allow for the offense to be even more dynamic. She always puts on a show at Climate Pledge Arena, so look for her to put on a show tonight.
Player to watch: Skylar Diggins
Star guards set the tone. They ensure everyone is where they need to be on offense, can take over when needed, captains the defense, etc. Diggins does that for the Storm and is back to looking like her All-Star self. That starts with her shooting 43.8 percent from three point range. She hasn’t shot that well from deep in a decade and if she’s able to shoot above 40 percent from three, it opens up a world of possibilities for the Storm offense. After the team traded Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces, I wondered where the offense would come from. So far, Sky has taken on the increased responsibility and passed with flying colors.
Natasha Cloud has been in a bit of a shooting slump recently, but she knocked down two three pointers on Thursday night. It was a welcome sight for Liberty fans as Tash has fought to break out of her mini slump. She noted in post that the team is working to be better as it relates to its pace, and explained why that meant more than just shooting earlier in the clock.
One good game will help get everything back on track. We’ll see how the champs do tonight.
From the Vault
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