The defending champions are getting stronger.
As the New York Liberty zero in on the signing of coveted free agent Emma Meesseman, Breanna Stewart has sent a clear message to the rest of the WNBA: the party is over for everyone else.
"Listen, we wanted to make this team better than it was last year," Stewart told the media as New York prepared to face the Indiana Fever on Tuesday night. "And I feel like now we have the pieces. We just have to put it together."
MORE: Liberty to sign WNBA Finals MVP to give Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart more firepower
The Liberty began 2025 as expected: by steamrolling the competition. But after beginning its championship defense with a 9-0 record, New York lost five of the next seven games as key players exited the lineup. Leonie Fiebich joined Germany for EuroBasket; Jonquel Jones missed more than a month with an ankle injury; New York's elite defense began to slip, allowing at least 89 points five times in 15 days.
But former WNBA MVP Jones is returning to the lineup on Tuesday, rejoining All-Stars Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu. The Liberty, now 15-6, enter Tuesday's game at Barclays Center on a three-game winning streak and will be emboldened after beating the Fever 98-77 last Wednesday -- Caitlin Clark missed that game, and she will miss this one too, with a groin injury.
Stewart, a two-time MVP who is often regarded as one of the greatest players of her generation, is excited at the healing Liberty's potential once the signing of Meesseman is completed. Meesseman, a two-time All-Star and the 2019 WNBA Finals MVP, is returning to The W after three years away; the Belgian power forward was named EuroLeague MVP in 2024 and won the competition with Fenerbahce, her sixth career EuroLeague win.
"We're checking a lot of boxes," Stewart said of the versatility and shooting touch Meesseman will bring. "If it looks good on paper, that's one thing. But now we have to make it work on the court and that's a challenge we're all looking forward to."
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Category: Basketball
