RebKell's Junkie Boards

[ChiSky54]

[Bob Lamm]

WOW!!!

I've got to put this on the New York Liberty thread. These numbers can't be forgotten, especially on the road against one of the best teams in the league.

Sabrina Ionescu: 10-13 from the floor, 7-8 on threes, 13 rebounds, 10 assists, 31 points.

Han Xu: in 20 minutes on the floor, 11-12 from the field, 8 rebounds, 24 points.

New York: 42-73 from the floor, 18-31 on threes, 14-16 from the foul line, 35 assists (including nine by Johannes), only eight turnovers (remember the endless multitude in the early season!), 116 points.

***************

Now consider this.

Wednesday May 11th in Chicago: the Liberty scored FIFTY points in 40 minutes. Nine in the first quarter, eight in the second quarter.

Tuesday May 17th, home against Connecticut: the Liberty scored 65 points.

Sunday May 29th in Seattle: the Liberty scored 61 points, eight in the second quarter.

There's more, but I'll stop there. Tonight 116 points on the road in Las Vegas. There are many reasons for this dramatic offensive improvement. But it sure helps to have Han and Johannes!

*************

Very interesting to see who was (and wasn't) on the court for New York in the 4th quarter. Those who were: Sabrina Ionescu, Marine Johannes, Natasha Howard, Han Xu, and Michaela Onyenwere.

What a game for the Liberty!!!

_________________
Remember Roe v. Wade. Work for and support legal abortion all over the world and full reproductive rights for everyone.

[myrtle]

[NYSports56]

[lynxmania]

Nyara Sabally hired at Sacramento State as AC


https://hornetsports.com/sports/wbkb/2021-22/releases/20220712iyzug0

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"stormeo don't miss"

[Bob Lamm]

It's interesting to ponder what the Liberty might be like in 2023, beginning with who will or won't be on the roster. Lots of questions.

New York began 1-7 and has been 8-7 since. I view our current team as a .500 team, though it's unlikely they'll finish this season as high as .500 because of that awful start. What impresses me is that right now--without Laney, without Willoughby, without Allen for a significant stretch, and with Johannes and Han both settling back into the WNBA--New York is playing quite competitively against the best teams in the league. That seems very encouraging.

For me, the most important thing about the team's 2022 season so far is that Sabrina Ionescu has become the star most of us hoped she'd be. She's doing this in her first genuinely healthy season. She's doing this with lots of added pressure because Laney isn't out there with her. Sabrina has been outstanding.

The team has some obvious weaknesses, but even when missing an All Star it's shown some impressive strengths. I'm excited about what's ahead!

_________________
Remember Roe v. Wade. Work for and support legal abortion all over the world and full reproductive rights for everyone.

[myrtle]

re: next year. Getting a lottery pick will be huge, so maybe don't root too hard for them to win a lot of games here in the second half.

[Rock Hard]

[myrtle]

[J-Spoon]

Currently we are 10th and we are one game out of 6th so it is a coin toss whether we end up in the playoffs or not

My guess we make the playoffs in 7th or 8th (next year's first round pick ends up being 5 or 6)

We have more than enough talent going into next year I don't think we need the lottery pick (but if we end up in the lottery I am Ok with it) and if we make the playoffs in 22 and are healthy we can probably still make some noise.

2023 we have pretty much the same questions as this year and we probably won't even know who is on the final roster until opening night (and maybe beyond depending on how long Internatioanl seasons are and who shows up).

We have six players with guaranteed money (so we must pay them whether we cut them or not therefor it is unlikely we cut them, trade maybe, but not cut)

Guaranteed contracts
Howard
Laney
Dolson
Allen
Willoughby

Face of franchise
Ionescu

Hope they come back as they have been huge contributors this season (but won't know for sure until they are on the floor opening day or later)
Han Xu
Johannes

That is our first big variable if Han and Johannes are in they make the roster and we are 8 deep before even getting into the rest of our roster, draft, free agency, etc. If one or both are out we have holes to fill, but we have a lot of options. IMO if Johannes and Han return NY will be a contender in 23, getting them to return IMO is the most important aspect of our off season in 23. A full season with Johannes as a starter (backed up by Dangerfield) is key to unlocking Ionescu's star potential and we can also see that with more reps and another season under her belt Han Xu is about to explode into a star in 23 with Dolson as the perfect counter coming off the bench behind her.

I don't think anyone else is safe after this point but from the current roster I would say that
Dangerfield
and
Richards

have strong cases to return
Dangerfield joining the team and sliding Ionescu to the 2 unlocked Sabrina's star level game and Richards defense and energy are an important part of the teams identity and rather unique on the roster especially when looking at roster spots 9-12. With that said both Dangerfield and Richards are close enough to the end of the roster that our 1st round pick or a free agent could come along and push them out

Onyenwere
Again Onyenwere finds herself in a precarious spot. On the one hand she has been used primarily as a post and has done a decent job as a fourth post option. Like last year I assume she will be seen as one of the first to trade or cut to open up spots for 2023 or yet to play 2022 draft picks but I wouldn't count her out yet, Onyenwere is also one of the players who is going to be right on the edge until we know for sure Han and Johannes are on board. When you are looking at players 9-12 there are a lot of intangibles Onyenwere has been a strong player for NY, she is a great glue player, seems like a great teammate and has carved out a role as an undersized bench post if you are looking at players 9 through 12 Onyenwere is a good fit (but good not be good enough to make the final roster in 23).

so that is 11 but as I said the last five Han, Johannes, Dangerfield, Richards and Onyenwere are all maybes for one reason or another

then you have last years post draftees with potential but one with health concerns and one a youthful International maybe they both show and are ready maybe neither show and are ready but both are a real threat to knock someone off from the last five
N. Sabally (last years #5 pick)
S. Kone (Young International post who is probably only going to be better in 23)

and Cubaj gets a camp invite unless she plays somewhere else

then we have our own first round pick in 23 could be lottery or still a high outside the lottery pick (so 1-6 depending on how things play out).

unfortunately our one UFA Whitcomb has probably been priced out of our roster. With that said if we knew in advance that Johannes wasn't going to show at all or if Whitcomb was open to a smaller/not guaranteed contract I could see her being on the team next season but Sami is definitely in a similar spot to Onyenwere where until other things fall out of place I wouldn't feel confident penciling her in yet.

And of course the huge variable free agents. I realize the Stewart talking to NY this year could be a lot of nothing but you have to admit if we have Ionescu, Laney, Howard, Han Xu, Dolson, Allen, Johannes, Richards and Dangerfield as a core adding Stewart and the 1st round pick or one of our posts in waiting and NY looks like a championship contender. If Stewart wants to write a new chapter in her career teaming up with Ionescu and Howard with a deep rosin of player seems like a great opportunity,

Even without Stewart NY is going to be ready to contend in 23 but that 23 final roster like this year will be something we can map out and discuss until opening night next season and beyond

my guess ATM

Johannes/Dangerfield
Ionescu/Richards
Laney/Allen/Willoughby
Howard/Sabally or Kone
Han Xu/Dolson

1st round pick in 23 or Onyenwere

IMO the Liberty do not need to add too much to what we have in 22 to be a contender in 23
What we do need is health (especially from our starters. We have yet to have a season where Ionescu, Howard and Laney were all at 100% if that happens in 23 and we have the rest of our ratation and depth in place we will be a force to contend with).
To bring back our International's (Han and Johannes have been crucial this year and will only be better in 23, in fact I would go as far to say that if they both return and are available for most of the season NY will be a contender regardless of what else happens)
Internal growth (Ionescu has stepped up into her star role now she just has to solidify it in 23 and the other pieces have to fall into place, Richards, Dangerfield, Willoughby, Ionescu and Han are all still ascending in their upward trajectory as well.)
And to fill out our depth with young players with a lot of potential Sabally or Kone or the 23 draft pick
I don't think we need to add a top tier free agent to be a contender but clearly there is a foundation that if a top 15 player in the league is looking for new opportunity or championship the Liberty would be a good place to start. I just wouldn't want to risk out chemistry for the wrong player as we seem to have enough in place to not need to got that root.

[Howee]

[Richyyy]

[Shades]

[Howee]

[Bob Lamm]

A question for Liberty fans to consider.

As I'm writing, New York is in 11th place at 9-17. Two tough games with Chicago are ahead; the Liberty could surely fall to 9-19. Then it would be a tough road to make the playoffs. They'd have to get hot--perhaps helped if Laney can return--and beat out three of these five teams: Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas, Phoenix, and Minnesota. New York would have two games against each of the first four teams, none against the Lynx.

Looks difficult for the Liberty to make the playoffs. Suppose it doesn't happen. Does Jonathan Kolb return? I say: doubtful.

_________________
Remember Roe v. Wade. Work for and support legal abortion all over the world and full reproductive rights for everyone.

[GEF34]

[Bob Lamm]

[Lib Fan]

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

If Hopkins was vulnerable after last year, then I’d say Kolb is VERY vulnerable. Whether he should be is another matter. Dolson and Bec were clearly signed in the off-season to fit a more conventional roster and likely with Sandy’s approval. They’ve also been extremely injured both this year and last. They’re also adding a player in Sabally who hasn’t had the chance yet to show what she can do…and what the impact of her will be as a Kolb draft choice.

On the downside, knowing her injury history and that she’d not be available for 2022, an argument can be made that Hillmon would have been a better choice. I also wasn’t on board with the Bec and Dolson signings as well. But maybe there were no other options.

If it were me, I’d give it one more year especially with free agents out there. You don’t want to look like you’re changing things every year. That seldom leads to positive results anyway. As we’ve seen evidence of this year. Different staff. Almost identical team stats. And adding Sabally plus what is as of now a high draft pick means that you have people already in place to evaluate how they move forward. Which I think this is a very big deal. Just by adding Sabally and a first round pick means that two people (Sami likely being one) have to go. If you add a free agent, for cap purposes that means 4 people have to go. I’d rather have the people who have been here evaluate this because next year’s team is once again likely to have significant changes. And whatever one’s opinion of Sandy, Kolb or the season performance, they’re likely to know better than a brand new person what changes are needed.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[readyAIMfire53]

[Lib Fan]

I received the strangest email from The Liberty this morning asking me to auto-renew, with out telling me the 2023 season cost ???????????

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Lets Go Liberty
Brooklyn 2021
Bring Back Maddie!

[Bob Lamm]

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

I got the same email. No price. I’m very disappointed in their level of communication this year in general. I understand it’s a business and they need to make money. But I opted out. I love the Liberty but I’m also getting older and I’ve had significant issues in everyday life that have prevented me from attending a few games. Reaching my rep has been very difficult this year too. Loyal WNBA season ticket holders are not numerous. Treating them like afterthoughts doesn’t strike me as a sensible long-term business practice.

I’ll revisit this next year and God willing I won’t have similar issues. Then maybe I’ll renew or do a partial plan. My love for the Liberty is still the same. But the expense between tickets and concessions is way greater than when they were at MSG. My travel time is 75-90 minutes on a good day. If there’s a train delay forget it. And if I have to get up very early the next morning…I’m older. I just can’t do it like I used to. And if I have a life issue at the same time as I did this year, going to certain games becomes impossible.

Even for a person with no life issues, the expense and time spent is a major commitment. If you’re sitting close (my seats are good but I know others on here are closer) then the monetary investment is significant. As is the time investment. Liberty tickets are freaking expensive man. At very minimum we should expect to receive customer service that’s fitting for that investment. Not some automated email. It’s an embarrassment to an organization that otherwise seems first-class in how it treats its players, etc.

I can appreciate that Joe Tsai steps forward on behalf of his players in terms of expense and general principle. They deserve it. But don’t long-term fans deserve straightforward communication rather than automated emails? If they spare no expense for players, it’s hard to rationalize why they can’t do better for us.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[Bob Lamm]

It is really distressing to read what's been posted just above by Lib Fan and by NYL_WNBA_FAN. Loyal season ticket holders shouldn't be treated like this anywhere. And certainly not by a team in a league that is struggling to get the recognition and support that it deserves. Such treatment of committed fans is both callous and downright stupid. It reflects badly not only on the sales staff but on everyone in the organization above them.

In addition to apparently treating its players quite well, the Liberty have done some admirable things in Brooklyn and for New York City. But this is how they treat their most dedicated fans? I can only hope that someone shows what you've written to Clara Wu Tsai and Joe Tsai.

Finally, special good wishes to NYL_WNBA_FAN regarding the life issues you've mentioned.

_________________
Remember Roe v. Wade. Work for and support legal abortion all over the world and full reproductive rights for everyone.

[J-Spoon]

tank or make the playoffs?

seems to be a recurring question for the Liberty.

On the one hand another lottery pick would help in 23, on the other hand playoff experience could build confidence, make it more appealing for International players to return to a team on an upward trajectory and could help sell the team to free agents next off-season.

The other thing is it is still very much within the power of the Liberty to make it to the playoffs. The Liberty are currently in 10th but 9th and 8th are only 1.5 games ahead of them and 7th and 6th are only two games ahead. The Liberty also play each of the four teams above (PX, LA, ATL and Dallas) twice in their remaining nine games. String together some wins or even just sweep a couple of those two games series and NY is in.