Minnesota here.
Indiana here.
Washington here.
Los Angeles here.
This team was a bit of a rollercoaster to say the least. They started the season 3-4 with two of those losses to Portland. They then won eight straight but followed that with a 2-8 stretch which included losing six of seven immediately following Satou Sabally's season-ending injury. They were able to right the ship for the home stretch of the regular season winning 13 of the next 17 until they lost the final two games at home against Atlanta.
It should be noted that they were only one game worse in 2026 than in 2027, though in a much more competitive season, they went from tied for 4th place to 8th. Though they were the best 8-seed in league history.
Once in the playoffs, they overwhelmed the top-seeded Lynx, winning the series in 2 games and making the Lynx look small while also having people question just how good is Olivia Miles? People also wondered, could 8th-seed NY win it all?
After being swept by the Dream, all the good will dissipated, and people are left wondering, now what?
Injuries definitely played a part and shouldn't be discounted. Sabally only played 13 games, Leonie Fiebich 26, and Sabrina Ionescu 31. It is fair to wonder what a healthy roster would have looked like in the end.
Roster-wise, the Liberty made the decision to chase size this offseason (adding Sabally and bringing back 6'11 Han Xu) and decided to rely on Ionescu, Marine Johannes, and two promising rookie point guards in Pauline Astier and Marine Fauthoux in the backcourt.
In a league that is increasingly dependent on guard play, the Liberty's deficiencies at those positions were made obvious outside of a breakout from Fauthoux in the Atlanta series.
Their core is starting to crack. Though you can excuse Ionescu for not being 100%, when Ionescu, Jonquel Jones, and Breanna Stewart shared the floor (619 minutes), they were even on the season.
Stewart and Jones are 31 and 32 respectively, and while they are still very effective and at times elite (Stewart was 27/7/5.0 and JJ was 18/10/2 this postseason), their age is certainly starting to show, especially at the defensive end. Most people would be surprised to learn the Liberty were 8 points per 100 possessions better on defense with Stewart off the floor than on (resulting in a slightly negative on/off number for Stewie on the season). The Liberty were also better defensively with Jones sitting instead of playing.
Having that core all essentially with max contracts, along with Sabally making a little over $850K, doesn't provide a whole lot of flexibility. In all likelihood, they run it back in hopes of better health, hope their PG's make a leap, and improve around the margins on the bench through free agency and a decent draft pick.
Are bigger changes possible? Let's explore what those changes would look like while trying to improve the team instead of taking a step back for a season or two.
Trade Sabrina Ionescu
The team is in a real bind here with Sabrina. I think both franchise and player would prefer Sabrina retire a Liberty, but trading her is likely the easiest way to improve. While her postseason numbers were solid (16/3/5 on 39% from 3), her regular season numbers are down across the board, and not just because of minutes or playing time. Additionally, over the past two seasons, the Liberty are 3.7 points better with her off the floor than on.
A sign-and-trade for Kelsey Mitchell would work well. She'd shore up some weaknesses on offense with her speed and pace, her ability to hit 3s, and breaking down defenders one-on-one. This presupposes that Mitchell wants to go or asks to go to NY. I think Caitlin Clark would love to play with Sabrina and offensively they'd fit well together, and the additional playmaking would be helpful. The Fever's defensive issues would be far from solved, but I don't think they'd be worse off there.
NY would almost certainly need to include another player - likely Fiebich, a pick, or one of the young PGs. That negotiation would be interesting.
That's probably the best-case scenario for an upgrade unless you wanted to swap with Toronto for Mabrey or Sykes, but unless Toronto just wants a more popular player, I don't see them doing that.
Portland and Seattle have the cap room to simply absorb Sabrina's contract, and those might make sense with the college and Nike connections, but they don't really have anything of value they'd be willing to part with other than draft picks, and I don't see that happening. Nor do I see the Liberty basically doing a salary-dump when it comes to Sabrina. Those are bad optics that can affect how they attract free agents down the road.
To the Sparks for Atkins and a pick (or swap)? Atkins would certainly be a defensive upgrade, but that's a tough sell.
Again, really tough to see NY trading Sabrina and I just don't think it happens unless she wants it to. Her relationship with the franchise makes me think the chances are very slim.
Trade Jonquel Jones
It might be the perfect point to trade Jones, however. Her value is still high, so you're likely to get a good return before things start to diminish. The issue is that trading her means you need a get a quality center in return to fill the hole you just created.
There's the "report" that Naphessa Collier wants to play in NY with Stewart. A sign-and-trade deal would work here (though that would prevent Collier from getting a supermax) and I'm fascinated with a Phee/Stewie combo at the 4 and 5. I also think Minnesota would be happy to have JJ replace Phee as opposed to the alternatives on the market.
I see a lot of proposals that package Cam Brink and Rae Burrell together in trades and that could work here, though that feels more like a reset than a step forward.
Sending her to Chicago for a package that includes Kamila Cardoso is interesting, but I'm not sure there's enough there for a deal and I'm still not sure what kind of player Cardoso is or will be.
How about a swing for the fences? Call Indiana and tell them that anyone is on the table for Aliyah Boston other than Stewie. Advanced stats will tell you that Boston is somewhere between the 3rd and 10th best player in the league right now. She's an elite defender that nobody talks about because of her team's defense, and she would fit perfectly alongside Stewie. She's also 8 years younger than JJ and can transition from the Stewie generation to the one that follows.
What else would it take? Fiebich would help solve the Fever's wing problem, so she's in. (I would love to see Leo in a more wide-open, fast-paced offense like Indiana). What else, a draft pick or one of the PGs?
That's an interesting trade for both teams, though I think Indiana might have to be completely overwhelmed to part with Boston unless she's ready for a change, though Jones's leadership would really help the Fever right now.
*I'd be interested to read in the comments how you would view this trade and what would be needed on either side to make it work. My impression is that Liberty and Fever fans both tend to underestimate or undervalue their own center and would be happy with just a straight swap - but Boston's age and defense really requires the Liberty to bring more to the table. Perhaps a lot more.
Trade Breanna Stewart
Just don't see this happening short of a full tear down and rebuild.
Other Trades
They've got plenty of assets available to move. Some combination of Sabally, Fiebich, one of the PGs, and a pick should bring back a really good player. But the team is very limited because of those contracts.
Does a package for Rae Burrell (sign-and-trade) do anything?
Free Agency
This team could really use some speed and athleticism - especially off the bench that can act as a change of pace to the starting lineup.
DiJonai Carrington, Laeticia Amihere, or Tip Hayes would be good, realistic options.
Ultimately, I think this team just runs it back with a couple of bench signings. There's enough there to think they can compete immediately and major changes certainly comes with a lot of risk.
