Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones have unclear future with Liberty

Breanna Stewart was the fuel for the Liberty’s season, one that was aimed squarely at winning a WNBA championship.

She was arguably the biggest free-agent prize in league history.

Her move from Seattle sparked the interest of fellow free agent Courtney Vandersloot, who signed with the Liberty after Stewart and the team’s first offseason addition — 2021 MVP Jonquel Jones via a trade from Connecticut.

Nevertheless, the Liberty aren’t guaranteed to see Stewart nor Jones return to New York after a season-ending 70-69 Game 4 loss in the WNBA Finals on Wednesday night to the Aces, who became the league’s first back-to-back champions in 21 years.

Both former MVPs will be free agents this offseason.

Though they’re expected to stay, the team has seen that a lot can change in an offseason.

Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb reportedly doesn’t believe the departure of Stewart or Jones is a “concern.”

“We’ve done things the right way here. I think we’ve made this a place to play and I think they’re very proud to be members of the Liberty,” he told Newsday.

According to Spotrac, Stewart signed a one-year contract and accepted a salary reduction to $175,000.

Jones also joined the Liberty on a one-year deal, making just over $208,000.

The Liberty’s future would be undoubtedly stronger with Stewart and Jones in it, and a year of experience together could help Liberty get back to the WNBA Finals.

“We’re proud that we had the opportunity to play for a championship. It didn’t go our way tonight, but this is what we came here to do when we’re trying to build a championship team,” Vandersloot said Wednesday. “And so we’re going to use this as a learning experience. Try and get better from here. Try and do it again next year.”

However, what the Liberty don’t want is another career worst postseason from Stewart, who was up-and-down against the Mystics, Sun and Aces.

The five-time All-Star recorded a career-high 23.0 points per game in the regular season and was just off a career high with 9.3 rebounds on her way to her second career MVP.

She put her best foot forward to help the new-look Liberty avoid consecutive losses and take down the No. 1 Aces three times during the regular season, including in the championship game of the midseason Commissioner’s Cup.

Things looked promising for the 29-year-old until she shot 38 percent from the field in the playoffs, the lowest of any 10-game stretch in her seven-season WNBA career.

Prior to the 2023 playoffs, her only other 10-game stretch below 40 percent came in her 2016 rookie season.

Stewart shot just 3-for-17 in Game 4, and with a chance to make up for her poor performance and save her team in the final moments, she couldn’t deliver.

“I put the ball in the hands of the MVP because we trust her. And it just didn’t work out today,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello said Wednesday night. “It ended up with Breanna at the end, so it was just her trying to make a play from there. So, I [would] still do it again. That’s the right call.”

“High,” Stewart said when asked about her level of disappointment after the crushing loss.

Stewart finished with 10 points, matching her fewest of the postseason. Coming through in big spots, though, is in her DNA. In her past championship-clinching performances, she racked up 30 points and 26 points in 2018 and 2020, respectively.