Betnijah Laney-Hamilton Ejected For Throwing Shoe at Marina Mabrey

New York Liberty guard Betnijah Laney-Hamilton was ejected from her team's July 12 loss to the Toronto Tempo because she threw her teammate Jonquel Jones' shoe at Tempo star guard Marina Mabrey.

This moment occurred in the second half of Sunday's game (which the Tempo ultimately won 93-91), as Laney-Hamilton tossed the shoe (which had come off of Jones' during the previous possession) at Mabrey's back while she was walking back toward the Liberty bench.

Mabrey ran at Laney-Hamilton once she realized what happened before getting held back by Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, then ultimately managed to keep her cool. Laney-Hamilton (who has received a Flagrant 1 foul earlier in the game for hitting Mabrey in the face while the two were jockeying for a loose ball) was then ejected.

Status alert: Betnijah Laney-Hamilton has been ejected Sunday.

She threw Jonquel Jones' shoe at Marina Mabrey.pic.twitter.com/xv8a0RDxKL
— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) July 12, 2026

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, Liberty Coach Chris DeMarco Speak About Shoe Throwing Snafu After Loss to Tempo

Several people that were around or involved in the shoe-throwing snafu spoke about what happened after the game.

Liberty head coach Chris DeMarco used it to call out the game's officiating, as he said, "[Laney-Hamilton] was trying to get the shoe back to [Jonquel Jones], it hit somebody. I think we're just making stuff up. I have no idea. You're asking the wrong person, okay? It was just an atrocious, atrocious end of that game from officials," per an X post from Underdog.

Laney-Hamilton also spoke on the incident, saying, "I would never intentionally try to hit someone with a shoe, especially while they're not looking. [My] teammate was without a shoe, so I did my best to try and get it to her. Unfortunately, it did hit someone. I know just by the way that things were going throughout the game that it can look a certain way, but that's just not something that I would personally do," per an X post from Underdog

Regardless of whether one wants to believe that Laney-Hamilton threw the shoe intentionally, the bottom line is that it happened, which certainly is grounds for an ejection.

It would appear to be another frustrating moment getting the best of Laney-Hamilton, in what has been a frustrating season for her to this point. She's playing just 16.8 minutes per game this season after averaging 30.3 minutes per game in 2024 (she missed all of 2025 with an injury), and is struggling to make an impact offensively for the Liberty.

Laney-Hamilton said that her reduced role and overall season have been "disappointing and frustrating", according to an article from The IX Sports' Jackie Powell. However, given all the talent on New York's roster, playing time is hard to come by, and Laney-Hamilton's minutes have diminished as a result.

Regardless of why she's playing less or where she's at in her career, Laney-Hamilton isn't doing herself or her team any favors by getting ejected because of a thrown shoe.

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