Liberty Reveals New Starting Lineup With Jonquel Jones Out
The New York Liberty will look the same yet different when it faces off against the Indiana Fever on Saturday afternoon.
Looking to stay perfect against a Fever group welcoming back sophomore sensation Caitlin Clark back to the fold, the Liberty will roll out a new starting lineup for the clash at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Kennedy Burke will take the floor in the starting five for the second time season with Leonie Fiebich have joined the German women's national basketball team at the EuroBasket Women competition. Meanwhile, Nyara Sabally will make her second career start in place of the injured Jonquel Jones, who will miss her second straight game with an ankle injury.
The two are joined by regular New York starters Natasha Cloud, Sabrina Ionescu, and Breanna Stewart.
Burke will make her second start of the season amidst a scorching beginning to her second tour of New York. Her 63.3 percent success rate from three-point range is the best any player in WNBA history has had through nine games with a minimum of three tries per showing. In her previous start, Burke had 11 points and seven rebounds in a home win over Golden State on May 29.
Sabally, who recently announced that she would not join Fiebich at EuroBasket, will make her second start in a row after debuting in Tuesday's win over Chicago. She sank all four of her tries from the field on a nine-point night in her first career WNBA start. Sabally had returned from a knee after six consecutive absences.
In addition to Clark, Indiana will also welcome back defensive stalwart Sophie Cunningham, who missed the last three games with an ankle ailment. The winner of Saturday's game will have the inside track on securing the Eastern Conference's bid to the Commissioner's Cup final.
Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.