Liberty Sit Two For Rematch With Valkyries
Two major New York Liberty contributors will not ride against the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday night.
Facing the WNBA's newest franchise in the second half of a de facto doubleheader, New York is set to sit both Jonquel Jones (hamstring) and Nyara Sabally (knee), both of whom were labeled questionable entering the evening. The Liberty previously earned a 95-67 victory in their maiden voyage against the expansion Valkyries on Tuesday.
"We never want players to play if they're not 100 percent right," Brondello said. "Hopefully they'll be okay tomorrow and get another game. But we still need to take care of this game, especially with, obviously two of our fives out."
New York faces Golden State against on Thursday before immediately heading to Washington to face the Mystics in a Friday night clash. Kennedy Burke is set to replace Jones in the starting five for the latter half of the Valkyries' visit.
Though the depth star Sabally, whose Liberty career has been frequently interrupted by unfortunate, untimely injuries, is set to miss her third consecutive game, Brondello still doesn't believe that the ailment is anything to worry about in the long term.
"I'm not a doctor, but the doctor says everything's fine there," Brondello said. "[It's] just making sure Nyara is feeling good about it, that's hte most important thing and not bringing her back too soon. She's getting there. She's been shooting ... We're hopeful she can go tomorrow."
As for Jones, Brondello mentioned that the defending WNBA Finals MVP "felt some discomfort" following Tuesday's win, which saw her put up a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double despite shooting only 4-of-12 from the floor. Jones was not on the initial injury report released on Wednesday, added on late Thursday morning as the Liberty prepped for the rematch.
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.