Liberty Stick With Larger Lineup After Jonquel Jones Return
BROOKLYN — Brooklyn's latest skyscrapers wear New York Liberty jerseys on the floor of Barclays Center.
With Jonquel Jones back in action, the Liberty opted for a larger lineup when they faced the towers of the Atlanta Dream, a group capable of producing nightmares with towers like Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones (no relation) in tow. The Tuesday tilt produced a thriller, one that that saw the Liberty erase a 17-point deficit en route to an 86-81 victory.
Tuesday was a night of a landmarks for the Liberty, who welcomed back their Jones to the lineup after a two-game absence. Still needing to make up for the departure of Leonie Fiebich (set to partake in her first EuroBasket 2025 game for Germany on Thursday), New York kept Nyara Sabally in the starting five for the occasion, sticking with a larger lineup while Kennedy Burke reverted back to a sixth woman's role.
It was a stark contrast to the way the Liberty originally approached early absences, which saw them heavily feature a reliance on backcourt depth while Jones and Sabally dealt with early ailments.
"She's such a great defender for us. She's such a great floor spacer. It's somebody that's 6-5 that's guarding the best player on the other team every night," Sabally noted where the Liberty missed her friend Fiebich the most, noting that she already texted her to comeback. "That will be missed for sure, but it just gives somebody else to like the opportunity to step into that role. and it gives us a couple of different looks, like the different starting five we have today."
On Tuesday, Sabally and Jones were the ones to fulfill that role.
Despite falling behind by as much as 17, the gambit paid off in the interior: Atlanta built its lead through a three-point groove, but New York got back in the win column on both the scoreboard and rebounding area, owning a plus-six advantage on the glass in an 86-81 win. The comeback was partly built with four offensive boards from Jones in the second half, as the reigning WNBA Finals MVP posted a serendipitous 10-point/rebound double-double.
Early Sabally struggles also gave way to a sterling defensive effort: the third-year talent was a plus-four in just over six third period minute, one that saw the Liberty (10-1) effectively slice Atlanta's largest lead in half. A Sabally steal from Rhyne Howard became a fastbreak double and effectively served as a notice that the Liberty serious about their comeback.
"We think her ceiling is so high, and it's just about keeping her healthy," head coach Sandy Brondello said of Sabally, who missed six games with a knee injury. "I overplayed her in that last game [on Saturday against Indiana], so today was just about limiting her minutes, sharing with JJ, because I didn't want to kill her either. She hasn't played for a while, but we believe in her, and she's got this big, physical body."
Sabally effectively took a backseat to a smaller lineup in the fourth (which saw Marine Johannes pull in four boards on a career-best night on the glass) but heralded her exit with two rejections at the top of the period.
Jones took care of things on the inside with a crucial pair of offensive recoveries to give her the magic double-double and give the Liberty a lasting lead. The Liberty improved to 27-0 when Jones registers at least 10 in two categories in the regular season.
"It was cool. I always like playing with [Jones] together on the floor," Sabally said with a smile. "I feel like it makes stuff easier for me. There's so much focus on her, so I always enjoy playing with her."
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.