Liberty Get Two Starters Back vs. Mercury
Still far from its final form, the New York Liberty are officially a little closer to being whole again.
Prior to Saturday's crucial interconfernece clash with the Phoenix Mercury (10 p.m. ET, My9), head coach Sandy Brondello announced that Natasha Cloud and Jonquel Jones would return to action while Sabrina Ionescu would remain out alongside Nyara Sabally.
Cloud is back in the fold after two games off due to a "slight" fracture in her nose which will likely force her to wear some form of protection during Saturday's game. Jones, on the other hand, was a late scratch from the last game on Thursday against Washington with an illness.
In further good news for the Liberty, Brondello said she was ready to up Breanna Stewart's minutes, hinting at a ceiling of 28. Stewart returned from a 13-game absence on Thursday, which saw New York's reserves rise in an 89-63 waxing of Washington.
Ionescu, on the other hand, will miss her second straight game and third in the last four due to a toe injury, one sustained in the final stages of a rare practice earlier this week. The point guard was previously diagnosed with a foot injury after Chicago Sky forward Kamilla Cardoso fell on her during a late tangle-up during a game last week, but Brondello expressed hope that Ionescu would be able to play in part two of this three-game road trip, which goes to Golden State on Tuesday night.
New York thus has four of its five regular starters in tow for a big game against the Mercury, one of the teams it's chasing on the current WNBA leaderboard. The Liberty (24-15) currently sits in fifth on active bracket but is a half-game behind the Mercury (24-14), which has a game in hand. New York can become the fifth team to clinch its 2025 WNBA playoff spot with a win or loss for either Golden State or Seattle.
A Liberty win on Saturday in the desert would split the four-game series between New York and Phoenix, which would turn things over to the second tiebreaker, record against winning teams.
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.