If there’s one thing that sticks out to point guard Skylar Diggins about the Liberty — aside from the sheer amount of talent — it’s their length.
New York’s frontcourt features Breanna Stewart (6’4), Jonquel Jones (6’6) and Satou Sabally (6’4), all superstar forces inside. On the perimeter, Leonie Fiebich (6’4) and Pauline Astier (5’11) take away passing lanes and make every shot difficult.
“That’s the theme of what I see,” Diggins told the Sun-Times after practice Sunday. “Deflections, steals, blocked shots.”
It all adds up.
The Liberty own the league’s third-best record, second-best defense and fourth-best rebounding mark. They’ve done it while adjusting to a brand-new coach and rarely playing at full strength.
Sabally is still coming off the bench as she works her way back from an extended recovery from a concussion. All-Star guard Sabrina Ionescu returned Sunday after missing seven games with back soreness.
Coach Chris DeMarco, a longtime Golden State Warriors assistant, took over after New York fired Sandy Brondello, who led the franchise to the 2024 title.
The injuries and new system meant the Liberty didn’t instantly meld into championship form, even after many preseason power rankings put them at the top. They dropped a few surprising games early, including two to the expansion Fire. They’ve since won seven straight.
“They’re clicking right now,” Sky coach Tyler Marsh said. “They’re getting their rhythm back. Having Sabrina back in the lineup helps them. They’re a championship-caliber team, and we always knew that coming into it. It was just a matter of time before they got used to a new system and new coaching staff.”
The new-look Liberty will test the Sky precisely where they’re weakest.
Chicago ranks last in the league in rebounding, too often failing to finish otherwise solid defensive possessions. The Sky also have struggled to get their bigs out to contest opposing posts on the perimeter.
The Liberty can punish both problems. Sabally and Jones are each shooting around 40% from three-point range.
Given New York’s shooting, length and star power, Marsh believes applying pressure is the key.
“We can’t afford to sit back and let them run action freely,” he said. “We’ve got to be disruptive and allow them to feel our presence.”
Ball pressure has helped keep the Sky in games when their offense waffles. But even that hasn’t been consistent, especially when their best perimeter defender, Natasha Cloud, gets into foul trouble. Cloud fouled out of an overtime loss to the Fever.
The Sky have lost seven of their last eight. They still haven’t figured out who they are after losing leading scorer Rickea Jackson to an ACL tear, and they remain without two key pieces in Courtney Vandersloot and DiJonai Carrington.
This week, with difficult matchups against the Liberty and Wings, will test whether their recent fight can stay consistent. The Sky have built some momentum over the last two games, taking two playoff teams down to the wire.
“I guess if we talkin’ about moral victories — we played harder,” Diggins said of the last two games. “Showed a lot of grit in those games. We know that can be our identity. I know we spoke early about wanting to have that type of identity. We have kind of fallen short.”
In the end, grit is only a starting point. Diggins wants the Sky to prove they can finish and commit to fixing the details that keep costing them, especially on the glass.
Toward the end of practice Monday, Diggins stopped the session to make sure they were executing their rebounding scheme on free throws, too. She called it a tedious detail, but wanted to make sure it sank in.
The message was clear: We’re already struggling with this. Let’s not make it worse with small mistakes.
Otherwise, the Liberty will make them pay.