– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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NEW YORK — A magnum-sized bottle of Möet in hand, Breanna Stewart dragged her self into the press conference room, a long, black leg sleeve covering up a left knee that wasn’t 100 percent. Jonquel Jones, soon after the final buzzer, embraced Stewart on the court, overcome with so much emotion that all that could do at the moment, according to her, was cry in her teammate’s hair. Sabrina Ionescu couldn’t stop hollering into the crowd as the streamers fell from the Barclays Center rafters, just moments after what likely was her worst shooting game in her basketball life, let alone her professional career.
The pain, the tears, and the struggles were worth it, and encompassed the story of the New York Liberty’s franchise for three decades … and, finally, all of those trials come with a championship at the end of the WNBA gauntlet.
It was only fitting that the most talked about season in the history of the WNBA ended with the greatest Finals series in its history, one which one of the league’s founding members, the Liberty, won their first championship in their history after a knock-down, drag-out and dramatic 67-62 overtime win over the Minnesota Lynx in the do-or-die Game 5 inside of the Barclays Center. The title was also the first professional basketball championship won by a New York City team in more than a half a century, back when the New York Knicks won their last championship in 1973.
For the team’s only native of the Empire State, winning in the city where she first watched a WNBA game, across the river at Madison Square Garden, the home of the Knicks and the first home of the Liberty, having the Big Apple stamp of approval to go along with her Hall-of-Fame résumé makes this latest accomplishment extra special compared to her many other hardwood accomplishments.
“I was ready because I knew that no matter what, the city was going to have our back. They showed up and they showed out, and they continued to be there for us when we needed,” said Stewart, a native of Syracuse, New York. “I’m so proud of this team but so happy to be able to bring the first championship here because the city deserves it.
“Listen, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know what’s going to happen this next week, but I’m sure s— is going to be crazy.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Sunday evening’s game, with photos taken by ALOST staff photographer Roberto Carlo. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page. Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 11 pictures in total.
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