Two-Time WNBA Champion and 2018 MVP, Stewart returns to home state after six seasons with Seattle Storm
WNBA Champion and Third All-Time Assist Leader, Vandersloot joins Liberty after 12 seasons with Chicago Sky
NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 8, 2023 – The New York Liberty has signed two-time WNBA Champion and 2018 MVP, Breanna Stewart, alongside WNBA Champion and third all-time assist leader, Courtney Vandersloot, in open free agency.
“Today is a historic day for the New York Liberty organization and fanbase,” said Liberty General Manager Jonathan Kolb. “Breanna and Courtney are winners and choosing New York in free agency immediately positions us as championship contenders. Both players are among the league’s all-time greats, consummate teammates, and high-character individuals.
Kolb added: “We’re overjoyed to welcome Stewie, Sloot, and their loved ones to the Liberty family. We can’t wait to see the monumental impact they’ll each have on the franchise and in the community.”
Breanna Stewart (28), a 6-4 forward and native of Syracuse, N.Y., returns to her home state after six career seasons in Seattle where she led the Storm to a pair of WNBA Championships in 2018 and 2020. The No. 1 overall selection in the 2016 WNBA Draft from UConn, Stewart quickly became one of the most decorated players in league history after garnering the 2016 Rookie of the Year Award, four WNBA All-Star appearances (2018-2019, 2021-2022), four All-WNBA First Team selections (2018, 2020-2022), the 2018 WNBA MVP award, two WNBA Finals MVP awards (2018, 2020), the first WNBA Commissioner’s Cup MVP award (2021), and a spot on the W25 list: honoring the WNBA’s all-time top 25 players.
Through 183 regular season contests across six seasons, Breanna posted a league-leading average of 20.3 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.3 steals per game while converting on a combined 47.3% shooting from the floor, 36.9% from three, and 83.1% at the free throw line.
Courtney Vandersloot (34), a 5-8 point guard from Kent, Wash., joins New York after a decorated 12-year tenure in Chicago where she guided the Sky to its first-ever WNBA Championship in 2021, made four WNBA All-Star appearances (2011, 2019, 2021-2022), earned two All-WNBA First Team honors (2019, 2020), led the league in total assists in five different seasons (2015, 2018-2021), set the single-season assist record three times (2018, 2019, 2021), as well as the all-time single-game assist record (18).
In 358 regular season games, all with the Sky, Courtney averaged 10.3 points, 6.7 assists, 3.2 boards, and 1.3 steals per contest while shooting 44.7% from the field, 34.8% from deep, and 82.8% at the stripe. She also set Chicago’s franchise records in games played (358), assists (2,387), and steals (457). Vandersloot currently sits at No. 3 all-time in WNBA career assists.
New York Liberty 2023 season tickets, group packages, and single-game tickets are on-sale now at nyliberty.com.