Liberty have only one thing left to rest championship hopes on after standing pat at trade deadline

The WNBA trade deadline came and went Sunday afternoon without the Liberty making a move.For weeks, general manager Jonathan Kolb canvassed the league looking for potential roster upgrades.There were talks involving former Connecticut Sun forward Aneesah Morrow, who ultimately was dealt to the Toronto Tempo.Kolb had exploratory conversations with the Sparks regarding Kelsey Plum, but those fizzled, too.

The Phoenix Mercury acquired Plum in a blockbuster trade early Sunday.Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Madeline Kenney about all things Liberty and WNBA.

There was speculation that Betnijah Laney-Hamilton could be on the move since she’s fallen completely out of the rotation over the past three weeks.Ultimately, the Liberty stood pat.Laney-Hamilton is still in New York.

And Kolb is betting on his team getting healthy.Whether you like it or not, this is your 2026 New York Liberty team.The decision to not make a move is both a calculated choice and a leap of faith.The Liberty weren’t going to make a trade for the sake of being part of the action.

The question for Kolb was whether a move would increase the team’s championship contention odds.Nothing came to fruition.The message from the Liberty’s dormant trade deadline is that the team’s brass has the utmost confidence in this roster when it’s at full strength.Injuries marred the first 30 games of the season.The Liberty have played only 2 ½ games at full strength.First-year coach Chris DeMarco’s rotation has been a game of Jenga, changing almost every other week because of one adversity or another.

He’s used 13 different starting lineups.Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, Sabrina Ionescu and Satou Sabally have played in six games together, logging only 55 minutes.The final game they played together was June 23, during which Sabally exited the game early with a head injury.

She’s been in concussion protocol since.In mid-July, the Liberty we...