Theres one key element that the Liberty have that the Dream dont in star-studded semifinal matchup
Breanna Stewart’s first WNBA semifinals series in 2018 became an instant classic.The Seattle Storm raced out to a 2-0 lead before the Diana Taurasi-led Phoenix Mercury punched back and forced a decisive Game 5.Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Madeline Kenney about all things Liberty and WNBA.
Stewart broke teammate Sue Bird’s nose with an inadvertent elbow.Brittney Griner and Taurasi hit wild shots.
The Storm ultimately won thanks to a memorable fourth-quarter push by Bird.Stewart said she’s been thinking of that experience a lot over the past few days.“Experience in the playoffs definitely matters,” Stewart said before Friday’s practice.“There’s so many things [during a longer series] that you have to stay focused on the end goal.”The Liberty sent the Minnesota Lynx home early with a 2-0 sweep in the first round.It was a stunning — even historic — outcome in the eyes of seemingly everyone but those in the New York locker room.
Sabrina Ionescu told the team to enjoy the moment Tuesday night, but she said the celebration was subdued because “we haven’t done anything yet.”That brings the Liberty to a best-of-five semifinals series against the Atlanta Dream, a team that’s walking up the driveway of the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2018.Game 1 is scheduled for Sunday at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.It is being billed as a physically demanding series, where speed and size will matter greatly.Amid a search for any possible edge, the Liberty have something obvious that the Dream don’t.“We have experience,” Jonquel Jones said.This will be the Liberty’s third semifinals appearance in four years and Stewart’s sixth all time.New York made it to the WNBA Finals in 2023 and 2024, winning it all in the latter run.Meanwhile, only DeWanna Bonner, Jordin Canada and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough have made it to the semifinals before — but not with the Dream.A longer series mean...