New York Liberty
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For current information on this topic, see 2009 New York Liberty season. |
| New York Liberty | |
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| Conference | Eastern |
| Founded | 1997 |
| History | New York Liberty (1997-present) |
| Arena | Madison Square Garden |
| City | New York City, New York |
| Team Colors | Blue, Orange, White, Liberty Green |
| Owner | Madison Square Garden, L.P. a division of Cablevision |
| General manager | Carol Blazejowski |
| Head Coach | Pat Coyle |
| Championships | None |
| Conference titles | 4 (1997, 1999, 2000, 2002) |
| Mascot | Maddie [1] |
The New York Liberty is a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in New York City, New York. They are one of the eight original WNBA teams that began to see action in 1997, as well one of the most successful teams in WNBA history. Despite making the WNBA playoffs almost every season and appearing in the WNBA Finals 4 times, they have yet to win a championship. The team derives its name from the Statue of Liberty. They are the sister team of the New York Knicks.
Uniforms:
- 2003 - Present: white with teal, blue and orange trim and "Liberty" on the chest in light blue letters at home. Primary color is blue on the road with "New York" on the chest in white letters. The Liberty logo is on the left leg of the shorts.
- 1997 - 2002: white with a black line above the shoulders at home, black with a green line on the road.
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[edit] Franchise history
Prior to the team's first season, to avoid potential trademark infringement, the team purchased the trademarks of the defunct Liberty Basketball Association.
The adage "Always the bridesmaid, never the bride," could be used to describe the Liberty. When the WNBA opened in 1997, the Liberty was one of the first teams to choose a player, and they signed college superstar Rebecca Lobo (University of Connecticut) to a contract. Lobo was a starter for two seasons but was injured in 1999, and her injuries eventually led to her retirement several seasons later. Point guard Teresa Weatherspoon emerged as a star and the Liberty made it to the 1997 championship game, where the team lost to the Houston Comets. In 1999, they returned to the WNBA Finals, where they again faced Comets. In game 2, Teresa Weatherspoon's fullcourt shot with point five seconds remaining gave the Liberty a one point win that tied the series. However, the Liberty lost the third game of the series and the Comets became champions for a third straight time.
The Liberty subsequently returned to the finals in 2000 and 2002, but lost once again to the Comets and to the Los Angeles Sparks, respectively. In 2001, Weatherspoon became the WNBA's all-time assist leader, and Sue Wicks, once a back-up to Lobo at forward, also proved to be a valuable player, making the All-Star game. 1998,2003, and 2006 were the only years the Liberty failed to make the playoffs.
2003 marked a transition for the Liberty, with team leader Teresa Weatherspoon's WNBA career winding down, fan favorite Becky Hammon emerged as a star player. The 2004 season saw Hammon replacing Weatherspoon at the team's starting point guard spot.
Six games during the 2004 season were moved to Radio City Music Hall as Madison Square Garden was hosting the 2004 Republican National Convention. These games marked the first time Radio City had hosted a professional sporting event since the Roy Jones Jr. boxing match held in 1999.
With team leader Tari Phillips being signed to the Houston Comets, Ann Wauters emerged as a force at the team's starting center position in 2005. However, she was injured midway through the season. The loss of Wauters was felt as the team was swept two games to none by the Indiana Fever in the first round of the playoffs.
At the beginning of the 2007 WNBA season, the team traded Becky Hammon to the San Antonio Silver Stars for Jessica Davenport, a first round pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft. They also acquired center Janel McCarville through the dispersal draft associated with the dissolution of the Charlotte Sting. The 2007 Liberty started out 5-0, then lost 7 straight games, then rallied at the end of the season to get the last playoff spot by winning 3 out of their last 4 games, beating the Washington Mystics on the tiebreaker of head-to-head record. In the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Liberty, as huge underdogs, faced the defending champion Detroit Shock in a best-of-three series. The Liberty defeated the Shock by winning Game 1 in New York. In Games 2 and 3 the Liberty lost both games to the Shock in Detroit, 76-73 and 71-70 (OT) respectively.
In 2008, the Liberty drafted former Rutgers shooting guard Essence Carson and former University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill forward Erlana Larkins, and signed former University of Utah point guard Leilani Mitchell during the preseason. Although they had the youngest average age of any WNBA team, the Liberty managed to win 19 regular season games in 2008, to defeat the Connecticut Sun in the first round of playoff action, and to come within two points of defeating the Detroit Shock in the third and last game of the Eastern Conference Finals. Again, the Detroit series entailed a Liberty victory at home in Game 1, followed by narrow defeats away in Games 2 and 3. The 2008 season also featured the "Liberty Outdoor Classic", the first ever professional regular season basketball game to be played outdoors, on July 19 at Arthur Ashe Stadium of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The Indiana Fever defeated the Liberty in the Outdoor Classic.
The Liberty were originally scheduled to be displaced from their usual home court due to renovations at Madison Square Garden. It has been announced, however, that renovation plans have been delayed and the Liberty will play at the Garden in 2009.
[edit] Season-by-season records
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, % = Win–Loss %
| Season | W | L | % | Playoffs | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Liberty | |||||
| 1997 | 17 | 11 | .607 | Won WNBA Semifinals Lost WNBA Finals |
New York 59, Phoenix 41 Houston 65, New York 51 |
| 1998 | 18 | 12 | .600 | ||
| 1999 | 18 | 14 | .563 | Won Conference Finals Lost WNBA Finals |
New York 2, Charlotte 1 Houston 2, New York 1 |
| 2000 | 20 | 12 | .625 | Won First Round Won Conference Finals Lost WNBA Finals |
New York 2, Washington 0 New York 2, Cleveland 1 Houston 2, New York 0 |
| 2001 | 21 | 11 | .656 | Won First Round Lost Conference Finals |
New York 2, Miami 1 Charlotte 2, New York 1 |
| 2002 | 18 | 14 | .563 | Won First Round Won Conference Finals Lost WNBA Finals |
New York 2, Indiana 1 New York 2, Washington 1 Los Angeles 2, New York 0 |
| 2003 | 16 | 18 | .471 | ||
| 2004 | 18 | 16 | .529 | Won First Round Lost Conference Finals |
New York 2, Detroit 1 Connecticut 2, New York 0 |
| 2005 | 18 | 16 | .529 | Lost First Round | Indiana 2, New York 0 |
| 2006 | 11 | 23 | .324 | ||
| 2007 | 16 | 18 | .471 | Lost First Round | Detroit 2, New York 1 |
| 2008 | 19 | 15 | .559 | Won First Round Lost Conference Final |
New York 2, Connecticut 1 Detroit 2, New York 1 |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 | .000 | ||
| Totals | 210 | 180 | .539 | ||
| Playoffs | 21 | 24 | .467 | ||
Stats updated September 27, 2008
[edit] Players of note
[edit] Hall of Famers
[edit] Retired numbers
[edit] Former players
- Sherill Baker, now a member of the Indiana Fever
- Elena Baranova
- Rhonda Blades
- Felisia Brown
- Bethany Donaphin
- Shay Doron
- Barbara Farris, now a member of the Phoenix Mercury
- Olga Firsova
- Kisha Ford
- La'Keshia Frett
- Linda Fröhlich
- Becky Hammon, now a member of the San Antonio Silver Stars
- Kym Hampton
- Vickie Johnson, now a member of the San Antonio Silver Stars
- Rebecca Lobo
- Andrea Nagy
- Tari Phillips
- Crystal Robinson, now an assistant coach for the Washington Mystics
- Erin Thorn, now a member of the Chicago Sky
- K.B. Sharp, now a member of the Chicago Sky
- Coquese Washington
- Teresa Weatherspoon
- Tamika Whitmore, now a member of the Connecticut Sun
- Sue Wicks
- Sophia Witherspoon
- Lindsey Yamasaki
[edit] Current Roster
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New York Liberty roster
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[edit] Coaches and others
Head Coaches:
- Nancy Darsch (1997 - 1998), now a scout with the Minnesota Lynx
- Richie Adubato (1998 - 2004)
- Pat Coyle (2004 - Present)
General Managers:
[edit] External links
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