The WNBA’s New York Liberty are set to reveal their new head coach. They plan to do so at their new home in Brooklyn next week.
The New York Liberty have announced that they will reveal the eighth head coach in franchise history on Wednesday morning.
The reveal will be made through a press conference in the GEICO Atrium of the Liberty’s new Brooklyn home, the Barclays Center. General manager Jonathan Kolb will speak alongside the new coach. The conference is not open to the public but can be seen via streaming on Facebook Live.
New York’s last head coach was Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Katie Smith. She held the position for just two years. The title has also been previously held by Richie Adubato (1998-2004), Anne Donovan (2009-10), and Bill Laimbeer (2013-17). They currently have the only head coaching vacancy in the WNBA.
The new decade is the start of a hopeful era for New York Liberty basketball. After two years of franchise limbo at Westchester County Center in White Plains, they will now play their games within city limits again. January marks a full calendar year of ownership under Joe Tsai, who also owns the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets. Tsai became the full-time owner of both the Nets and the Barclays Center in September.
WNBA offseason developments have been mostly stagnant due to ongoing labor negotiations. The New York Liberty have nonetheless enjoyed several positive developments since wrapping up the 2019 season. In addition to Brooklyn permanency, New York also emerged with the top overall pick in the upcoming WNBA Draft. The consensus top prospect is Sabrina Ionescu of Oregon.
Ionescu is the all-time leader in double-doubles in NCAA basketball history. She took home the 2019 John Wooden Award as the nation’s most outstanding player.
As for returnees, the New York Liberty will likely welcome back 2019 All-Stars Tina Charles and Kia Nurse, as well as last season’s second overall pick Asia Durr.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffMags5490
