Courtney Vandersloot signing with Liberty, joining potential super-team with Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones
The WNBA is going to have a pair of extraordinarily good teams next season, and one just got even better.
Former Chicago Sky guard Courtney Vandersloot announced Thursday that she is signing with the New York Liberty, giving the team another star this offseason after previously adding Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones to a roster that already featured Sabrina Ionescu.
#BREAKING Courtney Vandersloot is signing with the New York Liberty🗽✍🏼
— Courtney Vandersloot (@Sloot22) February 2, 2023
Vandersloot, a six-time WNBA assists leader, is coming off a season in which she averaged 11.8 points and 6.5 assists per game. She was reported to be considering her hometown Seattle Storm, but the Liberty presented a chance to dish passes to a loaded roster in a marquee city.
The trio of Stewart, Jones and Vandersloot have already played with each other for perennial Russian champion UMMC Ekaterinburg.
Let's just say Stewart and Ionescu are very happy about the turn of events.
LFG!!!🗽🗽🗽🗽 https://t.co/bsqCZ6VsGG
— Breanna Stewart (@breannastewart) February 2, 2023
AHHHHH LFGGG!!!!! 🗽 https://t.co/GCmO35pIvj
— Sabrina Ionescu (@sabrina_i20) February 2, 2023
Normally, that would be enough to push the Liberty into easy favorite status, but the defending champion Las Vegas Aces added their own former Sky star in two-time champion Candace Parker, creating their own big 3 of Parker, A'Ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum.
Basically, six of the 10 members of the two 2022 All-WNBA teams are now on two teams, and one of those teams just added one of the best passers in WNBA history.
The Liberty are absurdly stacked this year
The Liberty made their first splash last month when they traded for Jones, the 2021 WNBA MVP, in a three-team deal that also sent Natasha Howard to the Dallas Wings. That was already an enormous move, but then the Liberty made one of the biggest free-agent splashes in WNBA history with the addition of Stewart, who chose to return to her home state after winning two titles and an MVP with the Storm.
In addition to Ionescu, the overhauled Liberty roster still features Betnijah Laney, who earned Most Improved Player and All-Defense honors in 2020 and an All-Star nod in 2021. She should slot in nicely with the other four stars, while returners Marine Johannes and Stefanie Dolson lead the bench.
