Three is company after all.
The Liberty have not one, not two, but three players who qualified for end-of-the-season awards via the All-WNBA teams, voted on by a panel of national sportswriters and broadcasters whose results were published Wednesday afternoon.
Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones became the first trio of teammates in Liberty franchise history to earn All-WNBA Team honors in the same season. They also became the seventh group of three teammates in WNBA history to earn All-WNBA honors in the same season.
Five of the six other trios went on to win a championship together during their tenure as teammates, which the Liberty have an opportunity to do in their series against the Minnesota Lynx.
Stewart was named 2024 All-WNBA First Team on Wednesday, marking her seventh All-WNBA Team selection and her sixth on the First Team.
The two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player of the Year averaged 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks in 38 games to lead the Liberty to a league-best 32-8 record. Stewart’s sensational regular season included a season-high 38 points and 18 rebounds in a Sep. 15 matchup against the Minnesota Lynx. Stewart finished the season ranked fourth in scoring, eighth in both rebounds and steals, and 15th in assists. She was also named to the WNBA All-Defensive Team for the third season in a row.
Stewart earned 65 of a possible 67 First Team Votes. She entered Wednesday’s matchup against the Lynx four points shy of moving up to eighth place all-time in WNBA playoff scoring.
“Any award is great for our players,” Liberty head coach Sandy Bordello said ahead of tipoff against the Lynx on Wednesday. “It’s great to see three of them there. Kind of surprised Stewie got 3 second-team votes, but I won’t get into that anymore.”
Ionescu also earned All-WNBA Second Team honors for the third straight season after averaging 18.2 points and 6.2 assists in Year 5 in New York. Ionescu extended her historic streak to 61 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer made this season and became the third player in WNBA history to make at least 100 threes in back-to-back seasons.
Ionescu earned 15 First Team votes and 43 Second Team votes. She joined Teresa Weatherspoon, Tina Charles, and Cappie Pondexter as the only Liberty players to earn All-WNBA honors in at least three consecutive seasons. Ionescu entered Wednesday’s matchup in Minnesota three triples shy of setting the Liberty’s new playoff record.
“I thought she had a really good year. Could’ve gone to that First Team, but I think her first half of the year was wonderful,” Bordello said on Wednesday. “I suppose it took a bit of a dip when she had to sit out a few games and then get rhythm back…that maybe took her out a little bit. But, overall, she’s had a great year and is a young player that continues to keep getting better and better.”
Jones also earned All-WNBA Second Team honors for the fourth time in her career after averaging 14.2 points, nine rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.3 blocks and 0.8 steals per game this season. Jones shot 38.8 percent from three-point range for the team’s third-best three-point percentage behind Leonie Fiebich and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton. The 2021 WNBA MVP continues to stack accolades after a six-year career with the Connecticut Sun.
Jones earned three First Team votes and 29 Second Team votes. She entered Wednesday’s matchup against the Lynx one block shy of 10th place all-time in WNBA playoff rejections.
Las Vegas Aces unanimous MVP A’ja Wilson, Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark and Sun guard Alyssa Thomas round out the First Team, and Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper, Seattle Storm forward Nneka Ogwumike, and Dallas Wings scorer Arike Ogunbowale join Ionescu and Jones on the Second Team.
