{"id":351518,"date":"2026-09-20T04:17:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-20T04:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/351518\/"},"modified":"2026-09-20T04:17:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T04:17:00","slug":"defensive-improvements-are-going-to-be-key-for-new-york-liberty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/351518\/","title":{"rendered":"Defensive improvements are going to be key for New York Liberty"},"content":{"rendered":"

A theme<\/a> that has emerged across the WNBA in 2026 is a focus on much more high-octane offenses. Due to changes in officiating and an emphasis on freedom of movement, a top five offense in the WNBA this season reaches an efficiency rating of over 110. The New York Liberty currently check that box, but it\u2019s not exactly clear yet how proficient a defense needs to be to translate into winning when it matters the most.<\/p>\n

The Liberty currently have the seventh best defense in the league, rated at 107.3<\/a>, the lowest defensive efficiency the team has had since Breanna Stewart<\/a> and Jonquel Jones<\/a> arrived in New York in 2023. During the seasons when the Liberty made it to the WNBA finals in both 2023 and 2024, their defensive ratings were within the league\u2019s top four.<\/p>\n

The players are well aware of this deficit \u2014 veteran guard Rebekah Gardner<\/a> pointed toward defense being a major focus during the FIBA World Cup break when half of the Liberty\u2019s roster was across the pond competing in Berlin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like one of the main things we worked on is communication, and when things aren\u2019t going our way how we respond to it,\u201d she told The IX Sports. \u201cSo like once we hit some adversity, how do we respond? And I feel like that\u2019s been something that we could have done better throughout the season and will be important as we move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Liberty head coach Chris DeMarco was asked about that focus on defense during the Liberty\u2019s eight practices during the World Cup break, he was less forthcoming about the team\u2019s current defensive weaknesses.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny team on this break has a responsibility to look at their strengths and weaknesses, and we love our ability to protect the paint right now,\u201d DeMarco said at team practice on Sept. 16. \u201cWe\u2019re number one in the league in not fouling and defensive rebounding. We\u2019re doing a lot of great things, and then we just want to get better in some other areas. So that\u2019s sort of been the focus \u2014 whether it\u2019s film work around the court, our development, our group work \u2014 and it\u2019ll continue to be. <\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I think we had a good balance of both offense and defense \u2026 I think the other piece is understanding we have an advantage offensively versus when we don\u2019t. Slow it down. Make sure we\u2019re minimizing turnovers and creating high value shots.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Defensively, the Liberty\u2019s opponent effective field goal percentage is ranked ninth (51.1%<\/a>), their opponent 3-point percentage is ranked twelfth (35.2%<\/a>), their opponent live ball turnover percentage is ranked 13th (51.2%<\/a>), and the team forces 11.8<\/a> turnovers, the least amount of turnovers per game in the league.<\/p>\n

The team\u2019s marks are better when it comes to average opponent points in the paint \u2014 ranked fifth, giving up 38.1<\/a> per game \u2014 and defensive rebounding percentage \u2014 currently ranked second in the league (72.8%<\/a>). All of that variance, however, still has the Liberty\u2019s overall defensive efficiency ranked seventh.<\/p>\n

One factor contributing to the Liberty\u2019s cumulative defensive statistics this season is the fact that one of the team\u2019s defensive anchors Leonie Fiebich<\/a> was unavailable due to injury for over six weeks. When Fiebich made her return for the Liberty\u2019s final games before the World Cup break, her individual presence wasn\u2019t enough. The Liberty suffered a 79-60 blowout loss to the Valkyries days before the break.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think personally the way that we played the Valkyries game, we\u2019ll never have a game like that again \u2014 where we just kind of settle and [take] the shots that they want us to, and not finding any other ways to attack,\u201d guard Sabrina Ionescu said a few days following the Valkyries loss. \u201cAnd that\u2019s nothing that we talked about. I\u2019d say that\u2019s like a personal statement. \u2026 We had open looks, but you don\u2019t want to rely on that every single night.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"LeonieNew York Liberty forward Leonie Fiebich (13) guards Chicago Sky guard Jacy Sheldon (0) at the point of attack at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on Aug 29, 2026. (Photo credit: Hannah Kevorkian | The IX Sports)<\/p>\n

When shots don\u2019t fall the counter is to try to create easier offense, and often times that\u2019s as a result of better defense. Against Golden State the Liberty didn\u2019t operate with that approach and it showed in the result. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think really the biggest theme is just like mental fortitude,\u201d Liberty defensive coordinator Addi Walters explained to The IX Sports. \u201cDon\u2019t let one side of the ball affect the other, and regardless of what happens, we are going to make mistakes, we are going to miss shots, but that shouldn\u2019t affect our mental approach every single possession. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to go into every possession with a clear mind, knowing what our fallback is and what our identity is. And right now, I think we always have like three to four players kind of on the same page, but it takes all five to really have full possessions on both sides of the ball, but especially defensively.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the FIBA World Cup, Team USA head coach Kara Lawson<\/a> was specifically asked about how she achieves accord defensively in such a small window of time. She pointed toward balance being part of her recipe.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow you find that balance is really knowing your team,\u201d she said<\/a>. \u201cHow much complexity can we handle, while still maintaining our intensity, our competitiveness, our instincts. If complexity is too much sometimes it gets in the way of instincts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"JonquelJonquel Jones (35) blocks a shot at the rim at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on Aug 29, 2026. (Photo credit: Hannah Kevorkian | The IX Sports)<\/p>\n

In the weeks without WNBA games, the Liberty staff had the opportunity to work with the players on how to rectify some of these mental focus issues. Gardner explained that a recurring issue has been letting mistakes snowball, and that it\u2019s been Jones\u2019 veteran leadership that has helped change course.<\/p>\n

Jones noted that she\u2019s been a bit more intentional about using her experience in this league as an advantage. \u201cI kind of see myself as like \u2014 I don\u2019t know how many coaches we have, but whatever the next number is \u2014 the sixth coach? I kind of see myself as the sixth coach, helping them out with some of the stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep The IX Sports at your next game! <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Shop the logo collection or special \u201cWomen\u2019s Sports are Front Page News\u201d collection now on Shopify.<\/p>\n

Having more of Jones\u2019 voice has been particularly helpful according to Rebecca Allen<\/a>. As the team\u2019s center, Jones is what Allen referred to as \u201cthe last line of defense\u201d who is not only involved in on-ball actions, but also relied upon as a helper. \u201cI think her being very vocal is needed, and it\u2019s been really good to see even just improvements from her specifically, but also from all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Besides the mental and communication-focused efforts defensively, Allen explained to The IX Sports that ample focus was paid to how the Liberty are approaching closeouts \u2014 with more attention to detail when it comes to contesting shots and limiting flybys.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s being able to play two sides of the defense rather than just getting a hand up [on] the shot or if they drive as well,\u201d she said. \u201cSo there\u2019s a huge focus on that because it just lowers the numbers and the percentages.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Playing better defense will remain a tall challenge for the Liberty especially when two of their best defenders in Fiebich and Stewart weren\u2019t with the team over the past couple of weeks. It\u2019s a drawback that the Liberty have as one of the most internationally-populated rosters in the WNBA.<\/p>\n

\"BreannaLiberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) closes out on Sky forward Aicha Coulibaly\u2019s (35) shot at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on Aug 29, 2026. (Photo credit: Hannah Kevorkian | The IX Sports)<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we need to understand that we can\u2019t use these next four games as an opportunity for excuses,\u201d Ionescu said. \u201cObviously we had the most players gone. It\u2019s not easy when most of your team is gone competing. They\u2019re tired, they\u2019re fatigued, they\u2019ve been traveling. Every team is dealing with it\u2026we have to keep building and chipping away to be the team that we want to be come playoff time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team the the Liberty want to be come playoff time is more resilient defensively. Stewart agrees with Ionescu that there\u2019s no room for excuses, but she also offered some lessons learned while in Berlin with Team USA. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think that sometimes with USA basketball or with national teams you\u2019re constantly just like going, right?\u201d she said. \u201cYou have to give like 1,000% and that\u2019s the same here. It\u2019s like don\u2019t save it because we have a deep enough team. We have people that can come in and do things just as well. So making sure that defensive rotation, that fourth, fifth side doesn\u2019t get forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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