{"id":176993,"date":"2025-09-23T19:16:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-23T19:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/176993\/"},"modified":"2025-09-23T19:16:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T19:16:09","slug":"becky-hammon-gets-blunt-about-new-york-liberty-firing-sandy-brondello","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/176993\/","title":{"rendered":"Becky Hammon Gets Blunt About New York Liberty Firing Sandy Brondello"},"content":{"rendered":"

On the morning of September 23, news broke that the New York Liberty would not be renewing the contract of head coach Sandy Brondello, which means that her tenure running the team has ended after four seasons. <\/p>\n

Brondello led the Liberty to two straight WNBA Finals appearances, when they lost to the Las Vegas Aces in 2023 and then defeated the Minnesota Lynx in 2024. Despite the fact that New York had an underwhelming season this year (they were eliminated in the first round by the Phoenix Mercury), few imagined that this could have led to the Liberty cutting ties with Brondello, who is clearly beloved by her players<\/a>. <\/p>\n

There’s little doubt that Brondello is going to land on her feet, whether that be running another WNBA team or working as an assistant coach somewhere. The Seattle Storm franchise has a head coach vacancy after the franchise parted ways with Noelle Quinn a few days ago, but both the Dallas Wings and Chicago Sky (who tied for the league’s worst record) intend to keep their current head coaches for at least one more season.<\/p>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

Sep 11, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; New York Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello reacts during the first half at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Becky Hammon Addresses Sandy Brondello Firing<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, ESPN WNBA insider Alexa Philippou quoted Aces head coach Becky Hammon speaking about Brondello’s firing in an X post before Las Vegas’ WNBA Semifinals game against the Indiana Fever. <\/p>\n

“I didn’t love it for Sandy, I have to be honest. She’s just won a championship. She’s won in other places, and I know her to be a quality coach and a quality person. Those are rare sometimes to get that mixture of qualities as a head coach,” Hammon said. <\/p>\n

Becky Hammon on Sandy Brondello: “I didn’t love it for Sandy, I have to be honest. She’s just won a championship. She’s won in other places, and I know her to be a quality coach and a quality person. Those are rare sometimes to get that mixture of qualities as a head coach.”<\/p>\n

\u2014 Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) September 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Chicago’s head coach is Tyler Marsh, who was an assistant under Hammon with the Aces before the Sky fired him last offseason. And Hammon lost another assistant coach last year in Natalie Nakase, who went on to win the 2025 WNBA Coach of the Year award because of her job running the Golden State Valkyries. <\/p>\n

Therefore, Hammon might be looking to add talented coaches to her assistant staff. And if Brondello doesn’t find a head coaching job, perhaps Hammon will try to bring her on board. <\/p>\n

Regardless of where Brondello lands, the Liberty letting her go will likely have a fascinating impact on whether their star players (such as Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones, all of whom are set to become unrestricted free agents) will want to return to the franchise in the 2026 season.<\/p>\n

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