{"id":605953,"date":"2026-04-25T17:03:02","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T17:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/605953\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T17:03:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T17:03:02","slug":"biggest-liberty-challenge-may-be-easier-to-overcome-than-it-would-seem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/605953\/","title":{"rendered":"Biggest Liberty challenge may be easier to overcome than it would seem"},"content":{"rendered":"

Adding a fourth All-Star-level player to a team that already has a core of three stars, including two former MVPs, isn\u2018t always an easy transition. There is, after all, only one ball to go around.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

So, the biggest question for the Liberty going into the 2026 season is: How quickly will Satou Sabally find her role in the Liberty\u2018s system and click with Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, and Jonquel Jones?\u00a0<\/p>\n

That process should be accelerated by the fact that Sabally already has experience playing with three of the Liberty\u2018s most important players.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sabally knows three Liberty starters well<\/p>\n

Given that Betnijah Laney-Hamilton sat out the entire 2025 season with a knee injury<\/a>, it seems fair to expect that Leonie Fiebich will start in the backcourt with Sabrina Ionescu. If that\u2018s the case, Sabally will be next to three players she all knows how to play with.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sabally and Ionescu starred together at the University of Oregon and led the program to its first Final Four appearance in 2019. Their final season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, robbing the duo of a chance to win a National Championship together. They know each other very well on and off the court.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sabally also has plenty of experience with Leonie Fiebich, as both play for the German national team. Sabally had to miss the World Cup Qualifying tournament in March and sat out the 2025 EuroBasket competition, but the two teamed up for the Paris Olympics and were two of the most productive players on the team.<\/p>\n

Last but not least, Sabally and Stewart won a EuroLeague championship together with the Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahce in 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sabally could be the key to another Liberty championship\u00a0<\/p>\n

The question that plagued all WNBA teams this offseason\u2014except for those with their eyes on JuJu Watkins and Sarah Strong\u2014was how to keep up with the Las Vegas Aces.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Aces won their third championship in four years despite some early-season struggles and re-signed A\u2018ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young, Jewell Loyd, NaLyssa Smith, Dana Evans, and Cheyenne Parker-Tyus, and added Chennedy Carter. In other words, they kept their championship core together and will get added production from Carter and a fully available Parker-Tyus.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With Sabally now on the roster, the Liberty look like the only team that can rival the Aces\u2018 star power and championship experience. Atlanta has the talent and star power, but its most important players are still relatively unproven in the postseason. Indiana also has talent with Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston, and Caitlin Clark, but the supporting cast around them isn\u2018t as proven, and Clark barely has any playoff experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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