Why the New York Liberty signed veteran forward Isabelle Harrison

A league source told The Next that New York targeted Harrison for her veteran leadership and seven years of WNBA experience. New York head coach Sandy Brondello echoed that sentiment in the team’s press release.

“We are excited to welcome Izzy Harrison to the Liberty family and look forward to the positive impact she will have on and off the court,” Brondello said. “Having originally drafted her with Phoenix, she has consistently demonstrated the ability to impact games on both ends. Izzy’s versatility and commitment strengthens our post rotation and makes her an ideal fit for our team as we pursue another championship in 2025.”

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In 2024, Harrison played in 36 games for the Chicago Sky and averaged 6.5 points and 3.9 rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game. She served as Chicago’s first post off the bench, subbing in for rookies Angel Reese or Kamilla Cardoso when they needed rest or got into foul trouble. 

This offseason, Harrison has played for Athletes Unlimited in Nashville, Tennessee. She is currently seventh on the league’s individual leaderboard and is averaging 17.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 50.5% shooting in eight games. She’s been a captain for five of those games. While Harrison’s game over the years hasn’t been reliant on being able to stretch the floor at a high clip, she has attempted 18 3-pointers and made six of them in Nashville. 

Signing Harrison represents a return to having more natural bigs on New York’s roster. After rostering four players capable of playing center in 2023 — Jonquel Jones, Stefanie Dolson, Nyara Sabally and Han Xu — the Liberty took a different approach in 2024.

Last season New York elevated Sabally as the first post off the bench and filled out its roster with big wings rather than natural post players. Kennedy Burke and Kayla Thornton, who both play the three and the four positions, relieved Breanna Stewart or Jones, and Stewart could shift to the five in smaller lineups. 

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In 2025, Thornton will be on the Golden State Valkyries following December’s expansion draft, and Burke is returning to New York on a one-year deal with an opportunity for an increased role. Rebekah Gardner will be expected to play the small forward spot while also guarding the point of attack when needed. 

Sabally, the hero in the Liberty’s WNBA Finals clincher last October, will continue to grow into her role as a trusted reserve in 2025. However, will injury get in her way once again? She is overseas with Turkish EuroLeague juggernaut Fenerbahçe, but she has been out with a left ankle sprain she sustained in practice in mid-February.

A source familiar with the situation doesn’t expect the sprain to be serious, and her Turkish team took extra precautions by keeping her in Turkey while the team traveled to Italy to play Famila Schio in a EuroLeague semifinal play-in game. 

Also, on Feb. 6, Sabally took a hard fall on her shoulder while playing for Germany in a EuroBasket qualifying tournament. She didn’t play in Germany’s second qualifying game a few days later against Greece. 

So while Sabally’s bumps and bruises appear minor, they prompt the question: How does Harrison fit into this equation with the Liberty?

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It’s worth remembering that the EuroBasket tournament — which is also a qualifier for the 2026 FIBA World Cup and the 2028 Olympics — happens in June, in the middle of the WNBA season. Games will run from June 18 to 29, but players are allowed to leave the WNBA two weeks before competition begins to train with their national teams. These are exceptions to the prioritization rules in the WNBA’s current CBA (located in Article XIV, Section 9, subsection d). 

Sabally, who is a mainstay on the German national team, will most likely compete in EuroBasket alongside her sister Satou and Liberty wing Leonie Fiebich. If she leaves on June 4, the earliest day allowed, Sabally will miss approximately nine regular-season games, including four of the Liberty’s five Commissioner’s Cup games. If Spanish post player Raquel Carrera is healthy enough to make her Liberty debut this season, she too will most likely play in EuroBasket for Spain. 

That’s where Harrison comes in. It isn’t certain she’ll make the opening-day roster, as her contract is unprotected. But if she doesn’t and if another team doesn’t sign her, New York could bring her back on a hardship contract while the players competing in EuroBasket are overseas. 

Like Sabally, Harrison can play both post positions, and with Sabally expected to miss much of June, New York will need players who know Brondello’s system and can take some of Sabally’s minutes. Burke will be expected to take some of those, too, but when New York needs a natural big rather than a big wing, that’s when Harrison will be most useful. 

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The Liberty’s modus operandi is to be as prepared as possible for future situations. They know that Sabally will most likely be gone for a lot of June, and they won’t want to overwork Stewart and Jones during the regular season. Signing Harrison helps ensure this, and Brondello’s familiarity with her only helps New York’s cause in the journey toward defending its WNBA title.