July 3, 2024
Locked On Women’s Basketball: WNBA All-Star reaction and Lynx-Liberty analysis
By The Next
Two top teams went head-to-head and WNBA announced All-Stars on Tuesday
In the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, The Next’s Gigi Speer welcomes Nets Daily reporters Brian Fleurantin and Lucas Kaplan to discuss Tuesday’s game between the Minnesota Lynx and the New York Liberty as well as Tuesday’s announcement of the WNBA All-Star roster.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
The Liberty avenged losses to the Lynx in the regular season and in the Commissioner’s Cup final with a 76-67 win on Tuesday. Fleurantin talks about the impact of point guard Courtney Vandersloot, who missed several games in June while dealing with a personal matter:
“It feels like she’s getting more comfortable the more she’s back on the court. I think especially for any player, especially a starter like her, it takes you a good amount of time to sort of regain your rhythm and regain your bearings. And I think that she’s really been able to do that since she came back in.
“She had those driving lanes tonight. [Her] decision making is still really on point. And I think that she gives them another good ball-handler so that way, you don’t have [Breanna Stewart] bringing the ball up the court having to initiate the offense. You can have Sabrina [Ionescu] fly off more screens, be more active in that way. So I think that Courtney sort of works as a salve for the group, so that way everyone else can sort of slide back into their natural roles.”
The Next, a 24/7/365 women’s basketball newsroom
The Next: A basketball newsroom brought to you by The IX. 24/7/365 women’s basketball coverage, written, edited and photographed by our young, diverse staff and dedicated to breaking news, analysis, historical deep dives and projections about the game we love.
Later in the episode, Speer breaks down the WNBA All-Star team, which includes New York center Jonquel Jones. Jones will play for Team WNBA against Team USA, which features her Liberty teammates Ionescu and Stewart. Speer gives us a behind-the-scenes look at Jones’ reaction to being named an All-Star:
“I’m sitting here [in the] Liberty postgame press conference [room]. For those not watching the video, there’s Liberty logos all behind me. We were here when Jonquel Jones found out that she made the All-Star team. Yes, she’s one of those players. And Sabrina was banging on this table [in support]. … And Jonquel goes, ‘Yeah, but [I’ll] still block her shot, though.'”
Get 24/7 soccer coverage with The Equalizer
The Next is partnering with The Equalizer to bring more women’s sports stories to your inbox. Subscribers to The Next receive 50% off their subscription to The Equalizer for 24/7 coverage of women’s soccer.
Make sure to subscribe to the Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast to keep learning about the WNBA, women’s college basketball, basketball history and much more!
Add Locked On Women’s Basketball to your daily routine
Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast. Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA, collegiate basketball, basketball history and much more. Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube.
