It was solely a matter of time.
However on Saturday, the reigning champions Liberty lastly made Breanna Stewart’s return to official.
Stewart re-signed with the Liberty for a 3rd season as she inked a one-year, $208,400 assured contract.
Stewart, 30, was broadly thought-about this yr’s greatest free agent obtainable. However the two-time league MVP made it clear that she had no plans to play wherever aside from with the Liberty.
Nonetheless, the Liberty used its core designation – the WNBA’s equal to the NFL’s franchise tag – on Stewart for the second consecutive yr. It ensured the previous UConn star, underneath the present collective bargaining settlement that expires after the 2025 season, can be ineligible to have the designation used on her for the rest of her profession.
With a core designation, Stewart was eligible for a supermax contract, value $249,244. She agreed to lower than the highest participant wage for the second straight yr to provide extra monetary flexibility for the entrance workplace to form the rest of its roster.
That’s additionally why Stewart’s contract signing was delayed till now.
Earlier this month, the Liberty traded two first-round picks to the Connecticut Solar for veteran guard Natasha Cloud. In addition they lately re-signed French combo guard Marine Johannès, who sat out final season for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Liberty are coming off two straight WNBA Finals appearances and received all of it in 2024 after an exhilarating five-game sequence towards the Minnesota Lynx.
The vast majority of final season’s championship core can be again, together with Stewart, Jonquel Jones, Sabrina Ionescu and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton.
Essentially the most notable departure from final season’s staff is Courtney Vandersloot, who signed with the Chicago Sky after she was moved to the bench for the playoffs.
Kayla Thornton, who registered the second-most playoff minutes amongst reserves, can also be gone after the Golden State Valkyries picked her within the enlargement draft.
Stewart spent the primary seven years of her WNBA profession in Seattle earlier than leaving in free company to hitch the Liberty in 2022.
Final season, her second in Brooklyn, Stewart averaged a team-high 20.4 factors whereas capturing 45.8% from the sphere and a career-low 29.5 % from 3. She additionally registered 8.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per sport.
The six-time All-Star completed third in MVP voting final season.
