The NBAE via Joshua Huston.
Breanna Stewart met with the New York Liberty in free agency.
According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Liberty owners Joe and Clara Tsai, head coach Sandy Brondello and the full front office staff went to Los Angeles for a meeting with Stewart.
In five seasons with the Storm, Stewart is a three-time All-Star, two-time WNBA champion, two-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player and one-time WNBA Most Valuable Player.
Stewart is one of the best players in the league when she is healthy, but she has been hampered by injuries in recent years.
She missed the entire WNBA season after tearing her Achilles while playing for the Russian club.
After leading the Storm to a championship in 2020, Stewart was named the Finals Most Valuable Player, but a foot injury kept her out of the playoffs.
In 149 regular-season games, the 6'4" forward has an average of 20.0 points, 8.9 rebound, 2.9 assists, 1.6 blocks, 1.6 three-pointers made and 1.3 steals.
In 16 playoff contests, he has averaged 24.6 points, 7.3 rebound, 3.0 assists, 2.2 three-pointers made, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks.
Stewart made it clear that she wanted to re-sign with the Storm when she became a free agent.
Stewart said in December that she would return to Seattle and play in the Climate Pledge. I'm taking some time away from basketball to make sure I'm healthy, and I think the rest of the summer is going well.
If Stewart leaves the Storm for the Liberty, it could mean a change in the power structure of the league.
The Liberty have never won a championship despite being an original franchise, and have only made the playoffs once in the past four seasons.
In New York, there is reason for optimism as the Liberty made the playoffs with the help of the No. 1 overall draft pick.
Adding Stewart to a core that includes Ionescu, Betnijah Laney,Natasha Howard and Sami Whitcomb would make the Liberty legitimate championship threats, and it would put one of the league's top stars in one of its top markets as well.
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