How New York Liberty can win their first WNBA championship - ESPN

NEW YORK — Jonquel Jones hit the Griddy. In the final seconds of the New York Liberty's 91-76 win over the Chicago Sky on Thursday, the party was on in Brooklyn. Kennedy Burke jumped on Leonie Fiebich's back. Breanna Stewart's 2-year-old daughter Ruby raced onto the floor and stood alongside Ellie the Elephant as she watched her mom and Sabrina Ionescu do a postgame interview at half court. A portion of the 17,758 fans in attendance — a Liberty record for Barclays Center — stuck around to observe and offer their team a final round of applause.

These scenes have been typical in Brooklyn this summer, where the Liberty are 11-1 and have won nine straight. But Thursday's game may have been especially rewarding. In back-to-back days, the Liberty knocked off the second-place Connecticut Sun on the road and then the gritty Chicago Sky, further solidifying their spot at the top of the league standings, where they'll look to stay with two games remaining before the Olympic break.

The Liberty's 19-4 record is their best start in franchise history, and it bodes well for their quest to return to the WNBA Finals. Twelve of the 13 teams in WNBA history to start a season with that record made the Finals that year, with 10 winning the championship.

ESPN BET gives the Liberty the second-best odds to win the 2024 title (Liberty +190, Aces +160), while ESPN Analytics reflects a similarly close race between the 2023 finalists, projecting a 36.9% chance for the Liberty to win it all, just behind the Aces (39.4%).

There has been a lot to celebrate in Brooklyn on the individual level, too. Stewart, the reigning MVP, is headed to her third Olympics, while Ionescu, who's having an all-WNBA first-team-caliber season, will play in her first.