Breanna Stewart And Liberty Stars Avoided Backing Chris DeMarco Before New York Firing

Following New York's three-game semifinal sweep by the Atlanta Dream, franchise cornerstones Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones avoided offering firm public support for head coach Chris DeMarco.

The silence from the locker room spoke volumes in the wake of a sudden postseason exit.

Just weeks after their playoff elimination, the organization made the move official.

The New York Liberty formally dismissed DeMarco on Tuesday, November 3, concluding his tenure after only a single season at the helm.

His departure means general manager Jonathan Kolb must now search for the team's third head coach in three seasons.

For a franchise built to contend for championships right now, the rapid unraveling proved impossible for management to ignore.

A SUDDEN EXIT AFTER PLAYOFF CONFUSION

The final blow to DeMarco's brief tenure arrived during a painful three-game sweep against the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA semifinals.

While New York entered the series with momentum, Atlanta systematically dismantled the Liberty's postseason ambitions.

The sweep exposed tactical issues and communication lapses that had lingered under the surface throughout the campaign.

None was more visible than a critical miscalculation during Game Two of the semifinal series.

With the game pushed into overtime, the Liberty failed to realize they still had a reset timeout remaining on the bench.

Instead of calling time to organize a structured final possession, the team played through the chaotic sequence.

Stewart was forced into taking a contested, difficult shot without the benefit of an organized play.

The possession ended in failure, leaving players visibly frustrated on the court.

That late-game breakdown highlighted a recurring lack of late-game execution that plagued the roster during high-leverage moments.

STARS CHOOSE SILENCE OVER SUPPORT

When the season concluded abruptly in Atlanta, attention immediately shifted toward the locker room's view of DeMarco.

In professional basketball, public endorsements from top superstars often provide essential job security for a head coach under scrutiny.

Yet when given the opportunity to back their first-year coach, Stewart, Ionescu, and Jones notably withheld firm endorsements.

Stewart publicly addressed the campaign without giving DeMarco a vote of confidence.

Instead, Stewart openly characterized the entire year as inconsistent.

She pointedly emphasized that legitimate championship contenders must perform at an elite level throughout the entire regular season rather than relying on brief postseason sparks.

Jones and Ionescu similarly refrained from offering the public backing that might have swayed front-office decision-makers.

Without explicit buy-in from the core trio that drives the franchise, DeMarco's standing became exceptionally fragile.

A ROLLERCOASTER REGULAR SEASON

DeMarco had arrived in New York in December 2025 carrying substantial championship pedigree from the men's game.

He had spent fourteen seasons as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors, helping the franchise capture four NBA championships.

However, he stepped onto the Liberty bench with zero prior coaching experience within the WNBA.

The regular season quickly revealed the difficulty of adapting on the fly.

New York labored to a 26-18 regular-season record, sliding all the way to eighth place in the final standings.

Injuries heavily disrupted the team's continuity from the opening weeks.

Forward Satou Sabally suffered a concussion that derailed her year, restricting her to just thirteen appearances during the 2026 campaign.

Ionescu also missed several games due to health setbacks.

With key contributors constantly entering and exiting the rotation, DeMarco struggled to establish steady lineup combinations.

Yet entering the postseason as an eighth seed was viewed internally as an unacceptable decline for a championship-caliber roster.

THE MINNESOTA UPSET AND THE CRUMBLING ILLUSION

Despite entering the postseason in eighth place, New York briefly provided fans with renewed optimism during the opening round.

The Liberty stunned the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx, making league history in the process.

New York became the first eighth seed in WNBA history to eliminate a number one overall seed.

The monumental upset temporarily masked the systemic issues that had troubled the team across the summer.

Expectations quickly surged again, setting up what many expected to be a competitive semifinal clash against Atlanta.

Instead, the Dream brought New York back down to earth with a merciless sweep.

The quick exit confirmed that the first-round triumph was an outlier rather than a genuine return to elite form.

THE LOOMING SHADOW OF SANDY BRONDELLO

DeMarco's rapid decline was magnified by the standard left behind by his immediate predecessor, Sandy Brondello.

Brondello had guided the Liberty to their first-ever WNBA championship in 2024, cementing New York as a dominant powerhouse.

Despite that historic title, the organization chose not to retain Brondello following her contract's conclusion.

Brondello subsequently took over as head coach of the Toronto Tempo, where she quickly established success once again.

Replacing a championship-winning tactician with an unproven WNBA newcomer placed immediate pressure on DeMarco from day one.

When the Liberty plummeted from reigning champions to an eighth-place finish, comparisons between the two regimes became unavoidable.

PODCAST VOICES SLAM APPOINTMENT PROCESS

The decision to dismiss DeMarco after one year also triggered intense scrutiny outside the Liberty organization.

Sports commentator Jemele Hill and media personality Cari Champion sharply criticized the original hiring process on their podcast, Flagrant & Funny.

Hill argued that handing an NBA assistant the reins of a WNBA title contender without prior women's basketball experience reflected a double standard.

Hill pointed out that a female coach with an equivalent background would never receive an NBA head-coaching position.