The New York Liberty took home their first championship in franchise history on Sunday night despite some unusual circumstances. In the decisive Game 5 of the championship series against the Minnesota Lynx, it wasn't superstars Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu doing the heavy lifting.

Instead, the rest of the team had to pick up the slack while its two stars struggles to get anything going. Two of those role players stepped up time and time again during the series: reserve big Nyara Sabally and rookie sensation Leonie Fiebich.

Both Sabally and Fiebich are from Germany and played for the German National Team at the Olympics. After the game, German basketball legend Dirk Nowitzki shouted out the two unsung heroes.

“Gratulation an Leonie und Nyara zur Meisterschaft!!! Feiert schön!!!” Nowitzki wrote on X, formerly Twitter, congratulating Fiebich and Sabally on the title and wishing them a great celebration.

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Sabally and Fiebich buoyed the Liberty and gave them a much-needed spark throughout the series, but that was especially true in Game 5. Sabally played 17 minutes — her most in a single game in the entire playoffs — and scored 13 points with seven rebounds. Sabally provided the energy that the Liberty desperately needed during a controversial game where they were extremely tight and frantic.

Fiebich also finished with 13 points and seven rebounds while showcasing her defensive versatility once again. She quickly became one of New York's most valuable defenders in this series, and was able to switch onto any of the Minnesota guards to take them away. While the All-Rookie First Team selection wasn't shooting the ball at the same clip as she had been for the rest of the playoffs, she knocked the shot down when it mattered. Her first and only three-pointer of the night came on the first possession of overtime to give the Liberty a three-point lead.

Fiebich and Sabally have etched themselves into WNBA lore with their performances in Game 5 and throughout these finals, and they will forever be remembered as two of the role players who starred in their role on the biggest stage.