The New York Liberty are parting ways with their WNBA championship-winning head coach. Sandy Brondello is out, per Front Office Sports. She led New York for four seasons.
“We would like to thank Sandy Brondello for her everlasting impact on the New York Liberty,” said Jonathan Kolb, general manager of the team, in a release. “Sandy finishes her tenure in New York as the winningest coach in franchise history, and she took us to never-before-seen heights as the first head coach to lead the Liberty to a championship. We wish Sandy the very best in her next chapter.”
The Liberty are immediately searching for a new coach. New York lost their WNBA Playoffs series on September 19 to the Phoenix Mercury. Phoenix won the series, 2-1.
Liberty have struggled this WNBA season
New York made the playoffs this season, but sputtered in the second half of the league season. The Liberty looked like they could repeat as WNBA champions, when the campaign began. The club opened the season with a series of wins, before losing to the Indiana Fever on June 14.
New York stumbled down the stretch of the season. The Liberty seemed to find the right footing again, as they finished the regular season on a three-game win streak.
“[Winning] always helps,” Brondello said at the end of the regular season, per the New York Post. “You have confidence through winning but it’s all about the process… Have we gotten better? Yeah, I think we have. We have our full group together and we kind of know what works, what we need to work on as we move forward… We have to go in there believing we can steal a game in Phoenix.”
Things didn't turn out the way the coach wanted. Brondello leaves New York after taking the team to the playoffs for four straight years.
Liberty fans hope the next coach can get the team another WNBA title.
