The New York Liberty and Portland Fire are heading into their third and final match of the regular season Monday night, and somehow the 2024 WNBA champions have found themselves facing a pivotal moment in their season way, way too early. The Liberty and Fire have each won a game apiece, and Monday's match will force both teams to demonstrate just how hard they can fight.
At this point, the idea that the Fire could beat the Liberty isn't even far-fetched. The team pulled off their first-ever road victory against the Toronto Tempo this weekend, winning 99-80 and shutting down critics who have questioned everything from the roster to the coaching staff to the team itself. The Fire came into the 2026 season as one of two new expansion teams, and expectations were low — but like the Valkyries before them, it's starting to feel like they're perfectly fine exceeding those expectations and then some.
The Liberty, on the other hand, is supposed to be one of the toughest teams in the league, and if they don't win tonight, plenty of people will begin to question the veracity of that statement. The team largely kept their core players during free agency, and Sabrina Ionescu returned from injury just in time for New York to lose 91-76 Sunday night — at home. Unlike a lot of teams who are working with new configurations and structures, the Liberty already have preexisting rotations that work.
The Liberty is operating with a new coach, which could explain their slow start this season to a point.
But: having said all of that, there are a few factors to consider before writing off a team as talented and promising as New York. Satou Sabally also just played for the first time Sunday after being injured, and Leonie Fiebich has still not made her 2026 debut. It's not only possible, it's probable that New York will begin playing like a brand-new team once the roster is available in full, and Chris DeMarco's plans can be fully implemented.
Unfortumately, that does little for the team as they face Portland tonight. The Liberty will likely be hungry to win a game for their hometown fans, but the Fire will be just as hungry to shutdown yet another team and keep their road streak alive. In the end, tonight's game may just come down to who wants it more, and which team is capable of fighting longer. There's no real way to know who that might be until it happens, but there's one thing to count on: tonight's match will likely be a very good one.
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