New York Liberty to open 2022 season on May 7 in Brooklyn

The New York Liberty will open their 26th season on Saturday, May 7 against the Connecticut Sun at Barclays Center, the team and WNBA announced Thursday.

New York’s 2022 regular season schedule features 36 games — up from 34 last season as the WNBA gets back to normal. The schedule included 18 games at Barclays Center. This will be the second season Joe and Clara Wu Tsai’s team in Brooklyn. Last season produced the Libs first playoff run in four years as well as the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year, Michaela Onyenwere. Betnijah Laney was also named to the WNBA All-Star team and Sabrina Ionescu’s jersey became the league’s top seller.

Four of the first five Liberty games will be in Brooklyn, with a lone road matchup coming against the reigning WNBA Champion Chicago Sky on May 11. After a three-game homestand beginning May 13 through May 17 against Indiana, Dallas, and Connecticut, the team will embark on a three-game road trip to Minnesota and Seattle (two games) from May 24 to 29.

New York’s busiest month will be June with an 11-game slate. The month will also feature seven home and four away games, highlighted by three home Sunday matinee matchups with Minnesota, Chicago, and Seattle on June 5, 12, and 19, respectively.

July will begin on the West Coast, as New York takes on Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Phoenix from July 3 to 7. The following two weeks will feature Tuesday to Thursday splits, with the first against Las Vegas at home (two games), and the second being a pair of Eastern Conference road bouts against the Washington Mystics and Connecticut Sun.

The second half of New York’s schedule is highlighted by another four-of-five-game homestand from July 23 to August 3, which will feature contests against Chicago, Phoenix, and Los Angeles (two games).

Following the stretch at home, the Liberty will hit the road with stops in Phoenix, Dallas (two games), and Atlanta from August 6 to 12. Their 2022 regular season play will conclude at Barclays Center against the Atlanta Dream on August 14.

All-Star Weekend will be from July 9-10 and The Commissioner’s Cup will take place on Tuesday July 26.

The Liberty made the playoffs last season after an improbable set of circumstances provided them with an last minute opportunity to sneak in the the post-season. They barely lost to WNBA Finalists, the Phoenix Mercury, in a one-game showdown. The Merc eventually lost in the WNBA Finals.

In a bit of a surprise earlier in the week, the Liberty and head coach Walt Hopkins parted ways. While the Libs made the playoffs, they had a 12-20 record overall and a 2-9 record to finish the season. A number of those losses featured late game collapses.

Among the names being circulated as possible successors are Teresa Weatherspoon, the Liberty legend who’s an assistant coach with the Pelicans in the NBA, and Sandy Brondello, who the Mercury let go this week. Brondello won it all with Phoenix in 2014. A new coach can be expected to be in place by January 15, the opening of WNBA free agency.

The Liberty teamed up with local nail artist and owner of New York City’s Bed of Nails, Candice Idehen to create customized nail designs as part of the 2022 schedule release.

The video features special hand models including Laney and Liberty In-Arena Host Jess Sims. They can be downloaded here as can the full schedule, available here.

In discussing the New York Liberty with YES Network’s Michael Grady two weeks ago, Clara Wu Tsai was asked to describe her vision for the WNBA team.

“Investment,” Wu Tsai quickly responded. “We’re going to invest in the New York Liberty the same way we invest in our NBA team,” said Wu Tsai who is co-governor of the Libs with husband Joe Tsai.

Liberty fans can purchase tickets for the team’s home opener on May 7 HERE today. Season ticket memberships and partial ticketing plans are also on sale for New York’s 2022 season. For more information, please call 718-624-7000 or visit nyliberty.com/memberships.

• New York Liberty Unveil 2022 Regular Season Schedule - New York Liberty