Breanna Stewart Urges Liberty To Show More Heart After Recent Struggles

New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart challenged the group’s mentality after a 76-67 defeat to the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center, a result that continued a worrying slide and came just two days before the Commissioner’s Cup final on Tuesday.

The loss was New York’s fourth defeat in five outings, underlining a poor stretch for a team expected to contend. Stewart highlighted effort and resilience as key issues as Liberty players left San Francisco with more questions than answers.

The Liberty offence never settled, finishing with only 67 points, their lowest output of the 2026 campaign. New York managed just 29 points before half-time, also a season low, and again struggled to respond once Golden State seized control of the game.

New York’s problems extended beyond shooting. The Liberty bench unit was outscored 39-11, limiting rotation impact and leaving starters under pressure. The team also fell behind by more than 20 points for the second time this year, with both large deficits coming against the Valkyries.

Stewart stressed that the group must respond with a stronger mindset before facing the Commissioner’s Cup final. You can't play with heart and play with effort just when things are going good, Stewart said.

Stewart described the current stretch as an important test for a roster still developing. It's really the moments when you're at the lowest. And this team - we're obviously not a finished product, but this wasn't a great showing, especially coming off of a loss. When you think it's going to go good, sometimes it goes back, and vice versa. I think the biggest thing that I continue to preach to the team is [don't get] too high or too low. Of course, these games, when we take these Ls, are going to matter later. There are some we will look back on and be upset about later. But the focus is on now. That's all we can do.

With those recent defeats likely to influence playoff seeding, the Liberty enter Tuesday’s Commissioner’s Cup final needing a strong answer. Performance levels against Golden State have exposed issues in depth, composure and consistency, areas Stewart wants addressed immediately rather than in the later stages of the 2026 season.