NY Liberty GM defined the end of the 2025 season as a “fork in the road moment” while explaining the firing of Sandy Brondello. The franchise moved on from their player-backed coach and then went on to hire Chris DeMarco from the Golden State Warriors as their next leader. Despite heading into a new era, Kolb had the “utmost confidence” that the core, consisting of Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones, will be back. But the new CBA’s financial reality makes that extremely difficult. 

The new salary cap is slated to be $7 million in its first year, up from $1.5 million last year. The supermax will stand at $1.4 million, marking a 20% cap hit, up from 16.5% last year. In addition, there will be an extra player on the squad, as teams are now required to carry 12 players. The problem for Liberty is that all three of their players are up for a supermax.

Breanna Stewart is the obvious one. She was the 2nd highest earner for Liberty last year, earning $208,400. She contributed much more than what that number says. Unfortunately, it will be difficult for Liberty to retain all three. 

“I think it’s going to be really hard for the Liberty to give her (Breanna Stewart) a supermax because then you look at the rest of the roster and how much do you give Sabrina Ionescu or Jonquel Jones?” said New York Post reporter Madeline Kenney on the ‘Liberty Lately.’ If all three get a supermax, that is 60% of your cap gone. Dividing up 40% among 9 players is unrealistic. So how should the salary cap be divided if Kolb wants all three to continue with the Liberty?

“I think that a starting lineup you have to think about for a championship-contending team is probably going to be anywhere from 55 to 60% of your cap, and then the rest of the roster gets that 40% divvied out to all of them,” Kenney said. But Liberty has Leonie Fiebich on a rookie contract whose future salary is unknown. 

The past No. 1 draft picks will earn around $500,000. So Fiebich, as a 22nd overall pick in her third year, will certainly earn less than that. Which means her cap hit will be less than 7%. So they have approximately 54-55% of their cap to divide between 4 players. Natasha Cloud earned $200,000 or 16.6% of the cap. 

She will get a pay bump but Cloud’s cap hit will probably go down. Assuming the big 3 are willing to settle for a million (a big if), that is 14.29% of the cap. That means Cloud would have to agree to take 11-12%, which is 770000-840,000 which is still a good number. So, it is possible but a lot of gymnastics are needed. 

And Stewart, Ionescu, and Jones are sacrificing $400,000 in this math. But that is just on paper. In reality, it is very possible that no one in the league earns $1.4 million because this applies to everyone. It depends on the GMs as to what maximum they are willing to offer. While Kolb has a task ahead, it is possible to retain his front three. Because they want to be on a competitive side as well. However, this new CBA brings other challenges as well. 

NY Liberty Faced With Multiple Threats In Retaining Glory

Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones are on the wrong side of 30 and towards the end of their primes. Sabrina Ionescu is at her best at 28 years old and she has been seen working for Liberty despite being out of contract. She reportedly played a role in the hiring of Chris DeMarco. She appeared on the Warriors’ sidelines and also at Chris DeMarco’s introduction. Naturally, it’s very likely she is coming back. 

And as mentioned earlier, it’s very difficult to adjust all three on a supermax. And to convince them for a lower salary, the NY Liberty face a perception change. “I think we talk about the supermax in the NBA as this elite status, a status symbol. And I think in the WNBA it might just be more of becoming a million-dollar player. I think that’s something that a lot of players are looking to reach,” Kenney said. 

That peak of earning a super max is the flower of all their past efforts. Especially for Stewart, who literally worked with the WNBPA and their negotiations. This is the time to cash in. In addition, Kolb hired a coach they all backed. 

Remember when she was asked about Brondello’s potential departure in the exit interview, Stewart said, “What the f***? ” She further declared that there should be no questions on her coach. “To anybody that questions Sandy being here—this is a resilient group, and she has our back and we have hers,” Stewart declared. That was the sentiment from Ionescu as well. So will they agree to a pay cut without their favorite coach to stay at NY Liberty? Only time will tell.