The New York Liberty’s upcoming road trip has gotten off to a painful start before tip-off.
Heading into a Tuesday game against the Los Angeles Sparks (10 p.m. ET, My9), the Liberty added Isabelle Harrison (concussion protocol) to an already expansive injury report. Harrison joins the contributing triumvirate of Kennedy Burke (calf), Nyara Sabally (knee) and Breanna Stewart (knee), all of whom are set to miss yet another game.
Harrison was one of the brightest silver linings of the Liberty’s 83-71 loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday, as she had nine points and five rebounds, including three of the offensive variety, in relief at Barclays Center. But Harrison played less than four minutes of the second half as the game slipped away from New York, including the final 72 seconds of action.
Working through her first year in New York, Harrison has made a late case for Sixth Woman of the Year as she has taken on an expanded role with injuries sidelining Stewart and Jonquel Jones at separate points. Since June 27, Harrison is averaging 7.8 points and 3.1 rebounds in 15 appearances, earning her points on over 56 percent from the field. Recent injuries have derailed Harrison’s career momentum, as she missed the entire 2023 season with a knee injury before returning with the Chicago Sky last year.
Harrison will miss at least part one of a three-pronged Liberty road trip, which tips off with a back-to-back: New York is in SoCal on Tuesday before immediately returning to action in Sin City against the Las Vegas Aces. The interconference tour finishes off in Minneapolis for another high-profile matinee against the Lynx, who do not until the weekend clash, the third of four WNBA Finals rematches.
The Liberty are thus down to eight available players as they try to avenge a July 26 loss to the Sparks. The team would be eligible to sign two women on emergency hardship deals to get back to 10 if the injuries persist.
Despite some recent struggles (3-4 without Burke, Sabally, and Stewart), the Liberty (20-11) still sits in second place on the WNBA leaderboard, albeit 6.5 games behind the league-leading Lynx.