After one season, Chris DeMarco will not return as New York Liberty head coach.
ESPN’s Alexa Phillippou broke the news early in the morning on November 3 that the Liberty will be making a coaching change
The team went 26-18 in his rookie season and there were some highlights to put to DeMarco’s name. A year after the Liberty’s inability to rebound cost them a very winnable series against the Phoenix Mercury, they finished third in rebounding rate. The team has spoken for years about finding more shots at the rim, and they finally started to make progress in that area. New York attempted their highest amount of shots inside the restricted area since 2023. As per usual, the Liberty were top two in terms of field goal percentage inside of the RA.
A lot of their increased presence in the restricted area stemmed from the rise of Pauline Astier and the coaching staff’s increasing trust in her. Astier grew from an unknown rookie to key playoff contributor and is an important part of the team’s future. The same can be said for Marine Fauthoux, who earnedher way into the rotation from a developmental contract and was part of the lineup that fought to save the Liberty’s season in the playoffs. Along the way, she hit the biggest shot of the Liberty’s season
The team captured their second Commissioner’s Cup in June. They pulled off a series sweep against the one seeded Minnesota Lynx after most expected Minnesota to win. Not bad for a first year head coach that navigated a wave of injuries and worse seasons than expected.
However, expectations are a lot higher than that and his work was not enough.
The feeling entering into the season for this group was championship or bust. With Breanna Stewart still in her prime and playing at an MVP level, Jonquel Jones playing at an All-WNBA caliber level, Sabrina Ionescu having a coach that was supposed to unlock her game, the newly acquired Satou Sabally and a deep, versatile roster complementing the stars, the Liberty expected to compete for the WNBA title and be near the top of the standings. Everything lined up for the Liberty to have a big season and re-establish themselves atop the WNBA hierarchy. However, New York never found their footing.
DeMarco had issues locking down a set rotation and base defense throughout the year. New York cycled through a litany of coverages and schemes as they sought to find success and compensate for the absence of Leonie Fiebich in July, but it ultimately wasn’t enough and the defense remained a weak point.
DeMarco bore the brunt of Betnijah Laney-Hamilton falling out of the rotation and ultimately, her release. He became the poster boy for fans’ frustration with the departure of the future Liberty Ring of Honor member and seemingly wasn’t able to win the fans back. It was a bit more complicatedthan that, but when you’re the representative of the organization, that comes with the territory.
Criticism came in from fans and media alike, and as the year progressed, more and more arrows made contact without much support or defense from the organization. In some respects, DeMarco was left to fend for himself and was unable to stem the tide.
And then, Game 2 in Atlanta. In a truly chaotic ending to what was a close, winnable game against the Dream, DeMarco and his staff had a reset timeout in their disposal for the final possession of overtime trailing by three points. However, they did not properly keep track of how many timeouts they had left and they (along with the players) were misinformed by the officials of the timeouts they had left. It became an entire fracas that added one more layer of stress and frustration to an already high-stakes situation. It wasn’twhy they lost, but for a head coach that faced mountains of criticism throughout the year, it was a rough look at the worst possible time.
After the season ended, playersin exit interviews did not say whether they wanted him to remain as head coach and placed the decision in the front office’s hands. Without public backing from the players and none from the fans, it was only a matter of time before the clock struck midnight on DeMarco and his time as a member of the Liberty. Now, the team he departs has to search for their third head coach in three seasons.
The Liberty are in a great city with a devoted fanbase, iconic player, and supportive ownership. However, they have big questions to answer, starting with the roster and if it’s good enough to contend for championships. This is a high-stakes operation with no margin for error.
As Jonathan Kolb and Liberty management begin another coaching search, these words from last year come to mind:
“We needed an industry leader when it comes to player development. We have to be an organization where our star players are routinely adding layers to their game, but also where our role players are developing and turning into starters. And we need to plant our flag as the home of development where players around the league know that this is where you come if you want to be at your very best.“
Time to begin the journey all over again. We’ll see if it works this time.
