The biggest question for the Liberty’s offseason has been resolved.
In a collection of exit interviews on Friday morning, general manager Jonathan Kolb said Breanna Stewart will be given the core designation — akin to the NFL’s franchise tag — to essentially guarantee she will stay in New York.
“Stewie will 100 percent be cored. She will not be an unrestricted free agent,” Kolb said.
With the core designation, Stewart will receive a one-year qualifying offer worth the league’s supermax salary.
She will only be allowed to talk, negotiate, or sign with the Liberty — no outside teams — during the free-agency period.
Nevertheless, Stewart does not need to sign the qualifying offer; she and the Liberty can reach agreement on a multi-year deal or a deal at a salary lower than the supermax, giving the team additional flexibility in free agency.
Stewart happily took the designation.
“It’s my first time being cored. Not surprising,” Stewart said. “I’m excited for what we’re doing here in New York and with the Liberty. … I’m looking forward to it for many years to come.
“It’s a little bit different because I know my team. I know I’m going to be here. Just making sure my teammates feel the same way that I do. That I love and appreciate being around them. That I love and appreciate sharing the court with them,” Stewart continued. “We felt like we were doing something special and yeah, we didn’t complete our ultimate goal but we can taste it. We can feel it and now it’s getting back to that point and actually making it happen.”
Jonquel Jones’ free agency will begin in early 2024 after she joined the Liberty via a trade from Connecticut on a one-year deal for just over $208,000, according to Spotrac.
Kolb said she is still a top priority for the team.
“With JJ, it was a situation of trying to feel out this season,” he said. “In the postseason, she was arguably our best player just in terms of consistency, the effort she made on the glass, rim protection, finishing, playmaking. She was incredible. So, for us, she’s a player we definitely want to retain and we’ll continue those talks into the offseason.”
Jones said she is “definitely trending towards coming back” to the Liberty.
“It’s been an amazing season and I love my teammates,” she said. “Just gotta go from there.”
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