The New York Liberty made some big moves on Wednesday; the Liberty acquired Natasha Howard and Sami Whitcomb. For Howard, the Liberty sent its 2021 No.1 overall pick, 2022 First Round pick acquired in the Mercury trade, its own 2022 Second Round pick, and for Whitcomb, they gave up Stephanie Talbot’s rights.
Howard received a four-year, $889,000 deal from New York that will pay her $215,000 next season, according to winsidr.com. She will receive $221,450 in 2022, $227,900 in 2023, and $234,350 in 2024.
Natasha Howard
The former Seattle star is a three-time champion once with the Minnesota Lynx and twice with the Seattle Storm. So Howard will bring championship presence to New York. Along with her championships, Howard will be a physical defensive presence in the middle. She is a two-time WNBA All-Defensive first team member, and Howard won WNBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2019. The three-time champion is athletic and can get steals and has shot-blocking ability.
Along with Howard’s defense, she has some scoring ability; last season, she only averaged 9.5 points per game. Howard struggled early in the bubble but came on late and helped Seattle win the WNBA championship. Last season she did not have to score a lot with Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart back from injury. But in 2019, when Stewart and Bird were out, Howard averaged 18.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. The ability to score is there, and playing with Sabrina Ionescu, Howard should see easy baskets.
Sami Whitcomb
Whitcomb is also a two-time champion with the Storm. She is a role player and will be counted on to knock down open shots and space the floor for New York. Whitcomb averaged 8.1 points per game on 44% shooting from the field and 38% from three-point land. Having Whitcomb on the floor will space the floor for Howard, Ionescu, and newly signed Betnijah Laney room to work on the floor.
These were great moves for the Liberty; they added some strong veteran players that know how to play. If Ionescu can stay healthy, the Liberty will be fun to watch.
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