Liberty Fire Chris DeMarco After One Season

New York has dismissed Chris DeMarco after one season as head coach, leaving the Liberty to search for their third coach in three seasons. DeMarco had said after the playoff loss that he expected to return in 2027.

The Liberty finished the regular season 26-18 and entered the playoffs as the eighth seed. They swept top-seeded Minnesota in the first round, then were swept by Atlanta in the semifinals. New York also won the Commissioner’s Cup.

DeMarco joined the Liberty after spending over ten years on the Golden State Warriors’ coaching staff. He had not coached in the WNBA before. The team endured an inconsistent season, including a 2-8 stretch, and his handling of late-game situations came under scrutiny.

In Game 2 against Atlanta, New York did not use a reset timeout it still had in overtime while trailing by three points with little time remaining. After the series ended, stars Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones did not publicly endorse DeMarco’s return. Ionescu said she did not know what would happen and was thankful for his coaching.

General manager Jonathan Kolb will lead the search for a successor. Potential candidates mentioned include Indiana Fever assistant Briann January, Duke coach Kara Lawson and Los Angeles Lakers assistant Lindsey Harding. The next coach will inherit a roster featuring Stewart, Ionescu and Jones, with expectations high after the team’s recent championship seasons.