Jonquel Jones has been a powerhouse for the New York Liberty during the 2023 WNBA season. The 2021 WNBA MVP requested a trade to the New York Liberty prior to this season after feeling like her time with the Connecticut Sun had come to an end. And, as we all know, she was quickly joined by free agents Breanna Stewart and Courtney Vandersloot. While her (personal) season started off a little slow, she is a huge reason why the New York Liberty found themselves in the WNBA Finals this season. If they want to put together a comeback against the dominant Las Vegas Aces in this Finals series, Jonquel Jones is going to have to be a huge part of that.
The fact that Jones is seen as a second or even third option on her team is just proof of how tough this New York Liberty roster is. Jones has six years of experience in the WNBA, even more experience overseas, and a collection of awards and accolades. Born in the Bahamas, Jones came to the United States in high school to play basketball in Maryland, later attending both Clemson and George Washington University to play collegiate basketball. She was then selected sixth overall in the 2016 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks but had her draft rights traded to the Connecticut Sun in exchange for Chelsea Gray.
After being the primary backup center for the Sun in her rookie season, Jones moved to a starting role in 2017. She went from averaging 6.8 points per game (PPG) in 2016 to averaging 15.4 PPG in 2017. At the conclusion of that breakout 2017 season, Jones won the WNBA’s Most Improved Player award and made the All-WNBA Second Team for the first time.
Speaking of accolades, Jones now boasts several more. She has two All-Defensive Team nods, an All-WNBA First Team honor, and a Sixth Player of the Year award to her name. After opting out of the WNBA Bubble season in 2020, Jones came back in 2021 to win regular season MVP, averaging 19.4 PPG for the Connecticut Sun.
Despite Jonquel’s dominance and the talent on the Sun during her time there, the team was not able to win a WNBA championship. In 2022, they came close by making it to the WNBA Finals, but they lost to the Las Vegas Aces. Jones decided in the offseason that she’d like to be traded, and New York was her destination.
During the first half of the 2023 WNBA season, there was definitely concern about Jonquel Jones’ play. She was fouling more often than usual and wasn’t able to score as much as she had in previous years. Plus, her footwork wasn’t where it needed to be, likely partially due to a foot injury she was healing from at the start of the season. It was a slower start for Jones (and the team as a whole) than Liberty fans were expecting. She noted her conditioning (post-injury) took a while to build up. However, things really started to mesh as the season carried on, and for Jones especially, things really improved after the All-Star break.
Jones ended up helping the New York Liberty win the 2023 Commissioner’s Cup final game against the Las Vegas Aces, winning the MVP title for that game as well. She tallied 16 points, 15 rebounds, one assist, one steal, and two blocks to bring home the money for the Liberty.
There isn’t time to go over every instance when Jonquel Jones has been the key to the New York Liberty’s success this season, so let’s focus on the 2023 playoffs. New York got a terrible draw in the first round when they were matched up with the Washington Mystics for a best-of-three series. Though the Mystics were seeded seventh in the WNBA standings at the end of the regular season, they were surely not your average seventh seed. Countless injuries and a string of bad luck left a talented team much lower than expected when it all shook out. That first round could have gone either way. Despite a close call in game two against the Mystics, the Liberty took the series in two games, and that was because of the heroic last minute efforts of Jonquel Jones. With the Liberty down two points, Jones secured a clutch rebound and was fouled on the play, sinking the two free throws to tie the game and keep the Liberty alive.
Next, the Liberty faced Jones’ old team, the Connecticut Sun, for a best-of-five series. Despite the Sun taking game one, the Liberty won three in a row, taking the series. In that game four, the score was extremely close, and the Liberty ended up winning 87-84. Jones notched 25 points, 15 rebounds, two assists, one steal, and four blocks in that game, including late-game clutch rebounds and points to push New York over the edge.
Now the Liberty are facing their toughest challenge all season. They are down 2-0 in a best-of-five series against the dynasty-building Las Vegas Aces. While there isn’t much the Liberty can do to stop the Aces’ backcourt, they do have a slight edge in the frontcourt when it comes to Jonquel Jones. Her size makes it hard for Defensive Player of the Year A’ja Wilson to keep tabs on both her and Breanna Stewart, and if New York is going to build any kind of comeback, it’ll be on Jones and Stewart to get it done.
There is so much about Jonquel Jones that is exciting to watch. Her size and strength make her a threat near the basket, both offensively and defensively. Her rebounding has saved her team in so many situations, which is unsurprising considering that she led the league in offensive rebounds this season. Her post All-Star leap alone, as Myles Ehrlich explained in a previous story, is something both her and her teammates have been extremely proud of.
As Jonquel Jones has proved this season, and especially in the playoffs, she is an X factor for the New York Liberty this season. Now that they are on the brink of elimination, it will have to be Jones to help bring them a win as we head into a series of do-or-die games for New York. In the midst of a season of phenomenal games from Jones, hopefully she has a few more double-doubles in her before the curtain is drawn on the 2023 WNBA campaign.
Stats as of Oct. 14. Unless otherwise noted, stats courtesy of ESPN.com
