After five years, a WNBA championship, and an endless amount of good memories, the New York Liberty have decided to move on from Betnijah Laney-Hamilton.

On August 6th, the team announced that they released Laney-Hamilton. In recent weeks, Laney-Hamilton had fallen out of the Liberty rotation as the coaching staff has found other options to play.

Based on Chris DeMarco’s rotations and the ascendance of developmental player Marine Fauthoux, there were signs this was coming. The French rookie has suited up for 11 of her 12 allotted games, meaning the Liberty either needed to sign her or waive her. In this same stretch, Laney-Hamilton has been a DNP-Coaches Decision. In other words, she’s been healthy enough to play, but has not been given the green light from DeMarco.

New York opted to keep Fauthoux to a multiple year contract. And for Laney-Hamilton, the cold, simple math spelled the end of her time in New York. However, it still doesn’t ease the pain and heartbreak Liberty fans are feeling.

“We want to thank Betnijah for everything she has given to this organization. She has been an instrumental part of our success since 2021 and has made a lasting impact on our team, both on and off the court. We’re incredibly grateful for her professionalism, leadership, and the commitment she brought to the New York Liberty every day,” Liberty General Manager Jonathan Kolb said.

While this decision is incredibly difficult, we believe this will give Betnijah the best opportunity to pursue a larger basketball role. We wish her nothing but success moving forward, and she’ll always be a member of the Liberty family. As a key contributor to the first championship in franchise history, Betnijah’s legacy with the Liberty is forever cemented.”

On the latest edition of We Need to Talk, Erica L. Ayala and Alicia Jay discussed the release and what the future holds for Laney-Hamilton. Erica & Alicia discuss a few teams like Golden State, Washington, and Indiana that could use a veteran defender with championship pedigree.

Jackie Powell reports that teams with cap room like the Los Angeles Sparks, Washington Mystics, and Connecticut Sun could look to acquire Laney-Hamilton off of waivers before the 5 PM deadline on August 8.

The winner of the Laney-Hamilton sweepstakes is the Mystics! Washington is currently the 6th seed and one of three teams, along with Dallas and New York, 6.5 games back of the league-leading Minnesota Lynx.

This is a good fit for both sides, and will be very interesting see how Johnson uses the defensive-savvy vet to help make the Young & Turnt Mystics even more of a problem for top teams around the league.

Also curious to see if Betnijah is able to handle her minutes, were the DNPs more about Laney or Fathoux?

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is a Liberty legend. She played with heart, was beloved by the fans, and was a key part of the team’s first championship.

As she goes on to her next adventure, her time in New York will be remembered forever. Here’s hoping for the best.

We’ll have plenty more on the next edition of Gotta Get Up.

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