WNBA New York Liberty

Breanna Stewart Voted 2023 Kia WNBA MVP, Earns First MVP in New York Liberty History

Published on September 26, 2023 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
New York Liberty News Release


NEW YORK - The WNBA announced today that New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart has been named the 2023 Kia WNBA Most Valuable Player, becoming the first MVP in Liberty franchise history, as well as the first honoree in New York professional basketball since 1969-1970.

"Stewie's first season with the New York Liberty has been nothing short of historic on every level," said Liberty General Manager Jonathan Kolb. "The constant resiliency, belief, selflessness, toughness, and professionalism she has brought to the Liberty on a nightly basis is an incredibly rare combination - culminating in such a special season, both personally and collectively. We could not be more thrilled for Stewie to receive the highest individual honor in our game, which is incredibly deserved, and for her to continue propelling both our organization and the WNBA to new levels."

In her first season with New York, where she led the Liberty to a franchise-best 32-8 (.800) regular season finish, Stewart produced career-bests of 23.0 points per game and 3.8 assists per game, along with 9.3 rebounds, 1.6 blocks, and 1.5 steals per game on 46.5% from the field, 35.5% from three, and 85.1% from the line. Leaguewide, she ranked second in scoring, third in rebounding, third in total blocks, third in double-doubles (20), and eighth in steals.

During her 2023 MVP campaign, Breanna rewrote both the league and franchise record books, while helping lead the Liberty to its first-ever Commissioner's Cup Championship. Her unprecedented four 40-point games set a WNBA single-season record and tied the all-time WNBA record for career 40-point games. Additionally, Stewart's 919 points are the second-most all-time in a single season, her five 35-point games tied the WNBA single-season record, and her 371 rebounds set the Liberty single-season record.

This is Stewart's second career WNBA MVP Award, having previously earned the honor in 2018 with the Seattle Storm, which makes her just the second player to win the award on multiple teams. She is now also the eighth player in WNBA history to win the award multiple times, joining three-time winners Lauren Jackson, Lisa Leslie, and Sheryl Swoopes, as well as two-time MVPs Cynthia Cooper, Elena Delle Donne, Candace Parker, and A'ja Wilson.

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