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Liberty vs. Dream: Preview, Odds, How & Who to Watch (7/27)

The New York Liberty will search for consistency and another win against the Atlanta Dream as a busy week in Brooklyn continues.

Geoff Magliocchetti

It'll perhaps be bold for the New York Liberty to ask Sabrina Ionescu to throw on less than a day's rest.

Ionescu, who opened the Subway Series finale with the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night, will no doubt welcome the Liberty's next challenge, a Thursday bout against the streaking Atlanta Dream. It will top off the second half of a speedy four-game homestand for New York, which will immediately return to action on Friday against Minnesota in a contest rescheduled from June.

The Brooklyn activity is part of a jam-packed dozen-day stretch for New York, which has been dealt seven games in the first 12 days after the WNBA All-Star break. It has been an eventful and stressful ... if not rewarding ... stretch that has seen the Liberty go 3-1 thus far, including an 86-82 victory over the Seattle Storm on Tuesday. Ionescu's serendipitous statline (12 points, assists, and rebounds each) produced her fourth career professional triple-double and helped the Liberty erase a deficit that reached as high as 18.

Atlanta comes in as one of the WNBA's hotter teams with eight wins in their past 10. It dropped a home-and-home to third-place Connecticut last week but got back in the win column with a 78-65 triumph over Phoenix on Tuesday night. The Dream, currently stationed in fifth on the WNBA leaderboard, is one of three teams to beat the Liberty at home this season, taking an 86-79 decision on June 13 with Ionescu sidelined. New York won both meetings in Atlanta by a combined 53-point margin.

What: Atlanta Dream (13-10) @ New York Liberty (17-5)

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY

When/Watch: Thursday, 7 p.m. ET, YES/Amazon Prime Video

Who's Favored: NYL -6.5

Keep An Eye On: Jonquel Jones

If Jones has found her game, then this Liberty season ... namely the four upcoming matchups against the league-leading Las Vegas Aces ... just became even more interesting.

The rebounding machine, shutdown defender, and well-versed shooter got off to a slow start to this season, beleaguered by a nagging foot injury that was perhaps more annoying than it was painful. Jones was still able to take the floor in order to make her New York debut, but she'd be the first to admit that she wasn't anywhere near her true self: in her first 18 games, Jones shot 53 percent from the floor but she was putting up less than eight shots a game.

The break, however, appeared to come at a perfect time for Jones, who has rediscovered her shooting touch to the tune of 43 attempts in the first four games of the second half. Most of her scoring has come in the first half, allowing the Liberty to build early advantages, such as the one earned through a WNBA-record 44 points on Sunday against the Indiana Fever. For her most recent efforts, Jones was bestowed the latest Eastern Conference Player of the Week Award by the Association.

Jones' shot might not have been on display in the Seattle win, but she managed to both bank in the triple that put New York ahead for good and also pull in a season-best 17 rebounds.

Dream to Watch: Cheyenne Parker 

The progress of Rhyne Howard (the top pick of the 2022 draft) and Allisha Gray (in the midst of a career-best season after coming over from Dallas) has paced Atlanta. But one of the most intriguing subplots of the entire WNBA season has been the emergence of Parker, who was invited to her first All-Star Game at age 30. 

The Queens native has been a woman of many talents for the Dream, leading Atlanta with 7.3 rebounds a game and standing as the best free throw shooter on the team that has gotten to the foul line the most in the WNBA this season. Having originally made an impact as a reserve in Chicago, Parker has used this season to establish herself as a lasting starter in the Association. New York will be charged with denying her second chances on Thursday night: Parker has earned three games with at least five offensive boards, including Saturday's narrow defeat against Connecticut.

Prediction

As much of a statement as Tuesday's win can be, an undeniable truth lingers: the Liberty aren't going to accomplish their goals if they come out like the way they did against the Storm and that more developed, more experienced, more prepared teams are going to bite them if they do. 

Despite the one-sided nature of the showdowns in Atlanta, the Dream should pose a formidable challenge for the Liberty, especially as they seek a statement after dropping two to the Sun. New York has contained its composure as time's gone on, but Atlanta has a prime opportunity to take advantage of a fatiguing group.

Dream 78, Liberty 75

Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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Geoff Magliocchetti
GEOFF MAGLIOCCHETTI

Editor-In-Chief at All Knicks

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