New York Liberty Star achieves and strives for emotional victory

BROOKLYN— October is an emotional time for New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart’s family, for her relatives on and off the floor.

Of course, little more needs to be said about what she’s built with 11 de facto sisters, as the Liberty will begin another run for their first WNBA title starting Thursday night against the Minnesota Lynx (8 p.m. ET, ESPN). Of course, Stewart has played an important role along the way so far, notably posting a double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Liberty defeated the Las Vegas Aces in the deciding semifinals on Sunday.

While the general sea foam feeling was understandable jubilation, Stewart shared a moment with her wife Marta immediately afterwards: Sunday’s win came exactly a year and a day after Marta’s father, Josep Xargay, passed away after battling cancer.

“No matter what happens, it’s a really tough time,” Stewart said in the postgame on Sunday. “Just the way the show went last year, going through all of that and making sure this year is different, Marta and I talk about doing everything her father would want us to do, and we continue to do that.”

Amid this tragedy, Stewart’s Liberty lost a four-game championship series to the Aces, ending with a 3-of-17 shooting performance (albeit with 14 rebounds) in the final defeat. Stewart indirectly admitted that she and her Seafoam colleagues followed what was said about them, but their priority in Las Vegas was personal peace.

“I have receipts for the things that were said and the whole team is doing,” Stewart said. “But really my mindset today was to go out and get this win for my wife and her dad.”

Just before the end of the calendar year, Stewart and Marta welcomed their second child, a boy named Theo (pronounced Tay-o), who joined their older daughter Ruby. Theo’s middle name is Josep in honor of his late grandfather.

Theo’s arrival is one of several major victories that Stewart has included in her personal profile over the past 365-plus days: She previously took part in the United States women’s national basketball team’s run to its final gold medal in Paris over the summer, and that was Liberty thereby securing home advantage for this edition of the finals after starting the duel with the Aces in Sin City.

In between, Stewart announced the formation of Unrivaled, a national offseason league to be played in Florida during the WNBA offseason. It is a joint project with future final opponent and former University of Connecticut teammate Napheesa Collier.

As the Liberty prepared for their chance to win the championship, Stewart looked back on how both of their families continue to honor Josep’s memory and make him proud.

“I think the way we’ve made Joseph, Marta’s father, my father-in-law, proud this season is by just doing everything we can to enjoy life one moment at a time “It’s like being with the kids or getting to the final,” Stewart said. “He’s been one of the biggest supporters I’ve had since I’ve known him.”

“It’s still crazy that he’s gone, but we’ll continue to think of him and make him proud.”

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