Liberty fire Chris DeMarco after getting swept by Dream in WNBA Playoffs appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The New York Liberty had a disappointing end to the 2026 WNBA season. New York was swept out of the playoff by Atlanta , extinguishing their hopes of a deep postseason run before they began. Team ownership was clearly not pleased with that outcome, which led to a huge announcement on Tuesday.
The Liberty will not retain Chris DeMarco as their head coach for the 2027 season, per ESPN's Alexa Philippou.
New York went 26-18 during the regular season and barely made the playoffs as the No. 8 seed in 2026. They took care of business against the Lynx in the first round, but couldn't squeak out any wins against the Dream.
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Now the Liberty will be on the hunt for their third head coach in three seasons.
DeMarco expected to return as Liberty head coach immediately following the team's playoff exit.
Perhaps statements like this one from Breanna Stewart influenced the team's decision on DeMarco. Stewart declared that New York lacked consistency throughout the 2026 season. It ended up contributing to their swift playoff exit.
"I don't think we were consistent (throughout the season)…This is not cramming for a test. You gotta be ready to go and ready to go from the jump," Stewart said.
The 2026 season for the Liberty included some incredible highs and lows. New York was clutch in their Commissioner's Cup win over Vegas. However, that lack of consistency that Stewie mentioned cost the Liberty on multiple occasions.
Now New York must do some soul searching and determine how they want to address these issues during the offseason.
It all starts with the Liberty finding a new head coach. New York has a lot to offer with Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones all locked up through the 2028 season. But the Liberty do have some key free agents like Marine Johannes and Pauline Astier who may want a raise.
The Liberty should be a fascinating team to follow throughout the WNBA offseason.

