New York Liberty star who underwent surgery could miss most of WNBA season

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton suffered an acute meniscus surgery during the WNBA offseason, the Liberty reported Monday.

New York Liberty forward Betnijah Laney-Hamilton underwent surgery on her left knee to repair an acute meniscus injury, the time announced Monday afternoon.

The Liberty reported that Laney-Hamilton is projected to return to basketball activity in five to six months, which would mean she’s likely to miss most, if not all, of the entire WNBA season.

Laney-Hamilton has been an integral part of Liberty since she joined the team in 2021. This past season, she averaged 11.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists across 28 games.

The 9-year WNBA veteran has played for the Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Indiana Fever, Atlanta Dream, and Liberty throughout her career.

It appears that Betnijah Laney-Hamilton suffered the injury during her Unrivaled tenure

In the offseason, Laney-Hamilton played in Unrivaled as a relief player for the Laces, but suffered what was an undisclosed injury at the time. The new professional women’s basketball 3-on-3 basketball league announced shortly after that Laney-Hamilton would miss the rest of the season.

Shortly after, the Liberty released a statement to The Next’s Jackie Powell on Laney-Hamilton’s status: “The New York Liberty are in communication with Unrivaled, Betnijah, and her team. We are gathering information and determining [the] best next steps with our medical staff. Further updates will be provided when available.”

Led by Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, and Sabrina Ionescu, the Liberty will still be stacked next season

The Liberty will certainly miss Betnijah Laney-Hamilton next season, as she was a vital and proven contributor and one of the team’s elite defenders.

But the offseason acquisition of Natasha Cloud should lessen the impact of Laney-Hamilton’s lengthy absence. Cloud is similarly an elite veteran two-way player who averaged 11.5 points and 6.9 assists for the Phoenix Mercury last season.

Most importantly, Liberty still have their Big Three from last year: 2024 Finals MVP Jonquel Jones, two-time MVP Breanna Stewart, and sharpshooter Sabrina Ionescu, in addition to Leonie Fiebich, who had a superb rookie season last season.

Still, Laney-Hamilton is a major loss. And while she’s not officially out for the entire season, the timeline the Liberty provided indicates she’ll, at the very least, miss most of it, as the WNBA season is set to begin in May and run through October.