UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Emma Meesseman knew it was time to come back to the WNBA. She felt most comfortable with New York, so the prized free agent decided to join the Liberty for the final two months of the season.
The 2019 Finals MVP, who last played in the league in 2022, arrived in New York a few days ago after getting her visa and then came up to Connecticut for the Liberty’s game Friday night against the Sun.
“I know people here. ... I was like okay, New York,” she said. “Its a big city. Easy to reach. We’ll see how I feel. We want to win. I think everyone knows in the W, you never know who’s going to win. It’s impossible to choose. It’s a gamble. I’m the kind of person or player who just wants to be home because I like being home. I like to be around good people. Not saying that’s not the case in other places as well.”
Meesseman was also looking at joining Minnesota or Phoenix.
She spent 30 minutes after shootaround ended working out with assistant Andrew Wade, who Meesseman knows from her time in Washington. She’ll suit up for the game, but coach Sandy Brondello said that she’d only play in the case of an emergency.
“It’s great to have Emma, she only just got here, we’ll get her up to speed. I don’t anticipate her playing tonight,” Brondello said. “She’ll dress. She just got off the plane, it’s been a busy few days.”
Meesseman has watched the WNBA’s growth from afar while helping Belgium compete at the FIBA World Cup and the Olympics the last few years.
“It changed. I wanted to try it again and see with all these fans following the new players, new young players,” she said at shootaround. “I love basketball so I was trying to play as much as I can.”
After helping Belgium qualify for next year’s World Cup in Germany earlier this summer, Meesseman decided it was time to return to the league.
“It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a longer time, coming back to the W,” she said. “I know the national team is a priority for me. I didn’t sign (earlier) because I wanted to play for the (Belgium) Federation and focus on the EuroBasket. Then it was a matter of timing, visa, making a decision of how I felt. The past few days have been really fast.”
Her arrival is a boost for the squad, which will be without Breanna Stewart for a few weeks while in her right knee. New York also is without Nyara Sabally (knee) and Kennedy Burke (right calf strain).
Meesseman and Stewart are both 6-foot-4 forwards.
While she’s played with Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Natasha Cloud before as well as was coached by Brondello, Meesseman said that they weren’t big on recruiting her.
“I got some texts, but also am a person who doesn’t like to be influenced by people,” she said. “I want to be the one making the decision. Jonathan can confirm I am difficult to reach at times so it was more through my agent.”
The Liberty (17-9) are in second place in the standings despite having lost three straight games. They are in the midst of a busy stretch with three games in the next five days, playing twice in Connecticut on Friday and Sunday and then hosting Dallas on Tuesday.
Meesseman is a two-time All-Star and helped the Washington Mystics win the 2019 title. She has been focused on leading the Belgium national team since her last season in the WNBA, which she spent with the Chicago Sky. Meesseman played with Natasha Cloud, whom New York acquired in the offseason, in Washington when the Mystics won their championship six years ago.
Even without Stewart for the immediate future, the Liberty still have a talented group around Meesseman with Sabrina Ionescu, Jones, Cloud and Leonie Fiebich leading the way.
Meesseman has dominated overseas in her time away from the WNBA. She was named the EuroBasket MVP twice in the past three years. She helped Belgium reach the medal round at the Paris Olympics before it lost to France in overtime in the semifinals and then Australia in the bronze-medal game.
The Liberty waived guard Jaylyn Sherrod to make room for Meesseman.
“Jaylyn Sherrod is a champion in every sense of the word. She embodies the passion, grit, and relentlessness that define the city of New York,” Kolb said. “Her rise from undrafted free agent to WNBA Champion is one of the most remarkable stories I’ve had the good fortune to witness, a testament to perseverance, and a powerful reminder to always push the boundaries and to never give up.”
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