Liberty's Leonie Fiebich could be big factor in quest for title after big Game 1

Leonie Fiebich was showing up all over the big picture Sunday at Barclays Center — being introduced with the starters for the start of the playoffs in a seismic lineup shift, swishing long-range shots, disrupting on defense, a 6-4 rookie wing really announcing her presence.

Her Liberty-leading and WNBA career-high 21 points — built on 7-for-8 shooting, including 4-for-4 three-point shooting, and 3-for-3 foul shooting — stood out in their 83-69 Game 1 win over Atlanta.

“Leo was unconscious,” said Courtney Vandersloot, one of the league’s all-time great point guards, who was moved to the second unit by coach Sandy Brondello to make room for the 24-year-old native of Germany and LF Endesa league MVP the past two seasons with Zaragoza in Spain.

Fiebich was out there again at Barclays Tuesday night trying to assist this top-seeded team with beating the No. 8 Dream in the best-of-three opening round and moving on to the semis.

She could turn out to be a major player in the Liberty’s bid for their first league title, a player rising alongside their constellation of stars. The team has been hyping her for the WNBA’s Sixth Woman of the Year Award.

“Fiebich, amazing,” Brondello said. “What a great rookie.”

Her debut season here landed her on the AP’s All-Rookie team. But she actually has been a pro overseas since 2016. Her WNBA rights bounced around like a basketball before she found a home in Brooklyn.

Los Angeles drafted Fiebich in the second round in 2020, then traded her rights a year later to Chicago. The Liberty then acquired her rights in February of 2023.

Then this past February, they signed her to a four-year deal.

“They’re actually the first organization that really reached out to me, so that was exciting,” Fiebich said outside the Liberty locker room after the media crowd had dwindled to one last Thursday night following the home loss to Atlanta that closed the regular season. “I was in contact with them here and there.

“It really felt like they cared, so that was pretty cool to see. So it made the step easier to come over here.”

The Liberty wanted to upgrade their depth. And Fiebich ended up filling in as a starter for 15 games.

“She’s very poised,” said Tina Charles, the Dream center and former Liberty star.

Fiebich’s two-way talent was apparent whenever she was on the court. She proved she was a winning player on a 32-8 team — 13-2 with her among the starting five. Her cumulative plus-minus of plus-279 ranked second for rookies in WNBA history.

“For us to be the No. 1 seed and for her impact for us at both ends of the floor — she’s made us a way better defensive team than last year,” Brondello said. “Just adding that one player, really, that’s made a big difference.

“Just her ability to play well with our stars, so to speak, and just play basketball the right way. I think everyone should appreciate how hard she plays and how she plays basketball how basketball should be played.”

Stats don’t interest Fiebich much. Her averages were modest, 20.9 minutes, 6.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists.

But she hit 43.3% of her threes, good for seventh in the league, third for players with at least 100 tries and second in WNBA history for rookies with at least 125 tries.

Defensively, she had four steals in one game against Los Angeles and made at least one in nine straight games.

“Leo is a great defender,” Brondello said. “She’s got that length.”

During the league’s summer timeout for the Paris Olympics, Fiebich helped Germany reach the quarterfinals and ranked fourth among all players by averaging 2.5 steals.

“I would say, just defensively, I think I’ve developed a little bit,” Fiebich said, “just getting to know the players and (their) tendencies that I play against, and guarding some of the best players of the other team just helped me to develop.”

The past two seasons in Spain also provided a big boost to her overall development.

“Basketball in Europe is a little different from here,” Fiebich said. “I learned that my first weeks, too. But, honestly, competing on the highest level in the EuroLeague that helped for sure.”