Once a Liberty, Always a Liberty: Remembering Kayla Thornton’s contributions leading to 2024 WNBA title
NEW YORK — It’s been nearly a month since the Liberty and their fans had to say goodbye to Kayla Thornton — the team’s do-it-all glue player who left everything on the court each night.
The addition of the WNBA’s 13th and newest franchise — the Golden State Valkyries — pretty much ensured the reigning champion Liberty were going to lose a coveted rotation player in the expansion draft. That uneasy feeling became a reality on Dec. 6 when Thornton became one of 11 players selected to form the foundation of the Valkyries’ inaugural roster.
The player who arrived in Brooklyn from the Dallas Wings as a “throw-in” — a premature analysis quickly proven false — as part of a three-team deal centered around 2021 WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones was a constant contributor during the Liberty’s two recent Finals runs.
Timely sharpshooting. All-out diving plays for loose balls. Constant rotational changes without complaints.
She provided all of that for head coach Sandy Brondello in 2023 and during the franchise’s first-ever championship run in 2024.
Thornton is now gone. But here are some of her finest moments during the 2024 championship-winning campaign.
KT the sharpshooter
Thornton’s greatest shooting night of her nine-year WNBA career came in a Liberty jersey on June 22, when she knocked down a career-high six 3-pointers in a win against the Los Angeles Sparks. She missed just one attempt and finished 7 of 8 overall for 20 points, a point shy of her career high.
“Her name is Ka-Three-La,” All-Star teammate Breanna Stewart said following the win.
The 3-and-D veteran credited her spacing on the night of the barrage, benefitted from the Sparks’ gravity shifting towards Stewart and Jones.
And of course, the dagger in the fourth quarter came on a play the Barclays Center crowd got used to seeing the past two years: a Thornton corner trey right in front of the opponent’s bench.
Coming through on short notice
Brondello could almost guarantee getting a lift from Thornton throughout the season. And in the midst of injuries and a six-game stretch in 10 days (including five Commissioner’s Cup matchups), the head coach got exactly what she needed.
Brondello informed Thornton she would get the start against a hungry Washington Mystics team looking to play spoiler on May 31 just hours before tipoff in place of Courtney Vandersloot (back).
What Thornton gave the Liberty was 20 points, four assists and five steals in 34 minutes, a season high. She essentially played second option on a night Sabrina Ionescu led the way with a game-high 24 points and Stewart was inefficient (4 of 13 from the field).
And exactly when the Liberty needed the final knockout blow, Thornton came through like a top option: She drained her fourth trey of the night with 2:06 remaining in regulation to put the Libs up seven then intercepted Washington’s Julie Vanloo’s pass 10 seconds later. Win secured.
These kind of performances allowed to Liberty to win tight games while shorthanded, a key for a team that finished the regular season 32-8 and with the No. 1 overall seed.
The tunnel play
This is the moment that will undoubtedly be featured in a tribute video during Thornton’s first visit to Barclays Center next year as a member of the Valkyries on May 27. And Liberty fans will give her a standing ovation just like they did after this all-out hustle play in the final minutes of a win against the Chicago Sky on July 11.
With Chicago attempting a comeback, Jones’ turnover led to a fast-break opportunity for Chicago’s Lindsey Allen. But Thornton had other plans.
Thornton — with the quickness of a sprinter — chased down Allen from the backcourt and deflected Chennedy Carter’s pass that would’ve led to a layup at the rim. Thornton — still with full momentum — then had to think fast running full speed towards the baseline lined with fans and cameramen. She hopped over one cameraman and avoided the first row of fans as her speed led her into the darkness of the Barclays Center tunnel feet away from the hardwood.
No harm, no foul.
Fans erupted as Thornton reappeared under the bright lights, appreciating the moment they just witnessed from a player willing to go all-out for a win.
“I loved it. It was off of my turnover too so I loved it even more,” Jones said. “She got back there and saved me.”
Not-so shorthanded
Every team in the WNBA gets hampered with injuries. The great teams have players on reserve to lessen the burden. And Thornton did exactly that by slotting into the starting lineup 11 times throughout the 2024 season as the Liberty dealt with multiple DNPs: Betnijah Laney-Hamilton (knee), Nyara Sabally (back), Vandersloot (back, personal reasons).
The Liberty went undefeated in five Commissioner’s Cup qualification games while Thornton totaled a +17 in 73 total minutes in three of those starts.
She finished one point shy of her career high (21 points with the Dallas Wings in 2022) in starts against the Mystics on May 31 and Sparks on June 22.
And in those 11 starts, the Liberty only lost twice: a six-point defeat to the Phoenix Mercury on June 18 and the loss in the Commissioner’s Cup Title Game against the Minnesota Lynx on June 25.
