The champion New York Liberty is celebrating their first-ever WNBA Championship as only the Big Apple can this morning with a ticker tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes in Lower Manhattan.
The festivities are now underway, with Liberty team members, marching bands and other dignitaries heading north along Broadway from Battery Park to City Hall. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers have lined the streets to greet them while the champs are showered from above with a ton of confetti and shredded paper from the nearby office buildings.
Members of the team are split between different floats, with each having its own confetti cannon. Jonquel Jones, the WNBA Finals MVP, riding in her own float with family and carrying the championship trophy. Breanna Stewart and her family are also on a Puma truck with her “Stew York City” slogan.
The parade also brought out former Liberty members such as Teresa Witherspoon, one of the members of the first-ever Liberty team in 1997.
“It’s just a level of pride, you know, we’re just super proud of what our people have done, our young ladies have done,” she said. “We’re just super excited for what they’ve done. It’s been great. It’s been just amazing.”
Our young ladies have done.
At the parade’s conclusion, the Liberty will be feted with a City Hall celebration at about noon, but the fun won’t end there. The Liberty will cross the bridge back to Brooklyn later on Thursday night for a party at their Barclays Center home court.
In defeating the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday night, the Liberty brought home not only their first WNBA crown in their 28-year history, but also the first professional basketball championship New York has had since the 1973 Knicks won the NBA Championship 51 years ago.
Throughout the day, amNewYork Metro and our sister site, Brooklyn Paper, will bring you live coverage from the parade — all the sights and sounds from the historic celebration. Check back later for updates!
