Give us Liberty! And ticker tape.
The New York Liberty will become the first New York City women’s sports team to parade through the Canyon of Heroes if they win the WNBA finals, said Mayor Adams.
Adams made the promise of a ticker-tape for the Brooklyn women’s basketball stars to The Post during this week’s Columbus Day Parade, as the Liberty inched closer to their first championship.
“They will, you know they will!” he told The Post.
City Hall officials Thursday confirmed that Hizzoner’s pledge holds true as Lady Liberty’s torch: the team will get a parade if they prevail in the best-of-five series.
And the odds are in their favor. The Liberty are leading the Minnesota Lynx 2-1, after dramatically winning Game 3 Wednesday with a clutch 3-pointer by star Sabrina Ionescu.
A Game 4 win Friday in Minneapolis or, if need be, during a Sunday Game 5 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center will give them the WNBA title.
New York City hasn’t seen a ticker-tape parade for a local sports team since the Giants bested the Patriots during the 2012 Super Bowl.
Not all recent Big Apple champs have received the ticker-tape honor.
The New York City FC won their first Major League Soccer championship in 2021, but only received a celebration at City Hall. And last year, NY/NJ Gotham FC won the championship of the NWSL woman’s pro soccer league, but didn’t get a ticker-tape parade, though they were feted in a ceremony at the White House last month.
A parade for the Liberty wouldn’t be the first time a woman’s sports team has gotten the ticker-tape treatment. The US Woman’s National Team has twice gone down the Canyon of Heroes, after winning the soccer Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 2019.
A downtown fete for the Liberty would come at a bountiful time for New York sports.
Beyond the team’s WNBA title push, the New York Mets and Yankees are serious contenders to make it to the MLB World Series.
The potential for a subway series even inspired a questionable fashion choice from Adams, who wore a baseball cap sporting the logos of both teams, much to fans’ chagrin.
A ticker-tape parade for the Liberty will cap a banner year for the WNBA, which has seen a big boost in TV viewership as rookie Caitlin Clarke stoked massive interest in the league.
The Liberty winning the WNBA championship but not receiving a ticker-tape parade could be controversial, especially if the Mets or Yankees win the World Series and tread down the Canyon of Heroes.
Keia Clarke, chief executive for the Liberty, has also been vocal about wanting a ticker-tape parade. She told the New York Times that the team will get such an honor, just like the Mets or Yankees.
“Right down the Canyon of Heroes,” she told the Times. “That’s the hope, and that’s the plan.”
— Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy
