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It’s been a big month for the New York Liberty! No, not just because of Ellie’s birthday, but that was a big reason.

While the Liberty have yet to crack into the top spot in the WNBA standings, they top quite a few power rankings. As much as the teams’ three losses are a little disappointing, their wins are what really count. They have already won games against the No. 1-seed Connecticut Sun, the defending champion Las Vegas Aces and the rising Seattle Storm.

They are proving to be a powerful force in the WNBA, so let’s go over some highlights from the last few weeks.

Ellie gets lit for her birthday

I couldn’t leave Ellie out! Our girl had the birthday bash to end all birthday bashes during a recent Liberty game. Her mascot boos from all over the country came to Barclays to celebrate the Liberty’s mascot, who has been going viral in recent weeks for her personality and social media presence.

The Liberty spared no expense celebrating their girl, getting a tiered cake and having a dance party while Ellie herself had multiple costume changes. Ellie is changing the game for mascots and we are loving it! Go off, girl!

The eight-game winning streak

Okay, back to basketball. The Liberty had yet to lose in June until this week, when they lost against the Phoenix Mercury in a tight game on June 18. It ended with a score of 99-93, and Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner led the Mercury with 19 points apiece.

Prior to that though, the Liberty had won eight-consecutive games. Victories over the Sun and Aces were in that stretch, along with wins over Phoenix, Washington, Indiana and Atlanta. Even more impressively, New York racked up all those wins while missing Courtney Vandersloot from the lineup, who has been out dealing with an undisclosed personal issue.

Unfortunately, the streak ended with the loss against Phoenix, but expect the Liberty to return to the winning column soon enough. They are playing with such power, consistency and connection that’s visible on the court and resulting in wins. Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones have been on an absolute tear: Stewart is averaging 19.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.1 steals per game, while Jones shot 75 percent from the field against the Aces. Jones has shot 70 percent or above in four games this season, and the Liberty’s pair of former MVPs are leading the team with ease.

Back-to-back Commissioner’s Cup champs?

The format of the Commissioner’s Cup tournament changed this year, with teams playing all their qualifying games against their own conference over a shorter period of time. The team with the best record in those five games from each conference made the championship, which will be played next week. The Liberty had an outstanding 5-0 run in Commissioner’s Cup play, beating out every team in the Eastern Conference and clinching their spot in the final before the qualifying games concluded.

They’ll now host the final game in New York—well, Long Island, technically, due to Barclays Center being unavailable—against the Minnesota Lynx.

The Lynx have been playing quite well this season and sit third in the standings, making for a fun and exciting championship match. With money on the line for both the winners and their respective local charities, the stakes are high.

The Liberty, in particular, will be looking to become back-to-back Commissioner’s Cup champs, after they won last year against the Las Vegas Aces. If New York wins, it will be Breanna Stewart’s third Commissioner’s Cup title after winning last year with the Liberty and in 2021 with the Seattle Storm.

Up next for the Liberty

Along with the Commissioner’s Cup Championship on June 25, the Liberty are chugging through their condensed schedule before the Olympic break. With both Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu heading to the Olympics with Team USA, it’s nice that this team has been playing pretty measured basketball and still winning. Neither of the Olympians have had to put the team on their backs, hopefully allowing them to be decently rested heading into the All-Star Game and Olympics.

Yet, it’s still a condensed schedule, and while the Liberty have had it easy over the last few weeks, they are about to play three games in the next four days. Then, they’ll play for the Commissioner’s Cup before jumping right back into regular-season play.

They have a back-to-back series with Los Angeles this weekend, then a back-to-back with Atlanta, which should produce wins for New York. Their real tests will come as they play Minnesota twice in the next week and a half (Commissioner’s Cup Championship included), and another game against Connecticut. Big games against Connecticut and Minnesota, as well as when they play Las Vegas again, will say a lot about this team. The sting of losing in the 2023 WNBA Finals seems fresh on their minds as they set themselves up for another deep playoff run this fall. They almost seem more ready for it this year, too.

As we creep closer to the big Olympic break, the New York Liberty are hoping to stay on top of the league—and more importantly, continue to be the toughest team in the league.