Breanna Stewart named WNBA MVP for a second time

By David Close and Matias Grez, CNN

(CNN) — Breanna Stewart has been named the WNBA’s Most Valuable Player for the second time in her career, becoming the first New York Liberty player in history to pick up the award.

Stewart ranked second in scoring for the 2023 season, averaging 23 points per game, and third in rebounding. The forward previously won the MVP award in 2018 when she played for the Seattle Storm.

In her first season with the Liberty, the two-time WNBA champion led New York to one of the best ever regular season records (32-8).

The voting results by a panel of 60 sportswriters and broadcasters were tight. Stewart won the crown by just seven points over Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas, with Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson, the league’s 2020 and 2022 MVP, third in voting, just six points behind Thomas.

It was the smallest margin between the top three in the award’s history.

“It’s been an unbelievable season as a whole for the WNBA and to see what all of the top players have done is only going to make this league shine brighter and be better,” Stewart told reporters.

“The fact there are multiple people in the conversation, obviously AT and A’ja had amazing seasons, just shows that we’re reaching new heights and we’re doing things that have never been done before and we’re continuing to show that greatness shines in many different ways.

“The fact that this race was unbelievably tight is kinda crazy, but I’m happy to be standing up here today.”

Just hours after picking up her award, Stewart helped the Liberty to level its WNBA playoff semifinal 1-1 against the Connecticut Sun.

The Liberty, bidding for a first ever WNBA title, beat the Sun 84-77 behind 21 points from Sabrina Ionescu, 20 points from Betnijah Laney and a double-double from Stewart of 11 points and 11 rebounds.

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CNN’s David Close contributed to this report.