Connecticut Sun v New York Liberty
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New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart will return to the lineup Monday against the Connecticut Sun, snapping an absence that dates back to her July 26 knee injury. Liberty coach Sandy Brondello confirmed Stewart's availability ahead of the 7:00 p.m. ET tip-off.

Stewart sustained a bone bruise in her right knee early in a loss to the Los Angeles Sparks. She set a screen for Sabrina Ionescu and rolled to the basket, and after a missed layup, she pulled up on her return to the other end of the floor. Stewart then signaled for a sub and missed a month of action with the ailment.

"Yeah, I'm going tonight," Stewart said. "I just want to be back with my team, and I'll try and help make things a little bit easier on all fronts, and know that this is important for our playoff push. I took the time I needed and was on the training staff for the entire four weeks, but happy to be back."

Stewart turns 31 on Wednesday, and she made it clear during her recovery that she would be back on the floor before her birthday. That will become a reality, but only by a narrow margin.

"I'm on the training staff to let me be back, to free me a little bit, but definitely before my birthday, that's a non-negotiable," Stewart said earlier this month. "I have to be back before my birthday."

The absence spanned 13 games and left just seven games of regular-season action left for Stewart. Her reinsertion into the lineup could help the Liberty shore up a playoff spot and guarantee at least a few more games for the now-healthy star. New York is just 5-9 without its veteran, and it ranks 10th in the league in net rating without her on the floor. The ill-timed slump put the squad's postseason home-court advantage in jeopardy and sent it tumbling down the WNBA power rankings ahead of the home stretch.

Stewart was a valuable cog in the lineup prior to her injury, albeit on a slightly slower pace than throughout the majority of her legendary career. She averaged 18.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists ahead of the absence and notched her fifth straight WNBA All-Star nod and seventh overall.

The extended absence has the potential to harm Stewart's chances of another high finish in the WNBA MVP race, but she should be in line for another All-WNBA selection if she avoids any lingering effects from the injury. Stewart is a two-time MVP and has never finished outside the top 10 in voting, and she made the All-WNBA first team in each of her last six seasons (save for the 2019 campaign, which she missed with an Achilles injury).