The New York Liberty celebrated its first-ever championship and record-breaking WNBA season with a parade. We spoke to the team's biggest fans.

Stewart is a two-time WNBA MVP and three-time WNBA champion. She finished the regular season with an average of 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists.

The float's sign jokingly points out that New York City could be called "Stew York City."

WNBA rookie Leonie Fiebich was added to the Liberty's starting lineup ahead of round one of the playoffs, where she scored 15 points in the first half against the Atlanta Dream.

Jones scored 17 points and had six rebounds in the Liberty's game-five win.

After the game, she told ESPN, "It means everything to be able to pull out a championship and pull out a win."

Brondello has been the Liberty's head coach since 2022.

Ionescu has spent all five years of her WNBA career with the New York Liberty.

She is the first player in league history to score more than 500 points, make more than 200 rebounds, and have more than 200 assists in one season.

The custom piece featured the Liberty's 2024 playoff series records on the sleeves. It also had phrases like "Liberty has a nice ring to it" in the team's signature colors of seafoam green, black, and white.

Wu Tsai told Gothamist at the parade that she felt "so grateful to be able to bring this to the city."

Queens librarian Webber-Bey has attended New York Liberty games since the team's inaugural season in 1997. Because her father was a basketball coach, Webber-Bey loved the sport, but had a hard time picturing herself playing it.

"I didn't see a future for me in that sport," she told Business Insider at the parade on Thursday. "I knew every four years you could be in the Olympics as a professional runner, so I picked track and field."

Now, with Liberty's win and the WNBA's growing success, she hopes young female athletes see a runway for their careers.

"I want, especially the young girls, to know this is an option for you — to be a professional athlete," she said.

Brooklyn resident Osses, 38, has held season tickets to the Liberty for three years.

She said the annual rate had climbed from $500 to $600, and it's set to be $1,400 for next season. But Osses added she is happy to pay to support the team.

"It's still relatively inexpensive compared to the NBA," Osses told Business Insider. "As long as that money goes back to the players, I'm OK with that. Because they deserve it."

Players say they deserve a share of the league's growth too. On October 21, the WNBA players' union, the Women's National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), opted out of its collective bargaining agreement.

"Opting out isn't just about bigger paychecks — it's about claiming our rightful share of the business we've built, improving working conditions, and securing a future where the success we create benefits today's players and the generations to come," WNBPA president and nine-time All-Star Nneka Ogwumike told ESPN in a statement.

Osses also says the environment at Barclays Center home games is worth the price of admission.

"The amount of money they invest into entertainment and making it a family atmosphere, it's encouraging everyone to watch," Osses said. "If I ever have a family, I want to bring them to a Liberty game."

Overall, Osses said, the Caitlin Clark effect — the Iowa graduate who broke records in points scored and assists and spiked interest in the sport from a wide audience — was a "net positive."

It helped put the sport on the map, she said, but newcomers should be respectful of the fan base the Liberty had already built over many years.

"It's an inclusive space, and it's really inviting, specifically for the LGBTQ+ community," Osses added.

Bronx resident George Sanchez and his family took an hourlong train ride to the Financial District, lining up at 9:30 a.m. for a chance to see the team, he told Business Insider.

Sanchez said his four daughters, who range from age 3 to 11, got into supporting the Liberty over the past two years as excitement around the team was building.

"My daughters play for New York City basketball teams, so we're always going to Liberty games," Sanchez said.

His two oldest daughters had can't-miss obligations at school, but Sanchez was able to take his two youngest superfans to see the parade.

Balancing support for the team with its growing popularity can be tricky, Sanchez said. The last time his family of six attended a game at Barclays Center, it cost $145 a ticket, he said.

"We go to as many games as we can," Sanchez said. "I want it to explode, but it means less frequent games."

It's not just the ticket prices: The kids also clamor for merchandise, like hats and jerseys.

"Of course, all the girls are like, 'I want that one!" Sanchez said.

Queens attorney Thiviya Saraswati is a recent WNBA fan who said she's making up for lost time.

"I've gone to maybe 10 games this year. I get group-rate tickets and bring at least 10 people," Saraswati told Business Insider. "I booked a block of 50 for my coworkers this summer."

She said tickets are around $20 each. She added that she pays for the whole group up front and then asks everyone to pay her back.

Saraswati said that even if ticket prices increase next year, she'll keep organizing big groups as she can always find friends who want to go.

Saraswati said she wants as many new fans for the Liberty and WNBA as possible, but not if they have bad attitudes about the sport.

"I've heard male fans online say, 'You should be grateful to Caitlin Clark that we're even watching this,'" she told BI. "We don't actually want you to watch it then because you're not appreciating all the other players. She's good, but there are so many amazing players."

The basketball teammates at Manhattan University in the Bronx came to the parade hoping that they might one day be the players on the floats.

"We both finish college this year," Amar told Business Insider. "The plan is to go pro next year."

Gimenez, from Spain, and Amar, from Israel, said it has been exhilarating to watch the explosion of support for women's basketball in New York City and the US.

"I have friends that said they would never watch a WNBA game — and now they're superfans," Gimenez said.

Gimenez attended the championship final on Sunday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and was inspired by the electric atmosphere.

"I've never seen a women's, or even a men's, basketball game with that environment," Gimenez said. "Seeing that as a player, it's just crazy."