New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu missed the game against the Dallas Wings on Thursday due to a neck injury.
In the star player’s absence, New York managed a hard-fought 79-71 victory at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
The three-time All-Star missed only her second game of the season and was an 11th-hour scratch from the team sheet.
After the game, Liberty coach Sandy Brondello provided a major update on the 26-year-old’s return to the court.
Sabrina Ionescu’s injury and return timeline
Sabrina Ionescu was announced as “out” for the game against the Wings just half an hour before the tip-off.
The good news for Liberty fans is that Ionescu isn’t expected to be sidelined for an extended period. According to New York Liberty beat reporter Jackie Powell, coach Brondello said that Ionescu will likely return for Saturday’s game against the Connecticut Sun.
“Sandy Brondello said that Sabrina Ionescu told her that “she’s back” next game,” Powell said in a tweet after the game between the Liberty and Wings.
Sabrina Ionescu is one of the MVP candidates
The New York Liberty are at the top of the WNBA standings with a remarkable 25-4 record. Sabrina Ionescu’s consistent production and game-changing performances have been key reasons behind the Liberty’s dominance this season.
The Paris Olympics gold medal winner has the third-best odds of winning the MVP award this season. Ionescu is averaging 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, six assists and one steal after playing 27 games.
The 26-year-old is shooting 42.7% from the field, including 35.7% from the 3-point range. She has a +/- of +10 this season.
Ionescu was part of the USA women’s team that clinched its eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal at the Paris Games. The Liberty guard made headlines for unleashing the “silencer” celebration during Team USA’s win over Belgium in a group stage game.
The three-time All-Star appeared on The Late Night Show with Seth Myers on Wednesday and reflected on her celebration, which garnered a ton of attention.
“They started booing us from the moment we came down to warm up,” said Ionescu. “Obviously with USA basketball, it’s a whole point differential thing, so I kind of looked at the bench; everyone was telling me to shoot it, so I was like, if you’re not going to guard me from here, I’m shooting it. Kind of just gave them the little silencer; it just kind of came, wasn’t planned.”
Ionescu featured in all six games at the Olympics and averaged 5.5 points per game.
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Source: USA Today
