Liberty's Ionescu to make season debut vs. Wings
Sabrina Ionescu plans to make her season debut Sunday as the New York Liberty face the Dallas Wings, she told reporters after practice Saturday. “It’s exciting to me,” Ionescu told reporters. “I haven’t had a regular-season game yet, so I’m excited. It feels like it’s been a while. It hasn’t, but it feels like it’s…
Sabrina Ionescu plans to make her season debut Sunday as the New York Liberty face the Dallas Wings, she told reporters after practice Saturday.
“It’s exciting to me,” Ionescu told reporters. “I haven’t had a regular-season game yet, so I’m excited. It feels like it’s been a while. It hasn’t, but it feels like it’s been forever having to watch from the sidelines.”
Ionescu hurt her left ankle in a preseason game May 4 and has been sidelined since. An MRI revealed no major injury to the foot and ankle — the same one she hurt her rookie season after three games.
“I could put weight on my foot, so I knew it wasn’t major,” Ionescu said. “But it wasn’t not injury. I knew that because of what it felt like. I knew I was going to be out for a little bit, and thankfully I can come back a lot sooner than I was supposed to with returning now.”
Ionescu said she did have some structural damage in her ankle but that it responded quickly to treatment. It will not sideline her further or require surgery in the future, she said.
“Once it healed, I’m good to go,” Ionescu said. “I’m really excited to be back and work myself back into feeling good as it continues to heal.”
Ionescu was a participant in practice this week and was labeled as questionable for the Liberty’s Thursday loss to the Golden State Valkyries before eventually being ruled out.
She said she has been using the underwater treadmill and other forms of cardio, so she doesn’t feel her conditioning has fallen behind.
The guard said she is considering herself day-to-day. While committed to playing in Sunday’s game, she said she does not know if she will be available Monday against the Portland Fire for the second night of New York’s back-to-back.
Last season, Ionescu averaged 18.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 38 games.
New York has gone 3-2 through its first five games of the season under new coach Chris DeMarco.
