On Saturday afternoon, the New York Liberty (13-4) defeated the Seattle Storm (4-14) in a thriller, 80-76. This season, the Liberty have played the Storm three times and remain undefeated against them. As a team, the Liberty shot 41% from the field, 43% from the three-point line, and over 85% from the free-throw line. However, the standout of the game was Liberty superstar point guard Sabrina Ionescu. Prior to the outstanding performance, earlier this week, she was presented to be the cover of the NBA 2k24 WNBA edition.
New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu will be the cover athlete on @NBA2K’s ‘24 ‘WNBA Edition’ pic.twitter.com/TsIxS3VSv5
— highlightHER (@HighlightHER) July 7, 2023
“It’s a pretty humbling experience,” Ionescu stated. “Just knowing that I stand for a lot more than just representing my team and the league, but also just continuing to inspire the youth, and knowing that a lot of kids that are gonna play this game will one day dream to be on the cover as well. That’s really what’s important to me and what I want my legacy to be.”
That said, this week has been very eventful for Ionescu as she also was named an All-Star just days prior to the cover of the video game. Against the Storm, Ionescu recorded 20 points while shooting 46% from the field, including shooting 50% from the three-point line, a season-high eight assists, and four rebounds.
Ionescu Continues to Reach New Milestones
Despite Ionescu’s young age, she continues to break records and carve her name into history books. Most recently, late in the third quarter on Sunday, Ionescu recorded her 500th career assist in only 84 games. This makes her the fourth fastest player in WNBA history to reach this milestone.
Sabrina Ionescu reached 500 assists in her 84th career game.
She is the 4th-fastest player to reach that mark in WNBA history and the seventh player in Liberty franchise history with 1,000 points and 500 assists. pic.twitter.com/xrnXwgBRji
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 8, 2023
Although this is a huge milestone for Ionescu, she stresses her concern for the betterment of the team and continuing to improve as the season progresses. Against Seattle while the team played well, they were out-rebounded and exposed in different aspects throughout the game. During the postgame press conference, she emphasized while these accomplishments are commendable, the main concern is improving and gearing up for the ultimate goal, a championship.
“Moving really well without the ball is sometimes our best offense,” Ionescu emphasizes. “It allows us to set flares and just continue to move without the ball. It helps I have great teammates around that are able to knock down shots.”
“The main thing is attempting to stay present and trying to win the game, whether that be by my shot or getting someone else a good look,” she continues. “I will continue to rely on my passing ability and attempt to get everyone involved within the zones.”
What's Next For The Liberty
The Liberty travel to Indiana to face the Fever in Wednesday matinee in an Eastern Conference Commissioner's Cup matchup. A win for the Liberty will secure a franchise's first-ever Commissioner’s Cup Championship appearance. Although the Liberty didn’t perform to their best capabilities on Sunday, they still found a way to win the game and will be better prepared moving forward.
“This is the WNBA and all the teams in the WNBA are filled with great players and great talent,” Liberty forward Breanna Stewart states. “Nothing is easy, and we don’t expect anything to be easy, and we know everyone is going to give us their best shot.”
“Coming off a tough loss at Connecticut, they’re a young hungry team and will continue to fight. As they displayed today, so I think it’s all about respecting your opponent.”
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