Sabrina Ionescu

Sabrina Ionescu was born on December 6, 1997, and grew up in California as the daughter of Romanian immigrants. She distinguished herself in college basketball at the University of Oregon. During her collegiate career, Ionescu became the NCAA leader in triple-doubles and is the only player, male or female, to achieve over 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 1,000 assists. Her play led the Ducks to the NCAA Final Four. She was awarded the John R. Wooden Award twice as the most outstanding women’s college basketball player before being selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft by the New York Liberty.

Since joining the WNBA, Ionescu has continued to achieve significant milestones. In 2021, at 23 years and 163 days old, she became the youngest athlete in WNBA history to record a triple-double, doing so in her sixth career game against Minnesota. The following year, in 2022, she made history as the first player in WNBA history to record a triple-double in under three quarters against Chicago, and later tallied the first 30-point triple-double in WNBA history against Las Vegas. She also became the first player in WNBA history to record 500+ points, 200+ rebounds, and 200+ assists in a single season. Her performance earned her an All-WNBA Second Team selection and a WNBA All-Star nod. She holds the record as the fastest Liberty draftee to reach the 1,000-career point mark, achieving it in 66 games.

Ionescu has continued to be a central figure for the New York Liberty, earning additional All-WNBA selections in 2023 and 2024. In 2023, with the arrival of Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones, she contributed to the Liberty’s run to the Commissioner’s Cup title and their first WNBA Finals appearance. She was part of the USA squad that won the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup. Ionescu is also aspiring to represent Team USA at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.