Sabrina Ionescu: Winner

The New York Liberty advanced to the second round of the WNBA playoffs for the first time since 2015. This star-loaded roster will face the winner of the Connecticut Sun-Dallas Wings series. The Liberty's playoff drought comes to a close after dominant performances by Jonquel Jones (19,14 and 3 blocks), Breanna Stewart (27, 9 and 3 blocks) and... Sabrina Ionescu? The star guard struggled from the field all night, and yet her presence was more than felt. While the shot was not falling for Ionescu, her playmaking and rebounding gave her team enough to put the series away. That's what makes great players, and great teams, great. They find any way to contribute to winning because that is the only goal.

Ionescu had a great opening to this year's post-season. She lit the Mystics up for 29 points and seven threes on 55 FG%. Following that stellar performance, the box score of game two would seemingly show a bad game. After all, stars are supposed to show up in the biggest moments, right? Ionescu missed two clutch free throws towards the end of regulation to tie the game, only to be "bailed" out by star teammate Jonquel Jones' two makes at the line. The Liberty guard finished with a pedestrian 11 points on 33 FG%. But scoring is not the only way that a player can impact the outcome of a game, and Ionescu knows this better than most.

While at Oregon, Ionescu became the only player in NCAA history to record 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists for their career. She came into the WNBA selected as the number one overall pick in 2020 but unfortunately missed the majority of her rookie campaign due to an ankle sprain. When she came back, Ionescu was the lead guard for The Liberty and had success in doing so. She became an all-star by her third year and seemed to be the focal point for the franchise. In the 2023 offseason though, the Liberty overhauled their roster and brought in major players to fuel a championship run. Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart and Courtney Vandersloot all became teammates of Ionescu. Suddenly, Ionescu was no longer the best player on her team. Instead of worrying about her role or her stats, Ionescu took advantage of a full healthy off-season and came in ready to win.

With the addition of Vandersloot, Ionescu moved to a more off-ball role. Her usage rate dropped from 27% in 2022 to 25% in 2023. Some of this can be attributed to the motion-style offense The Liberty ran, but more notable is the fact that Ionescu welcomed this transition. From running the show to more off-guard duties, Ionescu flourished in her new role. Her three-point attempt rate shot through the roof at a career rate of 62%. She drilled a career-high 45% of her three-pointers, 70% of her FGs were assisted on and she set the WNBA single-season three-point record with 128 made 3's (on pace for 295 in an 82-game season, which would be the second-best mark in the NBA). The all-star guard finished the year averaging 17/5/5 and The Liberty were the second-best team in the WNBA with a record of 32-8. After an incredible, record-breaking year, why does Ionescu's series-clinching performance stand out? Because she did what she had to do to help her team win.

If anything this past year proved that Ionescu deserves to be the number one on her team. But that is not what is important. What is important to Ionescu, and sports, is winning. How can a player contribute to turning the scoreboard in favor of their team? By doing what Sabrina Ionescu has done her whole basketball career. Scoring, rebounding, passing, defending, and most importantly being a good teammate. It is not about the individual numbers or roles a player has. What is important is doing what the team needs at any given moment. Ionescu snagged nine rebounds and dished out five assists in the Liberty's close-out game against the Mystics. Sure, her shot was not falling, but she made sure to make an impact on winning. That's what winners do. They make the sacrifices necessary to put their team in a position to succeed. Sabrina Ionescu is the definition of a winner.