Sabrina Ionescu: Women’s Basketball’s Next Best Thing
My introduction to Sabrina Ionescu came from a former sports media colleague of mine in college, who is presently a broadcaster for St. Mary’s College in Moraga, CA. He got excited calling the lady Gaels facing the Oregon Ducks and gushed to me about Ionescu.
This colleague is always ahead of the curve with spotting next-level talent. I’m always last to the party in this regard. Not now.
Ionescu, a 5’11” guard from Walnut Creek, CA, just became the first NCAA player ever to record 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists, as well as lead the entire NCAA in triple-doubles. Monday, February 24, 2020, will forever be a legendary day for Ionescu because that morning, she gave a eulogy at her mentor Kobe Bryant’s memorial service. She then broke the NCAA record that night.
The old cliche in sports goes, “You can’t make this up.”
Sabrina Ionescu’s Special Connection to Kobe
The friendship between Kobe and Ionescu began in January 2019, when Kobe took his daughter Gianna’s basketball team to an Oregon Ducks game to watch her play. By that point, Ionescu developed a reputation for her mentality on and off the court that emulated The Black Mamba himself.
Being one of the elite basketball players in the nation, regardless of gender, Kobe took notice. She became a Kobe protege directly, and she guest-coached a few of Gianna’s games over the summer. In return, Kobe gave an in-depth analysis of her game on an ESPN+ segment. When Kobe gives a stamp of approval, the sports world is going to open their eyes.
Sabrina Ionescu’s Elite Career So Far
Ionescu’s legacy begins at her middle school, which didn’t allow a women’s basketball team, using the “girls should play with dolls” excuse. In true fashion, she recruited a team herself. Ionescu played for Miramonte HS in Orinda, CA where she broke records in her career. She posted a 119–9 record for her high school, and finished as the school’s all-time leader in points (2,606), assists (769), steals (549) and triple-doubles (21). She committed to Oregon in the summer of 2016, just after she graduated from high school.
At Oregon, she won the 2017 Pac-12 Freshman Player of the Year, being the first Oregon Duck to do so since 1999. She capitalized on an impressive first season by becoming the NCAA women’s all-time leader in triple-doubles and taking the Ducks to their first #1 seed ever in the Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament. The Ducks won the conference for the first time since 2000. She also won Pac-12 Player of the Year and was named to her first 1st team All-American team.
Ionescu’s junior consisted of more breaking records, notably the NCAA triple-double record for any college basketball player. That same year she took the Oregon Ducks to the Final Four in the NCAA Women’s Tournament and won the John Wooden Award. She could’ve entered the WNBA draft that season after but decided to stay for her final season.
So far, the Pac-12 Championship bracket is set, with the Ducks at the #1 seed. They play on Friday, March 6 with the title game on March 8.
Ionescu’s Future and Her Impact on Women’s Basketball
Unsurprisingly, Ionescu is projected to be the #1 overall pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft. But she isn’t just another elite women’s basketball player that will largely be confined to the scope of the WNBA.
Her bond with Kobe reflected not only women taking influence from one of the greatest basketball players to ever play in the NBA, but that same legend extending his wisdom and basketball prowess to an underrepresented aspect of basketball. Kobe showed great support for women in sports, especially late in his life. It would be ludicrous to ignore powerful athletes because of their gender.
Steph Curry attended the game Ionescu broke the 2k/1k/1k record with his daughters, to show as an example of what his daughters can achieve. The way Ionescu plays is a direct influence of her playing with boys teams and older girls. Granted, every elite female athlete plays like this, but if it takes someone like Ionescu to get every sports fan to pay attention to women’s sports, then there isn’t a better example out there right now.
