The New York Liberty are gearing up for their 2026 WNBA season opener against the Connecticut Sun, scheduled for Friday, and they did so by closing the preseason with a 79-67 win over the same Sun.
The Liberty, coming off a championship run in 2024 but an early first-round exit last playoffs, enter the new season as one of the top contenders but already facing uncertainty around one of their key players following Sunday's developments.
Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu played 16 minutes in the preseason finale, finishing with six points on 2-for-8 shooting before exiting with an injury in the third quarter.
Ionescu landed awkwardly while attempting a reverse layup and appeared to roll her left ankle, leaving the court with a noticeable limp.
Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Liberty head coach Chris DeMarco provided an update on Ionescu right after the game, leaving it for Monday's MRI to reveal more on the injury.
“[Things are] positive right now,” DeMarco said. “We’re just going to do the test tomorrow and that’s the only update I have.”
Ionescu is scheduled to undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury, but everybody within the Liberty indicated early optimism.
However, Ionescu's availability for the season opener remains uncertain, with just a few days between the injury and the game against the Sun.
“Obviously, it wasn’t good to see,” Jonquel Jones said. “Like Chris said, our fingers are crossed and we’ll just kind of handle it as we get more information.”
Breanna Stewart, meanwhile, said Ionescu was in “good spirits” after the game.
The Liberty guard appeared in 38 games last season, averaging 18.2 points, 5.7 assists and 4.9 rebounds. Concerningly enough, Ionescu previously suffered a significant injury to the same ankle during her rookie season in 2020, which required season-ending surgery.
