The great ones are like that. "She's an unbelievable talent on that team," Curry would go on to say in a Warriors news conference. You just walk away, you mind your own business. [16] Ionescu became NCAA women's all-time leader in triple-doubles,[17] trailing only former BYU men's player Kyle Collinsworth (with 12) among all NCAA players.[18]. The WNBA. I used my older brother as inspiration to keep improving. In a November exhibition game, she has 30 points, 7 assists and 4 rebounds to lead the Ducks to a stunning 93-86 victory over the U.S. women's national team, which features her heroes and soon-to-be WNBA peers like Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi. Now, almost a full year later, the 23-year-old New York Liberty superstar thinks she deserves a new rookie . Just show the world what we can do a little more. On December 6, 1997, Sabrina Ionescu was born in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa County, California. And that was it. Everyone was so much faster and quicker. Produced by Nancy Devaney and Emma Reed. Sabrina: That's all I talked about. [45], On July 6, 2022, Ionescu had 31 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists to record the first 30-point triple-double in WNBA history.[46]. His sister, Sabrina, is a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) professional). Edited by Sam Nicodemo and Warren Wolcott. Dotun Akintoye on Israel Adesanya as the UFC's next big thing. Sabrina: The fact that I had to fight for every rebound, because he wasn't going to give me anything easy, is kind of what I translate to my game now. As a sophomore in 201314, Ionescu helped her team to a 302 record.[9]. They would compete against older men at the basketball court to win extra . With Oregon ranked No. But you see your parents just going to work every day, working hard. Then he said, "That's really impressive, that hasn't been done a lot," and walked out. Major is general social science. However, that's quite a pull, you know? One of those struggles comes in the playoffs later that season, in a semifinal game against Saint Mary's. In late April 2018, Ionescu and Oregon teammates Erin Boley, Otiona Gildon, and Ruthy Hebard entered the USA Basketball women's national 3x3 championship tournament at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Dan, Sabrina's father: [The twins] always felt comfort with each other. I think he's her lock screen right now actually. [31][32] In the rivalry game against Oregon State on January 24, 2020, Ionescu had 24 points, 9 assists and 4 rebounds and broke Oregon State and NBA star Gary Payton's Pac-12 all-time record of 938 assists. Hroniss Grasu, Sabrina's partner, is a well-known free agency football center who has experience playing for several clubs, including the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, and San Francisco 49ers. 1 in the WNBA Draft a year later.. That was in May 2020, a time in which she sat atop the basketball world as the NCAA's . [29], In the second game of her senior season on November 13, 2019, Ionescu surpassed the 2,000 points, 800 assists mark for her college career with a 10952 win over Utah State. She's going to play at that level. A daughter of Romanian immigrants who fled their homeland after the 1989 revolution, Ionescu took to basketball "just trying to keep up" with her brothers in the driveway while growing up the . I definitely loved working with my left hand. Eddy: We didn't have these crazy expensive trainers, or these really nice exquisite gyms to go to, with the shooting machines and all this. Earlier in the season, Sabrina watched the video her father took of her young self making that Toastmasters speech about her basketball dreams. Sabrina: I just don't really like to be out there like that. On Monday, Sabrina says goodbye to Oregon in an Instagram post: "Although our unfinished business will remain just that, I have been blessed to be a part of this journey." Seriously, word-for-word." [51] She was close with Kobe Bryant, with whom she had one-on-one training sessions, and spoke at the Kobe & Gianna Bryant Celebration of Life at the Staples Center on February 24, 2020. According to TMZ Sports, a rookie trading card of Ionescu has officially become the most expensive WNBA trading card in history, selling for $10,800 on Sunday night. She was born to proud and supportive parents, Dan Ionescu and Liliana Blaj. As a fresher in high school, she recorded an average . With the eight she'll add in her third year in college, she will become the NCAA leader in triple-doubles. And All-Star guard Sabrina Ionescu is feeling as healthy and energized as she has since she joined the Liberty as the No. In an interview with ESPN, the presumptive No. Parents Ethnicity And Girlfriend. I was happy that she pushed back. She becomes friends with Kobe, who mentors her, and with his daughter Gianna and her Mamba teammates. I feel like that's definitely something that she'll leave behind, that's going to motivate the younger generation. [1] Ionescu was also a significant draw when Oregon went on the road; for example, when the Ducks visited Washington during her junior season, the crowd for that game was 3,000 more than the Huskies drew two nights earlier against Oregon State.[7]. April 17, 2020 Nike, Inc. signs WNBAs #1 overall pick, Sabrina Ionescu to multiyear endorsement deal which will include signature footwear and apparel..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#3a3;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}"Nike signs #1 pick Sabrina Ionescu to multiyear endorsement deal". She wants to win a national championship. That stuff comes out in you. Before she was born, her family fled Romania during the communist revolution, and Sabrina and her twin brother Eddy were born in Walnut Creek, California on Dec. 6, 1997. The Ducks then went 31-2 in 2019-20 with Ionescu. Videos Tagged. She wasn't ready for that yet. Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. 1 pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft to the Liberty. 1 by New York Liberty in WNBA draft, while Gianna Bryant is an honorary pick . Just being able to, you know, have that platform now at Oregon is something that kind of sparks me to try to just voice my opinion on social media. Id play H-O-R-S-E, collect the money, Slurpees. Sabrina Ionescu is a professional basketball player holding American nationality who plays professionally with the (WNBA) which stands for Women's National Basketball Association located in New York Liberty. That's what I admire most about her. Her father's name is Dan Ionescu who fled Communist Romania around the time of the 1989 revolution. [4][5] Eddy played basketball at the City College of San Francisco before transferring to Oregon; he was solely a student in the 201819 school year[6] before walking on to the Ducks men's basketball team in 201920. Basketball Player Born in California #37. Ionescu also shares her knowledge with boys and girls at camps and academies, including Bryant's Mamba Sports Academy. Athlete #20 @nike 24 2. In a 2019 interview with Ava Wallace of The Washington Post, Ionescu admitted to being a "natural scorer", but said that most of the rest of her skill set came from playing alongside both boys and older girls in her childhood:[7].mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}. It was tough being there and it was tough having to play a top-five matchup right after that. "It's unfortunate we didn't get to see them in the tournament. | Julio Aguilar/Getty Images Ionescu actually has a twin brother named Eddy who also plays basketball. And so I was like, "All right, well this is my chance, I'm going to say something.". At the end of the regular season, she was named Pac-12 Freshmen of the Year and unanimous First Team All-Pac-12 and Pac-12 All-Freshman Team selection. Miramonte goes 119-9 during Sabrina's tenure, and she sets the school record with 2,606 points. During her junior year, Ionescu averaged 18.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 4.7 steals per game, and helped Miramonte High School to a 302 record with an appearance in the CIF open division semifinals. Carlos Serrao for ESPN. Carlos Serrao for ESPN. Sabrina: His mom came onto the court, and then they both got ejected. The well-known WNBA player Sabrina Ionescu's twin brother is Eddy Ionescu. We lost nine games while she was in high school. "You just see it's a little bit different in her preparation, in her focus, in her manner," he says. He was always super supportive and was like, "Don't worry, keep getting in the gym, keep getting extra shots.". I mean, we still called each other every night and he knew all about what I was going through. I don't think his mom really appreciated that. And he came, and his voice was shaking because I had like 10 minutes to decide and I hadn't decided. Nick Bosa teaming up with brother Joey would 'break' NFL as pass-rush . She was born with her twin brother named Edward, also named Eddy, who was born just 18 minutes after Sabrina was born. She is now the all-time NCAA triple-double leader for both men and women", "Air Force vs. Oregon Game Summary December 20, 2018 ESPN", "Oregon's Ionescu is espnW's player of the week", "Sabrina Ionescu breaks Oregon assist record in blowout of USC", "The ultimate guide to Oregon senior Sabrina Ionescu", "Sabrina Ionescu powers Oregon to its first Women's Final Four", "Sabrina Ionescu builds her brand as an SOJC master's student", "Ducks' Ionescu eclipses 2,000 points, 800 assists", "Sabrina Ionescu scores career-high 37, breaks program career scoring record to lead No.