Editor’s Note: This is one of a series of stories ranking the top 30 players in the WNBA as part of Quickbooks’ “WNBA Hoopers Hierarchy.” Check out the rest of the rankings here.
An icon on the court and off the court, Sabrina Ionescu is one of the biggest names in women’s basketball.
Before there was Caitlin Clark, there was Sabrina Ionescu—another star that made her mark on the college scene and then came into the WNBA with high expectations. She’s been able to see her team grow from the ground up, while improving as a player and leader. She’s also built a thriving brand for herself as well.
Ionescu comes in at No. 10 in the WNBA Hoopers Hierarchy, Swish Appeal’s ranking of the top 30 players in the WNBA. It is a great spot for her, giving credit to her talent and the impact she has already had, yet still acknowledging that she has room to grow in her career.
Leaving Oregon with unfinished business
Ionescu arrived at Oregon as the No. 4-ranked recruit in the class of 2016, wanting to make an impact on a program and not just join a school with a depth of talent.
During her time with the Ducks, her accolades included Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, three-time Pac-12 Player of the Year, Pac-12 champion and National Player of the Year, along with a variety of other honors. She also broke the record for most triple-doubles in NCAA history, among women and men. Ionescu turned Oregon into one of the nation’s more prominent programs, resulting in the school attracting other highly-ranked recruits in subsequent years.
Going into her senior season at Oregon, the team was one of the country’s favorites to win the national championship. Unfortunately, the NCAA Tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and we were not able to see that come to fruition. Although the NCAA gave all players an extra year of eligibility, Ionescu decided to declare for the 2020 WNBA Draft. She was selected No. 1 overall by the New York Liberty.
Ionescu’s impact went a lot further than her accomplishments at Oregon. We are now in an era where top recruits choose colleges based not on reputation but because of fit. Ionescu helped widen the college landscape compared to the previous generation.
Building from the ground up with the Liberty
The Liberty still have never won a WNBA championship, and when they got the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft, they were really in the trenches. Ionescu was a highly-regarded star coming out of college and many saw her arrival as the start of a new era for the Liberty. Yet, they didn’t expect everything to happen right away. (Maybe a lesson for Indiana Fever fans right now.)
That year, the WNBA played a shortened season in the “Wubble” due to the pandemic. Ionescu only played two full games with the Liberty before spraining her ankle in the third game and missing the rest of her rookie season. The Liberty went 2-20 on that season and did not make the playoffs. She came back in 2021, playing well but still feeling the effects of that ankle. The Liberty’s performance improved greatly with the addition of Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, and New York won 10 more games than they had the previous season. They ended 12-20, making the playoffs but losing in the first round.
In 2022, the Liberty hired a new head coach, Sandy Brondello, a former player and championship-winning head coach with the Phoenix Mercury. She helped take the Liberty to a higher level; they went 16-20 and made the playoffs. New York lost in the first round again, but the progress was evident in their play.
It was also the first time Ionescu looked truly healthy in her WNBA career. She recorded the league’s first 30-point triple double, made her first All-Star appearance and was morphing more the elite player people expected her to be.
In 2023, New York made major roster moves, trading for Jonquel Jones and signing Breanna Stewart and Courtney Vandersloot in free agency. Now, Ionescu had the help she needed to raise the Liberty to a championship level. The 2023 Liberty went 32-8, making it to the WNBA Finals. The addition of Vandersloot also meant that Ionescu could be more of an off-ball shooter, instead of the on-ball facilitator she had been in her first seasons. This reduced the pressure on her and allowed her to get into more of a shooting groove.
Ionescu has seen this team from the ground up. She’s turned into one of the league’s most elite 3-point shooters, a facilitator, a leader and an impact player.
A mogul in the making
Ionescu’s on-court success has also been matched by her off-court endeavors. As a Nike athlete, Sabrina is one of few WNBA players with her own brand under Nike and a signature shoe. Her Sabrina 1’s have been widely praised by players and fans alike as a great shoe on and off the court. She’s also given back through her SI20 Foundation, giving shoes to youth across the country and holding events for young basketball players. Ionescu was also featured on the cover of NBA 2K24.
In 2024, she also made an appearance at NBA All-Star Weekend where she went up against Steph Curry in a first-of-its-kind 3-point contest. At the WNBA’s 2023 All-Star Weekend, Ionescu turned in the best performance in 3-point shooting contest history, WNBA or NBA, leading to Curry challenging her. The competition was for charity, with Ionescu just losing to Curry by a few points. It was the most viewed part of the NBA All-Star Weekend, and another example of how much people want to watch women’s sports.
Sabrina Ionescu represents one the first players in the “new” generation of women athletes—those who have helped build the moment we are currently experiencing, but also will get to experience it themselves, too. A player whose star still is rising, she is an example of how greatness develops over time and how patience is key in pro sports.
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