Sabrina Ionescu was thrilled to be part of Unrivaled — the new 3-on-3 league.
The Liberty star guard who helped New York win the first championship in franchise history earlier this year signed a historic agreement on Monday with the league. She'll join the Phantom BC that made a trade Saturday night to acquire Natasha Cloud.
"It was a huge decision getting me to play or not," Ionescu said in a phone interview Monday night. "I weighed out all my options and decided to do what’s best for me and my career. Being able to take part in a league that is the first of its kind with a historic deal and be on the ownership side of it is important for me.”
Ionescu said the league gave her some flexibility in her schedule if she needs to step away for a day or two. The NBA All-Star Game is on Feb. 16, which is in the middle of the Unrivaled season. The league has no team games during the NBA All-Star weekend. There's discussions of her potentially competing in another 3-point contest with Stephen Curry.
“I have certain dates that I have to be gone for. They were very accommodating with things I already accepted and have to be gone for before I committed to the league,” Ionescu said.
Ionescu will also be playing with Brittney Griner, Marina Mabrey, Katie Lou Samuelson and Satou Sabally. Ionescu was teammates with Sabally at Oregon.
“I’m really excited being able to play with her and knowing we’ve wanted to play with each other for a long time since we departed from Oregon,” Ionescu said.
The 27-year-old Ionescu is recovering from a procedure she had earlier this month on her right thumb to stabilize the ulnar collateral ligament. She's not cleared yet, but is on target to be able to play at the start of the Unrivaled season.
“I should be cleared and ready to go and be able to be there and be a part of it,” Ionescu said. “The first year was something I wanted to experience and have ownership is a big part in that as well.”
Ionescu said she hurt the thumb in the final 90 seconds of Game 4 of the WNBA Finals, but there was no way she was going to miss the decisive Finals game which New York won. She went 1 for 19 in the deciding Game 5 against Minnesota but found other ways to help the team win, with eight assists and seven rebounds.
“I didn’t know the severity of my injury when I did it. I didn’t care to know and wanted to do whatever I could to play and try to do the best I can for us to win,” she said. “Thankfully I was able to do everything beside shooting which now makes a lot of sense since I couldn’t grip a basketball.”
Ionescu took a few weeks to see if the injury would heal on its own after the season was over. She got a few opinions from doctors before deciding that surgery was the best option.
This is the first time that Ionescu is taking part in an offseason league.
“I’m excited. Obviously it's a great opportunity to be able to play and continue to refine my game in the offseason," she said. “It’s a great opportunity to compete against the best players in the league that are now in Unrivaled.”
It has been a busy year for the former Oregon great, who also got married and earned an Olympic gold medal.
“It’s been amazing. When I sit back and think about everything that happened this year, it puts a lot in perspective when things aren’t going as well,” she said. “I've had those years where everything was going wrong and then to have a year like this where you stop and smell the roses and everything you prayed and wished for happens.”
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
FILE - New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) reacts with forward Breanna Stewart (30) at the end of the first half of Game 4 of a WNBA basketball final playoff series against the Minnesota Lynx, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — Two people were rescued and a third swam to safety after a California pier under construction partially collapsed and fell into the ocean Monday as the state's central coast was pounded by heavy surf from a major storm expected to bring hurricane-force winds to the seas off the Pacific Northwest, authorities said.
Residents were warned to stay away from low-lying areas near the beaches around the Santa Cruz Wharf, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of San Francisco, as the storm rapidly gained strength.
“You are risking your life, and those of the people that would need to try and save you by getting in or too close to the water,” the National Weather Service's Bay Area office said on the social platform X.
Lifeguards rescued two people from the water, officials with Santa Cruz Fire Department said. No one had serious injuries, Mayor Fred Keeley said.
The mayor said the section of the wharf that collapsed had been damaged over time. The structure was in the middle of a $4 million renovation following destructive storms last winter.
“It’s a catastrophe for those down at the end of the wharf," said David Johnston, owner of Venture Quest Kayaking, who was allowed onto the pier to check on his business.
Tony Elliot, the head of the Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation Department, estimated that about 150 feet (45 meters) of the end of the wharf fell into the water around 12:45 p.m. It was immediately evacuated and will remain closed indefinitely.
Some of the wharf’s pilings are still in the ocean and remain “serious, serious hazards” to boats, the mayor said. Each piling weighs hundreds of pounds and is being pushed by powerful waves.
Gov. Gavin Newsom's has been briefed and the state's Office of Emergency Services is coordinating with local officials, his office said.
Forecasters warned that storm swells will continue to increase throughout the day.
“We are anticipating that what is coming toward us is more serious than what was there this morning,” the mayor said.
Ocean swells along California's central coast could reach 60 feet (18 meters) as the Pacific storm gains strength through Monday, the weather service said.
“A rapidly developing storm will bring hurricane force winds to the areas well offshore of the Pacific Northwest tonight,” the weather service's Ocean Prediction Center said on X.
The end of the pier that broke off had been shut down during renovations. The portion, which included public restrooms and the closed Dolphin restaurant, floated about half a mile (0.8 kilometers) down the coast and wedged itself at the bottom of the San Lorenzo River.
Those who fell into the water were two engineers and a project manager who were inspecting the end of the wharf, officials said. No members of the public were in the area.
Building inspectors were now looking at the rest of the Santa Cruz Wharf’s structural integrity.
Monday's collapse came about a year after the Seacliff State Beach pier just down the coast was battered beyond repair by a heavy winter storm.
Further up the West Coast, dangerous surf conditions and waves up to 30 feet (9.1 meters) were expected from the central Oregon coast up through southwestern Washington. Winds could peak near 80 mph (130 kph) and a high surf warning in effect until 10 p.m. Monday night, forecasters said.
In a post on X, the National Weather Service office in Portland, Oregon, said “it will likely go down as some of the highest surf this winter.”
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec, 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
The remnants of a restaurant float at the head of the San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
The remnants of a restaurant float at the head of the San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
City staff stand stand near the collapsed section of the Santa Cruz wharf on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, after the pier partially collapsed and fell into the ocean. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Law enforcement officers close off the Santa Cruz, Calif., wharf Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, after the pier partially collapsed and fell into the ocean. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
A closed wharf is seen in Santa Cruz, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, after the pier partially collapsed and fell into the ocean. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec, 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Surfers take to the water as big waves hit the shore in Seal Beach, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
