In a high-stakes Game 4 of the WNBA Finals, New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu showcased her unwavering determination and resilience, despite a notable moment of vulnerability.
With the Liberty trailing the Las Vegas Aces and their championship hopes hanging in the balance, Ionescu’s nerves and the weight of the moment reached a climax.
Less than halfway through the fourth quarter, after sinking a crucial 3-pointer, the Oregon graduate dashed to the sideline and regrettably emptied her stomach into a trash can.
The incident unfolded while the Liberty were on the precipice of potentially losing the championship to the Aces, who had secured a 2-1 lead in the Finals.
Ionescu showed courage beyond duty
However, the episode did not appear to derail Ionescu’s resolve. ESPN sideline reporter Andraya Carter shed light on Ionescu’s pre-game anxiety, highlighting her candid admission about battling nerves.
Carter reported, “You talk about nerves in a Finals moment, Sabrina Ionescu, who just hit a big three and came over to the sideline and lost the contents of her stomach. She told me that she gets nervous before games, but she went right back out, wiped off her chin, and kept on playing.”
Despite the Liberty eventually falling to the Las Vegas Aces, Ionescu managed to sink another critical shot in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter, keeping her team in contention.
Liberty fought until the final whistle
The New York Liberty, needing a win in Game 3 to stay alive in the Finals, delivered an impressive performance, supported by a record crowd, to secure an 87-73 victory. Heading into Game 4, facing an injury-depleted Aces team, the Liberty aimed to force a decisive Game 5.
Ionescu acknowledged the challenge of playing against an injured Aces squad, emphasizing the team’s focus on their own goals amid unfortunate circumstances.
In this emotionally charged Finals battle, Ionescu’s display of resilience on and off the court is a testament to the grit and determination that defines WNBA athletes.
The 2023 WNBA playoffs have kicked off with a fierce start, setting the stage for an exhilarating journey towards the championship. As the semifinals continue this Friday, basketball enthusiasts are on the edge of their seats, eagerly anticipating who will emerge victorious and clinch the WNBA championship.
The Las Vegas Aces, securing the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive season, displayed a dominant performance against the Chicago Sky in the initial round, asserting their intent to defend their title.
With a 2-0 lead against the Dallas Wings in the best-of-five WNBA semifinals, the Aces are setting their sights on becoming the first team since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001 and 2002 to achieve back-to-back titles.
However, the New York Liberty stand as formidable contenders, potentially disrupting the Aces’ quest for consecutive triumphs. The Liberty, with a 3-2 advantage in the season series against Las Vegas, present a compelling challenge. It’s a clash of the titans, and both teams are clear favorites to advance to the WNBA Finals.
Where and when to watch the WNBA Playoffs?
Las Vegas Aces vs. Dallas Wings
– Game 1: Aces 97, Wings 83
– Game 2: Aces 91, Wings 84
– Game 3: Friday, Sept. 29 – 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2
– *Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 1 – 9 p.m. on ESPN
– *Game 5: Tuesday, Oct. 3 – 10 p.m. on ESPNU and NBA TV
New York Liberty vs. Connecticut Sun
– Game 1: Sun 78, Liberty 63
– Game 2: Liberty 84, Sun 77
– Game 3: Friday, Sept. 29 – 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2
– *Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 1 – 3 p.m. on ABC
– *Game 5: Tuesday, Oct. 3 – 8 p.m. on ESPNU and NBA TV
Brittney Griner‘s return to the WNBA after nearly 10 months in a Russian prison hasn’t always been the smoothest ride.
There have been injuries. There was a break for mental health. There were travel issues, including being confronted by a ‘provocateur’ at a Dallas airport. Her team – the Phoenix Mercury – hasn’t been very good, and their coach was fired less than halfway through the season.
But there have also been many moments of joy.
She was welcomed by adoring crowds at nearly every WNBA arena. Individually, she played well, and was selected to play in another All-Star game. She also got to celebrate as teammate and friend Diana Taurasi became the first player to score 10,000 career points in WNBA history.
One more joyful moment came on Friday night, when the 6-foot-9 Griner played her final home game of the season in front of an announced sellout crowd of 13,206. She scored 10 points – including a turnaround jumper at the first quarter buzzer – and grabbed two rebounds in the Mercury’s 94-73 loss to the Las Vegas Aces.
The Mercury fell to 9-30 for the season and will miss the playoffs for the first time in her 10 seasons, but the past 18 months have helped her deal with that disappointment much more easily.
After Friday’s game, she was among the players helping throw T-shirts to fans in the stands.
“It’s been good – minus the record,” Griner said. “I’ve really enjoyed being here, playing basketball, being with this group, being back in the Valley with the fans. The crowd was amazing.
“I’m just happy to be here, doing what I love.”
She’ll have one more game on Sunday in Las Vegas. After that, it’s time for some rest.
“Going hunting with my dad,” Griner said. “Try to get me a whitetail and a hog. I’m country. I like hunting, I like doing all that stuff, fishing, off-roading in my Jeep, mountain biking. That’s what I’ll be doing.
“It probably sounds like a lot, but that’s my peace.”
Griner’s return this season has been widely celebrated around the WNBA and much of the expected vitriol – she was freed as part of a swap for notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout – never really materialized. Aces coach Becky Hammon said she was working for ESPN last year when the news came that the Mercury star was returning to the United States.
She said the relief was immediate. Like Griner, Hammon also played for Russian teams during the offseason in her playing days and even represented the country in the Olympics in 2008 and 2012.
“There was a heaviness over the league last year,” Hammon said. “When she came back, that cloud was lifted, and it was almost palpable, her effect on the league, her teammates and really, the whole world in general.”
The 32-year-old Griner has averaged 17.7 points and 6.6 rebounds this season going into Friday’s game, numbers that are slightly below her averages from 2021, but still remarkable production for someone who missed all of last season in such extreme circumstances.
“Am I surprised she’s kicking (butt) on the court? Not at all,” Hammon said. “That’s like riding a bike for her.”
Aces guard Sydney Colson and Griner are both from Texas and played against each other in high school
“I’m still surprised at the fact that she came back on American soil and decided to play,” Colson said. “I think it speaks volumes about Brittney and her resilience, just mental, on top of physical toughness.”
Griner announced in April that she is working with Bring Our Families Home
Griner is also trying to turn last year’s ordeal into something positive.
The extra exposure from being detained in Russia for having vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage has given her a platform to advocate for other Americans being detained abroad. She was already an LGBTQ+ activist since publicly coming out in 2013 and became the first openly gay athlete to be sponsored by Nike.
Griner announced in April that she is working with Bring Our Families Home, a campaign formed last year by the family members of American hostages and wrongful detainees held overseas.
Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi became the first WNBA player ever to reach 10,000 points when she swished a triple with 8:23 remaining in the third quarter against the Atlanta Dream on Thursday night at Footprint Center.
Taurasi, 41, celebrated the 10,000 regular season points milestone with her teammates on the court as the crowd erupted.
Moment: WNBA star Brittney Griner jokingly asks the media to get a copy of her bookLAPRESSE
The three-time WNBA champion scored a season-high 42 points on her historic night, shooting 12-for-21 from the field and 6-for-13 from deep to help the Mercury win 91-71.
She now has over 3,000 points more than the next active WNBA player on the scoring list.
There are a few stars who could be next to reach 10,000 points, but a few things will first have to go their way.
DeWanna Bonner next in line
Connecticut Sun guard DeWanna Bonner has scored 6,680 points in her career and is eighth on the all-time scoring list.
Bonner, 35, played alongside Taurasi in Phoenix for 10 years and currently averaging 19.1 points a game.
She would reach the 10,000 mark in five years at that pace and isn’t the only one who could get there by then.
Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd has 4,489 points to her name and is averaging a league-high 24.6 points. She is 29 years of age and could reach the 10,000 mark by scoring about 20 points per game for the next six years.
Riquna Williams, guard for the Las Vegas Aces, finds herself entangled in a serious legal predicament. According to a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Williams was arrested for alleged domestic violence against her spouse and was ordered to be released from custody on Wednesday.
The gravity of the situation is evident as she faces a staggering total of nine charges, including three felony counts of strangulation, one felony count of assault with a deadly weapon, and one felony count of coercion. Additionally, she has been charged with four misdemeanor counts of domestic battery. This troubling development came to light during her court appearance on Wednesday, where Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Rebecca Saxe expressed grave concerns about the violent nature of the allegations, spanning an extended period.
In response to the distressing news, the Las Vegas Aces have taken decisive action, immediately barring Williams from team activities. The organization issued a statement expressing their condemnation of domestic violence in all its forms and vowing to support the affected parties during this difficult time. Williams’ future with the team remains uncertain as they continue to gather more information before making further decisions.
Riquna Williams’ uncertain future in the WNBA
Adding to the complexity of the situation, the 33-year-old guard has been struggling with a lower back injury this season, preventing her from participating in any games. However, her absence from the court does not diminish the significance of her role in the Aces’ triumph over the Connecticut Sun last season, which secured the franchise’s first WNBA championship.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Williams has faced legal trouble. Back in 2019, while playing for the Los Angeles Sparks, she was suspended for ten games due to another case of alleged domestic violence. In that instance, she pleaded not guilty to two felony assault and weapons charges.
As the legal process unfolds, Williams’ next court date has been scheduled for August 2nd. The outcome of the proceedings will undoubtedly have far-reaching consequences for her career and personal life. For now, the WNBA community watches and waits, hoping for a fair resolution and justice to be served.
Brittney Griner stood for the national anthem before her first regular-season WNBA game since being jailed in Russia.
Griner was outspoken for social justice in 2020 and didn’t take the court during the pregame anthem. But nearly a year behind bars in Russia changed her.
“I was literally in a cage and could not stand the way I wanted to,” she said. “Just being able to hear my national anthem and see my flag, I definitely want to stand.”
Brittney Griner can’t hold back the tears while discussing Russian detainment
Griner had 18 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots Friday night for the Phoenix Mercury in a 94-71 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks.
“Not good enough, didn’t get the dub,” said Griner, who nevertheless couldn’t be down in defeat.
“I appreciate everything a little bit more, all of the small moments, like, ‘Oh, I’m so tired I don’t want to go to practice today,’ that has changed, honestly,” she said. “Tomorrow is not guaranteed, you don’t know what it’s going to look like. I feel a lot older somehow, too.”
The 32-year-old center’s immediate goal is to be able to play an entire game by the All-Star break in mid-July. She played 25 minutes Friday.
“I hope to be exactly where I want to be,” Griner said. “Just getting back to how I was before all this happened.”
Griner made an immediate impact against the Sparks. She fired a pass to Moriah Jefferson, who hit a 3-pointer for Phoenix’s first basket. Griner grabbed a couple of rebounds and scored twice in helping the Mercury to an early lead.
“How good did she just look? Unbelievable,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert told reporters at halftime.
For the first time since last season, Phoenix coach Vanessa Nygaard opened her pregame comments without announcing how many days Griner had been jailed.
Brittany Griner defends transgender participation in women’s sports: “It’s a crime to separate them”
Griner has been free since December when she was part of a high-profile prisoner swap.
“Until the day we got the news in the morning that she was on her way home, no one thought that it was going to happen,” Nygaard said. “We did our jobs probably with less joy than professional athletes do. It was heavy every day.”
Not anymore.
“Today is a day of joy,” Nygaard said. “An amazing, amazing thing has happened.”
Griner and the Mercury were greeted with a standing ovation when they came on court for pregame warmups, although the biggest cheers were reserved for the Sparks.
“Just taking it in but staying focused because at the end of the day I’m at work,” Griner said. “Can’t get caught up in the moment. Kind of feel it, but put it to the side and feel it a little bit later.”
Griner hugged Vice President Kamala Harris and first gentleman Doug Emhoff as they left the court after Harris was presented with a No. 49 Sparks jersey. Earlier, Harris posed for photos in the Mercury’s locker room.
“It was nice to be able to see her face-to-face and thank her for everything,” Griner said.
She patted her heart and applauded in return during a brief video welcoming her back to the WNBA.
“It was nice to be back on the court for a real game,” she said. “The love from the fans when we came out was amazing. I definitely feel it.”
Griner scored 10 points in 17 minutes in an exhibition loss to the Sparks last week. It was her first game action since she was arrested at a Moscow airport in February 2022 after Russian authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.
“We brought back this Black, gay woman from a Russian jail and America did that because they valued her and she’s a female athlete and they valued her,” Nygaard said.
“Just to be part of a group that values people at that level, it makes me very proud to be an American. Maybe there’s other people that that doesn’t make them proud, but for me, I see BG and I see hope and I see the future and I have young children and it makes me really hopeful about our country,” the coach said.
Fans arriving early to Crypto.com Arena wore T-shirts with Griner’s name and jersey number on them. The 6-foot-9 Griner stopped to photo-bomb a group of young girls posing courtside before the game.
Billie Jean King and wife Ilana Kloss, who are part-owners of the Sparks, were on hand for the opener, as was Magic Johnson, Pau Gasol, Byron Scott, Robert Horry, Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham and South Carolina women’s coach Dawn Staley.
Since her release, Griner has used her platform to advocate for other Americans being detained abroad. She was already an LGBTQ+ activist since publicly coming out in 2013.
“She stands for so many people, so many different kind of people who can be undervalued in our society,” Nygaard said. “She stands with pride and confidence and has never once has shied away from who she is.”
Griner announced in April that she is working with Bring Our Families Home, a campaign formed last year by the family members of American hostages and wrongful detainees held overseas. She said her team has been in contact with the family of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is being detained in Russia on espionage charges.
“She’s an amazing person on and off the court,” Phoenix guard Moriah Jefferson said. “I think her energy just inspires everybody every single day to show up and be the best version of themselves.”
Friday marked a monumental day for Brittney Griner. Her Phoenix Mercury hosted the LA Sparks in a WNBA preseason game (90-71), which her team lost, but for her marked the end of a 572-day streak without playing a professional basketball game. Afterwards, Griner said that “hearing the National Anthem, it definitely hit different”.
Brittney Griner can’t hold back the tears while discussing Russian detainment
The Mercury center, who was imprisoned in Russia for almost 10 months in 2022, spoke about what it meant for her to hear the United States’ anthem played before the start of the game at Footprint Center: “It’s like when you go for the Olympics, you’re sitting there, about to get gold put on your neck, the flags are going up, and the anthem is playing, it just hits different.”
‘Conservative Twitter’ called out Brittney Griner
Online, many took Griner’s stance during the George Floyd protests in 2020 to call out her potential hipocrisy. On a teleconference in July of 2020, the basketball star had said “I honestly feel we should not play the National Anthem during our season,” clarifying that she meant “no offense” to her country.
“My dad was in Vietnam and a law officer for 30 years. I wanted to be a cop before basketball. I do have pride for my country”, she said.
Brittney Griner’s newly found appreciation for the National Anthem playing before non-Olympic games made an impact in ‘conservative’ Twitter circles. With one user stating: “A little bit of Russian prison will make you a rootin’ tootin’ patriot”.
While many on social media criticized Griner for her previous stance (which was widespread in sports during the BLM protests of 2020), others applauded her. “It’s not easy to admit your views/opinions change in front of a worldwide audience. I respect her for saying that. This country has a lot of problems, but at least we live in a place where we can fix those problems, and that’s something to be proud of”, one account wrote.
