Sabrina Ionescu’s struggles in Game 5 of the WNBA Finals have been well-chronicled; the All-Star guard shot just 1-19 from the field and 1-10 from the field in the New York Liberty’s 67-62 win over the Minnesota Lynx. That came after a Game 4 loss that saw her shoot 5-15 from the field.
Sabrina Ionescu’s WNBA Finals shooting struggles make a lot more sense now
The New York Liberty guard dealt with a previously undisclosed injury, suffering a high-grade UCL tear on her shooting hand during Game 4 of the WNBA Finals.
Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Noa Dalzell is a senior writer covering the WNBA and all of women’s basketball for Breakaway, SB Nation’s women’s sports vertical, as well as the Celtics for CelticsBlog.
Now, we might just have at least a partial explanation for why the sharpshooter struggled so much in the final two games of the postseason. According to ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, Ionescu suffered a “high-grade UCL tear” on her right shooting hand during Game 4. The ulnar collateral ligament is a strong band of tissue where the thumb meets the palm, helping keep the thumb stable, and could have easily disrupted her shooting motion.
Ionescu’s injury is a good reminder of how many injuries go unreported during playoff basketball — the WNBA is particularly known for underreporting injuries — while also helping explain her uncharacteristic struggles.
Prior to her injury, Ionescu hit what will go done as one of the biggest shots in WNBA history — a go-ahead three-pointer with a second to play in Game 3. That shot sealed the victory over the Lynx and gave the Liberty a 2-1 lead in the WNBA Finals.
During the WNBA playoffs, Ionescu averaged 16.9 points on 39.6% shooting, alongside 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists en route to the franchises’s first-ever WNBA title. That followed a Second Team All-WNBA season in which she averaged 18.2 points, 6.2 assists, and 4.4 rebounds, helping lead New York to a 32-8 record.
There’s been a number of high-profile cases of basketball players suffering UCL injuries in their hand. In April of 2023, for example, New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum had surgery to repair a torn UCL. Ionescu’s injury is not expected to require injury, however.
Earlier this week, Ionescu was spotted courtside with Jonquel Jones at a Brooklyn Nets game with a sleeve on her hand where the injury took place, fueling some speculation that she may have suffered an injury.
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