Sabrina Ionescu left Sunday’s Liberty vs. Sun preseason game in the third quarter after landing on her left leg awkwardly. She ended up rolling her ankle. The way she grimaced with pain walking off the court worried WNBA fans that the New York star could miss a significant amount of time with the 2026 season starting this weekend.
Luckily, on Monday it was reported by the New York Post’s Madeline Kenney that Ionescu “avoided significant injury” when rolling her left ankle. She’s expected to miss at least two weeks and her return timeline will be re-evaluated then.
Fans were concerned specifically that Ionescu injured her left ankle, the same one she hurt during her rookie campaign that made her miss the rest of the season. She only played in three games her rookie season, but it sounds like she won’t miss a huge chunk of time this year.
Sabrina Ionescu exited the preseason game against the Sun in the third quarter after this play.
— espnW (@espnW) May 4, 2026
Liberty coach Chris DeMarco said after the win that Ionescu had rolled her left ankle and will have an MRI on Monday. pic.twitter.com/N1gwOeNCFa
Before exiting the game, Ionescu played in 16 minutes of Sunday’s preseason game and scored six points. After the game, Ionescu’s Liberty teammate Breanna Stewart said the guard was in “good spirits.”
Ionescu was just coming off of missing the 2026 Unrivaled season because of an injury she sustained during last year’s Liberty campaign. Fans were excited to see her back on the court to start the preseason, but now she’ll be benched at the beginning of the regular season.
When Sabrina Ionescu could return to the court
Two weeks from today—Monday, May 4—will be Monday, May 18. This means Ionsecu will at least miss the first four games of the regular season.
The Liberty opens up its season on Friday, May 8 against the Sun, followed by a Sunday matchup vs. the Mystics. Then, New York will play a doubleheader against the Portland Fire on Tuesday, May 12 and Thursday, May 14 before returning home.
If Ionescu is cleared to return in just two weeks, then the earliest fans will see her on the court would be the matchup vs. the Valkyries at home on Thursday, May 21. Otherwise, the Liberty play next on the following Sunday at home vs. the Wings, which will be a star-studded match with New York facing the new duo of Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd. It’d be great if Ionescu is healthy by then.
More WNBA from Sports Illustrated
- Potential Landing Spots for Hailey Van Lith After Sky Release Guard, Add Natasha Cloud
- Azzi Fudd Gave Honest Assessment of WNBA Officiating After Preseason Game
- A’ja Wilson on Meeting Beyoncé, A’Two Sneaker Release & Lowe’s Commercial w/ Jalen Brunson
- Fever vs. Wings Preseason: Caitlin Clark’s Injury Scare, Paige Bueckers’s Dominance and Azzi Fudd’s Quiet Debut
This article was originally published on www.si.com as When Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu Could Return to Court After Preseason Injury.
