I gained a lot of experience playing on my brothers' 10-foot hoop. [28] This announcement came shortly after Ionescu accepted a place in a newly launched one-year master's degree program in brand creation in UO's School of Journalism and Communications. Hebard: I was like, she's always yelling! These are things that kids can acquire; they don't have to be born with those things. After becoming eligible in 2019, Ionescu joined the Womens National Basketball Association (WNBA) and continued to show her impressive talents. Playing him was not always easy, but I do improve because he's harder to play. The WNBA draft order is released in September, and the New York Liberty draw the top pick. Ionescu has been in a relationship with her boyfriend, Hroniss Grasu, for a long time. Ionescus impressive performances throughout college included one Pac-12 record, two less than the NCAA record, and four triple-doubles. [Laughs] I think she learns a lot from them, which is really cool, and she definitely brings back stuff to share with the team. [7], Ionescu was four-year varsity basketball letter winner at Miramonte High School in Orinda, California under head coach Kelly Sopak.[8]. Basketball fans are more curious to know is Sabrina Ionescu gay or not. Sabrina: The fact that I had to fight for every rebound, because he wasn't going to give me anything easy, is kind of what I translate to my game now. She then averaged 19.7 points per game in her sophomore season to go with 7.8 assists and 6.7 rebounds, and then 19.9 points per game, 8.2 assists, and 7.4 rebounds in her junior year. The Athletics Shams Charania reported that she is expected to miss approximately one month as she has a Grade 3 left ankle sprain. She was an Oregon Ducks basketball player in college. . 1 defensive team. Her soon-to-be favorite player entered the league in 2009, when the Warriors used the No. She was diagnosed the next day with a[42] grade 3 sprain, and was expected to miss about one month while recovering. Sabrina was only three years old when she chose basketball for her free time. Sabrina: It tore me apart. Liliana: I still feel like I'm just living in dreams, especially at the bigger games, and when I know that next year she's going to join a professional team, it's something that I never thought was going to happen. She debuted for Oregon in November 2016, scoring 11 points in a win over Lamar. Sabrina: I don't really think I grasped what it would be like. Eddy: We were together when she made that decision. Her first language was Romanian, which she used when playing with her brother in basketball games. She takes to heart what people say, their comments. Carlos Serrao for ESPN. I played 1-on-1, collect the money, Slurpees. Additionally, she would receive her bachelor's degree that June. She's not the biggest, quickest, fastest, strongest. Required fields are marked *. Sopak: I'm on the phone with her and she has 19 minutes to notify the WNBA [laughs] if she's going to declare for the draft, and we're seeing things on Twitter that she's going, she's not going, and we're laughing about it because she doesn't know. Sabrina enrolls at Oregon and for the first time lives apart from Eddy, who stays in the Bay Area and enrolls at City College of San Francisco. Eddy: That was probably one of her biggest lows. Wife And Net Worth Revealed. You just see it's a little bit different in her preparation, in her focus, in her manner. 'So I made this deal with God. He hoped that his then-wife, Liliana Blaj, and their son Andrei could join them in a few months, but they were unable to move to the US until 1995. Her two brothers were a big help in developing her basketball skills. So Sabrina always kept her shoes with her when we went to Eddy's games. The following year, Sabrina leads the Pac-12 in points and assists, and the Ducks earn a 2-seed in the NCAA tournament. Talking about her academics, she attended Miramonte High School from 2012 to 2016. In late April 2018, Ionescu and Oregon teammates Erin Boley, Otiona Gildon, and Ruthy Hebard entered the USA Basketball women's national 3x3 championship tournament at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Sabrina gets her first collegiate triple-double just seven games into her Oregon career, in a 91-62 victory over San Jose State. Sabrina Ionescu- Professional Life, Career, Awards And so I was like, "All right, well this is my chance, I'm going to say something.". That's all I said. There, she achieved an impressive milestone, becoming the first college basketball player to collect 1,000 assists, 2,000 points, and 1,000 rebounds in a career. Sabrina: They were coming to win that game, not by one or two points. Posts. [3] By that time, Dan owned a limousine service in Northern California, where he had chosen to settle because he had several extended family members in that area. She received the 2019 John R. Wooden Award and both the 2018 and 2019 Nancy Lieberman Award. [47] Ionescu had never before played under FIBA 3x3 rules, admitting after the tournament, "I had to ask the rules before the games started. Furthermore, Ionescu and her team finished as the Northern California Section Division II runner-up team. | Julio Aguilar/Getty Images Ionescu actually has a twin brother named Eddy who also plays basketball. Ionescu's Oregon Ducks also won the Pac-12 championship for the first time since 2000. But if I did, they were only tears of joy. By 50. ", "I started to play basketball at the age of 3, though I was just throwing the ball around. That same day, Ionescu flies to the Bay Area for a game against Stanford. She is now the all-time NCAA triple-double leader for both men and women", "Air Force vs. Oregon Game Summary December 20, 2018 ESPN", "Oregon's Ionescu is espnW's player of the week", "Sabrina Ionescu breaks Oregon assist record in blowout of USC", "The ultimate guide to Oregon senior Sabrina Ionescu", "Sabrina Ionescu powers Oregon to its first Women's Final Four", "Sabrina Ionescu builds her brand as an SOJC master's student", "Ducks' Ionescu eclipses 2,000 points, 800 assists", "Sabrina Ionescu scores career-high 37, breaks program career scoring record to lead No. She is the daughter of Romanian-American parents. The entire time, he had played it off that he was like, "We'll do whatever's best for you," and then was like, "All right, I'm going to go on a walk." Verified. I went to Stanford. Shop ionescu t-shirts created by independent artists from around the globe. There is no related content available. In the postgame interview, she calls out ESPN: "It probably still won't get recognized because ESPN never recognizes women's sports. Eddy: Whether she would bust my lip, or I hit her in the nose on accident, or whatever it was, we would absolutely play through the blood. Eddy: Summers in California were just basketball and sleep, pretty much. [20] On December 20, 2018, Ionescu recorded her 13th triple-double in a game against Air Force and broke the NCAA triple-double record for both men's and women's basketball. Eddy: Kobe's just wired different is what she told me. After starring for the Oregon Ducks womens college basketball team, Ionescu has since joined the New York Liberty. Sabrina: What we've been building these last couple of years goes to show women's basketball is valued. April 17, 2020 Nike, Inc. signs WNBAs #1 overall pick, Sabrina Ionescu to multiyear endorsement deal which will include signature footwear and apparel..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#3a3;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}"Nike signs #1 pick Sabrina Ionescu to multiyear endorsement deal". Brother's name: Edward Ionescu "Eddy" (Twin), Andrei Ionescu: Education: Miramonte High School , University of Oregon: Height: 5 feet 11 inches (180c m) Marital Status: Unmarried: Husband/Boyfriend: NA . Emma Reed contributed to this report. Eddy: It helped us grow into the people we are, and then we know that we always have each other to fall back on. I think she has a chance to really change the game and the way the game is viewed by everybody. I felt more alone. Eddy has since joined Oregons team. So I figured that if I could rebound, I would be able to get the ball myself. His vision for me was way bigger than my own. Ionescu was one of the top college basketball players in the country starting in her very first college season. Hebard: I think it's needed. Months go by. 7 overall pick to draft sharp-shooter Stephen Curry from Davidson College. Hroniss Grasu and Sabrina Ionescu are a Lovely Couple. As a senior, Ionescu averaged 17.5 points per game, 9.1 assists, and 8.6 rebounds. With her darting moves, pinpoint passes and. Sabrina-Ionescu with her team meat. Dan, Sabrina's father: [The twins] always felt comfort with each other. "My Romanian heritage influences my life on a daily basis and is something that I find pride in," she says. Ramona Shelburne on why playing for the Clippers is deeper than basketball for Paul George. Sabrina: I remember I was in the front yard with Eddy, and he was like, "My left hand's better than yours." See All. Her twin is Edward Ionescu also referred to as Eddy. When she's losing a game, you do not talk to her. Sopak: The biggest challenge she has now is overcoming losing. [Her parents] never questioned anything. Hroniss Grasu is currently dating his girlfriend Sabrina Ionescu who is most known for having played for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association is the all-time leading scorer in the NCAA and a gold medalist at the FIBA Americas U-16 competition (WNBA). Five bucks to the winner. [31][32] In the rivalry game against Oregon State on January 24, 2020, Ionescu had 24 points, 9 assists and 4 rebounds and broke Oregon State and NBA star Gary Payton's Pac-12 all-time record of 938 assists. In addition to the career record, Ionescu also held the Miramonte top three single season scoring records with 598 (201314), 760 (201415) and 834 (201516). [3] Sabrina was around three years old when she first picked up a basketball. Hroniss Grasu, Sabrina's partner, is a well-known free agency football center who has experience playing for several clubs, including the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, and San Francisco 49ers. We let Oregon down in some way, because we had such high expectations for ourselves. He and Sabrina stay connected through the Bay Area community and its youth basketball scene. He noted that attendance at Oregon women's games had dramatically increased during Ionescu's career at the school. Be Unique. I used my older brother as inspiration to keep improving. He has an older brother named Nico, who was a placekicker for Washington State from 2008 to 2010. As kids, Sabrina Ionescu and her twin brother would hustle old men at basketball courts for 7-Eleven Slurpee money. Sabrina: I showered, I had some food. I was happy that she pushed back. His parents, tefan and Mariana Grasu, migrated from Romania to the USA in 1982. Sabrina: We struggled, and I think we didn't handle adversity very well. Earlier in the season, Sabrina watched the video her father took of her young self making that Toastmasters speech about her basketball dreams. Sabrina: I could tell Eddy was really nervous. I went right back at him. No statistics available for this season. Then he called me and said, "Where are you?" The well-known WNBA player Sabrina Ionescu's twin brother is Eddy Ionescu. She played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. In an interview with ESPN, the presumptive No. But when she was a kid, she and her twin brother, Eddy Ionescu, would channel the future Oregon Duck's on-court flair for a far less righteous end goal. Dan: She will not back down from anything, and he will not back down from anything. He'd come to visit, but not having him always to talk to in person was a lot different for me. It was part introduction and part prophecy. Hebard: When they came out with the draft, I texted her. [1] However, believing that she had "unfinished business" at Oregon, she chose to come back for her senior season. I would just have to find ways to impact the game other than shooting or scoring, and that was passing. ", Sabrina: They had posted something about Ja Morant getting one and said that there was only eight or seven people that ever got one in the NCAA tournament, and they listed all the men that had gotten a triple-double. Sabrina was around three years old when she first picked up a basketball. Namrata is an enthusiastic CSIT student. It motivates her to go back and practice more from learning from her mistakes." Graves: She commands and demands and deserves the respect that she's been given. I think he almost started crying, gave me a hug, everyone was super happy, and then I started school the next day. I figured out ways to write poems about basketball the entire year. She played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. "Swear to God, we . And he came, and his voice was shaking because I had like 10 minutes to decide and I hadn't decided. [45], On July 6, 2022, Ionescu had 31 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists to record the first 30-point triple-double in WNBA history.[46]. She is also the all-time leader in assists (769), steals (549) and triple-doubles (21). In the historic game against Stanford, Ionescu made NCAA history. "She's a legend in her own right, that's for sure." It was tough being there and it was tough having to play a top-five matchup right after that. A Big 3 of Jones, Stewart and Ionescu would. Sabrina Ionescu was born on 6th December 1997 and grew up in Walnut Creek, California, to her Romanian-American parents. She's going to play at that level. I appreciated it. [51] She was close with Kobe Bryant, with whom she had one-on-one training sessions, and spoke at the Kobe & Gianna Bryant Celebration of Life at the Staples Center on February 24, 2020. Also Read: Was Karl Malone Arrested For Rape Allegations? Sabrina Ionescu had 31 points, seven rebounds and eight assists Sunday to lead Oregon to an 88-84 win over Mississippi State in the Portland Regional final at Moda Center. Ionescu is perfectly pixilated for today's generation of young fans, who grew up watching basketball not just on ESPN but also XBox and PlayStation. Just being able to, you know, have that platform now at Oregon is something that kind of sparks me to try to just voice my opinion on social media. I just showed up. She wants to win a national championship. Ionescus love for the sport started at a young age, as she began playing basketball when she was only three years old. So I just remember, I said, "I'm going to stay." [53], Ionescu is engaged to former Oregon football player and Las Vegas Raiders center Hroniss Grasu.[54]. Dan Ionescu and Liliana Blaj, her proud parents, welcomed her into the world. [My family] saw the pros in both decisions, and they just told me, "The decision is yours, do what you want, we support you." There'd be fights. Parents Ethnicity And Girlfriend. Katrina, Read More Katrina Gorry Partner Clara Markstedt Is A Soccer Player Children and Age RevealedContinue, Aaron Nesmith brother name is Eddie Nesmith. I had to let her be, just because I knew her draft decision was coming up. It's her 26th career triple-double, and she makes history as the first college basketball player to compile 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists. Her elder brother is Andrei Ionescu. Her parents fled Romania during the 1989 revolution and sought political asylum in the U.S., raising Ionescu, her twin brother and older brother in Walnut Creek, California. Sabrina: I knew I was doing a little bit of everything, but there were no stats up on the scoreboard. Here, the superstar and the people who know her best reveal the story behind the legend, the fights and flourishes that have come to define the game's most electric player. A daughter of Romanian immigrants who fled their homeland after the 1989 revolution, Ionescu took to basketball "just trying to keep up" with her brothers in the driveway while growing up the . His sister, Sabrina, is a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) professional). Sabrina Ionescu has been in the spotlight since she was a teenager. On December 6, 1997, Sabrina Ionescu was born in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa County, California. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Rob Herring Wife: Who Is Nicola Herring? 1 in the WNBA Draft a year later.. That was in May 2020, a time in which she sat atop the basketball world as the NCAA's . I thought it was, like, freshman duties or something. I feel like that's definitely something that she'll leave behind, that's going to motivate the younger generation. Ionescu also played for the University of Oregons womens basketball team. If we didnt want somebody else knowing what I wanted to do like a pick-and-pop, or watch me in the corner, or drive to the left wed say it to each other in Romanian, Eddy said, according to The Oregonian. And so I had to learn how to use the ball screens and all the frustration that comes with that. [47] Ionescu and her Oregon teammates would be named as the US team for the 2018 3x3 World Cup to be held in June in the Philippines. Seriously, word-for-word." They were all riled up, and we got a steal, passed it to Sabrina, and she went up for a layup and the guy intentionally fouled her, just pushed her, two hands, in the back.