Sabrina Ionescu set to make season debut for Liberty against Dallas

Sabrina Ionescu will step back into the New York Liberty lineup against Dallas with more than a box-score return riding on her first game of the season. Her comeback gives a 3-2 team a chance to reclaim its full offensive shape during a seven-game homestand, even if Chris DeMarco has already said her minutes will be restricted and the Liberty may hold her out of the second half of the back-to-back against Portland on Monday.

Ionescu practiced Saturday and said afterward she was good to go against the Wings, ending the five-game stretch she missed after injuring her left foot in the Liberty’s preseason finale against the Connecticut Sun on May 3. She landed awkwardly on a drive to the basket, rolled the ankle-foot area and played only about 16 minutes before exiting. An MRI the next day showed structural damage in the foot, but it did not require surgery, and the problem responded quickly once rehabilitation began. Ionescu said it has felt like forever watching from the sideline, though the injury was not considered major and she was able to return earlier than expected.

Even on a limited workload, Ionescu changes how New York can play. Last season she averaged 18.2 points, 5.7 assists and 4.9 rebounds, numbers that show why her presence matters to spacing, tempo and late-clock shot creation. WNBA.com lists her as the No. 1 pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft and a six-year veteran, and it also notes she became the first player in league history to post at least 500 points, 200 rebounds and 200 assists in a season. That kind of all-around production is what opens the floor for Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and the rest of New York’s core.

The Liberty are not just waiting on one player. Satou Sabally has already made her season debut, Leonie Fiebich was back taking shots after returning from a championship run in Spain, and Raquel Carrera was nearing her WNBA debut after years overseas. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton remained out for personal reasons. The roster churn matters because New York used 18 different starting lineups in 2025, a season in which Ionescu missed six games, Jones and Stewart each missed 13 regular-season games, and Laney-Hamilton sat out the entire year after knee surgery.

Ionescu’s return also carries a sharper edge because this is the same left ankle that required surgery in 2020 to remove scar tissue. Stewart said Ionescu was in good spirits after the preseason injury, and Jones said the team was checking with performance staff and “fingers are crossed.” For a defending group trying to steady itself, getting Ionescu back against Dallas is more than a feel-good checkpoint. It is the first real chance to see whether New York’s title case is simply healthier, or materially stronger.