Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty to play Minnesota Lynx in WNBA Finals

A year removed from helping the New York Liberty reach this very same stage but falling just short, former Oregon guard Sabrina Ionescu helped lead her team to the WNBA Finals for the second consecutive season in 2024.

The Liberty will play the Minnesota Lynx in the Finals, starting in New York, on Thursday.

Ionescu, who had the best statistical regular season of her career in her fifth year in New York in 2024, finished sixth in the WNBA's MVP voting after averaging 18.2 points, 6.2 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game.

The Liberty finished with the WNBA's best regular-season record and fairly easily dispatched the Atlanta Dream in two games in the first round of the playoffs. Ionescu scored 36 points and dished out nine assists in the series-clinching Game 2.

In the following WNBA semifinals against the Las Vegas Aces, Ionescu and the Liberty got sweet revenge, defeating the two-time defending champions in four games, 3-1. Ionescu scored more than 20 points in each of New York's wins, including five 3-pointers in the series-clinching Game 4.

Former Duck Nyara Sabally also plays for the Liberty, and averaging 4.9 points and four rebounds per game in 2024 in her third season in New York.

The Lynx, the WNBA's No. 2 seed, dispatched the Phoenix Mercury in the first round before defeating the Connecticut Sun in five games in the WNBA semifinals.

How to watch Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty in WNBA Finals vs. Minnesota Lynx

Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com and you can follow him on X @AlecDietz .

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty to play Minnesota Lynx in WNBA Finals