Last year, the Liberty and Aces were dubbed the WNBA’s super-teams, largely because of their star-studded rosters, including Ionescu. However, Vegas delivered a blow that left a lasting impact on Ionescu.

“Losing drives you,” she reflected.

The Liberty had room for improvement, and Ionescu knew that included herself. Before heading back to California last fall, she sat down with New York’s coaching team, who highlighted areas for growth. While she excelled with the ball, they pointed out she was too predictable without it. They emphasized making smarter reads in pick-and-roll situations, improving her cuts, varying her pace, and attacking the basket more aggressively.

Once fully recovered, Ionescu threw herself into training, unrestricted by injury or self-imposed limits on her intensity.

“For me, it’s about constantly striving to improve, never settling for complacency,” Ionescu shared.

She was relentless in the gym, refining her ball-handling and speed, and incorporating new floaters into her arsenal. She focused on shooting off different dribble moves and strengthening her physicality. Competing in five-on-five games with current and former Pac-12 athletes, WNBA players, and overseas pros, she thrived on live reps. “There’s no substitute for real defense,” she said.

But even that wasn’t enough. Ionescu set personal challenges, making tough drills even more difficult. In one sequence, her trainer recalled how she had to make 20 deep 3-pointers, with the last five in a row. Ionescu added the condition that each one had to be a clean swish. After sinking 13 straight, she stopped, declaring some shots had barely touched the rim. “Nope, those don’t count,” she said and restarted the drill.

“Training at full throttle was a whole different level,” remarked Breen Weeks, her skills trainer for the past two offseasons.

In another drill, Ionescu challenged herself to make five one-dribble floaters without using her dominant hand to guide the shot. She insisted that if the height wasn’t perfect, it didn’t count. “That’s her intensity,” Weeks explained. “She’s locked in and meticulous. I call her a cold-blooded competitor.”

Ionescu added, “I know I can make the shot, but I’m always chasing perfection. Sometimes that means a swish; sometimes it’s mastering a difficult move.”

Facing tough situations has been a constant in Ionescu’s career, filled with both achievements and setbacks, including injuries. But her relentless focus this offseason has taken her game to new heights. She’s attacking the rim more and now leads New York’s offense, averaging career highs of 18.2 points and 6.2 assists per game while playing more minutes than ever before.

Her efforts have culminated in leading the Liberty back to the WNBA Finals, just a step away from their first-ever championship. After falling short last season, New York — one of the league’s original teams — now has a real shot at making history, starting with Game 1 against the Minnesota Lynx on Thursday.

“It’s been fulfilling to see my true self come through,” Ionescu said.

Those closest to her aren’t surprised by her commitment to the game. As a high school sophomore in Orinda, California, on the way to becoming one of the nation’s top recruits, her coach gave her a key to the school gym, where she practiced late into the night. She was there so frequently that the school principal instructed the janitors to let her stay.

At the University of Oregon, coach Kelly Graves recalled how Ionescu discovered the practice facility wasn’t truly open 24/7, as promised. On her first night on campus, a security guard kicked her out, the first of many times during her college career. “She’s the only player I’ve ever had kicked out of the facility for practicing too late,” Graves said.

That relentless work ethic became even more crucial when Ionescu’s promising start in the WNBA was interrupted by injury. Drafted as the No. 1 overall pick in 2020, her rookie season was cut short after just three games due to a serious ankle sprain. Lingering pain impacted her 2021 season as well, and it wasn’t until 2022 that she felt fully recovered. She referred to that time as her “dark days,” but finishing a season healthy became as important as winning a championship.

“She competes with herself,” said Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb.

When the team regrouped in the spring, assistant coach Olaf Lange noticed flashes of improvement in training camp. Head coach Sandy Brondello remarked on Ionescu’s enhanced explosiveness.

By her 14th game, Ionescu had already made more floaters than in all of 2023. Going into the finals, 37.2% of her shots were at the rim or floaters, compared to just 26.3% the previous season. “When she plays aggressively, it opens up opportunities for everyone else,” said teammate Breanna Stewart.

Stewart and Jonquel Jones may have MVPs to their names, but Ionescu is the engine that drives the Liberty. Aces coach Becky Hammon called her “the head of the snake” for New York, praising her ability to control pace, read the game, and put defenses in tough spots.

“That’s what makes her so valuable,” Hammon said. “It’s tough when elite players keep getting better.”

In Game 3 of the semifinals, the Aces tried to stop Ionescu, holding her to just four points. But in Game 4, she responded with 12 points in the first quarter and a team-high 22 overall, sealing the Aces’ fate.

Ionescu has been harder to stop this season, not just because of her stats, but due to her newfound confidence. “Earlier in her career, I felt she’d sometimes force the issue when feeding off the crowd,” Lange said. “Now, she lets the game come to her.”

As her former coach Sopak watches her playoff run, he’s reminded of moments from her past. One memory comes from a middle school game when she hit a late runner off the glass, much like her clutch shot over A’ja Wilson in New York’s Game 2 win. With just 11.6 seconds left, Ionescu stepped to the free-throw line to secure the victory. After missing her first attempt, Sopak remembered a similar situation from high school when Ionescu missed a crucial free throw, costing her team the game. But he knew she wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

“There’s no sugar-coating things with Sabrina,” Sopak said. “After that game, I told her if she wanted to be great, she had to be willing to face failure.”

Ionescu thrives on those high-pressure moments. “She’s not proving anything anymore,” Sopak said.

In the last few weeks, Ionescu has shared the spotlight with celebrities like Spike Lee and Carmelo Anthony, hyped up Barclays Center crowds, and closed out playoff wins at the free-throw line.

Despite the accolades, her focus remains on winning. After tying a franchise playoff record with 36 points to end the first-round series against the Atlanta Dream, she took a rare moment to relax in the locker room.

“That wasn’t perfect, but we played hard,” she told her teammates. “We fought for 40 minutes and kept chipping away.”

Now healthy, confident, and vocal, Ionescu feels more comfortable showing her personality on and off the court. “People are starting to see more of who I am,” she said, “because I’ve become more confident in myself.”

Whether urging coaches to keep practicing or pushing herself to perfection, every drill, and every second matters to Ionescu. Winning a championship has been on her mind since last season’s loss, and she’s ready to do whatever it takes to achieve it.

“I’ve been thinking about a championship ever since we lost last year,” Ionescu said. it would mean for her teammates, for a Liberty franchise that has lost its five prior trips to the finals, and for New York City, which hasn’t won a basketball title since the 1970s.

“I’ve been thinking about a championship since we lost last year,” Ionescu said.