Is Sabrina Ionescu about to become the Kobe Bryant of the WNBA?

Sabrina Ionescu and the New York Liberty are coming off a WNBA championship victory, defeating the Minnesota Lynx in a thrilling five game series. Her first ring adds to her already impressive resume, four years into her WNBA career. She may be on track to have a similar career to her late mentor, Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant. All statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

The comparison and linkage between Sabrina Ionescu and Kobe Bryant isn’t accidental. The two had a strong connection and mutual burning desire to be the best in their respective basketball arenas.

Only a couple of weeks before he died in a helicopter crash, Bryant took to social media to show how highly he thought of Ionescu’s game. She was still a college player for the University of Oregon in January 2020, where she recorded a then-career high of 37 points. As Athlon Sports noted, Bryant posted an emoji of a goat, which showed his appreciation for her performance.

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The Lakers held a memorial service at their home arena after Bryant’s passing, and Ionescu was invited to speak at the event. As People’s website documented, Ionescu said at the time, “I saw the way he supported his family and his constant advocacy for women’s basketball. His encouragement and promotion of equality in sports along with his Mamba Mentality is what motivates me today.”

Bryant and his family sat courtside for one of Ionescu’s games with the Oregon Ducks game when they played the University of Southern California Trojans in Los Angeles. Ionescu told Marca, “they watched the entire game. And that was the first time I met Kobe.”

As covered by the Los Angeles Times, Ionescu also said at Bryant’s memorial service “I knew I was different, that my drive was different. I grew up watching Kobe Bryant game after game, ring after ring, living his greatness without apology. I wanted to be just like him, to love every part of the competition, to be the first to show up and the last to leave.”

Ionescu’s connection wasn’t just with Kobe; it was with his entire family. Sporting News noted that she helped Bryant coach the Mamba Ballers, the team that his daughter Gianna played on.

To this day, Ionescu continues to spend time with Bryant’s other daughters. A social media post captured Ionescu’s day with Bianka Bryant, part of which was spent playing basketball. Ionescu wrote, “Shooting definitely runs in the family.”

Now that Ionescu has a ring of her own in the WNBA, the conversation about whether she draws parallels to Kobe Bryant’s career can truly begin.

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Bryant was an All-Star in his second NBA season, but began his career coming off the bench as a teenager. Ionescu was thrust into the lineup for the Liberty almost immediately, and was a solid player from the get-go.

Before starting his championship barrage in 2000, Bryant had to go through some growing pains. He infamously shot airballs in a playoff game against the Utah Jazz with the game on the line in 1997. Of course, this is just a footnote in NBA history now, considering what else he was able to accomplish.

Ionescu didn’t have the best finish to the 2024 WNBA Finals herself. In the closeout Game 5, she shot 1-19 from the field. However, she didn’t let that stop her from impacting the game in other ways. She finished with seven rebounds and eight assists, and made a difference without scoring.

Ionescu’s dismal performance in Game 5 will likely be swept under the rug considering her heroics in Game 3. She drilled a deep three-pointer with time winding down to give New York a late lead, and a 2-1 advantage in the series.

Ionescu told ESPN after the game that she had a great feeling she would knock down the long-range shot attempt. “Yeah, this is in,” she said. Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello told ESPN, “What I love about her (Ionescu) is that she backs herself. Not everyone can take those big shots and make them. She can.”

The Liberty were able to win the 2024 WNBA title after reaching the WNBA Finals in 2023, but fell short against the Las Vegas Aces. This New York team is pretty stacked with talent, which might remind some of the 2000s Lakers teams Bryant won championships with.

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Ionescu’s inherent attitude is that nothing is ever good enough, so she will pursue titles with the same vigor that she had to get her first ring. It’s conceivable that Ionescu could one day put a team on her back without the same level of star teammates, just the way Bryant did in the latter part of his career.