PARIS, France — Former Oregon Ducks guard Sabrina Ionescu is headed to her first Olympic games with Team USA, looking to bring home an eighth Olympic gold medal in women's basketball for the United States.
Ionescu, who was drafted No. 1 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft, has been a consistent star for the New York Liberty. This season, she ranks sixth in the WNBA in scoring at 19.4 points per game and fifth in assists at 6.2 per game, and the Liberty have the league's best record at 20-4.
Ionescu said she's not taking this Olympic opportunity for granted.
"I've just been a part of it [U.S. national team] and have understood what it means to represent your country at all levels," Ionescu said. "Now being able to have the opportunity to be at the highest honor and achievement that you could ever have as an athlete is to win a gold medal for your country."
Ionescu has won multiple gold medals for the U.S., most recently at the 2022 FIBA World Cup. However, the stage in Paris is even bigger.
"I've never played in an Olympics and so being able to play for the big prize and just wanting to do that and knowing it's just paid off [after] all the years of being able to be a part of USA Basketball from a young age," Ionescu said.
While the U.S. has been nothing short of dominant ever since women's basketball was introduced into the Olympics in 1996, Ionescu said she and her teammates won't take any opponents for granted. She said they recognize the talent around the world is beginning to catch up.
"China is a powerhouse. Belgium, we just played it, and they were so good," Ionescu said. "Australia is really good because they play a lot of these young kids that grow up in these organizations and are able to compete for their national team because there's investment in youth a lot sooner now."
The U.S. is currently heavily favored during the Olympics, with sports books putting them as -1800 favorite to win gold.
Team USA's first game is against Germany on July 29 at 12 p.m. PST.