Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu reacts after her team scored against Stanford...

Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu reacts after her team scored against Stanford during the second half of the Pac-12 tournament in Las Vegas on March 8. Credit: AP/John Locher

While the WNBA Draft, like every other part of the sports world, carries a bit of uncertainty around it thanks to the shutdown of every opportunity for in-person scouting, the Liberty are fortunate that with the No. 1 pick there is no ambiguity.

Sabrina Ionescu has provided the Liberty with that little cushion, allowing them to go into Friday night’s draft with no regrets about missed opportunities to scout the Oregon star point guard in any setting or stage unseen.

“I can speak for what I’ve seen,” Liberty coach Walt Hopkins said on a conference call Monday. “She’s really just a phenomenal leader in multiple ways. She’s not someone who just stands back. She comes down on teammates and you can watch the way they respond. It’s not easy to be that kind of leader. You have to do everything they’re saying.

“The poise that she handled, all the things that she handled, she’s been through a lot — her proximity to Kobe [Bryant], speaking at his service and then flying in and playing [at Stanford that night] without warm-up. Look no further than the way she’s handled herself in times of crisis to know what kind of leader she is and could be at the next level.”

Ionescu’s talent is unquestioned, a consensus No. 1 pick — and on the conference call ESPN's Rebecca Lobo pointed out that she could have come out last season and been the No. 1 pick then, too. She was just the second unanimous choice as The Associated Press National Player of the Year, becoming the first player in NCAA history — man or woman — to reach 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists.

Lobo, who starred for the Liberty as a rookie in 1997, earning All-WNBA honors, believes that Ionescu is a perfect fit for New York.

“I think the potential is there,” Lobo said. “For me, she’s a perfect fit for New York. The New York fan base is just a little bit different. Even 20-plus years ago when I was there, you could be walking through Central Park and people would be talking basketball. It’s not only her game, which is next-level, but her personality, the will to win, drive, she fits in high-pressure moments, and there’s nothing bigger than New York City.”

Speaking during an Instagram TV interview with Ros Gold-Onwude for "The Boardroom" last week, Ionescu talked about being a leader not just in this draft class but for those who follow behind her.

“I think I just am trying to stand for something bigger than myself and so I know girls in sports and women in sports is really important to me just because I didn’t have an equal opportunity that my brothers had growing up,” she said. “I was able to see that there wasn’t a lot of girls programs for sports. It kind of seemed weird to be a girl in sports. So, hopefully, my platform, I’m just going to be able to kind of make that a norm. It should be normal for girls to want to play sports and to be able to have that equal opportunity. So, I think that’s what I’m trying to do and probably will do for as long as I can.”

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