New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu is not happy with the narrative surrounding her absence from the 2026 WNBA 3-point Contest. On Wednesday, Ionescu addressed the speculation, saying she couldn’t compete in the event because she wasn’t even invited in the first place.
“I can’t decline an offer I never got officially invited to,” Ionescu told reporters, via Sportico.
“So I was pretty surprised to see that. Never got invited. Whether it’s against Steph Curry or in the [WNBA], I always go out and try and beat my record every single time I’ve gone out. So yeah, I mean, I just kind of wanted to set the record straight. That was just false.”
Ionescu, however, has no hard feelings toward those who will be participating in the annual shooting competition.
“But I’m really excited for the participants in it and obviously there is going to be a new winner, so I’m excited to see who wins,” the former No. 1 overall draft pick added.
Other big names who are not going to the event are Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and Kayla McBride of the Minnesota Lynx.
Ionescu has won the event twice and is still very much at the peak of her career, making it puzzling that she wasn’t given the chance to defend her title this year.
It feels like the WNBA is missing out on a huge opportunity to gain more attention and further market the league by not having Clark and Ionescu compete in the contest. Instead, the event will feature Azzi Fudd of the Dallas Wings, Marina Mabrey of the Toronto Tempo, Rhyne Howard of the Atlanta Dream, Natisha Hiedeman of the Seattle Storm, Janelle Salaun of the Golden State Valkyries and Bridget Carleton of the Portland Fire.
