Is Sabrina Ionescu playing tonight against Rose BC? Latest on Phantom superstar's status for Unrivaled (Feb. 24)

Phantom BC’s star Sabrina Ionescu is expected to be suiting up as her team faces the Rose BC in the inaugural Unrivaled League tournament. Ionescu will be leading Phantom once more after stumbling down the Unrivaled standings with a 3-6 record. Meanwhile, the Rose BC is tied for the second spot with a 5-4 card.

Ionescu has been one of the league’s biggest stars, as she was signed months after leading the New York Liberty to the 2024 WNBA championship. Aside from Ionescu, Phantom consists of Satou Sabally, Marina Mabrey, Natasha Cloud, Brittney Griner, and Katie Lou Samuelson.

After signing with Phantom, Ionescu expressed that she would only be a part-time player in Unrivaled as she still has commitments outside of the league during the offseason.

"I'm not going to be here the full time…They've been very accommodating knowing that I have obligations I have to be at, being able to work through that with them and knowing I want to be here, fully committed to my teammates and this team," she said in a press conference before the season.

Ionescu has missed two of the nine games in Unrivaled this season. The Liberty star also attended numerous events during the Unrivaled season, including the NBA Paris games last month, where she linked up with the San Antonio Spurs and the Indiana Pacers.

Before joining Unrivaled, Ionescu nursed a thumb injury, which forced her to undergo surgery just weeks after the Liberty’s title run.

The sharpshooting guard has been averaging 18.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game in over 20 minutes of playing for Phantom.

Sabrina Ionescu downplays Angel Reese’s trash talk ahead of Phantom’s game against Rose

Sabrina Ionescu and Angel Reese have been the talk of fans as Reese was heard trash-talking Ionescu in their Jan. 31 clash. While in a timeout, Reese was heard telling her team that Ionescu could not guard.

“Sabrina [Ionescu] can't f****** guard!" to her team during a timeout,” Reese said.

In an interview with The Ringer, Ionescu downplayed the heated talk during the game, deeming it as just a normal occurrence in the sport.

"Oh, that's fine. I mean, that's just basketball…I don't mind. It's basketball at the end of the day, and I think it's kind of part of our sport. People trash talk, people talk about what you can't do on the court. You see it in the NFL, you see it in the NBA, you see it everywhere,” she said.

Phantom’s clash with Rose is one of the two games to be featured on Feb. 24, with the matchup of Ionescu and Reese being one of the game’s biggest storylines. The clash will precede the game between the Laces and the Mist.