Who is Satou Sabally? A closer look at the Dallas Wings forward

Satou Sabally is a WNBA star for the Dallas Wings. The 26-year-old, 6-foot-4 budding star was drafted second overall in the 2020 WNBA Draft. She sprung onto the WNBA scene and found immediate success.

Sabally is a two-time All-Star and goes into her fifth season in the league as a marquee player to watch. Last season she set career highs across the board. She shot 43.5 percent from the field and 36.1 percent from three-point range on her way to 18.6 points per game.

She also set career highs in rebounds with 8.1 per game and assists with 4.4 per game. Sabally is solid on the defensive end as well. She is athletic and can guard larger players. She also has quick hands and led the Wings with 1.8 steals per game last season.

Sabally is also popular on social media, and she models while away from basketball and boasts over 220K followers on Instagram.

The Wings forward has a unique background. She was born in New York City, her father is Gambian, and her mother is German. Her given name is Isatou, which is an Islamic name, and she is a muslim.

Satou Sabally and her family moved to Gambia when she was 2 years old. They then moved to Berlin as she began her education. Her sister Nyara also plays in the WNBA, for the New York Liberty.

Sabally began playing basketball in Germany at a young age. She was discovered by a coach at 9 years old and played on an all-boys youth team as she developed her skills.

Sabally came back to the United States to play college basketball. She played at Oregon for two seasons alongside Sabrina Ionescu. She was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year in 2018. She was also a second-team All-American in her second year before entering the WNBA.

Sabally has already had a storied career despite her youth. In 2023, she was the WNBA Most Improved Player of the Year and part of the All-WNBA First Team.

Sabally has had success overseas as well. She plays in Turkey for Fenerbahce during the WNBA offseason. She led the club to a EuroLeague championship in 2023 and has won three Turkish league championships.

She has also represented Germany's national 3x3 team, and she competed in the 2019 European Games.

Satou Sabally is a social rights activist. She has partnered with UNICEF and supports a beauty brand, Alaffia, which supports women workers in West Africa.

Satou Sabally named best small forward in WNBA

As the WNBA season begins, the hype is greater than ever. As part of the preseason hype, the general managers of the league were surveyed on the best players in the league.

Satou Sabally was named the best small forward in the league by the GM survey. She received 25 percent of the vote. Atlanta Dream forward Rhyne Howard and Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young were joint-second with 17 percent of the vote each.

Satou Sabally will be a star to watch this season. She returns to Dallas alongside Arike Ogunbowale this season. The Wings lost in the semifinals to the eventual champion Las Vegas Aces last season and will look to contend for the Finals this year with Sabally.