LA Sparks' Cameron Brink nears return after 13-month ACL recovery
She's been out for 13 months after tearing the ACL in her left knee in a game at Connecticut in June last season.
Now she's been cleared to play again and is eager to get back on the court with her Los Angeles Sparks teammates.
'I feel great. I'm super thankful that the Sparks have let me take my time and really feel great coming back,' Brink said to a few reporters after shootaround Saturday. 'I'm excited to be out there with my teammates.'
Brink has been working toward playing in a game. After the Sparks finished their pregame shootaround, Brink went to the Barclays Center practice court and got in another 20-minute workout.
'I've put in a lot of hard work. I feel like what people usually see is me living my life normally, but people don't see the hours and hours that I put in the gym with my trainers, amazing training staff," she said. 'I've been working my (behind) off, so I definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel for sure.'
Coach Lynne Roberts said that Brink won't play against the Liberty on Saturday night, but expects the 6-foot-4 forward back soon. Three of their next four games are at home after Saturday.
'It's hard to come in midseason, and then you add the mental aspect that every athlete struggles with being out that long,' Roberts said.
Brink's been around the team as much as she could over the past year and also found ways to keep herself busy during the long rehab process, starting a podcast and graduating from Stanford.
'It's really tough mental, waking up every day and watching your team from the sideline cheering everyone on. I love cheering on my teammates, but there comes a point where I want to be out there too,' Brink said. 'So, I'm just really happy to be at that point and just thankful for everyone along the way.'
Brink said that it's been tough during the long recovery period. She knows it will take time to get back to where she was before she got injured. Before she got hurt, Brink, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, was averaging 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.
'It's a little nerve-wracking for sure., I'm just really going to try to be patient with myself because I'm definitely not where I was last year,' she said. 'It's still a work in progress, but yeah, just thankful for the fans. Really excited to be able to just go out there and do what I love.'
___
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
MLB trade deadline: Pitcher Seth Lugo reportedly reaches 2-year, $46 million extension with Royals
Seth Lugo, one of baseball's most underrated pitchers, is sticking around Kansas City after all. The Royals reached a two-year, $46 million guaranteed contract extension with Lugo on Sunday, according to multiple reports. While Lugo was widely considered one of the top trade candidates ahead of Thursday's trade deadline, he'll instead be in Kansas City for years to come. Lugo was under contract until the end of this season with a salary of $15 million. Between his success and the Royals' struggles, Lugo loomed as one of the trade deadline's biggest prizes, so long as the club was willing to deal him. His career has flourished since joining Kansas City, as he finished as the runner-up for the AL Cy Young Award last season behind Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal. As a soft-throwing right-hander who doesn't strike out many batters and sees most of his balls in play go in the air, Lugo is hardly anyone's vision of an ace. However, his seemingly bottomless arsenal of pitches keeps batters off-balance enough to post quality starts on a regular basis. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] The Royals hold a 52-54 record heading into Monday's matchup with the Atlanta Braves, which has them sitting third in the AL Central. Lugo is set to take the mound Tuesday in the second game of that three-game series. Baseball Savant identifies an incredible 10 pitches that Lugo has used this season: four-seam fastball, curveball, sinker, cutter, changeup, slurve, slider, slow curve, sweeper and splitter. Pitch identification isn't an exact science, but all that goes to show how many looks Lugo can present on any given pitch. And he's a Gold Glover to boot. The results speak for themselves. No pitcher in the American League faced more batters last season than Lugo, and he's on pace to post a similarly strong season this year with the Royals. A lot of advanced stats don't love the 35-year-old's chances of continuing his success, but there are always players who overperform their peripherals. A player with Lugo's approach could easily be one of them. What to make of this extension? Lugo's extension feels like a win-win for both the pitcher and the Royals. Since arriving in Kansas City last season, the Royals' right-hander has been one of the best starting pitchers in the American League. The Royals' key to success has always been starting pitching first; don't expect that to change in 2026. Lugo, who could've opted out at the end of 2025 and re-entered free agency, instead gets the raise he was going to get on the market. And Kansas City keeps the most consistent starter in its rotation around for two more years, with the hope of better success in 2026. In terms of the trade deadline, Lugo's extension takes one of the top starting pitchers off the board and means that teams that were looking to add, particularly with rentals, will need to go back to the drawing board. — Dorsey
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Wings' Paige Bueckers to a ref: 'Do you need my glasses?'
Paige Bueckers wasn't available to play on Sunday, a bummer for the Dallas Wings. It did set up one of the funniest moments of their matchup with the Las Vegas Aces, though. After one call went against Dallas, the broadcast cameras focused in on Bueckers. On this day, in casual clothes on the bench, Bueckers was rocking some glasses. And so, she stood up, took a few steps toward an official, and asked, "Do you need my glasses?" Sometimes, that feels like it might be a fair question. That was the high point of the day for the Wings, who lost by 26 to Vegas without Bueckers. They'll just be hoping she can be back soon, because as fun as her referee interactions are when she's not on the court, Bueckers is much more fun in the game. MORE: Sophie Cunningham dons an unprecedented Arby's outfit before Fever game
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Mauricio and Soto lead Mets past Giants 5-3 for 7th straight win
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Ronny Mauricio and Juan Soto homered in the seventh inning, and the New York Mets beat the San Francisco Giants 5-3 on Sunday to match a season best with their seventh straight win. Mauricio had a career-high four hits, going 4 for 4 with two doubles and a tying homer from the bottom spot in the batting order. Jeff McNeil doubled twice to help the Mets complete a three-game sweep and extend their NL East lead to 1 1/2 games over Philadelphia. Matt Chapman homered twice and drove in all three runs for the Giants, who loaded the bases in the ninth on two walks and a hit batter. Edwin Díaz struck out Willy Adames and Chapman to end it. The Mets, who also had a seven-game winning streak in April, trailed 3-2 following Chapman's second homer, a two-run drive off starter Kodai Senga in the fifth. Mauricio tied it when the rookie drove a 1-0 slider from reliever Randy Rodriguez (3-2) into McCovey Cove leading off the seventh. After Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Lindor struck out, Soto hit his team-leading 25th home run to left, giving the Mets a 4-3 lead. They added an insurance run in the ninth on consecutive doubles by Mauricio and Nimmo. José Buttó (3-1), the second of four Mets relievers, retired three batters for the win. Gregory Soto pitched a perfect seventh in his New York debut, and Díaz worked the ninth for his 23rd save. Senga walked five in five innings. He allowed three runs and four hits. Key moment Mauricio shut down a potential Giants rally when he fielded Adames' slow grounder in front of third base and then quickly reversed direction to tag out Heliot Ramos trying to advance from second. Key stat Rodriguez had allowed only one home run all season before the Mets got to him twice in one inning. Up next Mets RHP Frankie Montas (3-1, 4.62 ERA) faces the Padres in San Diego on Monday. Carson Whisenhunt, the Giants' top pitching prospect, will make his major league debut Monday against Pittsburgh. ___ AP MLB:
