Los Angeles Sparks center Cameron Brink, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft after Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament on Tuesday, June 18, ending her rookie season.
The knee ligament was injured during the Sparks’ 79-70 defeat at the hands of the Connecticut Sun.
Early in the first quarter, Brink was driving to her left from the top of the key when she received some contact from defender Brionna Jones. Brink’s left leg appeared to give out as Jones was called for a foul and Brink went down to the ground. She stayed down for a few seconds while grabbing her knee in pain before her teammates helped her to her feet.
She hobbled off the court as the Sparks made a substitution, and once Brink reached the bench, medical personnel carried her off the court to the locker room.
That will be the lasting image of Brink’s rookie season, which comes to a close after 15 games. She was averaging 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks, to go along with shooting 39.8% from the field. Brink was second in the WNBA in total blocks and third in blocks per game.
After Clark, Brink was one of the secondary faces of this 2024 WNBA rookie class, which has been arguably the most prominent in league history. She was drafted before the likes of Angel Reese, formerly of LSU, and Kamilla Cardoso, formerly of South Carolina.
The 6-foot-4 Brink was making her impact felt on both ends of the court, as at the time of her injury, she led all rookies in blocks, ranked third in both steals and rebounds, and was fifth in assists. Had she maintained her 2.3 blocks per game average over a full season, it would have been the fourth-most by a rookie in WNBA history.
On Wednesday, Brink said on social media that this setback will only make her stronger, and she was also thankful for the support she received.
Reese commented on Brink’s post with the message, “love you barbie doll,” while Sparks legend Lisa Leslie commented, “Sending you my love.”
This isn’t just a blow to the WNBA and the Sparks but also to the United States national team. Just two weeks ago, Brink was named to USA Basketball’s 3x3 Women’s Team and was set to represent her country at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
She helped Team USA win the gold medal at the 2023 FIBA 3x3 World Cup and won the tournament’s MVP award as well.
That was her third gold medal with USA Basketball as she also won golds with Team USA youth national teams at the FIBA Under–17 World Cup (2018) and the FIBA Under–19 World Cup (2019).
Before her pro career, Brink was a standout player at Stanford University, where she was a three-time All-American and two-time Pacific-12 Conference player of the ear.
In her senior season, she was named the National Defensive Player of the Year, while in her freshman year in 2020-21, she helped the Cardinal win the national championship. She finished her career ranked second all-time in Pac-12 history in blocks while ranking 14th all-time in NCAA history in swatted shots.
Brink doesn’t have to go far to find someone familiar with season-ending injuries on a basketball court as her godbrother is Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry.
Brink’s mother and Curry’s mother, Sonya, were roommates at Virginia Tech, and Sonya is the godmother to Brink. Curry’s presence in The Bay Area with the Warriors helped influence Brink to go to Stanford after she was born in New Jersey and raised in Oregon.
Curry dealt with foot/ankle injuries early in his pro career and was able to bounce back to become one of the game’s elite players, and now Brink is tasked with doing the same.
As for the Sparks, the injury comes as the team is dealing with a season-high four-game losing streak that’s dropped their record to 4–11.
That’s the fourth-worst mark in the WNBA, and Los Angeles also had the fourth-worst WNBA record last season. Replacing Brink will come by committee for the Sparks as, after she left Tuesday’s game in just four minutes, both Li Yueru and Stephanie Talbot saw season-highs in playing time, with each suiting up for 26 minutes.
