L.A. Sparks rookie Cameron Brink suffers torn left ACL, out for season, Paris Olympics

This is devastating news, and the timing could not have been worse.

L.A. Sparks rookie and No. 2 pick Cameron Brink has suffered a torn left ACL, the team announced Wednesday.

This is crushing, not only because she is done for the WNBA season but also because she was set to head to Paris for the Olympic Games, where she was going to represent the USA in 3×3 Women’s Basketball.

Brink was injured on a play without much contact — her knee just gave out on her while driving the basket in a game against the Connecticut Sun — and the fear was something serious from the outset.

Brink, like other members of this heralded WNBA rookie class, had some bumps in the road transitioning to a league so incredibly deep with talent. Brink averaged 7.5 points a game on 39.8% shooting (32.3% on 2.1 3-pointers a game) this season, and grabbed 5.3 rebounds a night. However, she was showing more growth in her game of late, including a 16-point, seven-rebound outing in Atlanta just a couple of nights before.

Brink’s ability to play in the post and step out on the perimeter made her a natural for 3×3 basketball. She was named MVP of the 2023 FIBA 3×3 Women’s World Cup in Vienna, Austria, after helping lead Team USA to the gold medal, and that performance landed her a spot in Paris.

“As a post player, I think it gives me opportunity to grow my game,” Brink said to Mary Omatiga of NBC Sports. “I have to be able to shoot, I have to handle the ball when I clear it out past the three-point line. I have to defend all positions and be able to guard a ball screen—not just guarding the post defender but guarding the guard.”

Unfortunately, now all of that, plus her WNBA career, will be on hold until next year as she recovers from a devastating injury.