The 26-year-old Sabally injured her shoulder at the end of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in February while playing for Germany. She underwent surgery shortly thereafter, but before she got hurt, the former University of Oregon star was a key cog in helping Germany’s women’s basketball team qualify for the Olympics for the first time. But thankfully, insult wasn't added to injury, as the high-scoring shooter recovered in time to play in Paris in the Summer Olympics.
Sabally was a huge contributor for the German team, averaging 18.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game as her team reached the quarterfinals of the tournament. Playing in the Olympics or any other international tournament already comes with its own unique set of challenges, including increased physicality. But having just come back from a serious injury, Sabally felt even more challenged by it all.
“It was hard, but I feel like I prepared myself in practices," Sabally said. "The timeline was just very short and close to me returning. So it was definitely hard and needed [to adjust].”
Injuries are nothing new for Sabally. Since she was drafted by the Wings No. 2 overall in the 2020 WNBA draft, she’s dealt with various setbacks including a concussion, an Achilles injury and knee and ankle injuries that caused her to play in only 44 games during her first three seasons with the franchise.
But last season Sabally made up for lost time, as she was named to the All-Star team and earned the WNBA's Most Improved Player honors. She had easily her best season as a pro, averaging 18.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 4.4 assists per game.
Dealing with injuries, especially when they pile up, is often as much a mental journey for an athlete as it is a physical one.
“Practicing gratitude every day helped me a lot," Sabally noted. "I think obviously I could have been really down and kind of just dwelled in that but having an Olympics in mind to return to really motivated me and I knew that ‘hey I have to come out there and just be strong and do it now for the next five months.’ So that was definitely my motivation and drive but I would say just practicing gratitude [helped]. I was still OK, I could still walk. I could do a lot of other things to get my body primed in a different way.”
Although this summer Sabally had to recover and swiftly adjust to a different style of play for the Olympics, she had sister, Nyara Sabally, playing by her side on the German team when her time to hit the court came. The two sisters played in college together for two seasons, 2018–20.
“It was amazing," Satou Sabally said. "I always loved playing with her, and we always have a good time. So also spending time with the national team and getting even closer was more special.”
She also enjoyed the Olympics and being around so many other athletes. As much as she appreciated the competition in Paris, she relished the camaraderie with other high-level athletes from around the world even more.
“[Just] being surrounded by other like-minded athletes and really knowing that everyone is there for the common goal of winning and just putting so much time into their preparation," Sabally said when explaining her favorite part of the Summer Games experience. "So I feel like it didn't have to be said, you just knew that that's what it takes to be there. And it was just really cool.”
Sabally has made a strong return to the WNBA after the Olympic break. She is averaging 25 points and 4 rebounds per game, although the Wings have had a less-than-stellar season thus far with a lowly record of 9-23. Sabally isn't the only Wings player to miss games due to injury, something that can be pointed to when examining what went wrong for Dallas in 2023. Regardless, Dallas sits only 2 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot, with several regular-season games still to be played.
A finally healthy Sabally is definitely a good sign for a team hoping for a late-season surge. Perhaps the Paris Olympics was just what she needed to get warmed up.
“Playing in the WNBA has been great," she said. "Obviously, I love returning to play. I would love for us to make the playoffs... I mean, I'm feeling like we can go far but we just have to do it".
