New York Liberty Star Sabrina Ionescu Wanted A Labubu - A Fan Made It Happen

Labubu is all the rage lately. Everywhere you turn, there's a Labubu. Even WNBA players are getting in on the viral trend.

When my son Jesse saw a TikTok video shared by the account, @enjoybball, that had WNBA players talking about Labubus, an idea was born. Jesse, a long-time New York Liberty fan, had tickets to the Liberty vs. Las Vegas Aces game on August 13, and decided to give one of his favorite players a little gift. Thus "Operation Give Sabrina Ionescu A Labubu" went into action.

A video shared by Enjoy Basketball on TikTok sparked an idea in my son and so the story begins.

When asked, "What's your take on Labubus?" Ionescu responded an enthusiastic, "I love them. I want one. I gotta get one. I don't have one yet."

Now while this video was shared back on July 19, and it might not still be true that she doesn't have one, my son's thought was by August 14, she will have one thanks to him.

In the video, Ionescu's teammate, Breanna Stewart, revealed that she not only loves Labubus, but she also has "some."

The TikTok video quickly went viral with more than 1 million views and hundreds of comments.

Anyone who has been enticed by this trend knows that finding a Labubu can be a chore, not to mention the price. Pop Mart sells out of them quickly, and resellers are selling them for double and triple the cost of Pop Mart.

Because they can be tough to find or costly, I told my son I saw that Claw World on Flamingo Rd. in Las Vegas had Labubus in their machines. We decided to give it a shot.

We bought $40 in tokens and went right over to the machines filled with Labubus. Each turn was five tokens (which was equivalent to about $5, depending on which token package you purchased). Jesse's first try was a win! We took that as a sign that we would most certainly be able to get the Labubu to Ionescu...somehow.

To make it a little more personalized, we bought Ionescu's new Labubu a Kobe jersey and shorts.

Coming up with a way to grab Ionescu's attention wasn't exactly an easy task. So we just went with simple sign and led with hope and faith.

Getting to the game early was important because we knew that at any Liberty game we ever went to in Brooklyn when we lived on the east coast, Ionescu would be on the court early doing some warmups. And Wednesday night in Vegas was no different.

After she started her warmups, Jesse headed over to the other side of the arena where fans often line up to meet players as they walk by to go to their locker room.

Jesse was a few rows up but on the side of the tunnel, so there was hope that she would see the sign and get her new Labubu. After she signed some shoes and posters, she headed toward the tunnel. At the last second before walking back, she saw Jesse's sign and he was able to drop the Labubu into her hands.

Success! Scroll the above IG post for the video of Sabrina seeing the sign and getting her new Labubu.

Before Jesse had the opportunity to give Ionescu her new Labubu, she signed some fan memorabilia and even a pair of her signature shoes for a fan who said it was her birthday.

Ionescu tried hard not to miss anyone, but the crowd was growing by the minute. As she tried to enter the tunnel a few times, she had to turn back around because someone was calling her name. She definitely seems to really enjoy interacting with fans.

So all in all, "Operation Get Sabrina Ionescu A Labubu" was a complete success and something my son won't soon forget.