On Monday, Toronto Tempo associate head coach Olaf Lange shared a concerning injury update about Nyara Sabally following her collision with Angel Reese in Friday's 111-92 loss to the Atlanta Dream .
Addressing reporters before the 109-83 loss to the Las Vegas Aces , Lange, who was stepping in for his wife and head coach Sandy Brondello amid a one-game suspension, said that Sabally was in a great deal of pain because of her rib and back injury.
"Will be a day-by-day thing," Lange told reporters (via WNBA reporter Zulfi Sheikh). "Her back is still disaligned … the ribs, there's no broken, which is good. But … it's so painful she can't be realigned yet, so we'll have to wait."
The incident occurred late in the fourth quarter as Reese made contact with Sabally while attacking the rim. The Dream star appeared to lower her shoulder and made contact with Sabally's ribs. Sabally went down in pain and had to be helped to the locker room. She placed her hand on her rib area and slouched while walking due to the injury.
Here's the video:
The fallout from the incident also led to Brondello's suspension. The Tempo coach expressed her anger at the officiating and Reese, calling her a "protected species." After Reese's fans called out the Tempo coach online, the Dream star retweeted a post suggesting that Brondello's comment had racial connotations.
Brondello issued an apology on Saturday. Shortly after, the WNBA suspended the veteran coach for one game without pay.
The Toronto Tempo missed Nyara Sabally's presence in the paint on Monday against the Las Vegas Aces. The defending champions scored 59 points in the paint, with A'ja Wilson tallying 26 on 11 of 14 shots and Nalyssa Smith scoring 18 on 9 of 10 shots.
While the Tempo would still have been the underdogs even if 6-foot-4 Sabally played, her presence in the lineup could have helped the team neutralize the Aces' interior attack to an extent. Sabally was also on a fine run over her past three games, especially on offense, averaging 14.0 points, shooting 50.0% from the field.
The German forward has been solid overall this year, posting career highs across the board in a more prominent role on her new team after the first three seasons with the New York Liberty . Sabally has averaged 11.7 ppg and 4.8 rpg, shooting 53.8% from the field and 36.7% from three-point range.
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