Liz Cambage ‘thankful’ for health after returning for Aces victory

Liz Cambage flashed a grin Sunday aft the Aces’ 84-83 triumph implicit astatine the Phoenix Mercury successful the regular-season finale. Finally, she was backmost to playing basketball. With her teammates.

Healthy again aft battling COVID-19.

“I’m conscionable thankful the COVID didn’t get successful my lungs. I deliberation I’ve got to convey the vaccine for that,” said the All-Star center. “I’m conscionable grateful to beryllium backmost with the girls.

“It was tough. It was pugnacious being distant from them. Being distant from everyone. … I’m conscionable blessed to beryllium backmost and grateful nary 1 other got it arsenic well.”

Cambage played Sunday for the archetypal clip since Aug. 28, and recorded 4 points and 4 rebounds successful 10 minutes arsenic a reserve astatine Footprint Center. Kelsey Plum scored a game-high 23, Jackie Young had the game-winning putback with 4.3 seconds remaining and JiSu Park blocked Mercury guardant Brianna Turner’s changeable arsenic clip expired, triggering a solemnisation connected the Aces’ sideline.

The Aces finished the regular play with a 24-8 grounds and participate the WNBA playoffs arsenic the No. 2 seed. They are disconnected until until Sept. 28, giving Cambage ample clip to re-acclimate aft her bout with the COVID. Phoenix finished 19-13.

“She looked normal,” Aces manager Bill Laimbeer said. “Conditioning is going to beryllium her biggest origin this week. … I expect her to enactment precise hard successful practice, and I expect her to travel retired and play good successful the adjacent game.”

Cambage said she began feeling symptoms Aug. 30 arsenic the Aces returned to signifier aft a three-game roadworthy trip. She promptly departed and returned location to instrumentality a nap, lone to awake with assemblage aches. The 30-year-old said she took COVID-19 tests to corroborate she contracted it.

Her mother, Julia, traveled from Australia to assistance her conflict COVID and enactment done the WNBA’s wellness and information protocols.

“If (she) wasn’t present looking aft me, feeding me, giving maine each my symptom killers and each the worldly from the aesculapian team, I’m conscionable truthful thankful she was present to look aft me,” Cambage said. “She’s the existent MVP astatine the moment. I’m conscionable grateful that it stayed of my lungs.”

Cambage said she’ll beryllium successful “training camp” this week fortifying her conditioning and credited her teammates for securing the No. 2 seed. They clinched their spot Friday and a consequent treble bye into the WNBA semifinals, rendering Sunday’s crippled meaningless successful presumption of playoff positioning.

“This is simply a wholly caller play now,” Plum said. “Whoever going to play next, we person to beryllium acceptable for and prepared for. Playoffs are a antithetic benignant of season. It’s a antithetic benignant of focus, execution level, intensity.”

Contact newsman Sam Gordon astatine sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon connected Twitter.