After opening the season (3–3), the Dallas Wings have won five of their last six games, fueled by the stellar play of Paige Bueckers. During this stretch, Bueckers is averaging (21.0) points and (6.0) assists while shooting 52.7% from the field. She'll look to help Dallas secure its seventh win in the last eight games when the Wings face Portland tomorrow.
Bueckers enters the matchup fresh off a historic performance against Phoenix, becoming just the 10th player in WNBA history to score 30 points without attempting a free throw. She finished with 31 points and 5 assists in the victory, including a dominant second quarter in which she scored 13 points and nearly outscored the Mercury by herself in the period.
That outing also marked Bueckers' 19th career game with at least 20 points while shooting 50% or better from the field. That total is tied for the fourth-most through a player's first two seasons, alongside Cynthia Cooper and A'ja Wilson. Seimone Augustus holds the record with 28 such performances.
This recent run began with back-to-back 20-point performances in wins over the previous WNBA champions, New York and Las Vegas. Then, in Dallas' win over Los Angeles, Bueckers recorded a career-high 14 assists to go along with 18 points.
Can Bueckers continue her impressive stretch and help lift the Wings to their ninth win of the season? We'll find out tomorrow. ✨
Paige Bueckers is now 25% of the way through the season, and she has been one of the WNBA’s top three players to start the year. The 6-foot guard ranks seventh in points per game, eighth in assists per game, and is one of only six double-digit scoring guards shooting at least 50% from the field and 40% from three-point range. Her play has helped propel Dallas into the top five of the WNBA standings.
In her most recent outing, Bueckers finished with 23 points while shooting 56/43/100 in a road loss to the Minnesota Lynx. It marked the second time she has scored 20+ points against Minnesota this season after posting 27 points and 8 assists against them in the Wings’ third game of the year.
Dallas simply ran into a Lynx team that had the hot hand all night. Every loss can feel magnified, but the Wings remain in great shape, having won six of their previous eight games. If they take care of business in their next two matchups against Phoenix and Portland, they could enter next week with a (9-4) record.
Bueckers headlines a trio of double-digit scoring guards alongside Azzi Fudd and Arike Ogunbowale. However, Dallas could still use more frontcourt production to support Jessica Shepard, who is one of only three players in the league averaging a double-double. Even with that lack of frontcourt scoring, again, the Wings are one of the WNBA’s top five teams. But additional frontcourt production could make them even more dangerous.
She enters tomorrow’s matchup against the Mercury needing just two points to become the sixth-fastest player in WNBA history to reach 900 career points, tying Elena Delle Donne. At her current scoring pace, and assuming she remains healthy, Bueckers is also on track to record the most points through a player’s first two seasons in WNBA history. That’s certainly a milestone worth keeping an eye on. ✨
“I hate turnovers. They make me so angry because I know it’s something I can control…just trying to focus in on that and set the example on how to take care of the ball.” — PB my floor general 😊