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Alexa Philippou
Paige Bueckers clapped her fingers and threw her head again because the Golden State Valkyries took a timeout. Bueckers had simply transformed a pair of free throws to place the Dallas Wings up seven with 19.4 seconds remaining Tuesday. She was as much as 20 factors on the night time, however extra importantly to Bueckers, she may sense it: Dallas was inside attain of its first residence win of the 2025 WNBA season and of breaking a seven-game shedding streak.
Between the Wings’ gradual begin and her four-game absence due to a concussion then sickness, Bueckers’ first month within the WNBA featured its share of ups and downs. However as she approaches her tenth profession sport, the rookie star has seemed more and more assured and comfy as a professional, positioning herself for her first All-Star bid and turning into the digital collectible No. 1 draft choose to win rookie of the 12 months.
Bueckers was a extremely touted prospect out of UConn partly due to her skill to be a keen passer and environment friendly three-level scorer. She’s nonetheless engaged on putting the fitting stability between facilitating and calling her personal quantity, Bueckers informed ESPN this week, however she has nonetheless shined to this point in each classes.
Her 17.7 factors per sport are a group excessive, whereas her 5.7 assists per contest rank sixth within the league. Bueckers’ 282 factors scored or assisted on are the third most by a participant’s first 9 profession video games, trailing solely Sabrina Ionescu (302) and Caitlin Clark (289).
Bueckers admitted the tempo and physicality of the WNBA has been an adjustment. “You form of know that it is totally different coming in, however you do not actually understand how a lot it’s till you truly dwell it,” she stated. And but she’s nonetheless one in all simply six gamers within the WNBA averaging at the very least 17 factors and 5 assists, becoming a member of Ionescu, Clark, Rhyne Howard, Kelsey Plum and Skylar Diggins. Bueckers’ 47.2% taking pictures is the most effective of the group.
Bueckers has continued to separate herself as a midrange sharpshooter: Her 6.8 factors per sport from that distance leads the league, based on Genius IQ, with solely Courtney Williams additionally averaging greater than 4.0 factors from there. Bueckers, who’s hitting 50% of her midrange pictures, has made an affect defensively, too. She and three-time MVP A’ja Wilson are the one gamers within the league averaging 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per sport.
Bueckers has been tasked with conducting the Wings’ offense, a tricky project for a first-year participant on a group with a brand-new teaching workers and simply three returners from final 12 months. It additionally would not assist that Dallas is at the moment brief 4 gamers, with Teaira McCowan and Luisa Geiselsoder competing in EuroBasket, Maddy Siegrist (knee) out indefinitely and Tyasha Harris present process season-ending knee surgical procedure earlier this month.
Bueckers continues to work with the teaching workers to higher perceive how groups are protecting her in ball screens and to study methods to counter the physicality that is allowed off the ball. However her skill to learn within the pick-and-roll, Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon stated final week, is already at a “doctorate stage.”
“She’s acquired unbelievable poise and maturity. She seems like she’s been taking part in this sport for like, ever,” Hammon stated. “She performs the fitting approach is what jumps out to me, each time. … While you play the fitting approach, everyone can nonetheless eat. She will get 35 [points] and she or he’s nonetheless passing the ball like loopy. … She’s past her years.”
Six video games into the season, Bueckers suffered a concussion, which mixed with an sickness value her 4 video games. However she stated the day without work the court docket helped her get her thoughts and physique proper, particularly on the heels of going from UConn’s NCAA championship run to coaching camp. Watching from the sideline additionally helped her determine a few of the self-inflicted wounds she thought had been getting within the Wings’ approach of profitable shut video games.
That every one helped Bueckers shine on June 11 in her first sport again. In opposition to the Phoenix Mercury, who boast the league’s fourth-best defensive ranking, Bueckers tallied a career-high 35 factors on 13-for-19 taking pictures. She is one in all 5 gamers to attain 35 factors this season however achieved it extra effectively than anybody, along with her 68% taking pictures accuracy additionally probably the most environment friendly 35-point sport by any rookie since Breanna Stewart in 2016.
“She simply controls the sport so properly,” Mercury star Alyssa Thomas stated afterward. “The sky is the restrict for her.”
“We should always have finished higher [guarding her] for certain,” fellow standout Satou Sabally stated, “however she’s elite.”
Nonetheless, the Wings did not get the win. And after Tuesday’s victory, they’re 2-11 (2-7 with Bueckers within the lineup). When Bueckers was on the court docket at UConn, the Huskies misplaced 13 instances.
Bueckers gained a status at UConn for downplaying particular person accomplishments. That perspective has carried over to Dallas, the place the “solely particular person objective I’ve is to make Dallas a free company vacation spot by way of the tradition we need to construct.
“All people who performs right here this 12 months, I would like them to take pleasure in taking part in with me. I would like them to take pleasure in taking part in on this atmosphere, with this tradition,” she stated. “Simply to have the ability to set that basis is basically the one objective.”
That additionally entails, she stated, holding herself and others to a excessive commonplace because the group seems to construct a profitable tradition: The Wings have only one profitable season because the franchise relocated from Tulsa heading into 2016.
PAIGE BUCKETS HAS RETURNED 👑
Bueckers hit a career-high upon her return from concussion protocol in Wings-Mercury. pic.twitter.com/FDODcgp6ik
— espnW (@espnW) June 12, 2025
Dallas’ imaginative and prescient on turning that round, even when it is a number of years down the road, includes the ball being in Bueckers’ fingers — quite a bit.
“Simply to proceed to steer on and off the ground and to handle the sport,” coach Chris Koclanes stated on what progress he is on the lookout for from Bueckers. “In order her and I proceed to develop with our relationship, her simply getting an increasing number of assured and comfy taking command on the market on the ground and getting the ball the place it must go. Getting us into the actions we have to get into, after which, as properly, holding one another accountable to all these little issues.”
Bueckers stated she and UConn coach Geno Auriemma stay in “fixed communication” and that he encourages her “to maintain doing issues the fitting approach and proceed to maintain main by voice and instance.” Except for teammates Arike Ogunbowale and Myisha Hines-Allen, who’ve helped her discover her voice, Bueckers has additionally leaned on Las Vegas Aces star Jewell Loyd for veteran knowledge, and intends to achieve out quickly to UConn and WNBA legends Sue Hen and Diana Taurasi.
Loyd, Hen and Taurasi are No. 1 picks, perennial All-Stars and Olympians. And all are WNBA champions — the trail Bueckers hopes to emulate.
“There’s lots of people which were in my sneakers earlier than, and as a rookie, you form of know, particularly in case you’re one of many prime picks, that you will a group that was on the backside of the league earlier than,” Bueckers stated. “You are attempting to make it’s higher, and you are not going to do it by your self, however how will you greatest make your imprint and depart your affect on that?”