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Even though the Dallas Wings lost their first game of the WNBA season against the Minnesota Lynx on Friday evening with a final score of 99 to 84, it was still a huge night for Paige Bueckers, who made her WNBA debut.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft scored the first points of the season for the Wings and finished with 10. Despite the loss, Bueckers showed promise and composure under pressure, earning praise from head coach Chris Koclanes for her fit within the team’s evolving dynamics.
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“She’s been fantastic. She’s special in how she’s able to handle things with such grace,” Koclanes said to the Associated Press. “As a team, like really preaching, lots of attention to evolving our mental game and just dealing with everything else, all the outside expectations, the outside noise, and really trying to expose them and give them all sorts of different ways to stay present.
Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (5) reacts after scoringKevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
In a recent press conference, sports journalist Joey Mistretta asked Wings general manager Curt Miller if anything stood out to him in regards to Bueckers’ debut, but he sort of avoided the question and started talking about the team as a whole.
“I appreciate the command that she has in the game. We are just going to get better and better. They’re all learning to play with each other,” Miller answered. “Training camps are so fast, but just really excited about the potential of this group. It’s going to look a lot different in July than they do in May.
On top of making her WNBA debut, Bueckers got to reunite with former UConn teammate Napheesa Collier, a forward for the Lynx. They had a friendly conversation at the free-throw line following a timeout. Collier had a strong game and scored 34 points for Minnesota.
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According to the Associated Press, it seems like Bueckers getting her debut out of the way marked the beginning of her growth in the league and an important milestone that sets her stage to move forward.
“The first one’s always the hardest, usually,” Bueckers said. “Not to say that it won’t get harder, but just being able to have a starting point and continuing to build off that. And then, there’s no more questions about ‘what is it going to be like for your first WNBA game.’ Now you have to move on past that.”
Related: WNBA Player Abruptly Leaves During Opening Night Game
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