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The Dallas Wings ended the season tied for the worst record in the WNBA at 10-34, which extends a long streak of bad seasons for the franchise. However, because the WNBA bases draft odds based on the records of the last two seasons, the Wings have the best odds to land the first overall pick in next year’s draft at 42%.
That doesn’t mean they’re guaranteed to land the first pick, as they just found out last season. They jumped from a 22.7% chance over the LA Sparks to land the first pick, giving them Paige Bueckers, who had a sensational rookie campaign.
The WNBA has announced that the lottery selection will be held on Sunday, November 23rd at 5:30 p.m. CST on ESPN. If Dallas can land the first overall pick once again, they could be looking at a bright future. They already have a young superstar in Paige Bueckers, and now they have a new coach in Jose Fernandez, who they hope can bring the team to major success.
Dallas also has a lot of cap space this offseason, where they could be major players in free agency. They’ll have to make a decision on Arike Ogunbowale, who is their biggest free agent, but there’s also a lot of star power entering free agency across the WNBA: Jackie Young, Brenna Stewart, Kelsey Mitchell, Sabrina Ionescu, Kelsey Plum, and many more.
READ MORE: What UConn’s Geno Auriemma told Wings’ Jose Fernandez about Paige Bueckers
There are two names that seem to be the top options, especially if the Wings were to get the first pick: centers Lauren Betts from UCLA and Awa Fam from Spain.
Betts is a tremendous talent, as the 6’7″ star averaged 20.2 PPG and 9.5 RPG last season while leading the country in blocks. That led her to being named a First Team All-American last year, and she’s the favorite to go first overall.
Fam is the wild card, but she has the athletic pedigree that intrigues a lot of teams. And when you consider Fernandez’s penchant for recruiting international talent from his time at USF, it’s definitely something to consider. Would they rather have the proven option in Betts? Or the athletic gamble on upside swing in Fam?
Dallas can get no worse than the third pick in the upcoming draft, but they would definitely like to land the top selection once again, so they can get their choice at a star to pair with Bueckers.
READ MORE: Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers featured in perfect commercial in time for Christmas
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