During her first two years at UConn, Paige Bueckers was often seen as a ‘what if’ talent. Although she showcased her incredible skills early in her career, injuries complicated her journey. Within just a year, she suffered a left knee tibial plateau fracture, accompanied by a lateral meniscus tear and an ACL tear. Despite these challenges, Bueckers made a remarkable comeback in her final two seasons, performing at an All-American level and culminating her college career with a National Championship, which she recently celebrated.

After dazzling as a rookie with the Dallas Wings, Bueckers went back to her alma mater to receive her national championship ring for her career alongside former teammates. The bling was designed by Bueckers with Azzi Fudd and Caroline Ducharme. It featured many intricate details symbolizing the Huskies’ 2024-25 title run. They were awarded during a team ceremony ahead of the Huskies’ season-opener against Louisville. While it was a heartwarming celebration, Bueckers described it as ‘weird’ because of her different position. 

“It definitely felt really weird being there, not being on the team, and not feeling like a sense of anxiety in a sense of like I’m preparing for the upcoming season, the long haul of a college season, trying to compete and win a national championship, and how hard that was the last year, the year before. So, it was really weird just being there, not having that I don’t know sense of like basketball-wise,” Bueckers told USA Today. 

It has been just seven months since Bueckers led UConn to its coveted title. She was under significant pressure in a program that was accustomed to winning four championships in a row; they hadn’t secured a title in eight years. This was particularly challenging for Bueckers, as she needed to prove both her fitness and her capability to lead a team like UConn to victory. Now, as a professional athlete returning to her legacy, she has a completely different perspective. The feeling of nostalgia is likely strong for Bueckers, but she now looks forward to the Unrivaled season in January instead of the intense demands of college basketball. 

“Just being there with the people and connecting back with the coach and all the people that I played with. Just everyone within the organization, I just grew so tight with them and built amazing relationships with every single person there,” Bueckers further said. “Just being there for 5 years, you really feel like it’s family. So, you don’t miss a beat in that sense. But it was really different, obviously not being on the team.”

Paige Bueckers is a Husky through and through. She is pretty close with UConn coach Geno Auriemma and the entire team. She had even credited their victory to their teamwork. The team had adopted the “power of friendship” motto after it first caught fire online. The ring includes the phrase, “Vibes,” which Bueckers said was the Huskies’ “vibe of the year.”

Despite graduating from the program, Bueckers is closely following UConn’s journey in 2025-26. Wherever she goes in her basketball career, UConn will remain the place where everything started. While the ceremony was wholesome, what followed was more competitive as Bueckers joined the Huskies’ practice session as an opponent.

Paige Bueckers Reveals ‘Beating Up’ On Her Former Teammates

While she was back at UConn, Paige Bueckers couldn’t resist joining a practice session with Geno Auriemma. Instead of participating with the UConn women’s team, she chose to practice with the all-male squad, wearing a red practice jersey. The UConn women’s basketball account shared a photo of Bueckers alongside the practice team on X, captioning it, “Tried out a new practice player today.” Paige also posted a picture with her teammates, simply captioning it, “My Boys.” After a season of competing against some of the best players in the world, Bueckers felt at ease going up against the top college squad in the country.

“I was a practice player, so it was fun to kind of beat up on (Auriemma) and the team on the other side of things and not have to worry about him yelling at me,” Bueckers said with a laugh. “Just to be on the other side … you really feel no pressure. You’re out there just hooping having fun, and the other team is getting yelled at, so you’re not really worried about anything. You can just go be free.”

The trash-talking went further than just that one session. In her Instagram dump, Bueckers included a picture of her scoring over Azzi Fudd. Paige tagged that shot with “layher.” She doubled down by posting a poll on her Instagram story asking fans whether she should “spare them” or “expose them” with practice highlights. 

Against popular demand, she seems to have spared them. Fudd had a laugh on her podcast regarding this burn, replying with, “I have something for her. Paige, if you’re listening to this, come back to practice, please. Anyways, yeah, we’re not gonna, we’re not gonna expose her though. We’re gonna be classy about it. We’re gonna be classy. That’s how we are at UConn, classy.” 

The Dallas Wings star was not holding back with the practice squad as well. “I even had to yell at my practice squad teammates, because they were not locked in. So everybody can get it. Nobody’s safe,” She said. The competitive nature of Bueckers comes out every time she picks up the ball. Whether it’s a fun practice session or a proper scrimmage, Bueckers is going to go all out. That is one of the qualities that is one of the reasons for her excellence.