The Dallas Wings wanted to avoid a PR nightmare, but they put up so many walls that it circled back on them. Azzi Fudd was asked regarding her relationship with Paige Bueckers, which the Wings refused to answer. One of the reasons it grabbed the headlines is because teammates who are dating have plenty of precedent in the league. DeWanna Bonner has been dating and now is engaged to Alyssa Thomas at the Phoenix Mercury. She has given her two cents on how Fudd and Bueckers should handle things. 

Thomas and DeWanna Bonner have played together for a long time. Bonner was eventually traded by the Mercury to the Sun in 2020 and became teammates for the first time with Thomas, who had been playing in Connecticut since her rookie year in 2014. The two bonded during the COVID-19 bubble season and eventually went public as a couple in 2021. Last season they played together on the Mercury and went to the WNBA Finals. Knowing how to make this dynamic work, Bonner gave some advice regarding how Fudd and Bueckers should handle this. 

“[Alyssa Thomas] and I have been doing this for a long time,” Bonner said. “We know how to handle business when it’s business…it works. We’ve been playing together for 8-9 years now… It’s personal preference and whatever people feel like they need to do in their relationship to keep it going.”

Fudd and Bueckers need to figure out a way that makes them both comfortable while satisfying the fans and media. Because, even if declining to answer such questions was the solution, it is causing a bad rep for Fudd, Bueckers and the Wings. It’s understandable they want to keep their personal relationships private, like they have done for the past years. 

However, now that both are in the WNBA, there is increased scrutiny and attention. Paige Bueckers called playing with Azzi Fudd a “dream come true” after the Wings’ first practice of the new WNBA season but did not address anything regarding the off-court relationship. 

DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas have managed to largely keep their relationship private while managing the media too. Bonner has never shied away from discussing the personal aspect that eventually affects her professional decisions. “It’s home. It’s peace. It’s comfort for my family, my kids. Just happy to be back from the beginning this year, and see what we can do,” Bonner said regarding her return with the Mercury. 

However, it has not always been that way for Bonner. Even she came under the scanner after controversy with the Indiana Fever. Bonner stepped away from the team and they mutually parted amiably. While Bonner explained that the “fit did not work out,” many speculated that she wanted to play with her fiancée in Phoenix. However, Bonner has not paid much heed to those accusations and continued her game with the Mercury. 

DeWanna Bonner Shares Mental Health Routine Following Fever Controversy

DeWanna Bonner received a lot of pushback when she left Indiana Fever in June last year. Frustration with her role, a lack of fit, and feeling out of sync with the team ultimately pushed her to return to the Phoenix Mercury, where she felt more at home.

Bonner was called a quitter and a host of other things. “It’s been tough. I went through a lot, especially the cyberbullying and things like that, but just thankful for my teammates, my family, my kids. I don’t think I’m over it, but I’m just going to live in this moment with them,” she said at the time. Mental health remains a priority for Bonner as she approaches her 17th season in the league. 

“I took some time away from basketball, starting from ground zero,” Bonner said. “Find my passion, my love, you know. So I kind of tried something. The different I went into the like modeling lane a little bit and tried to get my mind off focusing on my kids. And then I kind of went back to January one when I started back working out and training and it was great to just kind of close off back to when we recalibrated.”

This is also something Bueckers and Fudd can resort to. Arguably, as young superstars they are under greater scrutiny than Bonner and Thomas are. Fudd has described her mental health journey in a similar way, emphasizing life beyond basketball. “Finding time to do little things that you enjoy,” Fudd said. “Whether taking a walk, listening to your favorite song, cooking something, having a sweet treat. Whatever it is, having that little thing that just brings you joy.”

The mental health aspect cannot be ignored, as it can eventually affect their on-court performance. “I work with a sports psychologist and the main thing that we’ve taken that’s really helped the mental side of the game is just running my own race, not running a race of comparison,” Bueckers has said. 

In a league where attention is inevitable, Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd may find, as DeWanna Bonner has, that privacy isn’t about avoiding the spotlight but choosing how to stand in it.