After a commanding 92-70 victory over the Seattle Storm on Sunday afternoon, the Dallas Wings are now just one win away from securing a playoff berth. And Paige Bueckers appears determined to make sure the group does not lose its edge after a rough patch.
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Speaking in the postgame press conference, a video of which was shared on the Dallas Wings’ YouTube channel, Paige Bueckers was asked how winning affects the Wings franchise as a whole and the locker room specifically. And in answering, she took the opportunity to emphasize the importance of staying grounded regardless of the result, delivering a powerful message about maintaining perspective during the team’s playoff push.
“It’s so tough because I try not to be an outcome-oriented person, but winning just makes me so happy. Obviously, it makes everyone around us happy. And losing freaking sucks, and I hate losing.”
“I just try to have unconditional gratitude to stay even-keeled and never get too high or too low, and never think when we were going on the losing streak, never panic. Just to continue to show up to work the same way that we did.”
“Obviously, winning feels great, but at the same time, you don’t want to get complacent with it and think this win is going to carry us into the next. So really just try to take it game by game and never get too high or never get too low.”
Paige Bueckers was especially instrumental to the victory against the Seattle Storm, erupting for 32 points on a remarkably efficient 12-of-16 shooting and a flawless 6-of-6 from beyond the arc in just 26 minutes of action. Eighteen of those points came in the opening quarter alone. And she sat out the entire fourth quarter, which makes her the first WNBA player since 2006 to score 32 or more points without checking into the final quarter. Alongside the scoring, she also added four assists, four rebounds, and a steal.
But while Paige Bueckers was without question the standout performer, this was also a broadly impressive collective performance from the Wings. They were blistering from the opening tip, flying out to an 11-0 lead and outscoring Seattle 34-17 in the first 10 minutes alone. Their 22-point margin of victory also gave them their 22nd win of the year, matching the franchise’s single-season wins record.
As Paige Bueckers pointed out, the victory definitely feels good. However, it’s important to stay grounded, secure the playoffs, and keep the momentum going until the end of the season.
After all, the Wings did lose their momentum after the All-Star break. While they went into the All-Star Weekend as the No. 4 team in the league, since then they’ve won just four of their last 11 games. Before their most recent wins against the Fever and Storm, even their chances to make the playoffs came into question.
They will face the Portland Fire on Tuesday, and a win would officially clinch their postseason spot. They’ll definitely be hoping to get the job done, but this is only the beginning. Playoff basketball is an entirely different beast, and as Bueckers said, “you don’t want to get complacent.”