With the playoffs right around the corner, Dallas Wings head coach Jose Fernandez made it clear that star player Paige Bueckers will be restricted for the rest of the regular season. But as the Wings locked horns with the Phoenix Mercury, the 24-year-old showed that she has no plans to slow down. Bueckers now holds the record for the most points scored in the WNBA by a player in their first two seasons, and the milestone quickly drew attention from around the basketball world.
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B/R W Sports dedicated an Instagram post to the achievement, captioning it, “Paige doing Paige things 🔥,” alongside highlights from the recent game. Nike was quick to join the conversation in the comments.
“The Midranger stays slinging.”
Even Bueckers’ former UConn teammate and current Portland Fire star Nika Muhl showed her support by liking the post.
The Wings are now on a six-game win streak, with Paige Bueckers leading the game with 26 points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals and one block in 31 minutes. It may look like another impressive stat line from a player averaging 20.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists this season, but her biggest development has come from beyond the arc. After shooting 33.1% from three-point range as a rookie, Bueckers has improved that mark to 39.1% this season.
That growth has also pushed her career total to 1,515 points, crossing Seimone Augustus, who scored 1,513 points through her first two WNBA seasons in 2006-07.
During the postgame interview after Dallas’ 87-82 win, Fernandez was asked about Bueckers’ improved three-point shooting and her increased aggression. So he pointed to how it has opened up her game while making the case for her as an MVP and All-WNBA First Team candidate.
“Her being more attack-minded has really opened up a lot of things for her. I was just giving her a hard time. She made the incredible shot right to end the half, but she missed a free throw. So, I give her a hard time about missing free throws. But her being able to space the floor and shoot it now, it opens up so much stuff. Because now she’s got more room to operate. But if she hasn’t shown that she’s a MVP candidate and first-team All-League in her second year to lead this team from 10 wins to 26 wins. So, she’s more than deserving,” Fernandez said.
Bueckers has already led the Wings to the playoffs after the franchise endured one of its worst records last season, and the numbers she has put up have made her a serious candidate in the MVP race. However, in the player rankings posted by ESPN before the WNBA went into the FIBA World Cup break, the Wings guard sat fifth in the MVP conversation, behind veteran A’ja Wilson, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, and Minnesota rookie Olivia Miles.
Whether she ultimately wins the honor or not, Paige Bueckers has undoubtedly established herself among the league’s best. Her latest performance against the Mercury also helped the Wings continue their rise in the standings. She scored 26 points, along with four rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes on the hardwood. Dallas entered the playoffs in eighth place, but has since climbed to sixth, sitting above the Washington Mystics and New York Liberty with a 26-16 record.
The Wings will face the Mercury once again on September 21 before closing the regular season against the Seattle Storm. Both games will be on the road, and Bueckers’ minutes are expected to drop as Dallas manages her workload ahead of the postseason. With the playoffs now in sight, the focus is shifting from how much she can produce to making sure she is ready for the bigger stage.
That responsibility becomes even more significant with her former UConn teammate and current Wings partner Azzi Fudd ruled out for the season following knee surgery. With Fudd unavailable, more of the offensive burden will fall on Paige Bueckers. So while her recent record has just added to what has already been an impressive second season, the real test will come when the Wings begin their postseason run.