Last night's win may not have been the largest win of the season by score (the Connecticut Sun holds that honor), but it was the biggest win of the season by far. There are several reasons for that, but a major one is directly correlated to the poor scheduling the WNBA has been criticized for all season long.
The ladies in the WNBA are fresh off their All-Star Break that wasn't much of a break at all for several players, including their star rookie, Paige Bueckers. The Wings did not have any time to practice after the conclusion of the weekend's festivities because they had to catch a flight to Seattle and get ready for a road game against one of the best teams in the league.
Skylar Diggins didn't play due to personal reasons per the team, but if you're going to tell me that missing Diggins takes that squad from a top-four team to the league's worst, they have other issues. The odds were against the Wings, and they came out on top in emphatic fashion with a 16-point win. Unfortunately, they'll still be fighting adversity in their next game.
The Wings' next game is on the road again without practice
Dallas is heading to one of the most hostile buildings in the WNBA for their next matchup with the Golden State Valkyries. They beat the Valk when the West Coast team visited D-Town, but playing them in Cali is a different animal. Natalie Nakase's expansion team is 7-4 at home, and that's after a recent losing streak that saw them stumble after a shockingly good start.
The craziest part about it is that every team in the league will have played one or more games by Friday night's battle, except the Valkyries. Their first game post All-Star Weekend will be against the Wings. So, where one team is re-integrating an important player like DiJonai Carrington, who missed a month, without any practice, the other team has a chance to do nothing but practice.
That's another reason why their win against the Storm was so special. The Wings haven't practiced, but they're working Carrington back in. Paige Bueckers has been playing basketball pretty consistently since last November, when the NCAA Women's hoops season began, and the win came against a top-seeded team on the road. The Wings had only won two road games before defeating the Storm.
With so many things working against this team, especially when you consider the injuries they've faced all year, they deserve credit for stepping up in a major way. After a string of four losses heading into the break, getting such a big win is significant. They could have let the momentum slide them in the wrong direction if they believed in such a thing.
Here's the full quote from Paige Bueckers on momentum. https://t.co/UpURBX5tNb pic.twitter.com/KyBhH8uDqI
— Jah (@JahlilWill) July 23, 2025
It's nothing to snub your nose at. Chris Koclanes' team lost the first quarter 15-19, but won every quarter after that. It was a great performance by the entire team, led by Arike Ogunbowale's 20 points and 4/6 shooting from three and Paige Bueckers' 14 points and six assists. The entire team stepped up, proving they won't make excuses when it comes to scheduling. They're just going to hoop.