The Dallas Wings underwent a lot of changes this offseason. They lost Satou Sabally and Natasha Howard, but added DiJonai Carrington and NaLyssa Smith (neither of whom is still with the team) alongside top pick Paige Bueckers. While four-time All-Star Arike Ogunbowale is still on the team, she missed a lot of games this season and Bueckers has seemingly taken over as the organization’s focal point.
Satou Sabally appeared on the September 5 episode of Sue Bird’s podcast Bird’s Eye View and highlighted an issue the Wings must address to ensure a successful new era. Sabally spent five seasons with the Wings after the organization drafted her second overall in 2020. During her time in Dallas, the team went to the playoffs three times, losing in the first round twice and getting swept by the Aces in the 2023 Semifinals.
After a 9-31 2024 season, Sabally made it very clear that she wanted to get a fresh start with a different team. She was eventually traded to the Phoenix Mercury. Sabally spoke about her reasons for leaving Dallas and some of the biggest differences between the Mercury and the Wings on Bird’s Eye View.
“I felt like I left everything in Dallas and I poured so much into a club where I felt like there’s no stability…or the groundwork,” Sabally said.
She added, “I was just happy that Phoenix [is] an organization that really provides for their players and has an ecosystem that allows you to really flourish and focus on the best rehab…I realized once I was here, I’m like, ‘Oh…there was not a lot of resources.’ Worrying about your own pregame meals, that’s crazy…We deserve to be in organizations that cater to their players, and this is what’s happening here.”
Comments like that don’t bode well for a franchise hoping to build a contender around two top picks by attracting other, more established stars. At the same time, however, the Wings are putting in the work to rectify some of their shortcomings.
Dallas still has work to do to become a more popular free-agency destination
The Wings have one asset that will undoubtedly draw some attention in free agency: Paige Bueckers. Players love to team up with the best players possible, and a generational talent like Bueckers is certainly someone many free agents would like to have on their side. We saw how many big names Caitlin Clark drew to Indiana last season. Natasha Howard, Sydney Colson, and DeWanna Bonner all chose to sign with the Fever in the offseason, hoping to build a contender around one of the best young guards in the game. On top of Bueckers, the Wings will get another top pick in next year’s draft, adding to an already interesting young roster.
There is more to attracting the best talent in the league, though. Wanting to play for teams with modern facilities and the resources to take care of their players is becoming a major factor in stars’ free-agency decisions. The Wings still have work to do in that area, but they are taking major steps. A new practice facility that should open for the 2026 season is currently being built in Joey Georgusis Park. That move should help establishthe Wings’ reputation as an organization willing to invest in its players, which is something the Wings will need to ensure a successful Paige Bueckers era.