{"id":72682,"date":"2025-07-18T12:58:17","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T12:58:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/72682\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T12:58:17","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T12:58:17","slug":"after-dismal-first-half-of-season-urgency-is-focus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/72682\/","title":{"rendered":"After dismal first half of season, \u2018urgency\u2019 is focus"},"content":{"rendered":"

With a superstar like Paige Bueckers<\/a> on the roster, the Dallas Wings<\/a> have seen a surge in interest.<\/p>\n

But as more people pay attention to the team, the Wings have not delivered on the court. Dallas entered the All-Star break with a 6\u201317 record<\/a> and a roster still plagued by injuries and turnover. While Bueckers, a starter in Saturday\u2019s All-Star game and the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft<\/a>, has played well, her performance has not overcome the team\u2019s issues through the first half of the season.<\/p>\n

The Wings got the No. 1 pick for a reason, finishing 9-31 last season and soon after starting a rebuild. Dallas hired new GM Curt Miller, who brought on Chris Koclanes as the team\u2019s new coach. Leaders in the organization felt the team was building momentum, but the 2025 season probably isn\u2019t going how they envisioned.<\/p>\n

Related:The Bueckers Show is worth watching, but Wings are a long way from becoming Dallas\u2019 team<\/a><\/p>\n

Sports Roundup<\/p>\n

Get the latest D-FW sports news, analysis and opinion delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, Kevin Sherrington’s A La Carte.<\/p>\n

Dallas\u2019 output through the first half of the season has been marked by undefined roles and inconsistent play from the team\u2019s stars. As a result, players and Wings leadership have had to contend with increasingly negative sentiment surrounding the franchise.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think first and foremost I\u2019d rather have people caring in a negative way than not caring at all,\u201d Wings CEO and managing partner Greg Bibb told The Dallas Morning News this week<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While increased interest is positive for the organization, Bibb acknowledged that the Wings have to produce.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one here is happy with our record,\u201d Bibb said<\/a>. \u201c Everyone here is trying everyday to give ourselves the best opportunity to win basketball games.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heavy load for the No. 1 pick <\/p>\n

Bueckers has played winning basketball despite the Wings\u2019 record.<\/p>\n

The league\u2019s Rookie of the Month for June<\/a> is averaging a team-high 18.4 points, 5.5 assists and 1.7 steals. She plays the most minutes on the team, and hasn\u2019t had consistent help from teammates. <\/p>\n

In Sunday\u2019s 102-83 loss to the Indiana Fever<\/a>, Bueckers scored a game-high 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting. Meanwhile star guard Arike Ogunbowale went 0-for-10 from the floor in her first game back from a left thumb injury.<\/p>\n

Ogunbowale, who went 3-for-12 from the floor in the Wings\u2019 last game before the break, is averaging a career low points per game (15.7) and field goal percentage (34.6). <\/p>\n

Related:As Arike Ogunbowale battles shooting slump, Wings maintain strong belief in veteran star<\/a><\/p>\n

The Wings returned Ogunbowale from last year\u2019s team and signed four new additions \u2014 DiJonai Carrington, NaLyssa Smith, Myisha Hines-Allen and Tyasha Harris \u2014 in the offseason with the hope they would help fix issues from 2024.<\/p>\n

Harris is out for the season with a left knee injury<\/a> and the Wings traded Smith to the Aces<\/a>. Hines-Allen grabbed seven rebounds and made three assists in the loss to the Aces, but she scored no points and was 0-for-5 from the field.<\/p>\n

Carrington, who has missed the team\u2019s last nine games with a rib injury<\/a>, began the season as a starter, but was demoted to the bench.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was hard for me [given] that the whole point of me coming to Dallas was to expand my role,\u201d Carrington told reporters this week. <\/p>\n

Li Yueru, whom the Wings acquired via a trade with the Seattle Storm on June 14<\/a>, has been productive for Dallas, averaging 8.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Play from the two other bigs \u2014 Luisa Geisels\u00f6der (6.6 points, 4.9 rebounds) and Teaira McCowan (5.4 points, 4.4 rebounds) \u2014 has been up and down.<\/p>\n

Roster instability <\/p>\n

Geisels\u00f6der and McCowan missed several games last month due to overseas commitments<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Their absences, along with injuries, contributed to personnel issues. Ogunbowale just returned from a left thumb injury. Carrington is still out with a rib injury. Harris is out for the season and forward Maddy Siegrist has been nursing a right knee injury<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bueckers missed time earlier in the season due to concussion protocol and illness<\/a>. <\/p>\n

After Geisels\u00f6der and McCowan returned, the Wings released two players \u2014 Kaila Charles and Haley Jones<\/a> \u2014 from hardship contracts and traded Smith to the Aces. Yueru joined the Wings a month into the season.<\/p>\n

Ahead of the team\u2019s July 3 game against the Phoenix Mercury, the Wings signed forward Liatu King to a rest-of-season contract<\/a>. Dallas\u2019 numbers were so low that they needed to sign a 12th player before that game to avoid forfeit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve played 15 of our 21 games with 10 players or less. You do the math … That\u2019s over 70% of our games,\u201d Wings GM Curt Miller told reporters at a recent practice. \u201cWe\u2019re approaching 50% of the games with nine or less.\u201d<\/p>\n

King has since been released and Jones returned on a rest-of-season contract<\/a>. The team, which still qualifies for a roster hardship, signed guard Grace Berger to a seven-day contract on Wednesday. <\/p>\n

Many players have played at various positions as a result of the instability.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead<\/p>\n

After the All-Star break, the Wings hope to rest, recover and turn things around.<\/p>\n

Bueckers said after Wednesday\u2019s loss that the break will be \u201ca complete mental reset.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReflecting on the first half of the season. How we can be better individually, how we can be better as a team,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

Koclanes and several players on the team have expressed that they haven\u2019t given up on the season. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs crappy as it can feel in these moments \u2026 there\u2019s a bigger picture here and if we continue to build good habits, positive habits, and stay together we\u2019ll get this thing to where we want to get it,\u201d Koclanes said.<\/p>\n

Dallas plays the Seattle Storm, a team that has beaten the Wings twice this season, in their first game back from the break. The Wings hope they start the third quarter of their season in the win column.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t get easy. Seattle \u2014 All-Stars all over the place,\u201d Koclanes said. \u201cI just want us to come out with urgency. That\u2019s our word for the second half: urgency.\u201d<\/p>\n