Paige Bueckers (No. 5) is making her dreams come true with the Dallas Wings. (Photo: Dylan Nadwodny | The Podium Finish)
ARLINGTON, Texas — From the moment Paige Bueckers picked up a basketball at age five in Minnesota, she knew the game was her calling.
That early spark has carried her through the peaks and valleys of an extraordinary journey. Now, as a rookie guard for the Dallas Wings, she is embracing the moment she has dreamed of her entire life.
“I just fell in love as soon as I touched it,” Bueckers said. “I played all the sports when I was younger, but I had a different feeling when I played basketball.”
That connection never wavered, even through injuries and adversity during her five-year collegiate career at UConn. She was the face of a program with a championship pedigree, and she carried the expectations that came with it.
Her college career began in the strangest of circumstances—a delayed season opener during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Allen Bestwick, who spent six years as the UConn women’s basketball home broadcaster for SNY, recalled her quiet yet commanding start against UMass Lowell River Hawks.
“The beginning of Paige Bueckers’ collegiate career is playing a game delayed until Dec. 6 [in 2020] in an empty gymnasium,” Bestwick said. “It wasn’t what they all dreamed of when they got there.”
Yet even with no crowd in Gampel Pavilion, Bueckers’ talent was undeniable. Over the next five seasons, she grew not only as a player but as a leader and teammate. By the time she left Storrs, she had brought home a national championship, overcome multiple knee injuries, and established herself as one of the most beloved Huskies in program history.
Paige Bueckers thrived with the UConn Huskies, answering to the call in her five-year collegiate career. (Photo: Frank Vitucci | The Podium Finish)
“She was every bit the college freshman [at first],” Bestwick said. “But the Paige that just left UConn—she’s stronger, more conditioned, and wiser… She grew up and matured to become a really fine young adult.”
Now in Dallas, Bueckers brings those lessons and that leadership to a young Wings team looking to rebound from a trying 2024 campaign. In just a few short weeks, she has already made an impression with her humility and high energy.
“Every single day I try to stop and smell the roses,” Bueckers said. “To be living out my childhood dream… I’m thankful for it every single day.”
That gratitude flows into her relationships with teammates, who have embraced her blend of playful charm and competitive fire.
“I’m like an annoying little sister that nags and bugs and annoys,” she joked. “But they love me for it, and they’ve already embraced that side of me.”
Bueckers’ integration into the Wings locker room has been helped by the return of veteran players like Arike Ogunbowale, Maddy Siegrist and Teaira McCowan. But she also recognizes the opportunity to lead in her own way — through effort, empathy, and communication.
Paige Bueckers (No. 5) facilitates a quick play for NaLyssa Smith (No. 1) of the Dallas Wings against the Toyota Anetelopes. (Photo: Dylan Nadwodny | The Podium Finish)
“It’s just a whole lot of new in the organization,” she said. “Everybody’s learning. We’re all growing together at the same pace… Regardless of whether you’re a rookie or a seven-year player, we’re using our voices and contributing.”
Leadership is not new to Bueckers. Bestwick shared a story that defined her character during UConn’s championship season. When her roommate, Jana El Alfy, was fasting during Ramadan, Bueckers woke up before sunrise to cook her breakfast.
“She wanted her teammate to know she was valued,” Bestwick said. “What a teammate. What a leader. This was Paige Bueckers’ team.”
Though the WNBA is another level entirely, Bestwick believes Bueckers’ style and substance will translate quickly.
“She’s not as flashy, but she’s as effective,” he said. “Because of her unselfishness and how she involves teammates, I think the transition will go more quickly for Paige than it did for Caitlin Clark.”
Bueckers is not preoccupied with the spotlight. Instead, she focuses on being her authentic self—playful, selfless, and faithful to her core values.
“It wasn’t the journey I expected,” she said. “As a young kid, I thought I was invincible. Injuries didn’t happen to me… But I stayed firm in who I am.”
Through it all, basketball has given her far more than accolades and championships. It has given her people.
Paige Bueckers embraces her new basketball family in Teaira McCowan (left) and Arike Ogunbowale (right) of the Dallas Wings. (Photo: Mason Munn | The Podium Finish)
“Relationships are the most important piece to basketball,” Bueckers said. “Most of my friends and family are my basketball family. The memories, experiences, the journey… they last a lifetime.”
As the WNBA season begins, Dallas fans are getting more than a top draft pick. They are getting a player who plays with joy, leads with compassion, and still carries the spark of that five-year-old girl in Minnesota who first fell in love with the game, complete with a shoutout to her unwavering support system.
“Friends and family, I love y’all,” she said. “Y’all know that.”
Editor’s Note
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