NEW YORK — The glitz and glamour of the WNBA draft will eventually fade, but that’s OK with Paige Bueckers, whose luster transcends the dazzling suit she wore to hear her name called first Monday night.
Bueckers, the UConn star drafted No. 1 overall by the Dallas Wings, was undeniably the main attraction this year. The 23-year-old just won a national title with the Huskies. She was fresh off appearances on the Today show and The Tonight Show. Anytime the camera panned to Bueckers’ face during live coverage of the draft, the crowd at host venue The Shed went crazy.
Bueckers appears effortlessly cool, commanding a room the way she commands a court. That unflappability and her elite basketball skills have already enchanted North Texas.
“I’m extremely excited to be there. I’ve only heard great things about the city,” Bueckers said after being drafted. “Just extremely grateful that they took the pick on me. I can see the city has great love for that pick.”
Get the latest D-FW sports news, analysis, scores and more.
Related:Dallas Wings select UConn’s Paige Bueckers with No. 1 pick in 2025 WNBA draft
The Wings believe Bueckers, a three-time unanimous first-team All-American and the national Player of the Year in 2021, will help them win their first WNBA title since moving to Dallas in 2016. She is the superstar the city craves after losing its claim to former Dallas Maverick Luka Doncic.
Though the spotlight loves Bueckers — and her story of battling through injuries to deliver UConn a 12th national title — she doesn’t gravitate toward it.
Earlier Monday, Bueckers and other WNBA draft invitees lit the Empire State Building orange, the league’s color, to start their big day. Throughout the event, Bueckers mostly stood off to the side or in the background. Her calm and humble demeanor was on display throughout draft night, whether constantly lauding her UConn teammates or casually navigating the weight of the evening.
It’s possible Bueckers will move the same way in Dallas, where she will be the star of the team and a main driver of interest in the Wings. But as with the Huskies, she should have the space to keep her cool without having to worry about carrying the team on her shoulders.
“I think she’s just so unselfish. She can take over a game when she wants to and when she needs to, but she just has such great feel for getting others involved and that’s something that’s really special,” Wings head coach Chris Koclanes said Monday night.
Related:Paige Bueckers could carry the Wings. Dallas wants to build a team she wouldn’t have to
Two seasons removed from a WNBA semifinals appearance, the Wings made a big push in free agency to elevate an already talented roster, revamped their front office, secured a landmark media rights deal and negotiated a move from Arlington to downtown Dallas.
The stage is set for a star like Bueckers, who averaged 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists during her final season at UConn and also has her new teammates buzzing.
Her effect had Wings All-Star guard Arike Ogunbowale, a Notre Dame alum, rooting for UConn in this year’s national championship game.
“I woke up feeling like a traitor ‘cause I was really clapping when a certain team scored???” Ogunbowale posted on X after UConn’s title win. “Anyway, go Wings lol. Can’t wait for the draft.”
DiJonai Carrington, who came to Dallas from the Connecticut Sun in free agency, shared a post on X with photos of her and Bueckers to express her excitement.
“Just to feel loved, feel supported, it means everything,” Bueckers said Monday. “I can’t wait to play in that system, to play with that team. Embrace that new city. To be in a place, where you’re loved and wanted, that’s very important.”
It’s not just teammates who are thrilled about her arrival to Dallas either.
“We knew we had a special opportunity,” Wings general manager Curt Miller said Monday night. “Very early on, it was Paige and Paige only.”
Curt Miller, Executive VP, basketball operations and general manager (from left), general manager Curt Miller and head coach Chris Koclanes react in the team’s draft war room as their first pick Paige Bueckers is announced on ESPN during the 2025 WNBA draft, Monday, April 14, 2025, in Arlington.(Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer)
She will certainly help put the Dallas Wings on the map when the season starts May 16, especially when she and Caitlin Clark headline a matchup between the Wings and the Indiana Fever on June 27 at American Airlines Center.
Bueckers seems aware that her enormous popularity will only grow at the professional level, carrying with it the responsibility to inspire the next generation. It’s part of her allure.
“I aspire to be a great role model,” Bueckers said. “Through the injuries and all the setbacks and the ups and downs, I try to use that as motivation to show people that they can get through it, too. And even come back on the other side better.”
Find more Wings coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
