Page Bookers was messed up Monday afternoon with a gift from Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and Mayor Kimberly Bisor Tolbert before unveiling his 10-gallon hat.
She put it on her head for photo manipulation with four other 2025 Wings Draftees who received the same cowboy hat.
Welcome to Dallas in Page.
Monday was another of what general manager Kurt Miller calls the “moment building moment” in this new, refreshing era of Dallas wings.
For years, Dallas has in desperate need of a systematic overhaul. It’s a place that Marquee’s free agent largely ignores, with several league stars forced to escape, including Skyler Diggin Smith, Liz Cumberge, Alisha Gray and more recently Satu Sabury.
But the hope is that the era of being an afterthought for the league is over.
The shift to relevance began in November with Miller’s employment, and quickly spurred the Wings, who won the No. 1 pick in the WNBA lottery.
Despite reports that the Bueckers may refuse to play for Dallas, Miller said there is no doubt that the former UConn star will be joining his team this season.
The Bueckers and people around her have revealed that she wants to focus on winning the national championship with the Husky this past season and will not enjoy conversations about the future of the WNBA.
“We respected that, we respected the process and became patient along the way,” Miller said. “And we knew everything was positive and trendy, and we appreciated the respect that was coming and going.”
The Bueckers had a short but relieved conversation with Tsubasa before hearing her name, known as the No. 1 pick in last week’s draft.
She was taken to heart to learn about the franchise’s new direction and future plans.
“We want to be a well-known organization and a winning organization,” Bueckers said. “We will continue to build each other, and we will continue to build the momentum of women’s sports and the waves created.”
Wings currently performs and practices at College Park Center, the home arena at the University of Texas at Arlington. However, the team is planning to move to downtown Dallas next year. After the move, Wings will play the game in a recently renovated arena at the city’s convention center. It also plans to open state-of-the-art performance facilities worth at least $54 million.
With facility upgrades upgraded on the horizon and a productive offseason, the wing has more energy for the future than optimism.
College Park Centre. nbae via Getty Images
This season, Miller has built a roster that fuses established veterans like Arike Ogunbowale, Dijonai Carrington, Tyasha Harris and Nalyssa Smith with rookies like Bueckers, Aziaha James and Madison Scott.
“I can’t wait to support the coaching staff with the style of play we bring to Dallas, an exciting belief that there is so much selfishness in the locker room,” Miller said. “So, I’m just really excited about this year of foundations, and when we say the foundations, there’s still no limit to what this group can do, but I understand that there are a lot of new pieces lying together.
As you move forward, the Bueckers are certainly the cornerstone of the wings. Her charisma and talent made her a beloved icon at UConn. She appears to be destined to be superstar status in the WNBA.
Keeping her happy and building around her is key to wings’ success in rebuilding the franchise.
Dallas did a lot of good things to roll the ball this offseason. But it’s only time to see if Miller’s vision comes true.
“We’re trying to create a player-first environment and make future players want to stay in Dallas,” Miller said. “And through free agency, through trading, we have achieved a lot of goals to bring in great, great players, but more importantly, they are great players that others in the league want to play.”
I hope for the same thing about the Bueckers and the wings.
“I’m not a metric, but just people, culture… Dallas is a place where everyone wants to play and where everyone here wants to stay,” Bookers said when asked what could be a marker of team success this season. “So, in all respects, we just build a foundation where we are around each other and enjoy playing together, and being together from the court.”
