Deebo Walked In & Took Chains: Dallas Wings Fall to 0-2 Against Storm

The Dallas Wings are fighting and clawing for their first win of the season and against the Seattle Storm they were not able to capture it.

Suffering a 79-71 loss, the Dallas Wings now fall to 0-2 and the optimism they once had on the season might be starting to wane.

Dallas got smacked in the face with another hard truth, this league does not care about your feelings, your talent, or your potential.

Seattle was led by none other than former WNBA MVP, Nneka Ogwumike. Nneka walked in the building and damn near snatched chains like Deebo on a cruiser bike. Anyone that guarded Ogwumike this night, it did not matter. The Wings continued to show a lack of an serious answer for an interior presence. The Wings had no answers it sounded like Captain America speaking with Iron Man, “I got nothin’ for you, Cap! No coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options!

Ogwumike finished with 23 points and 18 rebounds on 10-of-21 shooting. At times, it looked like Dallas forgot she was a former MVP.

At other times, it looked like they remembered too late.

The Wings had no counter. Teaira McCowan gave them a bruising presence off the bench with 10 points and 9 boards in 15 minutes, but when Ogwumike and Ezi Magbegor were both on the floor, it was mismatch after mismatch.

What made it more worse, was that Seattle outmuscled, outpaced, and outshot Dallas in nearly every meaningful moment. The Storm dropped 31 points in the second quarter alone, the second straight game the Wings have allowed a 30 point quarter in a single frame. Dallas, meanwhile, has yet to score 27 points in a single quarter this season. That kind of math is not a winning recipe.

But this wasn’t just a numbers game—it was an energy game. It was a grown-woman game. And for all of Dallas’ promise, for all the heart Paige Bueckers poured into her second-ever WNBA contest, the Storm came into Arlington with a clear plan: dominate the paint, hit timely threes, and let the Wings burn themselves out trying to keep up.

The Paige Effect: All Heart, No Help

Paige Bueckers walked into the game against the Seattle Storm ready for her first professional win. Bueckers did what it took to walk away victorious. Finishing the game with 19 points, a quiet 7-of-14 from the floor, and playing 36 minutes with only four minutes of rest to her name. The only problem is she did not walk off with a win for the Dallas Wings.

“Comfort is not the thing I’m looking for,” she said after the game, her voice low but steady. “Competitive spirit is growing from game to game… then we’re playing catch-up… we gotta figure out how to minimize those mental lapses and play 40 minutes together.”

And that’s the story right now in Dallas: growing pains.

Paige wants all 40 minutes.

 

“I want to be on the court for all 40 if it were up to me… I’m cool with the four I sat, but I’m feeling good.”

But minutes mean nothing without impact, and right now the impact is only flashing in glimpses. Bueckers is making the reads—getting blitzed in traps, learning how to adjust on the fly.

The rookie is not shrinking from the moment at all. Bueckers is doing the opposite and is asking for it.

The question is whether the rest of the room is ready to rise with her.

Arike Ogunbowale had one of those nights she’ll want to delete from the hard drive. Just 2-of-14 from the field. Just 1-of-8 from three. Nothing was going.

However, credit Seattle for swarming her with doubles, putting bigger defenders on her and keeping her uncomfortable the entire night. To make a long story short, Dallas can’t win games if their best player is not scoring buckets. Ogunbowale will get it rolling, but this game was not her best performance.

With Arike’s shot offline, the Wings’ offense stalled.

They scored just 10 points in the fourth quarter, and Seattle coasted to the finish line.

Bright Spots

However, Dallas had a few bright spots in the game that competed and kept them in the game.

NaLyssa Smith chipped in 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and was one of the few Wings players to consistently attack the rim. Maddy Siegrist gave good energy off the bench, scoring 12 and going 5-of-10 from the field.

Teaira McCowan? A physical tone-setter when she was on the floor. But it was enough.

As a team, Dallas shot just 37% from the field and a dissapointing 4-of-19 from three.

Seattle, meanwhile, hit 9-of-15 from deep—good for 60%.

That alone tells the story. If you can’t defend the arc or own the paint, you’re walking into a gunfight with foam swords.

The Wings are now 0-2, and the Storm are 1-1. The flaws in the team are starting to show. They’ve let back-to-back teams drop 30+ in a quarter. They’ve yet to find their go-to lineup in crunch time. They’ve got talent—but talent doesn’t guarantee buckets, wins, or fourth-quarter poise.

For Bueckers, the mission is simple: “Take this game and continue to improve on the next one.” The question is, who’s coming with her?

Because heart doesn’t win games. Chains don’t stay on your neck when Deebo shows up.

And in the W, no one gives you anything. You have to take it.