Stop Pretending Arike Ogunbowale Ain’t That Woman — She Is
These fans love Arike
I’m tired of people all over social media, telling me, “Arike ain’t ’bout this, Arike ain’t ’bout that.”
Arike Ogunbowale is a “perennial All-WNBA talent.
One can almost hear the beat drop in the background when you look at how the WNBA discourse treats No. 24 in teal.
Trade rumors. Box score chirping. Efficiency spreadsheets flying around like they ever meant something to the heart of this game.
“She’s not an efficient guard.”
“She never passes the ball.”
“You can’t build a winning team around her.”
Respectfully, “Respectfully: Stop it. Y’all don’t watch her enough to talk like that.
Arike’s been a lock on the All-Star team since… honestly? Forever. (Okay, since 2021 — but still.)
She won a national title at Notre Dame. She’s always been one of the league’s best closers. And let’s not pretend the franchise she’s played for has surrounded her with contending-level talent.
Half of the discourse is just barbershop banter from folks who haven’t watched a full Dallas Wings game since the bubble. Meanwhile? Arike Ogunbowale’s just out here putting up historic stat lines, elevating 22-year-olds, and running a team held together by rookies, tape, trust and pure will.
She’s Hooping Through the Noise — and Through the Pain
Let’s start with the thumb.
Left hand. Shooting hand. Hurt June 28 vs. the Washington Mystics. Sat out games. Got wrapped. Came back July 13. No complaints. No excuses. Just buckets.
Since healthy and after the All-Star break?
Back to her dominant ways.
-
July 22 @ Seattle (W 87–63)
– 31 MIN | 20 PTS | 3 AST | 1 STL
– FG%: 58.3 | 3P%: 66.7 -
July 25 @ Golden State (L 86–76)
– 34 MIN | 16 PTS | 3 AST | 1 STL
– FG%: 55.6 | 3P%: 75.0 -
July 27 vs Las Vegas (L 106–80)
– 31 MIN | 18 PTS | 4 AST | 1 STL
– FG%: 43.8 | 3P%: 14.3 -
July 28 vs New York (W 92–82)
– 32 MIN | 20 PTS | 14 AST | 1 STL
– FG%: 46.7 | 3P%: 28.6
Dominant: Arike became the first player in WNBA history with 20+ points, 14+ assists, and one or fewer turnovers (How’s that for passing?)
Efficient: 51.5% from the field across four games (love to see these shooting splits)
Locked in: Not forcing anything. Making simple plays and continuing to lead .
“She’s just been making simple decisions,” said interim head coach Chris Koclanes. “Her eyes are up, and she’s not just looking at the hoop. She sees her teammates. She trusts them.”
New Team. Same Killer.
Paige Bueckers said it best:
“It’s difficult having people in and out of the lineups… it’s very nice to have some fluidity and consistency. With repetition it becomes better.”
Dallas is still figuring out its own name. Rookies like Aziaha James, Luisa Geiselsöder JJ Quinerly, are only getting started. Li Yueru and Haley Jones were acquired after the start of the season.
This Dallas Wings team has had a rough start but they have still managed to pick up some impressive wins during the season. Dallas has beaten New York, Atlanta, and Seattle — all current playoff squads — despite inconsistency, injuries, and constant roster churn.
Almost half of Dallas’ wins this season have come against top-five seeds.
Don’t Compile mistakes
Let’s keep it real.
Arike’s 28. In her prime. On the edge of greatness. You don’t move her unless you know she’s leaving and you need the return to avoid a front-office meltdown.
That’s it.
Because what you’re seeing right now? That’s not just a scorer. That’s a player evolving in real time. She’s playmaking. Leading. Defending with purpose. And she’s doing it while national voices question her future like she didn’t build this franchise from scratch.
“Just proud of her resolve,” Koclanes said. “Just to sit up here and have these two leaders (Paige & Arike) on this team is just so encouraging.”
Paige said it best after the New York win:
“The story should be about her.”
This Was Never About Efficiency
Arike’s game has always been about the hard ones. The tough shots. The stepbacks. The logo heat-checks that make people in the fifth row stand up before the ball even hits the net.
You can’t system-train what she does. You can’t game-plan it out of her. You can’t replace it with vibes and rookies.
This is what Paige Bueckers is learning right now:
“Rike’s been handling doubles since she entered the league. I’m learning from her — how to hit the short roll, how to handle pressure.”
That’s leadership. Not the corporate kind. The real kind. The kind that shows up at tip-off and doesn’t clock out until the buzzer sounds.
Legacy, Loyalty, and the Long View
There’s something quiet, almost defiant, in the way Arike answered when asked about momentum after beating the Liberty:
“It’s game to game… momentum is kind of a myth. We have to stay in the present.”
That’s maturity. That’s a vet who’s lived the highs and lows. That’s someone who’s seen coaches come and go, rosters flip upside down, and still suited up. Still showed out. Still bet on Dallas.
So yeah, go ahead. Talk trade machine if you want. Play armchair GM.
But just know what you’re doing if you pull that trigger.
You’re not just trading a player. You’re trading a culture-setter. A warrior. A creator of things from nothing.
You’re trading the one who kept showing up, even when the house was burning down.
Arike Ogunbowale doesn’t need your love.
But stop acting like she didn’t earn your respect
