Paige Bueckers has garnered a lot of praise since she entered the WNBA as the No. 1 pick in 2025. Becky Hammon spoke highly of the star guard's game after she guided the Dallas Wings to a win over her Las Vegas Aces.
Bueckers and Co. dominated the defending champions 96-66 on Monday. Five Wings players scored in double digits, led by Arike Ogunbowale with 22 points and Azi Fudd with 19. Bueckers contributed across the board with 10 points, five rebounds, and seven assists.
During her postgame presser, reporters asked Hammon for her thoughts about the UConn product's performance and how they prepared to face her.
"What makes her so versatile? She plays the right way," Hammon said. "You take this away, she's going to get to that. She just plays the game at a really, I would say, simple level, but it's not simple. It's very strategic, obviously, what she's doing and how she's reading defenses, but she plays the right way. It's hard to beat players when they're committed to just taking what the defense gets you.
"You want to take out one aspect, she's going to hurt you in another aspect. So it's all kind of like what you're willing to live with. But she's a very hard player to defend because you bring a double team, she's going past it. You don't, she might score over you.
"She's just a stud. I'm a fan."
The Wings finished last season with a 10-34 record and tied for the worst in the league. However, they are 9-5 this year and looking like legitimate playoff contenders. They'll aim to make it back-to-back wins on Wednesday when they take on the Golden State Valkyries.
Hammon and the Aces, on the other hand, have their sights set on bouncing back strong versus the Connecticut Sun also on Wednesday.
