The Dallas Wings (23-16) host the Connecticut Sun (10-29) Sunday evening at College Park Center. The matchup follows the Wings’ 96-78 win against the Portland Fire that punched their ticket to the playoffs for the first time since 2023 and marked a franchise-high win total. The Wings have the opportunity to continue their late-August turnaround by pushing their streak to four straight wins.
Here are three things ahead of Sunday’s final home matchup with the Connecticut Sun before their move to Houston.
The standings race
Ahead of the matchup with Connecticut, the Wings sit in eighth place, a game behind the New York Liberty and Washington Mystics. For the Wings to have any fighting chance in the playoffs, they need to avoid finishing in the final two seeds to avoid matching up with the Minnesota Lynx and Golden State Valkyries. Luckily for the Wings, they have the most favorable schedule among the bottom three teams in the playoff race, as their remaining schedule is against lottery teams. The Wings have traditionally taken care of bad teams this season, but they mustn’t play with their food and finish strong to avoid being outmatched by championship favorites come playoff time.
Awak Kuier catching fire at the right time
Awak Kuier’s recent impact has been a significant factor in the Wings’ late-August turnaround. She is averaging 8.6 points, eight rebounds, and 3.8 (!) blocks over the last five games. Her return season in Dallas has been a bit of a give-and-take with Head Coach Jose Fernandez. Kuier’s minutes were sporadic through most of the season, with many single-digit-minute games, and it felt like she had a shorter leash than other players did. One mistake would mean she wouldn’t play the rest of the game. Following Jessica Shepard’s minor ankle injury on August 9, Kuier has stepped up to the plate and proved that she deserves a significant role on the Wings and is one of the league’s top defenders. Following the Wings’ win, she attributed her recent success to how the coaching staff has built her up.
Though many had concerns about the role Kuier was given through most of the season, credit has to go to Fernandez for building her confidence up at the right time. The Wings need her defense in the playoffs, and if she continues to play this way, she will earn herself a hefty paycheck in the offseason.
Finish strong heading into the FIBA World Cup break
The matchup with the Sun is the Wings’ last before they get time off for the FIBA World Cup tournament. The Wings have several members appearing in the tournament, including Alanna Smith (Team Australia), Li Yueru (Team China), Costanza Verona (Team Italy), Paige Bueckers (Team USA), and Jose Fernandez (Team USA Scout). The World Cup starts on September 4th in Germany. The tournament will give the players participating the opportunity to stay warm upon the Wings’ return to play in mid-September and allow non-participants to take a deep breath and recover before the big dance of the playoffs. The Wings must finish the pre-World Cup stretch strong and enter the break on a continued high note.
Where to watch
Catch the Sunday evening action at 7:30 p.m. CT on KFAA-TV and WNBA League Pass.
