The Minnesota Lynx (14-4) present a tough challenge for the Dallas Wings (11-7), as the team tries to bounce back from its 99-84 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Thursday. Tipoff is at 1 p.m. at the College Park Center.
Over the last four games, Dallas has gone 2-2. The Wings defense has not played well, but Paige Bueckers was the reason Dallas won those two games. She completed a four-point play late in the 93-92 comeback win against the Chicago Sky, and she scored 17 points in the last 1:12 and overtime
in the 112-110 win against the Seattle Storm.
After the thrilling win against the Storm, Dallas failed to earn its third straight win at Las Vegas. Aja Wilson scored 32 as Dallas struggled defending the back-to-back WNBA MVP.
Now, Dallas hosts Minnesota at home. The Lynx have not played since Wednesday after facing the Washington Mystics for two straight games. The Lynx lost 84-79 in the first game against the Mystics, but Minnesota overcame a 12-point deficit for a 78-76 win over Washington in the second game.
Arike’s see-saw season
In the Wings’ last two games, Arike Ogunbowale has not shot well from the field and has scored just eight combined points. Ogunbowale got off to a great start to this season, but has been hot-and-cold on offense since then. She has scored at least 20 points seven times this season but also also failed to reach double figures in seven games this season.
This wide range of scoring is cause for concern after a season last year, when Ogunbowale finished with a career-low scoring mark of 15.5 points per game. Before last season, her lowest scoring was 18.7 points per game. Despite her scoring decrease, which could be explained away with the arrival of all-everything rookie guard paige Bueckers, Dallas re-signed Ogunbowale before this season for another two-year deal worth nearly $2.5 million.
Did the Wings believe that Ogunbowale’s scoring would come back, or were they paying for things she’s done in the past? She owns the Wings’ franchise record for points scored by any player, sure, but her contributions on offense have taken another hit this year, as she comes into Sunday’s game averaging just 13.9 points per game this season.
Despite the mixed results, the Wings rank fifth in the W with an offense averaging 89.1 points per game and an offense ranked fourth in the W with a field goal percentage of 46.3%.
Bueckers and Jessica Shepard may lead the Wings’ offense, but Dallas needs Ogunbowale’s scoring punch to compete against top teams like the Lynx.
Defending the 3-point line
When the Wings’ opponent goes off from deep, bad things are in store for Dallas. You could probably say that about a great many WNBA teams.
The Wings have not defended the 3-point line well in the last two games. Seattle and Las Vegas shot over 40% from the 3-point line. That kind of shooting places more pressure on the Wings’ offense. It makes a third scorer imperative, and that’s not always in the cards every game.
Minnesota ranks first in the W in 3-point shooting, averaging 37.1% this year. However, the Lynx shot poorly from the 3-point line in their last two against the Mystics. Minnesota shot below 30% from the 3-point line, and the poor shooting led to two close games.
Hopefully, Dallas has reviewed the tape to see how Washington defended the Lynx shooters, because the Wings need to limit the Lynx’ effectiveness from the 3-point line if they want to defeat Minnesota for the first time this season.
Battle of top-2 draft picks
There is always going to be some comparison between Azzi Fudd and Olivia Miles. Fudd went to Dallas with the first pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, while Miles went to Minnesota with the second pick. In the first few games of the season, that comparison was not favorable for Fudd, as Miles’ smooth transition to the WNBA game was a little more immediate than Fudd’s.
She is the leading scorer for the Lynx, averaging 18.6 points per game, as well as leading the team with 5.6 assists. Miles also helped Minnesota overcome a 12-point deficit against the Mystics, scoring 10 points in the fourth quarter in the Lynx’ last game. She finished with 21 points, five assists and four rebounds.
Miles scored at least 20 points in each of the last two games. She scored 24 points in the last game against the Wings when Fudd was her primary defender.
Fudd has helped Dallas, especially lately, and is now on a similar rookie-year trajectory. Since joining the Wings’ starting lineup on May 28, Fudd is averaging 14.4 points and three stocks (steals + blocked shots) per game. She’s a different player than Miles, but their individual impacts for their team will be a talking point any time these two teams meet.
How to watch
The Wings and Aces tipoff at 1 p.m. at College Park Center in Arlington. The game will be broadcast on CBS and Paramount Plus.
