Paige Bueckers Didn't Think Mavs Winning 2025 NBA Draft Lottery Was 'Real at First'

Dallas Wings rookie Paige Bueckers reacted the same as everyone else when the Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA draft lottery on Monday night.

The WNBA No. 1 overall pick told reporters Tuesday she "didn't think [it] was real at first." She added she's excited about the idea of the Mavs getting Duke's Cooper Flagg, the consensus top player in the incoming draft class:

This is only the second time NBA and WNBA teams from the same city won the lottery in the same year. The Cleveland Rockers picked LaToya Thomas first overall in the 2003 WNBA draft, followed months later by the Cleveland Cavaliers changing their trajectory thanks to the arrival of LeBron James.

The Wings getting the first pick wasn't a huge shock. They had the joint-second-best odds (22.7 percent) along with the Chicago Sky.

The Mavericks, on the other hand, had to cash in whatever favors they accrued with the basketball gods. By going 39-43 and winding up in the Play-In Tournament, they had some of the worst odds (1.8 percent) in the lottery field.

After the WNBA draft, it looked like Bueckers would stand alone as the long-term face of basketball in the city of Dallas. Instead, she's going to have some company.