Paige Bueckers Sustains Historic WNBA Start, Helps Wings Beat Mercury in Injury Return

Paige Bueckers is back and continuing to excel.

The 2025 No. 1 pick made her return to the Dallas Wings lineup Thursday and helped guide her team to a 98-87 victory over the Phoenix Mercury.

Bueckers had missed the previous matchup against the Washington Mystics, which Dallas won 79-71. Despite the win in Bueckers' absence, the 23-year-old quickly showed why she was missed.

She went 3-of-3 on shooting and had eight points in the first quarter and continued to build on that start. She finished the day with 23 points, five assists and four rebounds while shooting 8-of-11 overall and 2-of-4 from three-point range.

In addition to her success on the stat sheet, she also became the fastest guard to reach 250 career points since 2006. She is also the fastest guard to reach more than 250 points, more than 50 rebounds and more than 50 assists.

This performance also comes on the heels of Bueckers winning the Rookie of the Month award for June.

Dallas also saw significant contribution from guard Aziaha James, who finished with 28 points, six assists and six rebounds in a breakout performance. J.J. Quinerly had 17 points, seven assists and five rebounds while Li Yueru had 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Phoenix was led by Kahleah Copper, who had 33 points, five rebounds and five assists. Other notable contributors include Satou Sabally, who had 20 points, three assists and two rebounds and Alyssa Thomas, who had nine points, nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals.

The Wings improved to 6-13 with the victory and have now won four of their last six games. They also evened up the season series against Phoenix, as Dallas dropped the first of four games on June 11.

They will next be in action on Monday when they travel to Phoenix for a rematch against the Mercury. That game is scheduled to tip off at 10 p.m. ET.