‘That’s Got To Become Our Identity’: Jose Fernandez Sets Defense, Rebounding As Dallas Wings’ Second-Half Priority

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Wings spent their first practice since the All-Star break guarding their male scrimmage team in the half-court and in transition. The session included live five-on-five.

“Well, I mean, the biggest thing is getting our legs under us today,” Wings coach Jose Fernandez said. “We went long with film, and everything we did was focused on defending our male scrimmage team. Again, with the break, it was about making sure we got back to doing what we do in transition and on the defensive end. I thought they came back refreshed. There’s a lot of excitement for the second half of the season, as there should be.”

Dallas Wings Look to Continue Historic Start

Dallas enters the second half at 18-9, the best 27-game start in franchise history. The Wings have won seven of their last eight and nine of their last 12 after a 9-6 start. A six-game winning streak, the longest in team history, ended July 20 in a 99-98 overtime loss to the New York Liberty at College Park Center.

Fernandez was asked what stood out from Monday’s work. He opened with the offense.

“I thought the energy and the communication were really good,” Fernandez said. “Coming off a break, they know where we’re at and where we want to head. Everybody understands that we’re playing well offensively with the way we’re sharing the ball and taking care of it.”

Dallas is tied with the Las Vegas Aces for the league lead at 22.5 assists a game, turns it over a league-low 11.6 times, and owns the WNBA’s best assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.94. The Wings score 90.2 points a game, fourth, on 46.5% shooting. The focus

Defense and Rebounding Are Key

Dallas ranks sixth in the WNBA in defensive rating, allowing 106.8 points per 100 possessions. Opponents score 41.9 points in the paint per game against the Wings, 12th among the league’s 15 teams, and post an effective field goal percentage of 52.3%, ninth.

He tied the rest of that answer to the defensive glass, coming back to it twice.

“For us to have the season we want, we’ve got to get better on the defensive end. We’ve got to rebound better on the defensive glass,” Fernandez said. “That’s got to become our identity in the second half of the year — how we’re going to guard one-on-one, how we’re going to rotate in our pick-and-roll coverages, and how we’re going to limit teams to one shot by finishing possessions on the defensive glass.”

“Those were the main things we stressed today when we worked in the half court and defended in transition,” Fernandez said.

Dallas gives up 10.2 second-chance points a game, third-fewest in the WNBA behind Indiana and Atlanta. Opponents rebound 27.3% of their own misses against the Wings, the lowest rate in the league, and Dallas grabs 72.7% of available defensive rebounds, the highest.

New York built a 16-2 edge in second-chance points by halftime of the July 20 overtime game. Golden State outrebounded Dallas 41-25 in a 91-80 win on June 17, when the Wings finished with two offensive rebounds, both by Jessica Shepard.

Shepard averages 12.0 rebounds and 14.9 points on 59.7% shooting. Her fourth triple-double of the season came in the July 22 win at the Portland Fire, and no one else in the WNBA has more than one this year.

The follow-up asked whether Dallas has the personnel to fix it or just needs adjustments.

“Yeah. Sometimes personnel comes into play, but that means we just have to have better help-side defense and better backside rotations,” Fernandez said. “We have to guard one-on-one, eliminate straight-line drives, know where our help comes from, and then make multiple efforts after that.”

The New York Finish

Dallas won the season series against the Liberty 2-1, its first over New York since 2022. Arike Ogunbowale scored 29 points in the overtime loss, and Shepard finished with 13 points, 16 rebounds, and 6 assists.

Asked what carries over from a 7-1 July, Fernandez went back to the one loss.

“It’s disappointing how the New York game finished, but it doesn’t come down to that if we do a much better job on the glass,” Fernandez said.

Two days later in Portland, Shepard put up 18 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists, and Dallas recorded 28 assists on 35 made field goals.

Paige Bueckers leads the Wings at 20.9 points and 6.2 assists through 25 appearances, shooting 51.3% from the field and 39.7% from 3-point range.

Dallas hosts the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday at College Park Center at 7 p.m. CT on USA Network, then travels to face the Washington Mystics on July 31.