DHJ Quick Take: Minnesota Reunion
- Defensive Restoration: Alanna Smith, the reigning 2025 WNBA Co-Defensive Player of the Year, anchors a new-look Wings defense after leading Minnesota to the top-rated defense in the league last season.
- The Reeve Effect: Jessica Shepard brings five years of experience under Cheryl Reeve, focusing on “championship habits” and a high-standard approach that mirrors Jose Fernandez’s vision for the Dallas organization.
- Irish Connection: The reunion of Shepard and Arike Ogunbowale—who won the 2018 NCAA title together at Notre Dame—is already translating into on-court synergy and veteran leadership.
- Overseas Chemistry: Shepard’s transition has been aided by her existing chemistry with Costanza Verona; the duo joined the Wings fresh off winning the 2026 Italian Basketball Cup with Beretta Famila Schio in January.
- Win-First Mentality: Despite “no ill will” regarding their Minnesota departures, both Smith and Shepard emphasized that the emotional tie to their former team is secondary to improving Dallas to a 2-1 start.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Veteran front-court players Jessica Shepard and Alanna Smith, both acquired from the Minnesota Lynx during free agency, will face their former team Thursday night in front of a packed crowd at College Park Center.
Smith, coming off a season in which she was named co-Defensive Player of the Year, was the “top target” for the Dallas Wings in free agency. Her 1.9 blocks per game last season were good enough for third in the league and made her a pivotal part of a Lynx defense that ranked first in defensive rating, allowing just 76.9 points per game. She looks to be a defensive anchor for a Wings team that ranked second-to-last in defensive rating last season, allowing 88.0 points per game.
“The way you want to run defense, there’s five people out there for a reason kind of moving as a collective, which I think Minnesota has always done pretty well,” Smith said. “So being able to apply that here (in Dallas), I think, will make us really tough to play against.”
Jessica Shepard Adds Championship Pedigree From Cheryl Reeve’s System
Shepard was also a consistent part of the Lynx’s rotation last season, averaging 8.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. While her numbers may not jump off the stat sheet, she brings something else just as beneficial to the Wings: the contender’s mindset she developed playing under Cheryl Reeve.
Reeve has led the Lynx to four championships, has missed the playoffs only twice in her 16-year tenure, and has racked up four coach of the year awards in the process. After playing in Reeve’s system for five seasons, the experience and insight that Shepard brings to Dallas is valuable.
“(Cheryl Reeve) is a great coach,” Shepard said. “She knows her X’s and O’s very well and runs a very strict system. So obviously, just learning…the habits of a team that is in the playoffs every single year and being able to bring that experience here has been really helpful.”
Familiar Faces Help Jessica Shepard Settle Into Dallas
Both Shepard and Smith have also played on several teams overseas. This experience has made adapting to new teams like second nature.
“You figure out basketball’s a global game,” Smith said. “It’s the same everywhere you go, and I think being able to find good strengths and applying it to each team that you play for is really important and I think I’ve been able to do that over the past few years.”
Along with her overseas experience, though, Shepard also has some familiar faces on this year’s Wings roster that have made her adjustment process easier. Apart from Smith being a former teammate, Shepard also played with guard Arike Ogunbowale at Notre Dame, where they won an NCAA national championship in 2018. They look to take full advantage of that connection now that they are reunited.
“It’s been great playing with Arike again,” Shepard said. “Obviously, we had a lot of success in college, so for us, it’s been just like we’re back in college again. It’s been a lot of fun, and I think for this team, it’ll be really important.”
Additionally, Shepard recently found success with guard Costanza Verona. The pair won the Italian Cup with the club Beretta Famila Schio about a month before arriving in Texas.
“I really haven’t had time to process (coming to the Wings) because I came straight from overseas,” Shepard said. “(Having Costanza here) helps a lot. Playing overseas with (her), obviously we were able to win a championship, and then her being here, that’s been great.”
Dallas Wings Embrace Championship Mindset Under Jose Fernandez
Although Shepard and Smith are still in a bit of an adjustment period, both players are approaching the matchup against their former team with a win-first mindset, as they look to help the Wings improve to 2-1 to start the season.
“I left Minnesota in a great way, there’s no ill will between us,” Smith said. “But any team that I play for, I want to win. It doesn’t matter who I’m playing against.”
But whether it’s the Wings or the Lynx, the goal has always been the same: win.
“What Jose is trying to do here is right up there with what Coach Reeve does in Minnesota,” Shepard said. “He wants a championship culture, and he knows that starts every day with all the little things, and he holds us to a very high standard, which I think is what every player wants in an organization.”
More Wings Coverage on Dallas Hoops Journal
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- Dallas Wings vs. Atlanta Dream Postgame Interviews: Arike Ogunbowale, Awak Kuier & Jose Fernandez (May 12, 2026)
- Dallas Wings Fall 77-72 To Atlanta Dream In Home Opener As Rebounding And Cold Shooting Sink Comeback Bid
- Dallas Wings’ Azzi Fudd Out vs. Atlanta Dream ‘Out Of An Abundance Of Caution,’ Jose Fernandez Says
- ‘Championship Standard’: Dallas Wings, Atlanta Dream Detail Matchup In Sold-Out Home Opener
- Jose Fernandez On Azzi Fudd’s Path To Starting Role: ‘When That Happens, I Think She’ll Be Ready’
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