DHJ Quick Take: Securing Rotation Depth
- The Frontcourt Anchor: By retaining Li Yueru, the Wings secure a 6-foot-7 “stretch post” whose three-point shooting (36.4%) and interior defense became vital following the trade from Seattle. With Luisa Geiselsöder now in Portland, Yueru’s presence ensures Dallas has a proven veteran to pair with the incoming No. 1 overall pick.
- Backcourt Continuity: Grace Berger‘s acceptance of her qualifying offer provides Paige Bueckers with a reliable secondary playmaker. Berger‘s versatility as a 5-foot-11 guard who can initiate the offense was essential last season, and her return offsets the loss of Haley Jones to the Fire.
- Financial Flexibility: Under the historic new 2026 CBA, the WNBA salary cap has jumped to $7 million. By locking in Yueru and Berger on qualifying offers early, Curt Miller preserves maximum cap space to navigate the ongoing Arike Ogunbowale core negotiations and a free agency period where supermax deals now reach $1.4 million.
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Wings announced Wednesday that center Li Yueru and guard Grace Berger have accepted qualifying offers from the team, returning two rotation pieces to the fold as Dallas navigates one of the most compressed offseasons in WNBA history.
Both players were extended qualifying offers Tuesday ahead of the league deadline, converting them to restricted free agents. By accepting, they bypass that process entirely and return to Dallas on guaranteed deals ahead of the May 8 season opener.
Li Yueru Returns to Anchor Frontcourt
Yueru’s return addresses one of Dallas’ most pressing needs. The 6-foot-7 center arrived via a midseason trade with the Seattle Storm on June 14, 2025, and quickly established herself as a legitimate interior presence for the Wings. In 22 games with Dallas, she averaged 7.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 20.0 minutes while shooting 42.1% from the field.
The highlights of her Dallas tenure were hard to miss. Yueru posted a career-high 20 points in an 81-80 win over the Indiana Fever on August 12 and scored in double figures in three consecutive games for the first time in her career — July 9 at Chicago, July 13 at Indiana, and July 16 against Las Vegas. She missed the final 10 games of the season due to injury.
Across all 31 games she appeared in during 2025 — including her stint with Seattle — Yueru set career highs in points (6.0), rebounds (4.5), assists (0.9), blocks (0.3), and three-point shooting (36.4%), a trajectory that made retaining her a priority for general manager Curt Miller. Miller had highlighted Yueru in an exclusive August interview with Dallas Hoops Journal, calling her one of the team’s “talented stretch post players who are great teammates and are only going to get better.”
The timing of her return matters. The Portland Fire claimed forward Luisa Geiselsöder in last week’s expansion draft, leaving a void at the four and five that Yueru is now positioned to help fill alongside whoever Dallas selects with the No. 1 overall pick on April 13.
Grace Berger Brings Playmaking Depth Back to Backcourt
Berger’s path to Dallas last season was unconventional. The seventh overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft signed a seven-day hardship contract with the Wings on July 16, 2025, before converting to a rest-of-season deal shortly after. In 18 games, she averaged 3.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 22.3 minutes, starting 13 of those contests.
Her numbers across all 19 games she played in 2025 told a story of growth. Berger set career bests in rebounds (3.3) and assists (3.1) and posted career single-game highs in rebounds (8), assists (7), steals (3), and blocks (3) at various points throughout the season. Her shooting efficiency at 30.6% from the field remains an area to address, but her ability to initiate offense and handle the ball gave Dallas a capable secondary playmaker behind Paige Bueckers.
With Haley Jones now in Portland after being claimed in the second round of the expansion draft, Berger’s versatility as a facilitating wing takes on added value in a backcourt still being assembled around Bueckers.
What It Means for Dallas Wings
Both signings carry immediate roster significance. The Wings lost two rotation players in the expansion draft and have yet to resolve the future of Arike Ogunbowale, who received a core qualifying offer Tuesday and remains in exclusive negotiations with the team. Against that backdrop, securing Yueru and Berger early removes two variables from an equation that still has plenty of unknowns.
The negotiating window closes Friday, with players eligible to sign new contracts beginning Saturday and the WNBA Draft set for April 13.
More Wings & WNBA Coverage on Dallas Hoops Journal
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