DHJ Quick Take: Dallas Wings Add Sug Sutton, Waive JJ Quinerly
- The Move: Dallas is signing veteran guard Sug Sutton, adding an experienced ball handler to the rotation.
- The Corresponding Move: The Wings waived second-year guard JJ Quinerly following two games played this season. The move happened five days after her first performance since undergoing knee surgery that ended her rookie campaign.
- The Backcourt Context: Sutton arrives with Odyssey Sims sidelined by an ankle injury and Paige Bueckers coming off a missed game, thinning Dallas’ guard depth.
- The Roster Math: The signing restores Dallas to the 12-player roster required by the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement.
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Wings are signing guard Sug Sutton to a rest-of-season contract, sources tell Dallas Hoops Journal, adding a veteran ball handler to a thinning backcourt. The move comes after Dallas waived second-year guard JJ Quinerly in a corresponding move.
Sutton, a 5-foot-8 combo guard out of Texas, joins Dallas after a brief run with the expansion Portland Fire to open the 2026 season. The Fire selected her 20th overall in the 2026 WNBA expansion draft, then waived her on May 21 in a round of cuts that also included Haley Jones and Kamiah Smalls.
Before her release, Sutton had been one of Portland’s more productive guards. She averaged 11.3 points and 5.7 assists across three appearances, two of them starts, and ranked among the league leaders in assists per game over that stretch.
A 2020 third-round pick, 36th overall, by the Washington Mystics, Sutton has split her career between the WNBA and overseas since entering the league. She has spent time with the Mystics and Phoenix Mercury, recording the first triple-double in Mercury franchise history in 2023 with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Las Vegas Aces.
Her arrival carries a local thread. Sutton played four seasons at Texas from 2016 to 2020, earning first-team All-Big 12 honors in 2019.
What Sug Sutton Adds to the Dallas Wings
Sutton lands in a backcourt that has thinned in recent days. Veteran guard Odyssey Sims remains sidelined with an ankle injury, and the Wings just parted with Quinerly, leaving head coach Jose Fernandez short on depth beyond Paige Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale, Azzi Fudd, and Aziaha James.
Sutton, a playmaking guard who can run an offense, gives Dallas an experienced option to steady the unit when her number is called.
With Sutton’s addition, Dallas restores its roster to the 12 players required under the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement.
Dallas Wings Waive JJ Quinerly
To open the roster spot, Dallas waived Quinerly, the team announced Sunday. The 27th overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft appeared in 34 games as a rookie, making 13 starts, and averaged 6.5 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 0.9 steals while shooting 42.6% from the field and 38.9% from 3-point range. Since 2000, she is just the fourth third-round pick to average at least 6.0 points and 2.0 assists as a rookie, and the third to also shoot better than 40% from the field.
The move comes days after Quinerly returned from a long layoff. She tore the meniscus in her left knee against the Los Angeles Sparks last season, an injury that ended her rookie year and required surgery on Oct. 2, 2025. She made her first appearance in nearly nine months Tuesday, logging 2 assists, 1 rebound, and 1 block in 10 minutes of a 100-76 loss to the Minnesota Lynx. Quinerly appeared in two games for Dallas this season, averaging 1.0 points and 1.0 assists.
“It just feels good to be back out there on the court,” Quinerly said after Tuesday’s game. “I’ve been out for a good nine months now, so it feels good to be out there.”
A two-time Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year at West Virginia, Quinerly closed her college career third in program history in both scoring and steals.
What’s Next
Dallas continues a busy stretch Monday when it hosts the Las Vegas Aces at College Park Center. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. CT, with the game airing nationally on USA Network and locally in the Dallas-Fort Worth area on KFAA 29.
More Wings Coverage on Dallas Hoops Journal
- ‘We Needed More Stops’: Portland Fire’s 3-Point Barrage Sinks Short-Handed Dallas Wings 84-83
- Paige Bueckers Climbs To No. 2 In WNBA MVP Odds After Season-High 31 vs. Phoenix Mercury
- Dallas Wings Rule Out Paige Bueckers Against Portland Fire Out Of ‘Caution’
- Paige Bueckers Questionable For Dallas Wings At Portland; Odyssey Sims Remains Out
- ‘One Of The Best In The World’: Paige Bueckers Erupts For Season-High 31 To Lead Dallas Wings’ Response vs. Phoenix Mercury
