“Trying to Be Efficient”: Paige Bueckers Details Offensive Breakout as Dallas Wings’ Lead Guard [Exclusive]

Paige Bueckers continues to take her game to new heights — and the numbers back it up. Coming off a career-high 35-point performance — along with six rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block — in Wednesday’s loss to the Phoenix Mercury, the Dallas Wings guard has found a new rhythm offensively while evolving as a playmaker and leader.

Bueckers is now averaging 17.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 48.9% overall, 45.5% from beyond the arc, and 80.6% from the free throw line.

Over her past three games — a span bookended by a four-game absence due to concussion protocol and illness — Bueckers has been on a tear, averaging 23.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 2.0 steals, and 1.7 blocks per game. She’s done it while shooting an eye-popping 67.5% from the field, 60.0% from there,e and 84.6% at the line.

Efficiency in Movement, Shot Profile Expanding

After Thursday’s practice in Las Vegas, Bueckers reflected on the factors driving her recent scoring surge — a surge that has seen her raise both her scoring efficiency and shot diversity during a critical stretch for the Wings. Asked about what’s fueling that improvement, she emphasized her focus on efficiency, movement without the ball, and trusting her instincts within the flow of the offense.

“I’m just trying to be as efficient with my movement as possible — moving off the ball, creating open looks for my teammates, using screens extremely well on and off the ball,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “And then just being aggressive with the looks in the half-court sets and in transition. But relying on my teammates to help get me open looks. They’ve done a great job at that. So just relying on my instincts and just being aggressive.”

That efficiency was on full display in Phoenix, where Bueckers scored a career-high 35 points on 13-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-8 from beyond the arc, and added six rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block. She became just the second rookie in league history to record at least 35 points and five made 3-pointers in a game, joining Caitlin Clark. Her ability to work off the ball and exploit space has fueled her recent hot stretch.

Bueckers showed a tremendous balance of playing within the flow of the offense while aggressively seeking chances to create off the dribble, both in the half court and in transition. For a second consecutive game, she matched her career high in points scored via pick-and-roll (eight), but also produced 17 points combined from spot-up opportunities (10, a career high), cuts (five, a career high), and off-ball screening actions (two). Additionally, six of her points were generated in transition.

Bueckers said the spike in her three-point attempts against the Mercury, where she took her highest volume of the season, was partly situational but also reflects a conscious effort to diversify her scoring. She finished with a career-high five made 3-pointers on a career-high seven attempts, reflecting both her evolving shot profile and growing comfort attacking from deep.

“I think I try to be more aggressive from all three levels — in the paint, in the mid-range, and in three,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “But yeah, I think that was just what the game was calling for at that point. Some stuff was self-created, some were extra passes. But yeah, just trying to be more aggressive on all levels.”

Before the Mercury game, Wings head coach Chris Koclanes was asked about what Bueckers’ return could bring to a Dallas offense that had struggled with pace and organization in her absence. He emphasized the importance of her presence in stabilizing the team’s tempo and flow.

“One, our tempo. Looking forward to just getting a consistent pace and tempo back — getting up and down the floor,” Koclanes told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “And then, yeah, just looking at her to really be our primary playmaker, facilitator early with the ball in her hands. And then finding that balance of getting Arike into spots and getting her to feel comfortable, and then everyone else on the floor doing their jobs and us really playing connected as a unit with a little more purpose and intention.”

The numbers reflect that impact clearly. In 199 minutes without Bueckers on the floor, Dallas has played at its lowest pace of the season (95.23), compared to a 98.63 pace across the 241 minutes with the No. 1 overall pick in the lineup. The Wings also show a marked difference in scoring efficiency with Bueckers on the court, producing a 102.2 offensive rating and a 52.6% true shooting percentage, versus a 99.7 offensive rating and a 48.4% true shooting percentage when she is off.

Point Guard Growth Drawing Dallas Wings Veteran Praise

Even before her first professional game in Connecticut on May 27, which marked the start of Bueckers’ recent three-game offensive surge, the No. 1 overall pick made clear that balancing scoring and facilitating would be a key priority as she adjusted to the WNBA. Speaking before the game, Bueckers outlined how she was approaching her role as the Wings’ point guard, with an emphasis on organizing the offense, reading teammates’ tendencies, and setting a tone for decision-making.

“Just learning how to play with each other more — learning our tendencies, where we like the ball, sharing more, getting into gaps, and just taking the best shot available,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com before the Connecticut game. “Getting out in transition, creating easy buckets that way, and trying to limit turnovers as much as possible.”

Bueckers also detailed her focus on improving her ability to guide the team into its offensive flow, both in early actions and in recognizing how to create secondary opportunities when initial options are taken away.

“I can do a better job of getting our team organized just in transition and what we want our flow to look like,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com in Connecticut. “Getting into first actions, and if we don’t get something in the first action, creating looks into second action. Getting a better flow and sense of where everybody needs to be. We’re all learning and we’re all learning each other’s tendencies, where we like the ball, where to go after a cut, and stuff like that.”

That mindset translated directly to the floor that night in Connecticut. Bueckers delivered an efficient and balanced performance, scoring 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting and adding five rebounds and seven assists. She attempted just one 3-pointer, reflecting her focus on playmaking and driving the offense through tempo, transition, and high-quality looks for herself and teammates.

She followed that performance with another well-rounded showing against the Chicago Sky on May 29, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds, eight assists, three steals, and three blocks. In that game, Bueckers again showcased her ability to impact the offense as a distributor and floor general, while contributing across all facets of the game.

Those performances foreshadowed the growth Bueckers would continue to show as the stretch progressed. As the Wings faced Connecticut, Chicago, and Phoenix, her balance between point guard duties and scoring aggression became more pronounced — organizing the team in transition, initiating sets with tempo, and recognizing when to create for others versus when to hunt her own shot.

Arike Ogunbowale, who has been an important voice alongside Bueckers in the Dallas backcourt, said she quickly noticed that progression. Speaking after the Connecticut game — in which Bueckers had delivered a highly efficient 21-point, seven-assist performance while running the offense with poise — Ogunbowale praised her ability to adjust quickly to WNBA defenses and elevate her command of the offense in her early games as a professional point guard.

“She’s catching the flow of the WNBA,” Ogunbowale told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “It’s not easy — not at all — but she’s learning really fast. She’s a mature point guard. She’s getting us organized quicker and coming up with play calls faster. She’s definitely improving every game.”

Ogunbowale’s observation captured how Bueckers’ mindset, expressed before the three-game stretch began, was translating into on-court growth. The coaching staff has continued to empower Bueckers to balance her floor leadership with an aggressive scoring approach. In Phoenix, that dual role was again on display, with Bueckers calling out sets, initiating actions, and seamlessly shifting between facilitating and creating her own offense.

A major part of that growth has been Bueckers’ ability to read defensive coverages on the fly, particularly when teams begin blitzing or trapping her in the pick-and-roll. The Phoenix game provided another test, as the Mercury sent multiple defenders at her throughout the night.

“Drawing two obviously leaves somebody open, so trying to find the open person, detecting those doubles early,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “It’s probably going to happen more often now with two people coming to me, trying to get the ball out of my hands quicker — either getting up and around the trap or letting go of it early — just to try to avoid it as much as possible.”

DiJonai Carrington added that Bueckers’ growth under pressure has been evident in recent games, particularly her poise and shot selection when navigating aggressive defensive schemes. Carrington pointed out that despite facing increased traps and extended pressure — a common tactic against primary point guards in the WNBA — Bueckers has continued to make sound decisions, avoid forcing tough shots, and get to her preferred spots on the floor.

“You just see her being more aggressive, which is good,” Carrington told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “She’s very efficient. She doesn’t take really bad shots, and she gets to her spots. So continuing to do that, continuing to handle the pressure — I think that’s one of the biggest differences. The pressure in the W is at the one position, but we have to help her out and get her off the ball a little bit, set some screens in the backcourt for her, just relieve a little bit of that pressure. But she’s doing really well.”

Carrington mentioned the team is working to support Bueckers more effectively in those situations, not just relying on her to handle the pressure alone, but making concerted efforts to create passing outlets, maintain spacing, and improve their collective response against traps and blitzes. Carrington noted that this is an area of emphasis for the entire group as opponents adjust their defensive game plans to account for Bueckers’ growing offensive impact.

“They’re sending two bodies at her, and so it’s always going to be an advantage on the backside,” Carrington told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “But we have to be better at flashing, cutting, going to open windows, giving her an outlet, and not just making her handle that pressure on her own, and stay where we are. Because we’re open — we have to flash and show her that we’re right here, go to her, and go to the ball.”

Sharper Reads, Faster Pace in Transition

Bueckers has also emphasized improving her transition play — a key focus area given Dallas’ need to generate easier scoring chances. She said the coaching staff has challenged her to become more decisive, pushing the ball off rebounds and turnovers, while also reading opposing transition defenses more effectively.

“I would say probably just reading coverages better and what defenses are doing,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “Some teams are different, there’s a lot of different coverages that I see in the ball screen, so reading how to best pick apart whatever coverage they’re in. And getting out in transition, making the high leads, making the rim-run passes, and then just attacking in broken space — getting paint touches creates a lot of open and easier looks for us.”

Her uptick in pace was evident against Phoenix, where she scored 10 fourth-quarter points to lead a late push. It also matched her pregame focus — Bueckers had stressed that “discipline in our game plan,” making simple plays and executing in transition would be critical to the Wings’ success.

Bueckers acknowledged that the recent time off gave her a valuable chance to reset both physically and mentally after a packed pre-draft and early-season schedule. After recovering from a concussion and illness, she said the time away helped her return sharper and better prepared to handle the WNBA grind.

“I never want to miss games, but I try to look at the positives in everything,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “Getting some time off, making sure my body was right, healing, getting over the concussion and the illness, making sure I was 100 percent before I got back out on the floor — that was really important. So yeah, I think the rest and recovery were great.”

If her recent form is any indication, the reset has paid off. Now, Bueckers heads into her next challenge playing with confidence, efficiency, and a rapidly evolving offensive game — one that is giving the Wings a much-needed spark.

The Wings remain on the road to face the Las Vegas Aces on Friday night as Commissioner’s Cup play continues. Tipoff at Michelob Ultra Arena is slated for 9 p.m. CT.

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