Paige Bueckers continued her electric rookie campaign with another milestone performance. She helped the Dallas Wings clinch a 98-89 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday night. The win marks the Wings’ fifth in their last seven games as the team rides a strong midseason surge. Bueckers’ historic night powered the Wings to victory, but it has also made her place in the WNBA record books with yet another rookie benchmark.
Paige Bueckers breaks WNBA rookie record in Dallas Wings’ statement win over Phoenix Mercury
Paige Bueckers added another impressive feat to her resume by becoming the fastest WNBA player to reach 250 career points since Seimone Augustus in 2006. She accomplished the milestone in just her 13th game, surpassing Caitlin Clark’s mark, who needed 16 games to reach the same total.
Bueckers finished the night with 23 points and six assists on a highly efficient 8-of-11 shooting performance.
The WNBA Rookie of the Month for June and an All-Star starter in her first season, Bueckers has taken the league by storm, and Thursday’s game only further validated her elite potential. Her scoring display also marked her seventh 20-point game this season, giving her the third-most 20-point games by a rookie in franchise history.
The Wings, who started the season 1-11, are now 6-13, showing signs of a major turnaround. Their victory over Phoenix was historic in more ways than one. Dallas became the first WNBA team to start four rookies in a game since the Minnesota Lynx did it in 2000.
Aziaha James led the Wings with a sensational 28-point outing, adding six rebounds and six assists while shooting 55.6% from three-point range. “The Dallas Wings win their 5th of the last 7 games as they defeat the Phoenix Mercury 98-89 👏,” the WNBA posted on X. James also became just the fifth rookie in league history to post at least 25 points, five rebounds, five assists, and five made threes in a single game.