Meet Paige Bueckers, the Dallas Wings' star rookie: the former UConn Huskies point guard was the WNBA's top draft pick this year – and the first college athlete to get her own Nike sneakers

South China Morning Post

2 days ago

The Dallas Wings aren't off to a great start this season, losing their first four games of the year. However, there are still high hopes for star rookie Paige Bueckers, with former basketball star and fellow University of Connecticut alum Diana Taurasi saying on The Athletic Women's Basketball Show, 'One day, [Bueckers is] gonna end up being the best player in the league, for sure.'
The 2025
WNBA draft took place last month, bringing a bright new crop of young talent into the league. The Dallas Wings had the No 1 overall pick and went straight for outgoing UConn star player Bueckers. As she stepped into this exciting new chapter of her career, the former Huskies point guard made sure to shout-out her old teammates.
Advertisement
'They mean everything to me, all they've helped me get through, all the ups and downs, the highs and lows, they've seen every side of me, and the love there is unconditional, so forever grateful for them,' the 23-year-old shared, per USA Today.
With her draft, Bueckers continues the long legacy of UConn players being number one picks for the WNBA. She's the sixth hooper from the university to achieve this feat – alongside
Sue Bird , Diana Taurasi and Tina Charles – and the first since Breanna Stewart was drafted in 2016.
So, who is Paige Bueckers, who suffered two major knee injuries but came back stronger, and is a staunch Christian, per The New York Times?
What's her background?
Paige Bueckers with UConn Huskies teammate Azzi Fudd during their NCAA championship game on March 31. via TNS
Per USA Basketball, Bueckers is originally from Edina, Minnesota, where she was born to parents Amy Dettbarn and Bob Bueckers. Her father is a software engineer, per CT Insider, and played basketball when he was younger. Her mother did cross country running and track and field at the University of St Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
The couple divorced when Bueckers was a child, and she stayed with her father, according to The New York Times. She's her parents' only child, but they went on to have children with other partners. Bueckers has two half-brothers, Ryan and Drew, and a half-sister, Lauren. Drew is half African-American on his mother's side.
Her career highlights