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Dallas Wings general manager Curt Miller emphatically promised fans that Paige Bueckers is here to stay and that the number one draft pick will spur on a basketball revolution in the city for years to come.
But why hasn't Bueckers shown up to Dallas yet?
On Monday, speculation about Bueckers absence from the Wings training facility was brought to light, per the Elle Duncan Show. The ESPN analyst and her co-host Gary Striewski addressed the rumors in a segment entitled “Where's Paige?“.
Strikiewksi said that Bueckers' not showing up in Dallas right away is bad optics. He also asked if there was any instance in which the No.1 draft pick in any professional league didn't show up at the team's facility in 24 hours.
However, Duncan strongly defended Bueckers and urged fans to stay calm.
“The new thing is that Paige Bueckers hates going to Dallas so much she refuses to show up in Dallas,” she said. “Why isn’t she in Dallas? What’s going on? Why won’t she go? Does she hate it? Is she not a fan of barbecue? What’s happening right now? I would just like everyone to shut the f—k up. They don’t have anything going on right now.”
After Striewksi asked, “Is that a thing?” Duncan reassured him it was.
“Oh it’s a whole thing,” she said. “People are putting context clues together and they’re like, she’s never going to come to Dallas, she hates it there. She hasn’t showed up yet, where is her obligatory picture from inside the facility wearing her Wings’ jersey.”
Duncan gave Bueckers the benefit of the doubt, saying that after winning a national championship with UConn, the prospect of relocating to a new city is overwhelming.
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“She just won the National Championship and then a week later got drafted,” Duncan said. “Now she’s got to move her whole entire life to Dallas. While, yes she probably had some preconceived notions she was going there, it’s still quite a whirlwind to pick up your whole life, with everything going on, and get to Dallas.”
Duncan went on to say that she asked Bueckers about any issues coming to Dallas and that she hasn't. So, what has she been up to lately?
Where is Paige?
Bueckers is preparing for her first season. She is working closely with a performance specialist to keep her healthy after recovering from an ACL injury in 2022.
She is also exploring possible endorsements with Nike, Gatorade, and Verizon, including the possibility of a signature shoe. Bueckers also signed a lucrative deal with Unrivaled.
The origins of the rumors among Wings fans could stem from the trauma of the Luka Doncic trade from the Mavericks to the Lakers. That paranoia of losing a superstar could spill over into other teams.
Despite the worries, the Wings have experienced record ticket sales.
