Paige and Azzi First? The Lineup Numbers Behind the Wings' Biggest Offseason Question, and Who Might Not Be Back

Wings fans, the Finals are set without Dallas, so it's time for the big offseason question: whose team is this going forward?

Full Court Report's Sarah F. makes the case for building around the Wings' back-to-back No. 1 picks. Azzi Fudd's rookie year lasted only 30 games before an arthroscopic knee procedure. In that time she scored 393 points and made 62 threes, breaking the franchise rookie record of 57. She also had 52 steals and 25 blocks and shot 45.6% from the field and 39.7% from three. She averaged 13.1 points even though she came off the bench for her first six games. Paige Bueckers assisted on 47 of Fudd's made baskets.

The lineup numbers are where it gets interesting. Using PBPstats data, the piece finds the Bueckers-Fudd-Arike Ogunbowale trio played 602 minutes together with a +6.37 net rating, so the three-guard look worked. When Bueckers and Fudd played without Ogunbowale, Dallas had a 122.42 offensive rating and a +8.39 net rating in 172 minutes. In the playoff loss to Golden State, Ogunbowale's usage rate was 37.3% and Bueckers' was 21.8%. The author suggests Ogunbowale could be used more as a sixth-woman scorer. She came off the bench for Unrivaled champion Mist BC and scored 19 in the final. The timeline adds urgency. Bueckers' rookie deal runs through 2028, Fudd's through 2029, and Awak Kuier is set for restricted free agency in 2027.

FanSided's Justin Carter took on the other side of the roster. He names four Wings he doesn't expect back in 2027. Alanna Smith is tied with Ogunbowale as the highest-paid player on the roster, and her blocks fell from 1.9 to 0.5 a game. Moving her could free money to keep Kuier. Maddy Siegrist's scoring dropped from 12.7 to 6.5 points a game. Odyssey Sims played just 12.7 minutes a game in the playoff series. Alysha Clark averaged 9.3 points in the playoffs, but she turns 40 next July.

Bueckers and Ogunbowale are both signed up for Unrivaled's third season, which starts Jan. 8, per Bleacher Report. GM Curt Miller has called the 27-17 season "incredibly successful," per The IX Sports.

Stay with the Dallas Wings all offseason. Radio question: should Arike come off the bench in 2027?

Sources: Full Court Report — Why the Wings should commit to Paige and Azzi Fudd; FanSided — 4 Dallas Wings who won't be back next season; Bleacher Report — Bueckers among new Unrivaled contracts announced; The IX Sports — Wings GM Curt Miller on the 2026 season.