'The Fours Are a Lot Bigger': Paige Bueckers Breaks Down Physicality Jump from College to WNBA

At UConn, Bueckers often acted as a primary ball-handler and scorer, operating against similarly sized guards. In her WNBA debut, she rotated into help defense, switched onto skilled forwards, and battled on the glass with players who carry power and experience. That included a stint defending Collier in the paint—a physical matchup revealing how much stronger the pros play through contact.

Still, Bueckers viewed the challenge as part of the process.

“It was fun. It was competitive,” she said. “They’re a really, really good team, a championship-level team, as you saw their finish last year. And again… now we have a building block to continue to build off of.”

Beyond the defensive assignments, the pace of play has required Bueckers to accelerate her decision-making. With a 24-second shot clock and more complex defensive coverages, she noted how crucial it is to initiate offense earlier and avoid stagnation.

Learning on the Fly with the Dallas Wings

Through two games, Bueckers has quickly adjusted and expanded her impact. In Dallas’ second game — a 79-71 loss to the Seattle Storm — she scored a team-high 19 points and added eight assists, five rebounds, two steals, and a block in 37 minutes. She helped lead a second-half comeback that cut a 17-point deficit to three before the Wings ultimately fell short.

Her production has remained balanced, but more telling is how she’s finding ways to impact games through reads, poise, and instinct — even when facing bigger, more physical opponents on both ends of the floor.

“There’s a lot of things we have to clean up and get better at,” she said. “We don’t want to overreact to the loss, but… we’re starting this journey and continue to build on it the next day we practice.”

The Wings (0-2) are still searching for their first win, and the schedule doesn’t ease up. They’ll face the Lynx again on Wednesday night at Target Center, the same floor where Bueckers once starred in high school and later returned with UConn during the 2022 NCAA Final Four. It will mark her first professional appearance in Minnesota — a meaningful setting for a player already facing the league’s top talent head-on.

At just 23 years old, Bueckers has already shown she belongs. Now, it’s about continuing to adapt, absorb, and elevate her game against the best women’s basketball has to offer.