Paige Bueckers squared off against Caitlin Clark for the first time in her WNBA career on Sunday and it was clear from the start that the Indiana Fever had more firepower than Dallas Wings, as they rolled to a 102-83 win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
After the loss Bueckers had an awkward exchange with a reporter over a question about Clark's defense, which led to a few turnovers by the talented Wings rookie.
Bueckers put up a team-high 21 points in the loss, which dropped the Wings to 6-16 on the season. During ESPN's halftime show, Carolyn Peck dropped a brutally honest line about what Bueckers needs to be successful in the WNBA.
"Caitlin Clark's got help, Paige Bueckers needs more of it," Peck said.
Christine Williamson added: "As you mentioned they do need a lot of help. As you mentioned they do need a lot of help. When you think about the Fever, they’ve had a lot of help off the bench and other players on this team. They have three players in double digits."
ESPN halftime show quote from tonight: "Caitlin Clark's got help, Paige Bueckers needs more of it." pic.twitter.com/XFtAeqFkTs
— sofia 🧙♀️ (@paigefficiency) July 13, 2025
That is definitely true and not entirely unexpected takes on this team, which had the first pick of this year's WNBA draft for a reason. The Wings will likely be able to get more help for Bueckers but they're probably going to have to wait until next year's draft when they should have another high draft pick—Dallas currently has the second-worst league, with just three more wins than the Connecticut Sun.
For now, it seems like Bueckers, who will be starting in the WNBA All-Star Game this Saturday, is going to be on the losing end of a lot more games the rest of this season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ESPN WNBA Analysts Had Brutally Honest Messages About Paige Bueckers’s Teammates.
