Wings Things: On Paige Bueckers, Kyrie Irving and becoming ‘unguardable’

Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving and his daughter were in attendance at Friday’s Dallas Wings game at American Airlines Center, and the two guards shared a moment after the Wings’ 94-86 loss to the Indiana Fever.

DALLAS, TX — Though the possibility of the moment surrounding the Dallas Wings’ 84-86 loss on Friday to the Indiana Fever may not have bloomed to its full potential on the court, there was a moment after the game that stood out to Wings’ rookie phenom Paige Bueckers.

She got to meet her favorite player, Dallas Mavericks’ guard Kyrie Irving, who was in attendance at American Airlines Center, along with first-round draft pick Cooper Flagg and Mark Cuban, the Mavs’ former owner.

Bueckers and Irving shared a smile, a hug and a brief moment of conversation on the floor after the Wings’ comeback attempt fell short against the Caitlin Clark-less Fever. Irving is rehabbing an ACL tear this offseason that could hold him out for most of the 2025-26 NBA season, but will reportedly sign a three-year extension with the Mavs this offseason.

Which makes Bueckers the biggest game in town at the guard position for the time being. Heck, with her star appeal and shot-making ability, that may remain the case for as long as she calls Dallas home.

“It was pretty surreal,” Bueckers said of the opportunity to meet Irving. “That’s somebody I’ve looked up to and has been my favorite player since I was really, really young. So for him to come out and support us, to support women’s basketball, have his daughter there and get to meet him in person was a great moment.”

Both are shot creators and all-around playmakers. Both are natural scorers who can find their teammates with dimes out of nowhere when the double-team comes. So, how does Bueckers view her game in comparison to her childhood favorite?

“I want to be as unguardable as possible, and I feel like Kyrie is probably one of the most unguardable people to ever play the game,” Bueckers said. “That starts with scoring at all three levels, so adapting the mid-range game was super essential for me and my game, while also being able to get to the rim and shoot from the 3-point line.”

Bueckers hit 2-of-3 from beyond the arc in Friday’s loss to the Fever, including a halftime buzzer-beater from 35 feet away to cut the Indiana lead to 56-43 at the break. She also drained a fourth-quarter step-back 3-pointer with Lexie Hull’s hand in her face to bring Dallas within two, down just 79-77, wth 6:20 left to play. She had a little something to say on her way back down on defense, too.

Bueckers had two larger-than-life 3-point plays in the first half, eerily reminiscent of some similar plays that Irving has dazzled the crowd with during his 14-year NBA career. She scored 27 points on 9-of-18 shooting and continued her season-long assault from the mid-range while also finding open teammates for the customary six assists.

She is inching closer toward the ideal of becoming “unguardable” with each game. With Friday’s gargantuan effort, Bueckers became the first player in league history to record a game with 25 or more points, five or more assists, two or more steals, two or more blocked shots and zero turnovers. Opposing coaches are well aware of her game-wrecking ability in just her first year in the W.

“You just try to make everything as difficult as possible [for Bueckers],” Fever head coach Stephanie White said after Friday’s game. “Let her see multiple bodies, different kinds of matchups, just make her really work for everything she’s going to get. When you’re playing against great players, you’re not going to stop them. You just have to try to make life as difficult as possible and make them try to beat you with tough ones.”

Making tough ones is another trait Bueckers shares with Irving. She does it night in and night out. Both Irving and Bueckers have that ability to make the spectacular play — the play only a creative genius with the basketball in their hands is able to see. It’s what makes each of them worth the price of admission on their own.

The trick, in both cases, will be putting a winning team around them and doing it as quickly as possible.