ARLINGTON, Texas — Paige Bueckers, the Dallas Wings’ promising rookie, will not participate in Saturday evening’s home game against Washington due to a right knee problem.
Bueckers’ absence was confirmed through the team’s game status report on Saturday. No further information was provided regarding her knee issue, which surfaced a day after her impressive performance of scoring 27 points and delivering six assists despite playing almost 36 1/2 minutes in the Wings’ 94-86 defeat to the Indiana Fever.
This marks the fifth game Bueckers, this year’s top draft pick, will miss this season. Previously, she was out for three games due to the WNBA’s concussion protocol and missed an additional game following an illness when she was first cleared to play again.
Throughout her 13 appearances, Bueckers has averaged 18.4 points, 5.8 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game.
Meanwhile, Caitlin Clark, the celebrated WNBA Rookie of the Year from last season, was absent from the Fever’s lineup on Friday night. This was her second game missed in a row because of a left groin injury. The anticipated first matchup between the most recent two No. 1 draft picks did not occur, although the American Airlines Center, which seats 20,000, was still nearly filled for the event.
The Wings’ face-off against Washington is set at the College Park Center on the University of Texas at Arlington campus. This venue, which serves as their home ground, can accommodate up to 6,251 fans and is located approximately 20 miles from downtown Dallas’ American Airlines Center.