Wings: Emergency reinforcements before falling to Dream in WNBA

Dallas Wings Struggle with Absences, Fall to Dream

The Dallas Wings faced an emergency situation, needing reinforcements to be able to compete against the Atlanta Dream on Friday night. Despite their effort, the Wings failed to overcome the Dream, losing with a score of 100-78. To meet the minimum number of players required by the league (eight), Dallas signed Christyn Williams and extended a seven-day contract to Amy Okonkwo.

We didn’t know if we would have enough players to play tonight.

Maddy Siegrist, Dallas forward

The Wings were able to sign players under the hardship exception, as they had less than the necessary minimum due to injuries, illnesses, or other circumstances.

We are playing with what we have. We have people who have never played before.

Paige Bueckers, with 16 points and 10 assists

Dallas is currently without Luisa Geiselsoder (right shoulder), Ty Harris (left knee), Aziaha James (right ankle), Haley Jones (right knee), Arike Ogunbowale (right knee), JJ Quinerly (left knee), and Li Yueru (left knee). Bueckers, who missed the previous game, was able to participate against the Dream.

Our office has been busy. It’s a shame about the problem we’re having right now. I wish everyone was healthy and could recover quickly. A lot of work behind the scenes to see who is available. It’s a strange time of year because many players are heading abroad for their international responsibilities.

Chris Koclanes, Dallas coach

Dallas stayed close at the start of the last quarter, but Atlanta scored the first eight points to secure the victory.

We ran out of energy a bit. We had some defensive lapses.

Siegrist

The Wings (9-31) have not had any player present in all games this season and the franchise has accumulated more than 100 games lost by players due to injuries or absences during the season.