Dallas Wings Need More from Marquee Free Agent Signing
The Dallas Wings completely revamped their roster this offseason. They brought in Alysha Clark, Jessica Shepard, Alanna Smith, Odyssey Sims, and Awak Kuier in free agency, and drafted Azzi Fudd with the number-one pick. Aside from Fudd, Shepard and Smith drew the most attention. Their two-way ability and history of playing for a very competitive Minnesota Lynx team immediately promised to raise the Wings’ floor and ceiling on both ends of the floor.
Shepard has been as advertised, providing strong play in the paint and almost recording a triple-double in the regular-season opener. Smith, on the other hand, was quiet in her first two games in a Wings uniform. The Wings need to get more production out of her if they want to realize this roster’s full potential.
Alanna Smith hasn’t found her rhythm with the Wings yet
Smith’s first regular-season game with the Wings was solid, but not great. She finished the 107-104 win against the Indiana Fever with 6 points on 2-6 shooting from the field, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. She also committed two turnovers and four fouls.
Smith struggled to score against the Atlanta Dream, going 1-8 from the field and 0-6 from three on her way to 2 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, and 3 turnovers. Meanwhile, Angel Reese, the Dream’s starting center, recorded a double-double.
Two of Smith’s biggest assets are her rim protection and her 3-point shooting. Blocking one shot in each game is solid production, but not nearly as good as her average of 1.9 blocks per game last season, and the Wings could certainly benefit from some more output in that area from the reigning co-DPOY going forward.
Moreover, Smith’s 3-point shot hasn’t made it to the regular season yet. She went 3-3 in her two preseason games with the Wings, but is now 0-7 from long range for the regular season. While that is concerning, it’s no reason to panic yet.
This was only Smith’s second game with the Wings after she missed the beginning of training camp. She may just need a bit longer to get used to her new role, teammates, and head coach.
The Wings still look like a playoff team
Two games into the season, there are still some things the Wings need to figure out, like their lack of production from Smith and Fudd, but there’s also plenty to be excited about. They were able to beat the Fever and played a close game against the Dream. Those are two of the four early favorites to win a title this season.
The Wings may still need some time to fine-tune a few things, but a playoff spot is definitely a possibility for them.
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Elaine Blum covers women’s basketball for On SI from Europe. She has been writing about women's hoops since 2023 and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism and a master’s degree in American Studies with a focus on women’s and gender studies. She started playing basketball when she was 10 years old and won several league and state championships at the youth and senior level.