Paige Bueckers missed Sunday\u2019s contest against the Las Vegas Aces, but the presumed WNBA Rookie of the Year is set to go against the league\u2019s defending champions Monday night. Though her Dallas Wings are sizable home underdogs against Sabrina Ionescu and the New York Liberty, every primetime Bueckers broadcast commands our attention and previews a gleaming future.<\/p>\n
How to watch New York Liberty at Dallas Wings<\/p>\n
Venue: College Park Center \u2014 Arlington, Texas<\/p>\n
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Time: 8 p.m. ET, Monday<\/p>\n
TV: ESPN<\/p>\n
Streaming:\u00a0Fubo ($20 off)<\/p>\n
Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.<\/p>\n
At 7-19, this current version of Dallas is not much more than a first chapter in the Bueckers bildungsroman. The Wings have dropped six of their last seven games; they were thumped by a full 30 points in their July 7 loss to the Phoenix Mercury, and just took a 26-point L to Vegas on Sunday. Tough stuff, for sure, but the salvation here is in Bueckers\u2019 immediate translation to the pro pace. Across her last 16 games, the No. 1 pick is averaging a shade below 20 points on 47.2\/32.8\/85.9 shooting splits. She\u2019s also putting up 5.4 assists per game to 2.4 turnovers and 1.8 steals in that span. She\u2019s getting the most out of a struggling transition offense and is finding her way through screens, all while retaining the galactic range that made her a college sensation:<\/p>\n
Dallas\u2019 other scoring options are three-time All-WNBA vet Arike Ogunbowale (16 points per game) and defensive specialist DiJonai Carrington (11 ppg). Both guards are shooting below 40 percent from the field, though, and the squad overall is in the league\u2019s bottom three for 2-point and 3-point percentages.<\/p>\n
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All that should present a clean get-right game for the Liberty, who arrive in Texas with a 17-7 record and the second-best net rating (the Minnesota Lynx are No. 1). New York plays with the W\u2019s fastest pace, tallying more than 80 possessions per 40 minutes. After a June lull, the Liberty had strung together five consecutive wins \u2026 before Rickea Jackson\u2019s game-winner<\/a> sealed a Los Angeles Sparks upset over the weekend.<\/p>\n No matter. Brooklyn\u2019s seafoam ballers are a two-way force. They are comfortably perched atop the Eastern Conference, where only two other teams are above .500 (the upstart Atlanta Dream and the injury-plagued Indiana Fever). With European star and 2019 Finals MVP Emma Meesseman ready to join the Liberty for the summer stretch, 2024\u2019s title-holders look just as formidable as they did last year.<\/p>\n Crucially, New York\u2019s top-line forward Breanna Stewart hurt her leg in Saturday\u2019s loss, but she seems to have avoided serious damage<\/a>. Stewart will ice up as her capable teammates cruise through the early August stretch of their schedule. The Liberty still field Ionescu, Jonquel Jones, Natasha Cloud and a bevy of reliable perimeter shooters.<\/p>\n Fusion team of players to wear both jerseys<\/p>\n Katie Smith<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Kayla Thornton<\/p>\n Swin Cash<\/p>\n Plenette Pierson<\/p>\n Natasha Howard<\/p>\n Sixth Woman \u2014 Isabelle Harrison<\/p>\n Liberty at Wings odds<\/p>\n Betting\/odds, ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of\u00a0The Athletic. Restrictions may apply.\u00a0The Athletic\u00a0maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.<\/p>\n