{"id":608727,"date":"2026-04-16T20:31:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T20:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/608727\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T20:31:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T20:31:10","slug":"wnba-rookie-azzi-fudd-dubbed-the-peoples-princess-is-introduced-by-the-dallas-wings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/608727\/","title":{"rendered":"WNBA rookie Azzi Fudd, dubbed “The People’s Princess”, is introduced by the Dallas Wings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Azzi Fudd, lovingly known as “The People’s Princess,” was officially introduced as a Dallas Wing<\/a> on Thursday, after being selected No. 1 in the WNBA Draft<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The UConn star is now joining what many are calling one of the best revamped rosters<\/a> of the upcoming 2026 season. <\/p>\n

The royal treatment<\/p>\n

As you walked into the press room, chairs were draped with Fudd shirts and pink tiaras in the seats. Fudd walked in along with CEO and Managing Partner Greg Bibb, GM Curt Miller and Wings head coach Jose Fernandez. <\/p>\n

“It is indeed a great day to be a Dallas Wing,” Bibb said during his introductory speech, highlighting the accomplishments of the Wings organization, creating fans for filling the team’s home stadium and welcoming Fudd. <\/p>\n

While there was some back and forth among commentators and sports reporters on whether Fudd was the number one choice ahead of the night of the draft. Miller cleared things up expeditiously by saying, “It always came back to Azzi.” <\/p>\n

Miller said he and coach Fernandez scouted all of the draft class, but it was Fudd’s character, her high basketball IQ, her unselfishness and quick release of the ball that concluded she was who Dallas needed. <\/p>\n

He said he didn’t feel a lot of pressure the night of the draft because of the “eyes, ears and numbers approach” that he and his organization took in researching how Fudd would fit in. He said, picking number one, you can control the process. <\/p>\n

Fernandez echoed those sentiments and said he was looking forward to coaching the team’s newest rookie.<\/p>\n

Expectations, goals and future legacy \u00a0<\/p>\n

Then, the floor was Fudd’s to answer questions. <\/p>\n

Up first, how does she get ready for the WNBA right after coming off a Final Four NCAA run with her former team UConn?<\/p>\n

“This is the best my body has felt,” Fudd responded. She said she’s been super intentional with her regimen and is disciplined. <\/p>\n

“I feel as prepared as I can be going into the W,” she said. <\/p>\n

When asked about getting to play with her former and now teammate again, last year’s No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers, she joked and said she hadn’t believed it would happen until her name was called on draft night. <\/p>\n

“I was going to land where I was meant to be,” Fudd said. “I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.” <\/p>\n

(Another question about Fudd’s relationship with Bueckers resulted in an awkward moment. The pair had been in a public relationship last year; A reporter asked if that was still the case and if they had spoken to other couples around the league. A Wings executive stepped in and said they would not be answering questions about players’ social lives.)<\/p>\n

Fudd, who looked over to some of her Wings teammates, said she was looking forward to playing and learning from them. She also said she was ready to learn how she could most contribute to the Wings.<\/p>\n

She said her time at UConn prepared her to be a pro by providing a high standard of excellence and level of expectation. And noted at UConn, “You don’t skip reps.” <\/p>\n

Fudd said she has also learned valuable lessons from her mother, who was also drafted to the WNBA.<\/p>\n

As far as the future of her career, the league, and what she hopes to inspire in others. She said first, it’s about betting on women. <\/p>\n

The W is growing, and Fudd said, “The game is at its peak.” And “when you bet on women, you give them a chance.” <\/p>\n

She ended by once again thanking everyone who welcomed her to Dallas and expressed how grateful she was to now immerse herself in the Wings’ culture, the city’s best eats and grab a cowboy hat to explore.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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