Dallas Wings general manager Curt Miller didn\u2019t mince words when asked about what this season has looked like for his group. With a depleted roster, a constant wave of hardship contracts, and several core players often sidelined, it\u2019s been one of the WNBA\u2019s most injury-impacted campaigns.<\/p>\n
Entering Friday\u2019s rematch against the New York Liberty, the Wings have an 8-22 record, the second-worst winning percentage in the WNBA. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe got off to a slow start, then a wonderful stretch \u2014 and then the injuries hit,\u201d Miller said. \u201cYou lose Ty Harris. You lose Maddy [Siegrist]. Long injuries, right? Paige, this time. And we feel like we\u2019ve been playing 75% of our games with 10 or fewer players, and that usually includes a hardship player just to get to 10.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Wings have lost nearly 80 player-games to injury in under 30 total games this season, a staggering rate. Despite that, Miller emphasized that their objective hasn\u2019t changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou never like to pivot, but the goal for us is still to win,\u201d he said. \u201cOur team knows what we need to do. We had a goal of making the playoffs, but ultimately, firing so many young players into action going into this unprecedented free agency was important to us.\u201d<\/p>\n
That youth movement, while difficult in the short term, has long-term implications for roster flexibility. Miller said Dallas is positioned to have as many as 11 players either under contract or reserved heading into free agency \u2014 most on rookie or minimum-scale deals. He mentioned a plan to use <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s not being written \u2014 and I\u2019m surprised it isn\u2019t \u2014 is that having that many young players in 2026 opens up so much cap space,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt positions us to be really aggressive with contract offers in this upcoming free agency. With so many lower contracts, we feel like we\u2019re in a great spot to make strong offers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Diamond Miller is Just \u201cScratching the Surface\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the most notable additions to Dallas\u2019 young core was former No. 2 overall pick Diamond Miller<\/a>, acquired from the Minnesota Lynx in a midseason trade. Miller averaged 12.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists as a rookie, but wasn\u2019t a consistent fixture of the rotation the past two seasons on a veteran team contending for a championship. <\/p>\n Miller\u2019s physical profile and two-way potential filled an immediate need for size and length on the wing \u2014 areas where the Wings have been undersized and often forced guards into mismatched defensive assignments.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s having a great year shooting the ball \u2014 you see the growth in her percentages,\u201d Miller said. \u201cShe\u2019s smart, she\u2019s got great size. Tonight was a good example of why that matters. You\u2019re playing teams with great length at the wing, and we\u2019ve been small. We\u2019ve asked Paige to guard some of the bigger wings in the league this year. So Diamond\u2019s size could be really beneficial to us.\u201d<\/p>\n Her first game in a Dallas uniform underscored the abruptness of her transition. After a grueling 48-hour stretch that saw her travel from Seattle to Minneapolis to Dallas and then to New York, she was asked to step onto the court without having a chance to fully learn the system. For any player \u2014 especially one adjusting to a new organization midseason \u2014 it was a steep ask.<\/p>\n \u201cI just think she\u2019s scratching the surface. She has an opportunity for more minutes here,\u201d he explained. \u201cBut it\u2019s going to take a little time. She traveled to Seattle, then to Minneapolis, then Dallas, and now to New York \u2014 all in two days. She was asked to play without really knowing the system. That\u2019s hard for anyone, especially getting involved in midseason trades. But she\u2019s a pro. She\u2019s excited about the opportunity, and we\u2019re excited to have her.\u201d<\/p>\n Curt Miller on Injuries: \u201cWe\u2019ve Been in Hardship All Year\u201d<\/p>\n Roster shortages have been a theme across the WNBA this season, but Curt Miller believes no team has felt the strain quite like Dallas. Injuries to key contributors, constant short-term signings, and a revolving door of hardship contracts have forced the Wings to operate under severe constraints for most of the year.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there are a lot of smarter people than me who will make those decisions. But it\u2019s definitely a concern,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat we went through in L.A. was unprecedented, and now it\u2019s followed us to Dallas. We\u2019re approaching 80 player games missed in less than 30 total games played. Do the math \u2014 we\u2019ve been in hardship all year.\u201d<\/p>\n The numbers back up his point: Dallas has played with fewer than 10 available players in more than 30% of its games, and the shorthanded lineups have become a fixture rather than an exception.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve played with less than 10 in over 30% of our games. It\u2019s been constant,\u201d he emphasized. \u201cWhether the CBA includes roster expansion or not, I\u2019ll let others decide. But there\u2019s got to be concern across the league about how early teams hit hardship this year \u2014 not just us.\u201d<\/p>\n Arike Ogunbowale\u2019s Influence on the Court and Off<\/p>\n In the middle of a season defined by injuries and roster turnover, Curt Miller made it clear that Arike Ogunbowale<\/a> remains a central figure in Dallas\u2019 plans. Her importance goes beyond leading the team in scoring \u2014 she\u2019s taken on a more active role in building relationships and influencing the team\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re really excited about Arike,\u201d Miller said. \u201cSince the All-Star break, you see the way she and Paige communicate. You can hear them speaking the same language. That\u2019s been exciting for us.\u201d<\/p>\n Her leadership extends well past game nights. Ogunbowale has become a sounding board for the front office, offering her perspective on potential roster moves and showing a willingness to recruit talent.<\/p>\n \u201cArike frequently asks about other players around the league,\u201d Miller said. \u201cShe\u2019ll pick up the phone and call me \u2014 \u2018What about so-and-so?\u2019 She\u2019s not afraid to engage. That matters. She\u2019s been through the good times and some building years. She means a lot to this franchise and organization.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTough\u201d Letting Go of DiJonai Carrington<\/p>\n Few moves this season carried as much emotional weight for Curt Miller as trading DiJonai Carrington<\/a>. The 2021 first-round pick was someone Miller personally selected during his tenure in Connecticut, and her development into one of the league\u2019s toughest two-way guards made her a valued piece on and off the court. However, her tenure in Dallas didn\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n \u201cTough. I drafted her. And I\u2019ll be the first to say \u2014 if you redrafted that class, you could make a strong case for DiJonai to be the No. 1 overall pick. She\u2019s that good,\u201d Miller said.<\/p>\n The decision, however, was rooted in the Wings\u2019 broader strategy heading into what Miller has called an \u201cunprecedented\u201d free agency period and the 2026 expansion draft. The front office had to evaluate not just talent, but the likelihood of retaining certain players long term.<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted it badly for her. But as the GM, looking ahead to this unprecedented free agency, you have to ask \u2014 who\u2019s signable, who\u2019s re-signable? Once those conversations start, they accelerate quickly,\u201d Miller explained. \u201cAnd when we were approached, we looked at the outcome and saw a chance to get young assets. Still, it was hard to lose someone like DiJonai, especially given our relationship. I\u2019m so proud of what she\u2019s done and where we were able to draft her in that class.\u201d<\/p>\n Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings\u2019 Blueprint Ahead<\/p>\n The Wings\u2019 roster heavily relies on young talent, from recent lottery selections to promising trade acquisitions, and Miller sees that as the foundation for Dallas\u2019 next competitive window with Paige Bueckers<\/a> as the focal point. <\/p>\n He compares the asset-gathering approach to the one Sam Presti of the Oklahoma City Thunder has put into motion, reaping the rewards, leading to winning the 2025 NBA Finals after years of patience. While the desperate midseason need for center depth resulted in sending a 2026 second-round pick to the Seattle Storm in exchange for Li Yueru<\/a>, Dallas has acquired a 2027 first-round pick from the Las Vegas Aces in a deal for NaLyssa Smith<\/a>, along with the 2027 second-round pick from Minnesota for Carrington. <\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s an elite athlete with great length and confidence. A multiple-level scorer. Now, she\u2019ll get more opportunity in this group of young scorers,\u201d Miller said. \u201cIt almost feels like we\u2019re playing an All-Star game from the 2023 draft class \u2014 we\u2019ve got five players from that class on this team. A lot of players with a lot of runway ahead of them. We\u2019re taking a little bit of the OKC model \u2014 building with youth and picks.\u201d<\/p>\n Alongside Bueckers, the Wings have assembled a core of players in their early-to-mid 20s \u2014 several acquired through recent drafts and trades. Miller pointed to that age profile, paired with cap flexibility, as a strategic advantage. He pointed to the Indiana Fever\u2019s use of consecutive No. 1 picks with Aliyah Boston<\/a> and Caitlin Clark<\/a> as an example of patient rebuilding paying off, along with how the Aces started with Kelsey Plum<\/a> before adding A\u2019ja Wilson<\/a>, Jackie Young<\/a>, and Chelsea Gray<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at what Indiana did with back-to-back high draft picks. Vegas built with Plum, then A\u2019ja, then Jackie \u2014 then supplemented that core with Chelsea. That\u2019s one path,\u201d he said. \u201cWe want to make a push through the playoffs this year if it\u2019s possible. But we\u2019re also realistic. If the season ended today, we\u2019d have the top odds for the No. 1 pick in the lottery.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo there are very positive things moving for this organization, no matter what happens in the short term,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Curt Miller: \u201cMy Job is to Protect the Organization\u201d<\/p>\n For the first time in his WNBA career, Curt Miller is operating solely as a general manager. In Connecticut, he wore both the GM and head coach hats, but in Dallas, he\u2019s focused exclusively on roster construction. That shift, he explained, changes how he approaches every decision \u2014 and makes it easier to prioritize the franchise\u2019s long-term health, even when the short-term results can be painful.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I had the dual role, I was always fighting myself,\u201d Miller said. \u201cThe coach in me wanted to win now. The GM had to keep an eye on the future. Now, as GM only, my job is to protect the organization and look at how we can sustain success and continue building.\u201d<\/p>\n That philosophy has meant difficult conversations with head coach Chris Koclanes as the roster churned through hardship contracts and midseason acquisitions. With injuries gutting the rotation and new faces constantly cycling in, Miller admitted he\u2019s aware of the burden his roster-building decisions \u2014 and the injury toll \u2014 have placed on his coaching staff.<\/p>\n \u201cI look at Chris [Koclanes] all the time and say, \u2018Unfortunately, our injuries and the decisions we made to acquire picks haven\u2019t made this year easy on you.\u2019 There have been people coming in and out of the door on hardship deals, new players arriving all the time,\u201d he explained. \u201cThat\u2019s tough for a coach with a young group. I\u2019ve told him I\u2019m sorry for that. It\u2019s the reality of injuries \u2014 and also the reality of building toward free agency.\u201d<\/p>\n For Miller, it\u2019s about accepting the current challenges, stockpiling young talent, and positioning Dallas to strike in free agency. The ultimate goal is to win championships with Paige Bueckers. <\/p>\n