Paige Bueckers returns to Connecticut for the second time in her professional career. She dominated college hoops while at UConn and gets to play in front of a familiar crowd while donning a Wings jersey.
In her first game against the Sun, she scored 21 points in a 22-point victory, one of the few wins Dallas has this year.
The Wings are four-point favorites on the road, and the game total is set at 164.5 points on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Here’s my prediction and pick for Friday’s Sun vs. Wings matchup.
Sun vs. Wings prediction
The Sun and Wings are the two worst teams in the WNBA this season, combining for four wins and 21 losses thus far. The Wings won the first matchup by a hefty margin, but there’s no telling that will be the case again.
Arike Ogunbowale is a major reason for Dallas’ struggles so far. Her averages and shooting percentages are down across the board. She topped 21 points per game in each of the past two seasons, but she’s now sitting at 16.8.
Bueckers is the team’s leading scorer, which is a large task for a rookie. She’s had her standout performances, but she’s still developing. That said, she should have a good outing against the Sun.
Connecticut allows the most points per game (87.8) and has the worst point differential (-16.2) in the WNBA. Tina Charles and Marina Mabrey lead the team with 15.8 points per game each.
Although the Sun have a win over the Fever and Dream, the Fever were without Caitlin Clark. It means Connecticut has one less impressive outing. Meanwhile, Dallas is coming off a victory against the Valkyries on Tuesday, June 17.
Sun vs. Wings pick, best bet
Bueckers’ return to Connecticut is the headlining aspect of this game, especially since these teams combine for just four wins. She helped the Wings blow out the Sun in the last meeting, and I’m expecting more of the same this time around.
The Wings aren’t good, but they’re definitely a step above the Sun. Bueckers and Ogunbowale have had their struggles together, but they’ll be plenty to defeat Connecticut.
The moneyline is set at -192, which is too short for my liking. Instead, the -4 spread is the way to go, since the Wings should easily take care of business.