The Dallas Wings (9-6) will face the Chicago Sky (4-10) at College Park Center in Arlington at 7pm Friday. The game will be the Wings’ most recent attempt to finally start a new winning streak; they’ve zigzagged a pair of home wins with three road losses over their last five games after stringing together four to start the month. In their most recent action, a 91-80 setback at Golden State Wednesday, the Wings jumped out to a 26-17 lead before the second quarter began and the Valkyries tore Dallas apart with three-point shooting the rest of the way. Friday the Wings play an opponent who also fumbled a big lead Wednesday; the Sky built an early advantage against the Liberty that grew to 15 before falling, 96-95.
For the Sky, losers of four straight, 2026 has been a season of unrealized expectations. A 3-1 start to the campaign was marred by leading scorer Rickea Jackson’s torn ACL May 17, while guard Courtney Vandersloot (2025 ACL surgery), and forward Dijonai Carrington (offseason foot surgery) have yet to play. The Sky have kept their last two close, taking the Fever to overtime June 11 before succumbing, 114-106, but enter this game having dropped nine of their last ten.
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Familiar faces
Though several key players have been sidelined, one part of the Sky’s plan for 2026 that has held firm has been a trio of players who each at different times was a major part of the plan in Dallas. Skylar Diggins, the Wings’ original franchise player dating back to its days in Tulsa, is still capable of shouldering a team’s lead scoring role at age 35, averaging 15.5 points per game while leading a squad with a tougher transition game than its record indicates. Forward Azurá Stevens, selected by Dallas with the sixth overall pick in 2018, posts 9.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Guard Jacy Sheldon, who the Wings took fifth overall in 2024, will look to energize Chicago’s bench unit after starting the team’s first 13 games this year, joining Natasha Cloud in the reserve backcourt. Sheldon has been one of the Sky’s few reliable threats from deep this season, connecting on three-pointers at a .351 rate.
Deep blues
The three teams that have notched recent wins against the Wings have done so with three-point shooting, as pointed out here this week by my colleague Kevin Utz. One might think the Sky’s modest numbers this year from long range (they rank 13th of the league’s 14 teams in three-point percentage and 12th in three-point attempts per game) might be cause for hope for the Wings, but one recent change from head coach Tyler Marsh may unlock the Sky’s game from beyond the arc. Guard Sydney Taylor, inserted into the starting lineup Wednesday, invigorated the team offensively in the first quarter on her way to scoring 24 in the game. Diggins and rookie guard Gabriela Jacquez each got going early alongside Taylor; the pair finished with seven of 10 made threes. Taylor’s move to the starting lineup came after the guard had already put up some big numbers, scoring 30 against the Fever, and Diggins, who scored 17 of her 21 in that game after halftime, stands ready to benefit. A high scoring backcourt could also open things up for center Kamilla Cardoso, a sneaky good playmaker from the post.
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Turning the thing around
The Wings’ June tumble in the standings has not been without bright spots or explanations for the struggles. The 100-76 thumping that Dallas took on the road from league-leading Minnesota began a run of five games in eight days in four cities. In that time the team played without Paige Bueckers in Portland, finally clawing back the lead late, then continued its command of second-place Las Vegas upon Bueckers’ return. Azzi Fudd continues to grow into a reliable pro, scoring in double figures in four straight, and Arike Ogunbowale has 22, 22, and 21 over her last three. A win Saturday would match the Wings’ total from last season; this brief respite in the schedule with sub-.500 Chicago Saturday and Seattle Monday represents a chance to build some momentum before jumping back into the fire. Las Vegas and Minnesota loom in the week ahead.
As the sight of several Sky players causes Wings fans to reminisce, those fans will do well to notice that nowhere in their memories is a Dallas frontcourt as impressive as the one the club currently fields. Jessica Shepard, whose perfect shooting from the field keyed the team’s stellar first quarter against the Valkyries, and Awak Kuwier, whose defensive effort against A’ja Wilson Sunday provided the backbone of the win, give the franchise weapons it’s never had before.
How to watch
Saturday’s game will be broadcast on Paramount Plus.
