Paige Bueckers had the opportunity to come home over the weekend. The second-year Dallas Wings guard returned to her native Minnesota for a Sunday game against the Minnesota Lynx, the top team in the WNBA.
Bueckers turned in a typically strong performance (23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, eight assists), but the Wings fell 103-90 to drop to 19-14 on the season. It was their third loss in a row and sixth in the their last eight games.
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Despite the setback, Bueckers made clear in her postgame media session that the trip home served a bigger purpose.
A chance to ‘heal my inner child,’ Bueckers called it
Bueckers was born in Edina, Minnesota and played her high school ball in Minnetonka. While in Minnesota this weekend, the WNBA All-Star had the chance to visit the hometown park where she grew up honing her game.
Asked by a reporter what it meant to spend time there, Bueckers called the opportunity “refreshing.”
“That’s where I always went when life was life-ing,” she explained. “This stretch has been tough. Losing is tough. People got stuff going on in their personal lives. At the end of the day, life is bigger than basketball. So to go kind of heal my inner child, go back home to where I fell in love with the game, go visit that park, walk the same walks that I did as a kid. I don’t talk about myself often but just to reflect on the journey that’s been to get here it was really refreshing.”
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“Just to be able to settle and be balanced in life, with all the exterior pressures and all the things life can throw at you,” Bueckers continued. “I’m very grateful to be back home and be able to get that experience. I was happy to do that.”
It’s unclear if Bueckers is referring to herself or one or more of her teammates going through personal struggles. It’s clear though that the grind of a season can take its toll on teams, and sometimes you just need to get away and recharge.
The post ‘Life is bigger than basketball’: Paige Bueckers opens up amid losing streak appeared first on The Comeback: Today’s Top Sports Stories & Reactions.
