Two nights ago, Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers drew a foul driving toward the bucket in the game’s third quarter against the Atlanta Dream. She then clapped thrice after the whistle and was handed a technical foul for it.
Now, whether that call made any sense is a different conversation altogether. But less than 48 hours later, the call was rescinded. Bueckers’ teammate Alysha Clark has come in support of this decision and has made her feelings pretty clear.
“I just felt it wasn’t warranted,” Clark said, via Madeline Kenney on X. Clark and Bueckers have an ongoing deal in the locker room wherein Bueckers made a bet that she would make it through the season without a tech.
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Well, this tech could have meant an opportunity for Clark to win some cash. But she understands the importance of being legitimate in such situations. “If I’m gonna win money out of her, I want it to be legit,” Clark added, as per Madeline Kenney.
When this incident took place, Bueckers was visibly stunned. Right after match, when official Kevin Fahy handed her the tech interpreting her gesture as “unsportsmanlike conduct,” Bueckers’ frustration reached a boiling point. “Are you serious? I clapped, just like that,” she said, arguing with the officials just moments later.
This season, referees have been calling more fouls following adjustments to the league’s rules. However, Bueckers is mindful enough to acknowledge that the officials are just trying to do their job in the right way possible. “I would never want to be a ref. It’s a really extremely hard job, and they get criticized just as much as a player, so it’s tough to manage sometimes,” she said, as per beat reporter Myles Ehrlich.
Head coach Jose Fernandez was also subtle with his response for the moment. “I’m not going to comment on that because I don’t want to get fined,” he said. Well, that explains everyone’s mood in Dallas’ locker room. Bueckers received a foul for expressing her emotions on the court and she believes players should be allowed to do the same.
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“See that we were down a ton and we’re making a run, so we’re obviously going to be hyped up and showing a bunch of passion and joy and fire, like, that’s what basketball’s all about,” Bueckerssaid, as per Reuters.
The game against Atlanta was a rough night for Bueckers and the Wings. She finished with just 7 points while shooting 3-of-13 from the field. The Wings eventually lost the game 86-69 against Atlanta. But in the game against the New York Liberty on Sunday, Bueckers’ form was hot. She scored 24 points and dished two assists while shooting 7-13 from the field. The Wings grabbed an emphatic 91-76 victory to close the deal.
Paige Bueckers has broken a WNBA record amidst all noise
Amidst the noise of the technical foul controversy for Paige Bueckers, she has quietly broken a WNBA record that is worth all appreciation. On that very night, Bueckers made league history by becoming the fastest player to reach 800 career points, 225 assists, and 300 made field goals in just her second season. This was a record-night event that got buried under the controversy of a technical call.
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With this, she has now surpassed Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, who had achieved this mark in 42 career games. Bueckers’ production hasn’t been any less this season, despite one off night. She is averaging 18.5 points, 5.5 assists, and 2.5 rebounds in 32 minutes per game while shooting 51.9% from the floor.
Well she is not padding stats on a bad team going through the motions but rather is doing it as the focal point of the Wings’ offense that opposing defenses game-plan for every single night. For a player who got penalized for showing too much joy, Bueckers is definitely giving the W plenty of reasons to celebrate her.
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The post “Wasn’t Warranted”: Wings Teammate Addresses WNBA’s Decision to Rescind Paige Bueckers Technical Foul appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
