Wings Coach Calls Out ‘Selfish' Players After Loss to Lynx

The Dallas Wings entered their season with new optimism after drafting their second-straight No. 1 pick, Azzi Fudd, and teaming her with last year’s top pick, Paige Bueckers.

And that optimism continued after a season-opening victory over the Indiana Fever, despite questions about Fudd coming off the bench and only scoring three points.

Since starting 1-0, they’ve now dropped two straight, including last night’s home game against the Minnesota Lynx, featuring their star rookie Olivia Miles. She finished with 15 points, six assists, and three rebounds in the 90-86 win.

While Fudd had a better outing with eight points, it was the Wings’ other top pick, Paige Bueckers, who went off for 27 points in the losing effort. However, head coach Jose Fernandez sent a strong message about his team after their loss.

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“It’s real talk, and it’s accountability. That’s what I told them. I go, ‘There’s selfishness in this locker room. There is, and you gotta look in the mirror and be accountable on how you played, and don’t get upset if you think you should’ve played more, or you didn’t play enough, or you didn’t get the shots that you think you should’ve gotten. Really good teams don’t give a [expletive] about that. You know what they give a [expletive] about? Winning, because that’s what matters,'” Fernandez told reporters about the message he gave his players.

Interestingly enough, the Wings had 22 assists for the game, which led WNBA legend Cynthia Cooper, now an analyst, to suggest in her postgame reaction, “I believe at some point Dallas lost control of the game.”

Cooper also indicated that Dallas is too young a team to figure things out on its own, so the players need guidance from their head coach.

And while Bueckers may have led the team in scoring with 7-for-13 shooting, including 3-of-4 from the free-throw line, she also led the team with eight assists.

It’s unclear who Fernandez might have been referring to regarding not playing enough minutes, or if he was generalizing with a coaching message.

Starters Bueckers, Jessica Shepard, and Arike Ogunbowale played 30-plus minutes each, while Alanna Smith had 27 and Odyssey Sims, 25. Fudd came off the bench for 20 minutes, while other reserves had fewer minutes on the court.

One thing became crystal clear: Fernandez expects better from his team than what they’ve shown in the recent losses. However, they seem to need coaching help to guide these younger players as they develop into a less selfish, winning team.

The silver lining is that among those young players are two former college teammates who won a championship together at UConn and became No. 1 picks in the WNBA. While Fudd has yet to emerge as the type of star many expect her to become, Bueckers continues to look like a true leader for this team’s future.

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This story was originally published May 15, 2026 at 8:39 AM.