Paige Bueckers injury update: Coach Chris Koclanes provides major update after brutal elbow sends Wings star to the floor

WNBA: Dallas Wings at Phoenix Mercury - Source: Imagn
WNBA: Dallas Wings at Phoenix Mercury - Source: Imagn

The Dallas Wings lost to the Phoenix Mercury 102-72 on Monday night, slipping to 6-14 for the season. To compound their woes, star rookie Paige Bueckers was forced to leave the game after suffering a hard hit to the head from Kalani Brown while going up for a layup.

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The pivotal play happened with three minutes to go in the first quarter. Brown was credited with a block, but a clip posted by WNBA's TikTok account showed Bueckers receiving a sharp blow to her skull.

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Bueckers got back up gingerly and rubbed the back of her ear while walking back on defense. Bueckers failed to find her footing for the rest of the game, recording only 11 points in 24 minutes.

After the game, Wings coach Chris Koclanes provided an encouraging update about Bueckers' injury and said that she had not felt any ill effects from the hit.

"Yup. We talked to her here. She's feeling OK," Koclanes said.
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The Wings will be wary of Bueckers suffering another head injury after she missed four games earlier in the season due to a concussion.

Chris Koclanes challenges young Wings roster to bounce back

Rookie coach Koclanes has had a difficult introduction to his role in a season of transition for the Dallas Wings. He has not backed away from criticizing his players at any point, and Monday was no exception.

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"We weren't ready, and we could have played a little bit harder and responded a little bit better." Koclanes said "So, you challenge them, and at the same time, you recognize that this is such a long season, and you have short-term memory, and you just continue to take the learning out of it, and then continue to pour into them and just continue to give and transfer belief."
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The Dallas Wings' weaknesses were exposed with star guard Arike Ogunbowale absent and with Bueckers limited by injury. They will need to regroup and hope for a quick return of their key players, while also working on shoring up a defense that was carved up with efficiency.

The Wings will face a more equally matched opponent, the Chicago Sky (5-12), on Wednesday.

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Edited by Amlan Sanyal
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