The Dallas Wings and Jessica Shepard have devoured the defending champions this season. In their first clash of the season, Shepard had a triple double with 22 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in the Wings’ 95-87 win. The Wings forward found her groove against A’ja Wilson and Co. When the Aces came to their home for revenge, Jessica Shepard crushed them once again while matching Angel Reese’s season record to make a statement.
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Shepard had 15 points, 15 rebounds and 9 assists while shooting 4-6 from the field. The Wings star was one assist away from her third triple-double of the season. But with her 9th double-double of the season, Shepard matched Angel Reese’s record for the 2026 season. Reese, the ultimate double-double queen, has a total of 59 double-doubles in her short WNBA career. Shepard is still on 28 career double-doubles. Yet, her 2025 resurgence on par with Reese has been crucial for the Dallas Wings. And, coach Jose Fernandez recognizes that.
“She almost had a triple-double. We took her out,” Fernandez told the media. “I think her decision-making—she does a really good job reading all the zoom actions, the DHOs, and split actions.”
Shepard has been everywhere for the Dallas WIngs. She is averaging 13.7 points,11.6 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game, leading the team in rebounds. Shepard is second in assists, a whisker behind Paige Bueckers, who is averaging 5.8 assists per game. Even with Fernandez taking Shepard out with 4:41 to go, she had a chance to complete her triple double.
Shepard kicked the ball out to Arike Ogunbowale, who missed the three-pointer. It would have been Shepard’s 4th career triple double, surpassing Caitlin Clark and Candace Parker while matching Sabrina Ionescu.
And with this game, she is now tied for the most 15+ points, 15+ rebounds and 5+ assists games in WNBA history. After the game, she had some jokes to throw at Ogunbowale for missing that all-important shot.
“I learned who I can pass it to, who I can trust, and who cannot be trusted,” Shepard said with a laugh. “Arike can be trusted.” Ogunbowale replied, “Even though I sold that last one, though.”
Regardless, the fact that she is on par with Angel Reese in double-doubles just shows her growth at Dallas. Last year in Minnesota, she was averaging 8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while playing only 20.9 minutes.
She came into this year averaging 6.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game across five seasons with the Minnesota Lynx. Therefore, she should be well in the running for the Most Improved Player Of The Year. In a larger role at the Wings, Shepard has succeeded as a player and as a leader.
Jessica Shepard Lauds Paige Bueckers After Record-Breaking Win
Paige Bueckers was gearing up for a major upgrade this offseason. Bueckers captioned an Instagram story after the Wings signed Shepard, “Smiling through it all! Can’t believe this is my life!” This was a direct reference to one of LeBron James’ Instagram stories by the pool which he had posted in February 2018. And the team has certainly reciprocated well and changed.
After a dismal 10-34 season last year, they are now 1 win away to match that total in just 15 games. The 96-66 win added an exclamation mark. It was their biggest home victory in the past 20 years. And after the statement win, Shepard was all praise for her star teammate in Paige Bueckers.
“It’s amazing. Paige is one of the best people I’ve ever played with in terms of just being a great person,” Shepard said in her sideline post-game press conference. “I’m super excited to be here.”
Meanwhile, Bueckers has been playing majorly as a point guard this season, letting her scoring chances develop as the game progresses in favor of making the right play every time down the floor. More often than not, the correct play in front of Bueckers has included finding a cutting Shepard on her way to the basket.
Paige Bueckers has had the majority of assists to Shepard, with 18. In addition, she is also the player with the most assists for Shepard. The connection has been two way, Shepard has distributed 23 assists to Bueckers.
The Shepard-Bueckers connection has already helped Dallas move past the struggles that defined last season. However, sustaining it will decide whether this start becomes just an early-season spark or the beginning of a completely different era for the Wings.
