All our fingers crossed couldn’t prevent the setback that struck Paige Bueckers. Fans who’ve been hoping Paige Buckets’ WNBA career would be safe from injuries that dogged her for most of her NCAA seasons felt that fear once again. It’s bad enough we don’t get that Caitlin Clark-Paige Bueckers matchup, as the Fever star is still recovering from her own muscle strain. And now, apparently, the injury curse has been laid on Bueckers as well.

Paige Bueckers was the lone bright spot in another dismal performance for the Dallas Wings. But she was forced to leave the game early when, with four minutes left in the third quarter, Aliyah Boston set a screen that had the UConn star tumble to the court. The visuals were ugly as the rookie-star clutched her leg in visible pain, and later proceeded to limp off the court in serious discomfort.

After the game, Bueckers gave a brief update to the Wings insider, Joey Mistretta. Mistretta revealed, “Paige Bueckers says she’s ‘fine’ but admitted it will ‘probably hurt tomorrow.’ Doesn’t seem to be any serious concern, however.” And that’s all we ask for.

After the injury scare, Bueckers returned to the bench rather than going to the locker room. Fans were sympathizing with Paige for seemingly playing 1 vs 5 against the Clark-less Fever. Context? Bueckers had 15 points by halftime alone while the other Dallas starters combined for only 12. Bueckers’ teammates are receiving a barrage of criticism for not sharing the offensive load with the rookie, leading to her overexertion.

This was clearly evident in the game against the Fever, as Paige Bueckers was the only Dallas player to reach double-digits in points. The rest of the offense tanked faster than Michael Jordan’s baseball career. It’s high time that the rest of the team rise to the occasion, before Bueckers’ back breaks carrying the load of the entire team.

The rough on-court life of Paige Bueckers

Paige Bueckers is the favourite to win the Rookie of the Year. No two ways about it. The No.1 draft pick leads the scoring charts for the Wings, averaging 18.3 points per game. She now has 8 games this season with 20+ points & 2+ steals — most by a rookie ever. Despite these extraordinary numbers, there are many fans and analysts alike who believe that these numbers would have been even better if she had managed to stay healthy throughout the season.

Injuries have been an old nemesis of Bueckers since her days at UConn. She spent the majority of the 2022-23 season in rehab after tearing her ACL. Those worries were further magnified when Bueckers missed multiple games at the start of her career in W. But despite these constant issues with injuries, her mentality remains strong as ever. “You don’t sulk on what happened in the past. You just move forward with the present,” she told the media after she powered through the hits and bumps to score 22 points.

Although an official confirmation of the extent of Paige Bueckers’ injury is yet to arrive, the Dallas Wings shift their focus to the next game. They’ll take on a New York Liberty side, licking their wounds after a surprise defeat to the Connecticut Sun. It remains to be seen if the Wings risk playing Bueckers in that game or if she gets a much-deserved rest.