The Dallas Wings have finally snapped their losing streak, and they did it with authority. Arike Ogunbowale and wonder rookie Paige Bueckers each poured in 20 points, powering the team to a much-needed win against the Liberty. Bueckers, after being rested for the previous game against the Aces, returned to the court looking sharp and reenergized. But it wasn’t just her game that had fans buzzing.

During that Aces game, a video of her offering her glasses to the referees went viral. The Wings guard wanted to imply her discontent with the decisions made by the referees. However, she appears to have done a complete 180 since to take a softer stance. Was it a PR pivot to dodge a WNBA fine, or just misunderstood humor? Well, according to Bueckers, it was the latter.

The confession from Paige Bueckers came during the pre-game practice against Liberty. She blamed social media for blowing the moment out of proportion. “I actually wasn’t talking to the ref. Teaira got poked in the eye. I know you guys have the clip,” Bueckers said. “She got poked in the eye, so I was offering T [Teaira McCowan] my glasses, not the ref. So I just wanna make that clear.”

The Wings star cheekily added that the league shouldn’t fine her for the moment. She explained that it was all in good humor, even reenacting how McCowan was rubbing her eye, something that inspired the spontaneous glasses gesture. Following that, Bueckers also took some cheeky shots at her teammate Maddy Siegrist.

Paige Bueckers throws playful jabs at Maddy Siegrist

While Bueckers has since denied taking a shot at the referees, damage control had already begun during the Aces game. The Wings seemed to have assigned fellow teammate Maddy Siegrist to babysit their overenthusiastic rookie. Siegrist sat alongside Bueckers the entire time, stopping her from further taunting opponents and the officials. She even admitted to stopping the rookie almost 40 times in that single game!

But if Bueckers is to be believed, she was simply having fun. When asked whether Maddy Siegrist had put her in a timeout, the Wings guard had a hilarious reply ready.

“Maddy says she put me on timeout. I don’t think I can be time-outable. So she tried,” said Bueckers with a grin across her face. With that, the 23-year-old seemed to brush off the viral glasses video controversy in classic Paige fashion.

Had the incident caught the attention of the WNBA, Paige Bueckers might have been staring down a hefty fine. The league has a history of penalizing players for incidents both on and off the court. One of the most notable cases involved Indiana Fever’s Sophie Cunningham, who received a $500 fine after posting a TikTok mocking WNBA officials. The league also fined Liberty’s Natasha Cloud, Lynx’s Courtney Williams, and Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White for their clothing choices/public actions.

Actions taken off-court also seem to matter for the league. That, combined with questionable calls during games, seems to be fueling the growing divide between the WNBA and its players. Some stars are speaking out, while others, like Bueckers, are leaning into humor or diplomacy. But real change must come from the league itself. It may be time for the WNBA to take a hard look in the mirror and reconsider its approach. Until then, players will just have to keep dodging fines, something Bueckers seems to be doing with ease.

The Dallas Wings guard will return to the court against Atlanta on Wednesday, July 30.