UNCASVILLE, CT – The Dallas Wings continue their preparations for the 2018 season as they begin week two of training camp on the road. The team will head east to Uncasville, CT for a two-day preseason tournament against the New York Liberty and the Connecticut Sun. It is the first time the Wings will face these two teams in preseason action since moving the franchise to the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
A GLIMPSE INTO 2018
With two weeks of training camp left and three preseason games to play, the Dallas Wings look to make their mark as they start the 2018 season. Following a playoff berth in 2017, the Wings have added intense depth to their roster with the signing of international sensation Liz Cambage and a rookie class who walked into camp pro ready.
WELCOME BACK LIZ CAMBAGE
On February 26, 2018, Liz Cambage, one of the top centers in international women’s basketball named Dallas her new home, after signing a multi-year contract with the Wings. Cambage returns after playing in the WNBA with the then Tulsa Shock for two seasons (2011 & 2013). In Tulsa, Cambage registered record breaking numbers with an overall career average of 13.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game… She also shot over 50 percent from the field and over 75% behind the free throw line. This past WNBL season, the 26-year-old Cambage finished as the top scorer in the league while playing for her hometown Deakin Melbourne Boomers. She averaged 23.1 points and 10.5 rebounds per game while leading the Boomers to the WNBL Grand Final Series.
THE DRAFT CLASS OF 2018
This year’s draft class brings in depth and speed to the Dallas Wings 2018 roster… On April 12, the Wings selected center Azurá Stevens out of UCONN as the sixth overall pick. Loryn Goodwin, a 5-9 guard out of Oklahoma State in the second as the 18th and Natalie Butler from George Mason in the third at 30th… Stevens played in 37 games this year for the Huskies, earning 2018 American Athletic Conference Newcomer and Sixth Player of the Year. Overall for UCONN, she averaged 17.7 points per game and tied for the team lead with 7.4 rebounds per game. Named to the American Athletic Conference Second Team, Stevens led the Huskies with 76 blocks, while recording eight double-doubles… Goodwin, a graduate transfer by way of UTSA, played a key role for the Cowboys, receiving honorable mention All-America status from the Associated Press and honorable mention All-American by the WBCA. She played in 32 games, leading the Big 12 by averaging 20.6 points per game and finished in the top 12 of the conference with 6.7 rebounds per game. She also led the league with five 30-point games and 20, 20-point outings… A 6-5 center, Butler rounds out the Dallas Wings draft class for the 2018 season… In her final season for The Patriots, she broke the single season scoring record with 653 points and an NCAA D1 single-season rebounding record with 563 rebounds… Overall, she started in all 34 games with 19.2 points and 16.6 rebounds per game.
VETERAN STATUS
This year’s squad brings in a talented veteran staff led by three time all-star guard Skylar Diggins-Smith, who led the team in both scoring and minutes, with an average of 15.4 points and 34.2 minutes per game… Returning alongside Diggins-Smith is 8-year veteran and co-captain Karima Christmas-Kelly, who started all 34 games a season ago and recorded a career-high 27 points on May 25 against San Antonio… Forward Glory Johnson returns for her sixth season, after finishing fifth in the WNBA in rebounds and posting 13 double-doubles a season ago… Another returning veteran for the Wings is forward Theresa Plaisance, who played in all 34 games, averaging 7.7 points and 4.3 rebounds, while earning 25 starts in 2017. Plaisance is recovering from an ACL injury she suffered in October while playing in the Polish Basketball League.
OTHER KEY RETURNEES
With other key players returning to the squad, including five second-year players, the team returns more than just veteran talent… Rising star Allisha Gray is back for her sophomore season, after starting all 34 games, averaging 13.0 points and taking home the 2017 Rookie of the Year… Guard/Forward Kaela Davis returns after averaging 6.1 points per game and joining Allisha Gray on the 2017 All-Rookie Team… Guard Saniya Chong played in 33 of 34 games her rookie season, averaging 2.7 points… Center Breanna Lewis saw action in 13 games as a rookie, notching a career-high in points on 5/27 in Phoenix with three… Forward Evelyn Akhator played in 15 games as a rookie and scored her first WNBA points on 5/27 in Phoenix… Also returning is Forward Kayla Thornton who made tremendous progress since signing with the Wings before the 2017 season in which she averaged 6.8 points and played in all 34 games… Returning for her third season is guard Aerial Powers, who sat out most of the 2017 season with a hip injury but averaged 10.8 points in the 12 games she played in.