By: Jonathan Donville

The Dallas Wings are hoping that some home cooking will return them to their winning ways on Wednesday night as they begin a two-game homestand against the Phoenix Mercury.

The Wings will look to respond after a disappointing road trip that saw them drop both games in Washington and Connecticut. On Friday, the Wings lost to the Mystics by a single point, 75-74, before losing their contest against Connecticut on Sunday 80-74. Dallas now sits seventh in the standings, but has yet to drop a game at College Park Center.

The Wings aren’t the only team benefitting from the home cooking. Wednesday marks the first game back in Texas for Mercury star Brittney Griner since her return to the WNBA. Griner, a Houston native, played her last WNBA game in Texas on May 29, 2021. That was 740 days ago.

On Wednesday, the Wings will welcome the Bring Our Families Home Campaign, a group which works to bring attention to US citizens wrongfully detained abroad. Wednesday’s game will highlight the family of Zack Shahin, an individual currently detained in Dubai.

In addition to highlighting the work of the campaign, the Wings will also welcome Griner’s high school team, Nimitz Senior High School, as well as the Baylor women’s basketball program to College Park Center.

Wings head coach Latricia Trammell said Sunday that she was “excited to see BG [Brittney Griner] on the court. I mean, so glad that she is back and healthy. She’s so important to our game and this league.”

Phoenix enters the game with one win compared to three losses. The Mercury lost their last game in an offensive affair to the Los Angeles Sparks by a score of 99-93.

The Wings are led by Arike Ogunbowale, who recently added the Kia Western Conference Player of the Month award to her resume. Ogunbowale averaged 25.3 points per contest during the month of May and is currently pouring in 21.2 points per game on the season.

Satou Sabally has been another bright spot for the Wings. She played every minute of the Connecticut game, finishing with 26 points and 14 rebounds. Heading into the tussle with Phoenix, Sabally is averaging a double-double, with 22.2 points and 10.7 rebounds.

Sabally and Ogunbowale are joined by Natasha Howard as 2023 WNBA All-Star hopefuls. All three players have already made All-Star teams in the past, but the Wings have never had three players selected in the same season. WNBA All-Star voting opens today, Wednesday, June 7 for fans.

Throughout the voting period, fans may submit one full ballot each day via WNBA.com and the WNBA App, as well as vote for up to 10 unique players per day on Instagram. All WNBA players currently on team rosters will be available for selection. Three “2-for-1 Days” will allow fans to have their votes count twice on June 11, June 16 and June 21 through Instagram, WNBA.com and the WNBA App voting platforms. Each “2-for-1 Day” will be designated from midnight ET – 11:59 p.m. ET.

Sabally especially has been thriving as defenses focus on the primary assignment of Ogunbowale. Sabally said after the game on Sunday that Howard and Ogunbowale have been drawing attention, allowing her to succeed.

“I obviously profit off other really good elite players being on my team, and that’s how you get buckets,” said Sabally.

Dealing with Griner and the Mercury is enough of a challenge, but Dallas is also dealing with injuries and absences. With Teaira McCowan officially attending to her duties with the Turkish National Team, Dallas is also without Diamond Deshields (knee) and Lou Lopez Senechal (knee). Crystal Dangerfield (ankle) was also injured on the recent road trip and will miss the game on Wednesday.

Veronica Burton said Sunday, “we have people that are ready to step up for sure, and I think that’s just the mindset all the way around, when your name is called just be ready.”

Wednesday will pit the contrasting styles of both teams against each other. Dallas is playing at the second fastest pace in the league, while Phoenix plays at the third slowest.

The focus will be on the defensive end for Dallas, where they will look to improve a defensive rating that falls seventh in the league.

When asked on Sunday about what it looks like when they compete on defense, Sabally simply replied, “like (an) elite team.”