The Dallas Wings had a weird outing last year. Having recruited Paige Bueckers as the number 1 overall pick, the Wings were confident of taking the WNBA realm by storm. Surprisingly, while the 23-year-old star went on to win the Rookie of the Year award, Wings finished at the bottom. Thus, trying to change their fate, Jose Fernandez is here to rescue the Wings.
At the moment, Bueckers’ dominance in the Unrivaled will surely make the Wings fans smile. But the 23-year-old alone would not be able to get Dallas out of danger. Thus, in order to ensure that Fernandez does not make the same mistakes as Chris Koclanes, the NCAA coach himself got candid about the change of responsibilities from college to WNBA.
Jose Fernandez Confident About Getting The Dallas Wings To The Top
Last year was a disaster for Chris Koclanes. Failing to make the Wings perform better, Koclanes was shown the door at the end of the season. Following a lot of back and forth, the Wings ultimately appointed Fernandez as their head coach.
In an interview with WFAA’s Jonah Javad, Fernandez opened up about why he chose to join the WNBA following his 25-year reign for the South Florida Bulls. He pointed out that the changing landscape intrigued him to take up a new challenge.
“The change in landscape, not only in women’s college basketball but college athletics. I was coaching professional sports in college, so why not make the leap to the WNBA?” said Fernandez to Javad.
Jose Fernandez gets candidhttps://t.co/GVeLrTikLs
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He further added, “It’s excitement. My wife’s been extremely supportive. Now, how we’re going to move eight dogs to Dallas, that’s going to be a different story.”
Surely, the former Bulls’ head coach will be an asset to the team. With his incredible coaching skills, the 54-year-old has transformed the Bulls over the last quarter-decade. Now, he will look to do the same in Dallas. Meanwhile, trying to bring in a change, Fernandez wants his team to revolve around Bueckers.
Jose Fernandez Looks To Maximize The Paige Bueckers Influence In Dallas
Bueckers will be the key to success for the Dallas Wings this year. The team surely needs to add quality players to support the rookie star. And with rumors of Lauren Betts likely to join the squad, things are expected to get better for Dallas. Last year in December, Fernandez outlined the plan for the upcoming season.
“Paige is a very good basketball player. She’s one of the faces of the league and the future of the WNBA and also USA basketball. She wants to be coached. She wants to win. So, that’s plain and simple,” said Fernandez, speaking with Khristina Williams on the ‘In Case You Missed It’ podcast.
Well, the resources are surely there for the 54-year-old to bring in the changes. And while a miraculous turnaround might not be a reality, 2026 should mark the beginning of some good things to come in the future for the Wings.