Paige Bueckers Sends Clear Message About Caitlin Clark After Wings-Fever Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

For the first time as professionals, Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and rookie Paige Bueckers of the Dallas Wings faced off Sunday in a matchup that was all Indiana from start to finish.

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The Fever improved to 11-10 on the season with a dominant 102–83 win, while the Wings dropped to 6-16.

Despite the loss, Bueckers continued her strong rookie campaign, finishing with a game-high 21 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Clark had an impressive showing as well, recording 14 points, 13 assists, five steals, and three rebounds.

After the game, Bueckers spoke highly of Clark, with the two sharing a long-standing mutual respect that dates back to their AAU and college days.

“It’s fun anytime you can compete against each other. We’re two competitors. We both want to win,” Bueckers said. “The environment’s great here… they have a great home court advantage… She’s just a very smart basketball player.”

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The two nearly met earlier this season, but Caitlin Clark was sidelined with a quad injury at the time. Prior to Sunday’s game, their last head-to-head matchup came in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, when Clark and Iowa defeated Bueckers and UConn.

Still, both players have made immediate impacts in the WNBA. Clark claimed Rookie of the Year honors in 2024, and Bueckers is currently the heavy favorite to win the award in 2025—despite the Wings still being far from playoff contention.

Following Sunday’s game, Fever head coach Stephanie White was asked about her thoughts on Bueckers and had extremely high praise for the rookie.

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“She always stays neutral,” White said. “She doesn’t get rushed, her pace, her poise, her decision making…when you play somebody that is really high IQ and is elite in all areas…and they just try and maintain that flow, it makes it tough. That’s the difference between good players and great players. It’s fun to watch, not an as opponent on the sideline…for Paige she’s figuring it out.”

Related: Caitlin Clark Makes WNBA History Against Paige Bueckers, Wings

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.

Since their high school days, the two outstanding basketball players– Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers– have been at each other. The level only grew in the 2024 NCAA Final Four as Geno Auriemma’s UConn gave everyone a blueprint to slow down the Hawkeye point guard. While the duty didn’t fall on Bueckers, with the Husky Nika Muhl catching the most brunt of still not being able to stop the generational talent out of Iowa– it was always Clark vs Bueckers. Fast forward to the WNBA and both are finally set to face each other. But adding to the twist of their backstory is the Dallas Wings vs Indiana Fever electricity.

Last season, just a couple of days ahead of the WNBA All-Star, despite the close defeat to the Wings, Clark made history with 19 assists in the game against Arike Ogunbowale, who the reigning league ROTY praised as “the best one-on-one player” in the WNBA. Since then, fire, electricity, thunder, everything is present in the series between the two franchises. While Clark was sidelined in their first game this season, she has returned, albeit not in full form yet. But this time, the Fever No. 22 will have to face not just Ogunbowale but her partnership with the rookie. However, this season, the Wings storyline has more connections to Clark.

Yep, presence of former Connecticut Sun guard, DiJonai Carrington and the infamous eye-poke from last season’s playoffs. 90 seconds into the first round matchup, Clark was making a pass to teammate Aliyah Boston. However, in an attempt to deflect the pass, Carrington poked the then-rookie in the eye. Carrington made her case right after the 93-69 Sun win, saying, “I don’t even know why I would intend to hit anybody in the eye.” Seemingly, the fans haven’t forgotten the aftermath of that blue eye as the latest Wings injury report bring back the flashbacks.

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Ahead of the highly anticipated Bueckers-Clark matchup, Underdog WNBA tweeted, “DiJonai Carrington (rib) ruled out for Sunday.” The guard got hurt on June 20 after taking a hard hit to chest in a game against the Sun.

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She didn’t travel to Phoenix and didn’t suit up against the Sky. With the new report, seemingly, she won’t be playing against Clark and the Fever either. On the brighter side though, Indiana will have its entire roster present, and the Wings will also have Ogunbowale to aid in their offense.

But that storyline? Seems like that it is also going to be a part of this matchup with the roles flipped. With Carrington out again and Clark back in action, Wings fans are having a field day online, mocking CC.

Caitlin Clark catches strays from Wings fans

Fans wasted no time jumping with some not-so-subtle jabs at Clark. One said, “Thank you Lord for protecting the best PG in the league,” a comment that, on the surface, may sound like a compliment, but everyone knew the sarcasm was aimed squarely at CC. The joke was that she’s now “safe” with Carrington not in the game. But does this mean that the whole eye-poke drama is resurfacing for the first time? Well… not exactly.

Just a few days ago, that exact September incident got dug back up, thanks to the rising buzz around the book by Christine Brennan, ‘On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports.’ In it, Brennan recounted how she asked Carrington whether the poke was intentional and whether Marina Mabrey, Carrington’s then-teammate, had laughed about it, something fans on social media have speculated since day one. Carrington denied it all.

But after CNN Sports posted an excerpt from Brennan’s book this past Sunday, Carrington didn’t hold back. She responded with some very telling emojis – a cap (meaning “lie”) and a Pinocchio nose – before following it up with a bold accusation: “defamation of character atp 🥱.” Meanwhile, fans weren’t done mocking Clark.

Along with multiple laughing emojis and funny reactions by different users, another added, “That means Caitlin will actually act like a tough guy if Nai ain’t playing.” Now, Carrington is a physical player, and we know Clark has been allegedly targeted by her peers since her rookie season. So, fans know what they’re implying. But not to forget, Indy’s not exactly short on grit this time.

Sophie Cunningham is right there, and she has low-key become Clark’s enforcer. Remember the Jacy Sheldon foul? But whether or not Clark plays “tough guy,” what fans really want to see is her getting back to form.

Then someone else chimed in with, “Running from the smoke huh?” But you know that eye-poke incident was never this big mystery from the players’ side. Clark made it clear at that time only, “It wasn’t intentional by any means.” Even then, Clark didn’t escalate it. It was always the internet that ran with it, and clearly, they still are.

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One Wings fan took things in another direction, saying, “I think she’s lost that title with all these disgusting shooting performances,” referring to Clark’s “best PG in the league” crown. Statistically speaking, the numbers haven’t been great for Clark lately.

In her last three games leading up to the July 10 matchup, she went just 1-of-23 from three-point range – that’s 4.3%. And even including the loss to the Valkyries, she’s only slightly improved to 3-of-28, or 10.7%. Historically bad. That 10.7% over a four-game span is the worst in WNBA history for a player with at least 25 attempts. But it’s Clark. And she’s recovering from two back-to-back injuries (first left quad strain then left groin injury). S0, there’s always the chance she snaps out of it and drops 30 when no one’s expecting it. Let’s just say all eyes will be on her.

And while most of the talk was centered around Clark and Carrington, one fan went totally off-script and asked, “What about Arike? Is she back?” Thankfully for Dallas, it looks like they might be getting some help. Ogunbowale is officially listed as probable for Sunday. There was already buzz that she could return Friday after rejoining practice, but now it’s looking even more likely she’s suiting up for game action against the Fever.

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All in all, this game is going to be interesting for sure. The spotlight’s back on two of the league’s brightest young stars meeting for the first time as pros. Neither team is quite where they thought they’d be. The Fever are sitting right at .500 with a 10-10 record, and the Wings are 6-15. But Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers are both having standout seasons in their own right, and with all the noise building up, let’s see who takes it home.

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark’s rookie season was memorable for quite a few reasons.

The 23-year-old Iowa alum was a near-unanimous selection for WNBA Rookie of the Year and finished fourth in MVP voting, and she wrote her name in the records books along the way.

Clark broke several WNBA records including single-game assists (19) and single-season assists (337), and several rookie records including single-season points (769), assists (337), made 3-pointers (122).

She also became the first rookie to record a triple-double, the first player to lead the league in assists while finishing in the top 10 in scoring, and the fastest player to reach 100 points and 50 assists (eight games), and 150 points, 50 rebounds, and 50 assists (10 games).

Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever brings the ball up court during the game against the Golden State Valkyries at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on July 9, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever brings the ball up court during the game against the Golden State Valkyries at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on July 9, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Clark also has the most games with 25 points and 10 assists (five), most points scored or assisted on in a game (66), and most games 10 or more assists (12), and in Sunday’s matchup against the Dallas Wings, she added another milestone to her resume.

Clark logged 10 assists through three quarters, becoming the fastest guard in WNBA history to hit 100 assists in a season, accomplishing the feat in 12 games.

It marked the fifth time this season Clark hit double-digit assists, and it was the 18th time in her pro career she recorded 10 or more assists in a game. Clark, a two-time All-Star, hasn’t had fewer than six assists in a game this season, and she’s had five or fewer assists just five times in her career.

At time of publication, the Fever led the Wings 86-68 and Clark had 14 points, 10 assists, five steals, two rebounds, and a block in 22 minutes of action. She hit 4 of 11 shots from the field and 2 of 7 shots from 3-point range.

Conversely, Wings rookie and Clark’s former college rival Paige Bueckers had 21 points four rebounds, four assists, and two steals.

Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers shine on their own and make history in the WNBA

Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers shine on their own and make history in the WNBA AP

After so much anticipation, fans got the show they had been dreaming of: Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers.

Injuries to CC and the 23-year-old rookie got in the way of the scheduled matchups between the Indiana Fever and Dallas Wings. However, on Sunday, July 13, the first WNBA game between the two stars was played. And, of course, they gave everyone something to talk about.

Caitlin Clark gets scolded by Fever’s assistant coach and leaves fans with questions

Indiana clipped Dallas’ Wings, beating them 102-83, leaving the Fever’s record at 11-10 and Bueckers and her team’s at 6-16. Despite this, during the first quarter, the game was very close and even, but during the second, CC and the Fever swept the floor and went into halftime comfortably ahead, with almost twenty points, something their rivals could not recover from.

However, despite the result, the stars of both teams made history.

Bueckers’ achievement

The young Dallas rookie reached 290 points in her career and, with 10 points to go to reach 300, is already the fifth fastest guard to reach this point total in the league.

And who is ahead of her? None other than Clark, Cynthia Cooper, Cappie Pondexter, and Seimone Augustus.

As if that weren’t enough, during the game she added 21 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds in 33 minutes of action.

In addition, Paige’s performance has led to her being selected for the WNBA All-Star Game. She was also named Rookie of the Month for June and is undoubtedly one of the favorites to win the Rookie of the Year award. But this game was not only important for her.

Clark’s achievement

During the game, Caitlin also set a new career record. The Indiana icon contributed 14 points, 13 assists, and 3 rebounds in 25 minutes of play.

However, Clark also became the fastest point guard in WNBA history to reach 100 assists in a single season.

This is not only significant for the achievement itself, but considering that she has missed 10 games this season due to two injuries, this number is simply impressive.

Now, Dallas awaits the Las Vegas Aces (10-11) next Wednesday, the 16th, at the College Park Center. Meanwhile, the Connecticut Sun (3-17) is preparing to host Clark and the Fever at TD Garden on Tuesday, the 15th.

For the first time as professionals, Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers shared the court on Sunday as the Indiana Fever, entering at 10-10, hosted the 6-15 Dallas Wings — a team currently in the midst of a rebuild, with Bueckers now serving as the face of the franchise.

The Fever took a commanding 64-42 lead into halftime, and during the first half, both Bueckers and Clark managed to make unprecedented WNBA history.

Bueckers became tied as the fifth-fastest guard in league history to reach 300 career points. Shortly after, Clark set a record of her own, becoming the fastest guard in WNBA history to reach 100 assists in a single season — an especially impressive feat considering she has missed 10 games this year, including the Commissioner’s Cup.