Azzi Fudd made her WNBA debut on May 9, scoring three points in 18 minutes off the bench as the Dallas Wings outlasted the Indiana Fever 107-104 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
The three points were the fewest ever by a No. 1 overall pick in a WNBA debut, breaking the previous low of four set by Kelsey Plum in 2017. Plum was taken first overall by the then-San Antonio Stars, who moved to Las Vegas in 2018 and became the Aces.
Fudd entered the league as the No. 1 pick after the Wings selected her first overall at the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed in New York City on April 13. She arrived on a team that already had Paige Bueckers, Aziaha James, Arike Ogunbowale and Odyssey Sims in the backcourt, and coach Jose Fernandez said the rookie should keep doing what she is doing because it is her first year in the league. Fernandez also said Dallas has five really talented backcourt players.
Bueckers, who addressed the draft chatter in late April, said Fudd earned the top pick and that it had nothing to do with her. The controversy over whether Bueckers’ relationship with Fudd influenced Dallas’ decision hovered around the selection, but Fudd’s first game offered a simpler answer: the Wings are deep, the minutes are tight and even a top pick has to fit into the rotation when the season starts. The 30th WNBA season opened Friday with three games, and Dallas began it with a road win that showed how thin the margin can be for a debutant trying to make a mark quickly.
For Fudd, the debut was not a splash. It was a start, and in a league that asks rookies to earn every second on the floor, that may be the more important part.
