Dallas Wings Star Could Be Highly Sought After in WNBA Expansion Draft

The WNBA is getting ready for a loaded and compact offseason. The CBA was just agreed to by the league and the players' union last week, which gives us a short runway for a lot of activity.

One of those scheduled events is the expansion draft, which will take place on April 3rd. That gives teams a short timeframe to consider who they'd like to protect and leave unprotected.

The Dallas Wings will have their hands full with who they decide to protect. Even if they performed poorly last season, they still have a lot of intriguing young talent. Paige Bueckers and Maddy Siegrist are obvious players to protect, but everything else from there is up in the air, as they can only protect 5 players. That could make the Wings leave a player like Arike Ogunbowale unprotected, which would make her the top player on the expansion draft board, per Sabreena Merchant of The Athletic.

"The Dallas Wings have some tough decisions to make on their protected list. Assuming they prioritize youth to build around Paige Bueckers, that could leave Ogunbowale unprotected, Merchant wrote. "She is one of the lone UFAs who would actually be worth paying a maximum contract, if not quite a supermax. Ogunbowale can get buckets, even if she isn’t the most efficient scorer, and shot creation is an important skill for an expansion team. This isn’t to say that Toronto or Portland would necessarily prioritize a high-usage guard as their first pick, but there’s no denying Ogunbowale’s talent."

Aug 8, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale (24) in action during the game between the Dallas Wings and the New York Liberty at College Park Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Who Will the Dallas Wings Protect in the Expansion Draft?

The Dallas Wings will have a big decision to make about protecting players, especially since they can only protect 5. Paige Bueckers and Maddy Siegrist are shoo-ins, but what about the other three spots?

Dallas can choose to protect players on the roster, players set to be free agents, or players they drafted who are not currently with the team. That last note could be big, as the Wings could choose to protect Awak Kuier. They selected her with the 2nd overall pick in 2021, but she has spent the last few years playing overseas. With the improved player salaries that the new CBA provides, even for players on rookie contracts, that could convince her to come back to the WNBA.

Other than her, Aziaha James also seems like a safe bet to protect. She played well in her rookie season and is another young player to build around.

If the Wings protect Bueckers, Kuier, Siegrist, and James, that would leave the final protection to come down to Arike Ogunbowale, Li Yueru, JJ Quinerly, and Diamond Miller, more than likely.

Who Will the Dallas Wings Protect in the Expansion Draft?

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