ARLINGTON, Texas — Aziaha James was ruled out during the Dallas Wings‘ 94-88 win over the Toronto Tempo on Wednesday after suffering a right leg injury at College Park Center.
James went down trying to take a charge when a Toronto player landed awkwardly on her leg. The injury happened in the second half, and Dallas ruled her out for the rest of the game.
Wings coach José Fernández did not have an immediate update afterward.
“No,” Fernández said when asked if he had learned anything more about the injury. “As you know, we’re leaving to Indiana tomorrow, so we’ll know more as we head into the night, going into tomorrow.”
James scored 2 points with 3 rebounds and 1 assist, shooting 1-of-5 overall and 0-of-2 from 3-point.
Dallas Wings Finish Game With Seven Available Players
James’ injury made Dallas even shorter-handed.
Azzi Fudd missed her third game due to right knee soreness; Jessica Shepard was out with a right ankle injury. Dallas dressed eight players against Toronto and finished with seven after James went down.
Fernández said the injury changed Dallas’ rotation late. Paige Bueckers rested late in the third quarter but returned to defend Marina Mabrey after James was injured. Bueckers scored all 22 of her points in the second half and finished with 8 assists.
Fudd and Shepard were both considered day-to-day entering Wednesday. Fudd was a late scratch with right knee soreness before the Aug. 7 loss to the Golden State Valkyries at American Airlines Center.
Aziaha James Had Been Finding A Larger Role
James entered Wednesday coming off one of her best stretches of the season.
She scored a season-high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting in 15 minutes Sunday against the Minnesota Lynx, adding 6 rebounds and 2 assists. James also started in place of Fudd against Golden State on Aug. 7 and finished with 13 points in 27 minutes.
Through 33 games, James averages 6.2 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 11.5 minutes, with two starts, shooting 39.0% from the field and 23.1% from three.
Dallas picked James 12th in the 2025 WNBA Draft from NC State. She averaged 7.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 38 games as a rookie, including eight starts.
Dallas Wings Head To Indiana With Health Questions
The Wings built an 18-point lead before Toronto cut it to three in the final five minutes, but Dallas held on for the 94-88 win.
Fernández pointed to his team’s response after recent losses to Golden State and Minnesota.
“After the Golden State game, we learned a lot about each other and them holding each other accountable,” Fernández said. “I thought we went to Minnesota and played well. McBride had a special evening, right? I thought our effort and energy was totally different than Golden State. And coming back home and them responding and doing what we did today was a lot different than what we saw at American Airlines. So that was a positive.”
“But I think if Awak continues to be active with great rim runs and getting stuff off the glass and stretching the floor, you know, that’s what we need,” Fernández continued. “So we’ll go to Indiana and figure out how many guys are healthy at Indiana and go from there.”
The win moved Dallas to 20-14. The Wings travel to Indianapolis on Thursday and face the Indiana Fever on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Dallas has won both meetings with Indiana this season. Friday’s game will air on ION.
