Azzi Fudd Listed As Questionable For Dallas Wings Against Minnesota Lynx

MINNEAPOLIS — Dallas Wings rookie guard Azzi Fudd is listed as questionable with a right knee injury for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Lynx. Forward Alysha Clark appears on the same report as out with a back injury.

Fudd did not play in Friday’s 94-76 loss to the Golden State Valkyries at American Airlines Center. She went through warmups that evening, felt soreness in the right knee, and Dallas ruled her out as a precaution. The cause of the soreness is not clear.

Sunday marks the fourth and final meeting between the two teams this season.

Azzi Fudd’s Rookie Season Entering Sunday

Through 30 games, the first overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft is averaging 13.1 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. She has started 24 of them and is playing 31.7 minutes a night. Fudd is shooting 45.6% from the field and 39.7% from 3-point range. Her 2.1 made 3-pointers per game lead the Wings, and so do her 1.7 steals.

At All-Star Weekend in Chicago on July 24, Fudd won the 3-Point Contest. She was the first rookie in league history to take the event.

Fudd had a team-high 3 steals in the August 5 loss at the Washington Mystics and moved past 50 for her career. She reached 50 steals and 50 made 3-pointers in 30 games, which the Wings list as the fastest any player has done it since the 2002 season. Tamika Catchings got there in 22 games and Sue Bird in 27.

Her right knee carries a long history. Fudd tore the ACL and MCL in that knee in 2019, before she enrolled at UConn, and underwent two separate surgeries. In December 2022, a teammate fell on the same knee during a loss at Notre Dame, and she missed roughly two months across two stints. On November 14, 2023, Fudd tore the ACL and medial meniscus in the right knee during a practice, which ended her 2023-24 season.

Jose Fernandez On The Dallas Wings’ Minutes Load

Friday was the fifth game in a stretch of six in 12 days, and the fourth game Dallas has played since the WNBA trade deadline passed August 2.

Wings coach Jose Fernandez said he pulled his starters with roughly 3:45 remaining and Dallas trailing by 17 because of the quick turnaround to Minnesota.

“Oh, I mean, you look at today and you look at the Connecticut game, the minute output’s pretty low, right?” Fernandez said. “And if you do the averages of those four, of Jess, right, Jess, Fudd, Arike, and Paige, they were all in those previous four games. They averaged around 33, 34 minutes in those four. I mean, it’s playoff basketball. It’s the stretch now. Are we all disappointed today? Yeah. Staff, players, everybody.”

Fernandez said Dallas rested Paige Bueckers for the final minute and a half of the first quarter and the opening of the second, and did the same in the second half, with the Washington game, Friday’s game, and Sunday’s game all in view. He also said fatigue is league-wide at this point of the calendar and pointed to the minutes played in the Las Vegas Aces and Indiana Fever games a day earlier.

Aziaha James Started In Azzi Fudd’s Place

Aziaha James drew the start Friday and scored 13 points. That was her highest total since a season-high 18 on June 22 against the Seattle Storm. The 12th overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft is averaging 5.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists across 29 games in her second season.

James said she has taken the post-All-Star schedule day by day and that the group has stayed together through it.

“Recovery,” James said. “You know, this is the second part of the season, and this is where wear and tear is starting to happen. You know, getting ready for playoffs, just staying prepared, getting to film, getting rest, recovery, just making sure the body’s straight.”

Bueckers led Dallas with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting and 2-of-4 from 3-point range. She passed 600 points for the season in the game, becoming the fifth player to reach the mark this year. Alanna Smith added 11 points and 6 rebounds, her third double-digit scoring game in her last four.

Jessica Shepard pulled down 11 boards for her 22nd game this season with at least 10 rebounds, tied with Angel Reese for the most such games in the WNBA this year. Her 375 rebounds are a Wings single-season record. Awak Kuier recorded her 10th game of the season with at least 2 blocks and sits one shy of 100 for her career.

Dallas earned 38 free-throw attempts Friday, a season high and its most in a game since 2022. Fernandez said the Wings missed 11 of them.

Clark signed a one-year contract with Dallas on April 14. The 38-year-old forward has appeared in 20 games this season, all off the bench, averaging 1.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.5 assists in 9.1 minutes. Her most recent appearance came August 2 against the Connecticut Sun. Clark is in her 13th WNBA season and has played 443 regular-season games.

Dallas Wings Have Lost Seven Straight To Minnesota Lynx

Dallas enters Sunday at 19-13 and fourth in the Western Conference. Minnesota is 26-7, first in the West, and has clinched a playoff berth.

The Lynx have won all three meetings this season. Minnesota took the first 90-86 on May 14 in Dallas, the second 100-76 on June 9 in Minneapolis, and the third 85-77 on June 28 in Dallas. Dallas has not beaten Minnesota in the regular season since August 30, 2024, a run of seven straight losses. Minnesota leads the all-time series 60-21.

Minnesota beat Las Vegas 98-87 at home Saturday afternoon. All five Lynx starters finished in double figures. Olivia Miles led Minnesota with 26 points and Napheesa Collier added 22.

Sunday closes the stretch of six games in 12 days for Dallas that opened July 29 against the Atlanta Dream.

Tip-off at Target Center is set for 2:30 p.m. CT. NBC carries the game nationally, and Peacock streams it.