The 2020 Dallas Wings are a team in transition.
The team lacks an All-WNBA talent, has no all-stars and the most experienced players have just 4 years of WNBA experience under their belts.
None of that fazes Wings President Greg Bibb.
During his media availability on Friday, Bibb was keen to stress the potential in his very young roster and is clear on his all-star talent.
“I thought Arike should have been an all-star last year, so in my mind, we have one.”
Arike Ogunbowale, in just her second WNBA season, is preparing to spearhead the Wings in what will be a very unique set of circumstances.
Alongside former Notre Dame teammate and second-year star Marina Mabrey and the experienced Spanish international Astou Ndour, the Dallas Wings are one of the most intriguing teams in the WNBA this season.
The lack of obvious leaders could be seen as a negative, but Bibb is confident that his team will grow together and grow quickly in this unique environment. “It allows the team to organically grow and anoint leaders in the locker room and we’ve got a number of candidates that will present themselves to be those leaders.”
Bibb is confident that he has the coaching and the roster in place for a successful season, but that wins and losses won’t be the only measure of success. “As long as we’re progressing, and I can see that progress with a very young team, that by the end of the season we are notably better than we began.”
The Texas outfit made big moves in the off-season, trading away All-WNBA star Skylar Diggins-Smith to the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for three first-round draft pick. The Wings were aggressive in acquiring draft picks and used them well, to acquire Ndour from the Chicago Sky and would select no fewer than three players in the first round of the 2020 draft.
Wing’s President Greg Bibb, who is hopeful that his young team can play above 500 ball in the bubble, and is encouraged by the roster’s shooting and versatility.
“We value versatility … [we have] many players that can play multiple positions, some cases up to three different positions. That gives a lot of flexibility and opportunity to the coaching staff..”
“I hope that we’re a 500 or better team this year, I think that largely we’re more skilled in some ways, along with the versatility perspective…[and] shooting the basketball. We’ve struggled with that and we’ve prioritised bringing shooters onto the roster this year… I’m pretty confident we’re going to shoot the ball better this year than we have in the recent past.”
Of the rookies looking to lead the way for the Wings in 2020 is Rookie Satou Sabally out of Oregon. Sabally will be looking to impact the league through more than just her on-court actions.
Sabally was appointed to the newly formed WNBA social justice council and Bibb was full of praise for the Forward. “[It] speaks to Satou, and the extraordinary young woman she is’ He continued “being appointed to such an important committee at such an important time and I’m so proud of her for having that opportunity and knowing she’ll make the most of it.”
This will be one of the most intriguing and challenging the seasons the WNBA has ever had, from the compressed schedule to teammates being in close proximity for more time than they normally would, to players coming off the longest break some may have ever experienced.
The season has taken a long time to get here, and there are questions over it will be able to be completed, but today, Bibb is certain about one thing. “It was great to the basketball bouncing on the hardwood this morning.”
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