The public relations team for the WNBA’s Dallas Wings put the kibosh on a reporter when they asked #1 overall draft pick Azzi Fudd about her relationship with her girlfriend and now Wings teammate, Paige Bueckers.
Fudd and Bueckers forged their relationship from their time spent together at the University of Connecticut, where they both starred for the Huskies under head coach Geno Auriemma. Bueckes was selected by the Wings last year, and Fudd was taken by Dallas this year.
With two high-profile star players picked at the top of the WNBA draft on the same team. The pairing was always going to get some attention. The fact that they are in a relationship only made the subject more appealing to the media.
However, Wings PR personnel shut down a reporter’s attempt to delve into that relationship while questioning Fudd at Thursday’s media availability.
Kevin Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News asked Fudd, “Paige announced last year on TikTok that y’all were a couple. And I’m wondering if that is still the case, and if so, if y’all have talked to any other couples in the league about how they negotiate that dynamic as pro teammates?”
But before Fudd could answer, the team’s media representatives put an end to it.
“I understand why you have to ask that question, but we’re going to respectfully decline from commenting on our players’ personal lives.”
It seems like an odd way for the team to handle the situation. One is reminded of Harrison Ford’s line as Jack Ryan in Clear and Present Danger, where he tells the president to admit his friendship with a troubled man because the relationship was already known, and there’s no sense in trying to defuse a bomb that has already gone off.
One would think it would make even less sense in the Wings’ case since they drafted the bombs and put them together on the same team. Regardless, if the Wings thought they were defusing a bomb by not allowing reporters to ask about Fudd and Bueckers’ relationship, they’re in the process of finding out they did not.