As Azzi Fudd begins her rookie season with the Dallas Wings after being selected No. 1 in the 2026 WNBA Draft, head coach Jose Fernandez has clear expectations for her with the ball, and she is already following them closely.

“I had to yell at her and tell her, ‘Hey, man, you’re not going to pass up open shots,'” said Jose Fernandez after Azzi Fudd hesitated to shoot on her first day training with the Wings, and she later admitted she was a bit gun-shy.

“Seems to be a common trend. I mean, I don’t know! I want to share the love. But remembering to shoot when I’m open, my teammates remind me of that. So it will be an easy adjustment," Fudd said in her post-training interview, responding to Jose Fernandez’s comments, per an X post from Landon Thomas.

Fernandez is intimately familiar with Fudd's scoring profile. She’s a natural scorer with a shoot-first mindset, quick release, and strong three-point ability, reflected in her 44.7 shooting percentage.

But the best part of Fudd's game is that she doesn't need the ball in her hands to be good; she's a natural off-ball shooter. Fernandez wants her to stop doubting herself and just be the shooter she is.

Fudd's collegiate efficiency justifies the coach's green light. She can help the Wings score more after a tough season last year.

She averaged 17.3 points per game at UConn, where she shot 48.1% overall, 44.7% from three, and 95.5% from the free-throw line.

As she gets a better idea of what her job is, her relationship with fellow star player Paige Bueckers, with whom she won the 2025 NCAA championship, stays strong.

Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers Are Back Together in Dallas

During Sunday's training camp, Fudd praised Bueckers' mental approach.

"I think that's something special about Paige is that her mindset is phenomenal," Fudd said. "The way she goes about things, she always takes it as a challenge, as an opportunity to grow.

"So last year… She's not used to losing, but how can she take those losses and continue to grow, continue to be a great leader, make everyone around her better," Fudd added.

That growth was important, especially since Dallas had a hard time last season and finished with a 10-34 record, which was the worst in the league along with Chicago.

They've known each other for a long time. They first met at USA Basketball's U16 camp in 2017, then won a national championship together at UConn in 2025. Now they're going after bigger goals in the WNBA.

What do you think about the reunion of Fudd and Bueckers in Dallas? Let us know in the comments below.

Follow She Got Game for more!

Written by

Sauramita Debbarma

Edited by

Utsav Gupta