DALLAS — Azzi Fudd’s introductory news conference Thursday in a Hyatt Regency meeting room overflowing with friends, family, media, a half-dozen of her new Wings teammates and a 7-foot gecko taught us a few things about the latest No. 1 pick from UConn. Like the fact that she once hit a shot to beat her new coach in college. Or that her mom played in the WNBA. Or that she stars in a new ...

Azzi Fudd #35 of the UConn Huskies reacts with Paige Bueckers #5 during the second half against the USC Trojans in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Spokane Arena on March 31, 2025, in Spokane, Washington.

Steph Chambers/Getty Images North America/TNS

DALLAS — Azzi Fudd’s introductory news conference Thursday in a Hyatt Regency meeting room overflowing with friends, family, media, a half-dozen of her new Wings teammates and a 7-foot gecko taught us a few things about the latest No. 1 pick from UConn.

Like the fact that she once hit a shot to beat her new coach in college. Or that her mom played in the WNBA. Or that she stars in a new commercial with the company repped by the aforementioned lizard.

We also learned she loves barbecue, wants to visit the Stockyards and would like to buy a cowboy hat to match the new black boots she wore Thursday.

But the first thing you might have wanted to know, as to whether she’s still dating her new/old teammate, Paige Bueckers?

Don’t ask.

I tried.

No sooner did yours truly pose the question as well as a follow-up about whether they’d sought the counsel of the WNBA’s other couples than the Wings’ moderator interceded.

“I understand why you have to ask that question,” Pam Flenke said, “but we’re going to respectfully decline from commenting on players’ personal lives.”

Before getting to the opportunity missed Thursday, as well as the unfortunate statement made in its place, let’s get this straight: It’s not as if I broke any news. The relationship went viral when Bueckers announced it last summer.

On TikTok, no less.

Now all of a sudden the subject is off-limits, which is not a little ironic, considering it just moved from TMZ material to mainstream news story.

As far as I can tell, this is the first time in any sport a player taken with the first pick of the draft could be in a relationship with a player already on the team and who just happens to be a former No. 1 pick as well. I mean, what are the odds? Even Fudd said she couldn’t believe in the possibilities until after she got the news.

...

NEW YORK, NEW YORK- APRIL 13: Azzi Fudd of UConn poses with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert after being selected with the first pick in the first round by the Dallas Wings during the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed on Monday, April 13, 2026, in New York City.

Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images North America/TNS

But the story isn’t that the Wings were bad enough two years in a row to end up so fortunate. The news isn’t even an old tale of two young teammates in love.

If that’s still the case, of course.

The story is that, after doing their due diligence, with the wide, wide world to choose from and a cast of candidates including a terrific point guard just down the road at TCU, the Wings may have gone with the one player bound to have a bad day with your best player.

Let me try to put this in perspective: As a partner in a relationship of nearly 40 years, I think I can safely say it’s a good thing the lovely wife and I no longer work in the same building. Living in the same house is occasionally fraught with peril. If I were to throw a basketball to her some days, she might not throw it back.

Not when I was looking, anyway.

Maybe Bueckers and Fudd — if they’re still an item — are mature beyond their years. Maybe they can put aside any grievances for the good of the team.

Maybe they’ll never have a bad day.

But that is not the way to bet, which is why I asked if they’d discussed relationships with any of the WNBA players on record about theirs. Others have made it work. In 2018, the Chicago Sky’s Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot got married. Three years later, they helped their team to a title. Diana Taurasi and Penny Taylor didn’t acknowledge their relationship until after they won three titles with the Mercury, at which point they married.

Curt Miller, the Wings’ GM, has had experience with couples. Back when he was in Connecticut, DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas started dating in 2020, got engaged three years ago and now play for the Mercury. DiJonai Carrington and NaLyssa Smith, both of whom played for the Wings last year, acknowledged their relationship on social media before apparently splitting.

This much is clear: Miller’s not afraid of the potential challenges of couples on the roster, even if he won’t talk about it.

When I asked him after the news conference whose idea it was for the no comment, the players or the organization, he would only say they would “never” comment on athletes’ personal lives. Which sounds good, right? But who’s speaking for whom? Hard to say. While Flenke issued the no comment, Fudd looked a little, well, befuddled. Bueckers wasn’t among the teammates who showed up Thursday in support.

Before you say the media should stay out of athletes’ personal lives, you should know we butt in all the time. The vast majority of stories draw few objections. As Dak Prescott and Dirk Nowitzki and any number of Dallas superstars over the years will tell you, we write about the love lives of male athletes, too. Because your personal life can impact your professional life.