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Dallas Wings
Dallas Wings logo
Conference Western
League WNBA
Founded 1998; 25 years ago (1998)
History Detroit Shock
1998–2009
Tulsa Shock
2010–2015
Dallas Wings
2016–present
Arena College Park Center
Location University of Texas at Arlington
Arlington, Texas
Team colors Navy, volt green, blue, cyan
                   
Main sponsor American Fidelity
President Greg Bibb
Head coach Latricia Trammell
Assistant(s) Brandi Poole
Ownership Bill Cameron
Chris Christian
Mark Yancey
Greg Bibb
University of Texas at Arlington
Championships 3 (2003, 2006, 2008)
Conference titles 4 (2003, 2006, 2007, 2008)
Kit body dallaswings heroine21.png
Heroine jersey
Kit shorts dallaswings heroine21.png
Team colours
Heroine
Kit body dallaswings explorer21.png
Explorer jersey
Kit shorts dallaswings explorer21.png
Team colours
Explorer

The Dallas Wings are an American basketball team based in Arlington, Texas. The Wings play in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team is owned by a group which is led by chairman Bill Cameron. Greg Bibb is president and CEO. Brad Hilsabeck joined the Dallas Wings ownership group in March 2019 with the acquisition of Mark Yancey’s interest in the Wings.

The team was founded in Auburn Hills, Michigan, before the 1998 WNBA season began and moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, before the 2010 season; on July 20, 2015, Cameron announced that the franchise would move to Arlington for the 2016 WNBA season.

The franchise has been home to players such as shooting guard Deanna Nolan, one of women's basketball's all-time leading scorers Katie Smith, Cheryl Ford, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Odyssey Sims, and Australian center Liz Cambage.

Franchise history

The Detroit Shock (1998–2009)

The Shock were one of the first WNBA expansion teams and began play in 1998. The Shock quickly brought in a blend of rookies and veterans, but only qualified for the postseason once in its first five years of existence. The Shock went through two coaches (hall of famer Nancy Lieberman and Greg Williams) before hiring former Detroit Pistons legend Bill Laimbeer. There were rumors the Shock would fold after the team's awful 2002 season. Laimbeer convinced the owners to keep the team for another year, certain that he could turn things around. The Shock would finish the next season with a 25–9 record and defeated the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Sparks in the 2003 WNBA Finals. Detroit became the first team in league history to go from last place one season to WNBA champions the next season.

After a couple seasons of losing in the first round of the playoffs, the Detroit Shock returned to success and would appear in three straight Finals from 2006 to 2008. They won the WNBA championship in 2006 over the Sacramento Monarchs and 2008 over the San Antonio Silver Stars, but lost to the Phoenix Mercury in 2007.

The Tulsa Shock (2010–2015)

Tulsa had been mentioned as a possible future city for WNBA expansion, but efforts did not come together until the middle of 2009. An organizing committee with Tulsa businesspeople and politicians began the effort to attract an expansion team. The group was originally given a September 1 deadline, however, WNBA President Donna Orender extended that deadline into October. The investment group hired former University of Arkansas head coach Nolan Richardson as the potential franchise general manager and head coach, and on October 15, 2009, the group made its official request to join the league.

On October 20, 2009, WNBA President Donna Orender, lead investors Bill Cameron and David Box, Tulsa mayor Kathy Taylor, Oklahoma governor Brad Henry, and head coach Nolan Richardson were present for a press conference announcing that the Detroit Shock would relocate to Tulsa. On January 23, 2010, the franchise announced that the team would remain as the Shock but the colors were changed to black, red, and gold.

On July 20, 2015, majority owner Bill Cameron announced he was moving the team to Dallas-Fort Worth.

Dallas Wings (2016–present)

Minnesota Lynx vs. Dallas Wings June 2019 27 (in-game action)
The 2019 Wings in action against Minnesota

On July 23, 2015, WNBA League owners unanimously approved the Tulsa Shock's relocation to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex to play out of the College Park Center at the University of Texas at Arlington. College Park Center is also home to the UT Arlington Mavericks basketball and volleyball teams. At a press conference at College Park Center on November 2, 2015, it was announced that the team was renamed the Dallas Wings.

Uniforms

Uniforms were revealed at the First Annual Wings Draft Party April 14, 2016. The light uniforms were primarily lime green while the dark uniforms were predominantly blue. As a result of a league-wide initiative for its 20th season, all games featured all-color uniform matchups, thus no white uniforms were unveiled for this season.

Season-by-season records

Season Team Conference Regular season Playoff Results Head coach
W L PCT
Detroit Shock
1998 1998 East 4th 17 13 .567 Did not qualify Nancy Lieberman
1999 1999 East 2nd 15 17 .469 Lost Conference Semi-finals (Charlotte, 0–1) Nancy Lieberman
2000 2000 East 5th 14 18 .438 Did not qualify Nancy Lieberman
2001 2001 East 7th 10 22 .313 Did not qualify Greg Williams
2002 2002 East 8th 9 23 .281 Did not qualify G. Williams (0–10)
B. Laimbeer (9–13)
2003 2003 East 1st 25 9 .735 Won Conference Semi-finals (Cleveland, 2–1)
Won Conference Finals (Connecticut, 2–0)
Won WNBA Finals (Los Angeles, 2–1)
Bill Laimbeer
2004 2004 East 3rd 17 17 .500 Lost Conference Semi-finals (New York, 1–2) Bill Laimbeer
2005 2005 East 4th 16 18 .471 Lost Conference Semi-finals (Connecticut, 0–2) Bill Laimbeer
2006 2006 East 2nd 23 11 .676 Won Conference Semi-finals (Indiana, 2–0)
Won Conference Finals (Connecticut, 2–1)
Won WNBA Finals (Sacramento, 3–2)
Bill Laimbeer
2007 2007 East 1st 24 10 .706 Won Conference Semi-finals (New York, 2–1)
Won Conference Finals (Indiana, 2–1)
Lost WNBA Finals (Phoenix, 2–3)
Bill Laimbeer
2008 2008 East 1st 22 12 .647 Won Conference Semi-finals (Indiana, 2–1)
Won Conference Finals (New York, 2–1)
Won WNBA Finals (San Antonio, 3–0)
Bill Laimbeer
2009 2009 East 3rd 18 16 .529 Won Conference Semi-finals (Atlanta, 2–0)
Lost Conference Finals (Indiana, 1–2)
B. Laimbeer (1–3)
R. Mahorn (17–13)
Tulsa Shock
2010 2010 West 6th 6 28 .176 Did not qualify Nolan Richardson
2011 2011 West 6th 3 31 .088 Did not qualify N. Richardson (1–10)
T. Edwards (2–21)
2012 2012 West 5th 9 25 .265 Did not qualify Gary Kloppenburg
2013 2013 West 6th 11 23 .324 Did not qualify Gary Kloppenburg
2014 2014 West 5th 12 22 .353 Did not qualify Fred Williams
2015 2015 West 3rd 18 16 .529 Lost Conference Semi-finals (Phoenix, 0–2) Fred Williams
Dallas Wings
2016 2016 West 5th 11 23 .324 Did not qualify Fred Williams
2017 2017 West 4th 16 18 .470 Lost in first round to Washington Fred Williams
2018 2018 West 5th 15 19 .441 Lost in first round to Phoenix F. Williams (14–17)
T. McWilliams-Franklin (1–2)
2019 2019 West 6th 10 24 .294 Did not qualify Brian Agler
2020 2020 West 6th 8 14 .364 Did not qualify Brian Agler
2021 2021 West 5th 14 18 .438 Lost in first round to Chicago Vickie Johnson
2022 2022 West 3rd 18 18 .500 Lost First round (Connecticut, 1–2) Vickie Johnson
Regular season 361 465 .437 4 Conference Championships
Playoffs 31 25 .554 3 WNBA Championships

Players

Current roster

Former Players

Sorted by Team They Last Played For

Detroit Shock

  • Jennifer Azzi (1999)
  • Carla Boyd (1998–1999, 2001)
  • Sandy Brondello (1998–1999), now the head coach of the New York Liberty and the Australia national team
  • Dominique Canty (1999–2002)
  • Swin Cash (2002–2007), now the Vice President of Basketball Operations and Team Development for the New Orleans Pelicans
  • Barbara Farris (2000–2005, 2009)
    University of Texas at Arlington March 2021 008 (College Park Center)
    College Park Center, home of the Wings
  • Cheryl Ford (2003–2008)
  • Tasha Humphrey (2008)
  • Shannon Johnson (2007)
  • Taj McWilliams-Franklin (2008–2009)
  • Astou Ndiaye-Diatta (1999–2003)
  • Deanna Nolan (2001–2009)
  • Wendy Palmer (1999–2002)
  • Elaine Powell (2002–2008)
  • Ruth Riley (2003–2006)
  • Sheri Sam (2008)
  • Katie Smith (2005–2009), now an assistant coach for the Minnesota Lynx

Tulsa Shock

  • Kara Braxton (2005–2010)
  • Alexis Hornbuckle (2008–2010)
  • Temeka Johnson (2012)
  • Marion Jones (2010–2011)
  • Ivory Latta (2007, 2010–2012)
  • Kayla Pedersen (2011–2013)
  • Nicole Powell (2013), now the head coach of the UC Riverside Highlanders women's basketball
  • Sheryl Swoopes (2011)
  • Shavonte Zellous (2009–2010)

Dallas Wings

Coaches and staff

Owners

  • William Davidson, owner of the Detroit Pistons (1998–2009)
  • Tulsa Pro Hoops LLC, composed of Bill Cameron, David Box, Chris Christian, Sam and Rita Combs, and Paula Marshall.
  • Bill Cameron (majority owner) is chairman and Chris Christian is vice chairman/managing partner and Mark Yancey (2015–present)

Head coaches

Detroit Shock Head Coaches
Name Start End Seasons Regular season Playoffs
W L PCT G W L PCT G
Nancy Lieberman January 12, 1998 August 28, 2000 3 46 48 .489 94 0 1 .000 1
Greg Williams September 20, 2000 June 19, 2002 2 10 32 .238 42 0 0 .000 0
Bill Laimbeer June 19, 2002 July 15, 2009 8 137 93 .596 230 27 16 .628 43
Rick Mahorn July 15, 2009 end of 2009 1 17 13 .567 30 3 2 .600 5
Tulsa Shock Head Coaches
Nolan Richardson September 29, 2009 July 8, 2011 2 7 38 .156 45 0 0 .000 0
Teresa Edwards July 8, 2011 January 3, 2012 1 2 21 .087 23 0 0 .000 0
Gary Kloppenburg January 3, 2012 October 15, 2013 2 20 48 .313 68 0 0 .000 0
Dallas Wings Head Coaches
Fred Williams January 23, 2014 August 13, 2018 5 71 96 .425 167 0 3 .000 3
Taj McWilliams-Franklin August 13, 2018 December 18, 2018 1 1 2 .333 3 0 1 .000 1
Brian Agler December 18, 2018 October 14, 2020 2 18 38 .321 56 0 0 .000 0
Vickie Johnson December 9, 2020 September 19, 2022 2 32 36 .471 68 1 2 .333 3
Latricia Trammell November 7, 2022 Present 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Interim head coach

General managers

  • Nancy Lieberman (1998–2000)
  • Greg Williams (2000–2002)
  • Bill Laimbeer (2002–2009)
  • Cheryl Reeve (2009)
  • Nolan Richardson (2010–2011)
  • Teresa Edwards (2011)
  • Gary Kloppenburg (2012–2013)
  • Fred Williams (2014–2015)
  • Greg Bibb (2016–present)

Assistant coaches

  • Steve Smith (1998–2001)
  • Greg Williams (1998–2000)
  • Tom Cross (2001–2002)
  • Frank Schneider (2002)
  • Laurie Byrd (2003–2005)
  • Pam McGee (2003)
  • Korie Hlede (2004)
  • Rick Mahorn (2005–2009)
  • Cheryl Reeve (2006–2009)
  • Tammy Bagby (2010)
  • Wayne Stehlik (2010–2011)
  • Teresa Edwards (2011)
  • Tracy Murray (2011)
  • Kathy McConnell-Miller (2011–2012)
  • Jason Glover (2012–2013)
  • Stacey Lovelace-Tolbert (2013)
  • Bridget Pettis (2014–2017)
  • Ed Baldwin (2014–2016)
  • Taj McWilliams-Franklin (2017–2018)
  • Erin Phillips (2018–2020)
  • Travis Charles (2018–2020)
  • Crystal Robinson (2019–2020)
  • Le'Coe Willingham (2021–Present)
  • Kelly Schumacher (2021–Present)
  • Tim Gittens (2021–Present)
  • Brandi Poole (2022–Present)

Hall of Famers

Statistics

Dallas Wings statistics
1990s
Season Individual Team vs Opponents
PPG RPG APG PPG RPG FG%
1998 S. Brondello (14.2) C. Brown (10.0) S. Brondello (3.3) 69.6 vs 69.3 35.9 vs 31.6 .411 vs .411
1999 S. Brondello (13.3) V. Whiting-Raymond (6.7) J. Azzi (3.8) 70.0 vs 72.0 31.1 vs 32.2 .401 vs .437
2000s
Season Individual Team vs Opponents
PPG RPG APG PPG RPG FG%
2000 W. Palmer (13.8) W. Palmer (6.8) D. Canty (2.9) 72.8 vs 75.8 30.8 vs 30.3 .438 vs .460
2001 A. Ndiaye-Diatta (11.8) W. Palmer (7.0) E. Brown (2.7) 65.7 vs 70.9 29.5 vs 30.7 .404 vs .462
2002 S. Cash (14.8) S. Cash (6.9) D. Canty (3.0) 66.1 vs 70.8 33.7 vs 30.7 .399 vs .417
2003 S. Cash (16.6) C. Ford (10.4) E. Powell (3.9) 75.1 vs 70.4 36.2 vs 31.3 .450 vs .399
2004 S. Cash (16.4) C. Ford (9.6) E. Powell (4.5) 69.6 vs 70.0 34.4 vs 31.0 .417 vs .410
2005 D. Nolan (15.9) C. Ford (9.8) D. Nolan (3.7) 66.1 vs 67.3 35.7 vs 29.9 .403 vs .403
2006 C. Ford (13.8) C. Ford (11.3) D. Nolan (3.6) 74.3 vs 70.1 37.8 vs 31.9 .414 vs .388
2007 D. Nolan (16.3) S. Cash (6.1) D. Nolan (3.9) 79.3 vs 74.7 38.6 vs 32.0 .430 vs .396
2008 D. Nolan (15.8) C. Ford (8.7) D. Nolan (4.4) 78.6 vs 74.2 36.7 vs 31.9 .424 vs .405
2009 D. Nolan (16.9) C. Ford (7.4) D. Nolan (3.5) 78.0 vs 77.8 36.1 vs 32.4 .430 vs .410
2010s
Season Individual Team vs Opponents
PPG RPG APG PPG RPG FG%
2010 I. Latta (12.4) C. Black (6.5) I. Latta (3.9) 78.0 vs 89.8 31.6 vs 37.5 .424 vs .470
2011 T. Jackson (12.4) T. Jackson (8.4) I. Latta (3.2) 69.2 vs 82.1 30.7 vs 32.6 .396 vs .484
2012 I. Latta (14.3) G. Johnson (6.8) T. Johnson (4.7) 77.2 vs 84.2 29.5 vs 37.1 .405 vs .477
2013 L. Cambage (16.3) G. Johnson (8.9) S. Diggins (3.8) 77.0 vs 79.2 32.8 vs 35.7 .405 vs .451
2014 S. Diggins-Smith (20.1) C. Paris (10.2) S. Diggins-Smith (5.0) 81.3 vs 83.3 34.6 vs 33.8 .428 vs .468
2015 S. Diggins-Smith (17.8) C. Paris (9.3) S. Diggins-Smith (5.0) 77.7 vs 77.1 35.6 vs 33.6 .395 vs .445
2016 O. Sims (14.0) G. Johnson (8.9) O. Sims (3.9) 82.6 vs 88.2 34.1 vs 36.2 .400 vs .476
2017 S. Diggins-Smith (18.5) G. Johnson (9.1) S. Diggins-Smith (5.8) 86.1 vs 88.8 34.5 vs 34.7 .406 vs .481
2018 L. Cambage (23.0) L. Cambage (9.7) S. Diggins-Smith (6.2) 86.6 vs 85.4 36.6 vs 32.2 .441 vs .448
2019 A. Ogunbowale (19.1) I. Harrison (5.8) A. Ogunbowale (3.2) 71.6 vs 77.4 33.9 vs 33.5 .389 vs .430
2020s
Season Individual Team vs Opponents
PPG RPG APG PPG RPG FG%
2020 A. Ogunbowale (22.8) S. Sabally (7.8) A. Ogunbowale (3.5) 83.4 vs 87.0 32.7 vs 36.5 .415 vs .471
2021 A. Ogunbowale (18.7) I. Harrison / S. Sabally (5.9) A. Ogunbowale (3.3) 81.1 vs. 81.7 36.1 vs. 33.6 .420 vs. .449
2021 A. Ogunbowale (19.7) T. McCowan (7.0) M. Mabrey (3.7) 82.9 vs. 82.8 33.8 vs. 32.7 .435 vs. .459

Media coverage

Previously, while in Tulsa, some Shock games were broadcast locally on The Cox Channel (COX). The broadcasters for the Shock games were Mike Wolfe and Shanna Crossley.

Currently, Bally Sports Southwest or Bally Sports Southwest Plus broadcast the majority of games. The 2016 broadcasts featured sportscaster Ron Thulin and Raegan Pebley, the former WNBA player and current head coach of Texas Christian University's women's basketball team, on the call. All games (excluding blackout games, which are available on ESPN3.com) are broadcast to the WNBA LiveAccess game feeds on the league website. Furthermore, some games are broadcast nationally on ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, CBS Sports Network and ABC.

See also

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