After getting injured in Sunday’s game against Villanova, the stadium went quiet as Paige Bueckers limped off the court, having had a defending player land on her left knee. After what seemed like the whole of UConn’s fanbase holding their breaths, Bueckers returned to the court as an assistant iced her knee, a towel over her head and tears on her face. Yesterday, it was reported that it nothing more than a knee sprain and not a season-ending injury. Bueckers is expected to be back soon but meanwhile, there are questions already arising about her WNBA status.

After Caitlin Clark left for the pro league in 2024 and Bueckers decided to extend her college career in Connecticut, the redshirt senior has largely been considered the first pick in 2025. With Dallas Wings having the pick of the No. 1 player, Zora Stephenson recently discussed Bueckers’ changing status on The Ringer with Seerat Sohi, as Olivia Miles might take over. “There stats are both great. To me, Notre Dame is doing better than UConn, both top teams in the country.”

But where the Huskies have been performing lower than their best, the Fighting Irish have been better than ever. “Paige averages 20 points per game, 40% from three, four assists. Olivia Miles 17 points per game, 48% from the three-point line, which is a huge increase for her, and she’s still dropping seven dime,” Stephenson says.

For her, the current Wings roster has enough ball handlers that Bueckers might actually not fit in well. Describing her game as ‘perfect’, both Sohi and Stephenson agree that it’s both her greatest strength and weakness sometimes. Bueckers was originally ahead of Caitlin Clark in the 2020 class and has played brilliantly when healthy. It’s injuries that have slowed her down and her recent one is not helping her case.

Olivia Miles, who also came back from surgery in this season and stepped on the court for the first time since Feb. 2023, has been having one of the best seasons of her career so far. The Notre Dame senior is leading the NCAA in assists per game for the third time in her college career and is a dominant offensive presence.

Usually, so is Bueckers, but as Stephenson noted, her shooting percentage is down. “What you see with Olivia is how she plays with another primary ball handler in Hannah Hidalgo…Olivia has proven that she can pivot and mould her game to the talent around her,” she says on the podcast.

While Miles is in conversation to replace Bueckers as the No. 1 pick, she is also two years younger than Bueckers. Additionally, while the Wings have the choice of the No. 1, so does the Huskies player herself.

Paige Bueckers on being the possible No. 1 draft pick

For the most part, Paige Bueckers has been keeping her head down and focusing on her game. She said as much when the results from the Draft Lottery were revealed and Dallas won first pick.

“People think I’m lying. I actually didn’t watch it, it was giving me too much anxiety,” Bueckers said, per X user @JN21666. “So I just decided to… whatever was going to happen, regardless of whether I was watching or not, so I just kind of let the things happen and figure out after.”

“I honestly don’t want to get complacent. I want to stay humble, stay grounded, stay in the moment. Nothing in the future is guaranteed, so just taking every moment as it is. I’m a firm believer in God has a plan for me, so whatever that is, I’m ready to do it.”

Well, looks like she’s ready to go with the flow. Bueckers does have the option of extending her college career one more year if she chooses to, because the fifth year was for the NCAA championship. With all the problems assailing the UConn group, it’s anyone’s guess at this point if the Huskies can win the ultimate championship or not. Either way, what will Paige Bueckers do?