Azzi Fudd, No 1 pick of Dallas Wings, ruled out for remainder of WNBA season

Dallas Wings rookie Azzi Fudd was ruled out for the remainder of the WNBA season, the team announced on Wednesday. The Wings said she will undergo an arthroscopic procedure in Connecticut early next week and begin rehabilitation immediately afterward.

Fudd was the No 1 overall pick by Dallas in the 2026 WNBA draft after five seasons at UConn; she helped the Huskies win the 2025 national championship and was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player. The 23-year-old has appeared in 30 games this season.

Across those 30 appearances Fudd averaged 13.1 points, 1.8 assists, 1.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 0.83 blocked shots. She leads all WNBA rookies in steals per game, ranks second among first-year players in blocks and third in scoring; her scoring average is the third-highest by a rookie in Wings history.

Fudd has not played since the Wings faced the Washington Mystics on 5 August; she was ruled out of the following game after experiencing soreness during warmups and has missed five straight contests. The team announcement confirmed her absence will extend through the end of the regular season.

The Wings said they would provide an update following the procedure. The club also stated that Fudd will begin rehabilitation immediately after the arthroscopy.

The announced surgery is the latest medical setback to affect Fudd’s right knee: she tore the ACL and MCL while in high school and later missed the remainder of UConn’s 2023-24 season after tearing her ACL and medial meniscus during practice.

Dallas entered Thursday’s home game against the Indiana Fever with a 20-16 record and eighth place in the league standings. The Wings have eight regular-season games remaining after Thursday.