WNBA No. 1 pick Azzi Fudd is settling in with her new squad, the Dallas Wings, and already gaining spotlight for her relationship status with teammate Paige Bueckers.
Bueckers previously mentioned in a TikTok video that she and Fudd were dating, but it's been unclear whether they were still dating in the build-up to the WNBA Draft. While Bueckers attended the event alongside other players and applauded Fudd going first overall, there wasn't much interaction between the alleged partners at the event or in social media posts.
While that may have been a decision to keep things from interfering with Fudd's spotlight, it also led to speculation that they might no longer be dating.
On Thursday, a Dallas Morning News reporter attempted to ask about their situation at a recent introductory press conference the Wings held for Fudd, and the Wings' media representative shut down questions regarding their players' personal lives.
However, things took an intriguing turn when another interview clip began circulating on Friday, in which Fudd provided a curious response to a reporter's question about joining Bueckers on the Wings.
The sit-down interview, conducted by Michelle Montaine of Dallas-Fort Worth's ABC affiliate, WFAA Sports, appeared on YouTube after Fudd's introductory press conference for the Wings. The new interview also arrived after the Dallas Morning News reporter called out the Wings for shutting down his question about Bueckers and Fudd.
In part of the interview, Montaine asked Fudd about the fact that she and Bueckers share the experience of going No. 1 overall in back-to-back WNBA Drafts.
Fudd mentioned that when she went to UConn, she had her best friends, Caroline and Bueckers, both playing on the same team with her in college.
"And then here I am. No control in where I get drafted, and I get to play with my best friend again, so it really is special," she says, regarding playing alongside Bueckers on the Dallas Wings.
She also praised Bueckers for her mindset of seeing everything as a "threat or opportunity," saying she wants to adopt a similar one, viewing things that might look bad as opportunities for growth and improvement.
Along with that, Fudd mentioned that having Bueckers as a teammate on the Wings provides "a little bit of comfort" as she adjusts to the professional league. She indicated that already having the chemistry they developed during multiple seasons playing together at UConn would be beneficial.
"To come in and have someone I already know and am close with is gonna be tremendous," she said.
Interestingly, Fudd never referred to Bueckers as her girlfriend. It's not anything WFAA's Montaine specifically asked in the interview video or that Fudd is required to state publicly, though. However, she seemed to open up about having Bueckers there as a "comfort" and someone she can lean on through her rookie season.
It's unclear whether the same Wings media representative from the introductory press conference was involved in this interview Fudd did for WFAA. Still, Fudd opened up a bit more, given the multiple questions she responded to about Bueckers.
If Fudd and Bueckers are still dating, they wouldn't be the first teammates who were a couple in the WNBA. However, they would have the distinction of being the first former college teammates drafted back-to-back as No. 1 picks by the same team.