Jessica Shepard Reaching Full Potential as Wings Post Historic Start
Player of the Week Jessica Shepard fuels Wings’ best start since the team relocated to Texas.
Jessica Shepard had a busy offseason, playing in the EuroLeague with Famila Basket Schio, where she earned All-EuroLeague Women Second Team, while also being a part of the most biggest free-agent markets in league history. With the new CBA implemented and a most of the WNBA players set to hit free agency, the Dallas Wings were aggressively searching for players who could elevate the franchise into a winning team.
With superstars like A’ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, Breanna Stewart and Alyssa Thomas expected to return to their teams, Dallas had Shepard at the top of their list as one of their main targets.
The Wings saw Shepard as a player whose game had another level to reach. Dallas believed increased minutes, a permanent starting role, and greater responsibility within the offense would allow her to fully unlock that level in the WNBA. That vision has quickly become reality. Shepard signed with the Wings on a two-year deal worth $2,050,000 and has quickly emerged as a central piece of the Wings’ early season success, helping lead the Wings to a 6-3 start, their best record through the first nine games of a season since the franchise relocated to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in 2016.
While the Wings’ success can be attributed to a few factors, no player has had a greater impact than Jessica Shepard. The 6’4” forward has been serving as both the primary facilitator and a dominant interior scoring threat of the No. 1 offense in the WNBA. Shepard leads the team in assists, rebounds and she’s finishing efficiently around the basket, shooting 55.5% from the field on nine field-goal attempts per game. Shepard is consistently creating advantages for herself and her teammates with dribble handoffs, teammates cutting to the basket and short roll situations.
“I came here to help this organization win.”
So far, she has done exactly that.
The WNBA named Shepard the Western Conference Player of the Week from May 25-31. It marked the first Player of the Week honor of her career and the first time a Wings player has earned the award since July 2023.
Her historic week was highlighted by a record-setting game against the Aces on May 28. Shepard finished with 22 points, a career-high 20 rebounds and 10 assists in the 95-87 victory. She became the second player in league history to post a 20-point, 20-rebound, 10-assist triple-double, joining Alyssa Thomas, who accomplished it in 2023.
The triple-double was Shepard’s second of the season and third of her career. Remarkably, she holds the most triple-doubles in Dallas Wings history and has only played nine games with the team.
Her impact on the record books doesn’t stop there.
Shepard is tied for third all-time in WNBA history with three career regular season triple-doubles, alongside Candace Parker and Caitlin Clark. Only Thomas (19) and Sabrina Ionescu (4) have more.
The list of players with multiple triple-doubles in league history:
Alyssa Thomas (19)
Sabrina Ionescu (4)
Candace Parker (3)
Caitlin Clark (3)
Jessica Shepard (3)
Chelsea Gray (2)
Courtney Williams (2)
Jackie Young (2)
Sheryl Swoopes (2)
Dallas has become the perfect fit for Shepard to showcase the full scope of her offensive game. Throughout her career with the Minnesota Lynx, Shepard has shown elite rebounding and playmaking ability as a key reserve, but with the Wings she has been given the freedom to operate as a true offensive hub with efficient shooters in Azzi Fudd and Paige Bueckers. Whether she’s uniquely pushing the pace in transition as the team’s big, creating plays for others, finishing inside the paint, Dallas has put the ball in her hands to make plays. The result has been the most productive start of her career, Shepard has found a home where every aspect of her game can flourish.
Beyond putting her name in the record books, Shepard’s consistency has transformed the Wings on a nightly basis. Through nine games, Shepard is averaging career highs across the board:
12.6 points per game
11.0 rebounds per game
5.9 assists per game
Shepard is the only player in the WNBA currently ranked inside the top 10 in rebounds and assists. Shepard ranks second in rebounds per game, while ranking ninth in assists.
Her all-around production is reflected throughout the league rankings:
2nd in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
7th in assist-to-turnover ratio
Tied for 10th in points in the paint
14th in field-goal percentage
2nd in double-doubles
1st in triple-doubles
What makes Shepard so valuable is that she impacts every aspect of winning. She rebounds at an elite level, initiates offense like a guard, creates easy opportunities for teammates and controls the flow of the game as one of the bigs on the team.
The Wings believed they were adding a versatile front court playmaker when they acquired Shepard and made her the third highest paid player on the team. Instead, they may have landed an All Star in the making and one of the most impactful players in the league.
Nine games into her Dallas tenure, Shepard has already rewritten portions of the franchise record book. More importantly, she has helped guide the Wings to their best start in a decade.
For a team looking to establish itself among the WNBA’s best teams, Shepard hasn’t just been a contributor, Shepard has been the difference maker.