Thanks to Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese going pro this year, women’s basketball — college and WNBA — is more popular than ever. In the preseason, when Clark’s Indiana Fever played Tarrant County’s own Dallas Wings — I mean, they do play in Arlington (at least through next year before leaving us for Dallas proper) — it was kind of a big deal. (Our team won, by the way.) These two squads face off again at College Park Center at the University of Texas-Arlington (600 S Center St, Arlington, 817-272-5584) 6:30pm Wed, Jul 17. The Wings will be pretty busy in the meantime.
Courtesy Dallas Wings
Several upcoming games are themed, including the next one against the Connecticut Sun at noon Sat. It’s African-American Heritage Day in celebration of Juneteenth. Attendees will receive free rally towels while supplies last. (For more Juneteenth events, see our Summertime 2024 issue at FWWeeklycom.) The home team will celebrate Pride but not until July. That’s when the Dallas Wings Pride Celebration is at 2:30pm Fri, Jul 5, when they play the Los Angeles Sparks. Attendees will receive free light-up Pride bracelets. Fans can purchase tickets to the game at DallasWings.com.
Celebrating Pride is more than a theme day for this organization. As a member of the local LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce, Wings vice president of Social Responsibility and executive director of the Dallas Wings Foundation, LaDondra Wilson recently organized the Wings’ LGBTQ+ Champions of Change inaugural AmpliFair & Mixer at Sue Ellen’s in Dallas. This event allowed nonprofits to share information and resources about their programs and services with community members in a nonthreatening, welcoming environment as an arm of the organization’s foundation.
“The Dallas Wings Community Foundation aims to convene spaces for diverse and inclusive organizations to synergize,” Wilson said.
The foundation is big on social justice, promoting diversity, equity, and inclusivity with an emphasis on representation of fairness and protection to all, regardless of gender, race, religion, disabilities, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.
The team’s programs help empower girls and women through education, health and wellness efforts, and youth sports programs, including summer camps. Girls of all skill levels are welcome to attend the Official Dallas Wings Youth Basketball Summer Camp at College Park Center Mon-Wed, Jul 15-17. Sessions are 1pm to 4pm, and the girls are divided into groups by ages 7-10 and 11-14.
Courtesy Dallas Wings
The camp includes hands-on coaching from Dallas Wings players and/or coaches, a complimentary ticket to a 2024 home game, autograph and photo ops, a camp T-shirt, and many giveaways and prizes. Girls will learn elite-level strategies and techniques and leave with a sense of empowerment and motivation for the next step of their basketball journey. The cost is $200 per camper at on.nba.com/3JDcGJr.
All Wings games will be broadcast nationally on CBS. For the complete 2024 Dallas Wings broadcast schedule, visit Wings.WNBA.com/where-to-watch/.
Read about how every first Friday belongs to the lovely creatures of Nightshade Burlesque at The Cicada in our Stage article here.
