In a small and competitive league like the WNBA, games are going to be close. When a game is within five points with under 5:00 minutes left in the game, it's referred to as a "clutch game situation." The ability of teams to be able to come out of clutch situations is the difference between being a playoff or a lottery team, or being a middle of the pack team or a championship contender. Winning in clutch game situations requires a mix of bench depth, the ability to perform under pressure, and knowledge of how to avoid fouls that could cost you the game.
This season, the Dallas Wings have already been faced with five clutch game situations, and are 0-5 in those games. They've only scored an average of 3.2 points while in that clutch game window, and are shooting 22 percent in that time frame as well. Spending 2.2 minutes on average in these clutch game situations, it's just been a matter of small mistakes and missing during this period that have caused the Wings to slide so far down the standings. They could be 6-2 right now instead of 1-7 on the season if a few things had gone differently.
The Wings need to execute better in the clutch AND for the full 48 minutes
The goal is to avoid these clutch situations and to build enough of a lead that it's not this close near the end. Dallas has struggled with their offense as a team, and are 10th in the league in points per possession (1.03), 11th in the league for 3-point percentage (25.3%), which isn't ideal for a team whose No. 1 option (Arike Ogunbowale) is branded as a 3-point shooter.
Their defense may be the thing that's losing them these close games, though, as they rank 11th league-wide in opponent points per game (88.4), 13th overall in total points allowed this season (707), and 13th overall in opponent field goals made this season (245). Defense is just as important in the clutch as offense is, and a team that is ranking last league-wide in multiple defensive stats isn't going to be able to come out of clutch games with a win.
The difference between Dallas being last in the league standings and being in a sold playoff spot early on is these close game scenarios. Hopefully, they can get Paige Bueckers back from concussion protocol soon, as she has missed two games already and brings a ton to this team on both ends of the floor. They also need to tighten up their defense, and stop allowing opponents to beat them on the glass and get second-chance scoring opportunities. The offense not coming together is one thing, but you can control defensive effort more.
"Defense wins game" is a big saying in basketball, and the Wings are experiencing that.