'There's selfishness in this locker room': Dallas Wings coach puts team on blast after second-straight loss

'Championship teams, they don't care who starts, they don't care how many minutes they play,' Jose Fernandez said

The good vibes from the new-look Dallas Wings' thrilling opening-day victory over the Indiana Fever are already fading away. Following a 90-86 loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Thursday, the team's second defeat in a row, new coach Jose Fernandez called out the team's "selfishness in the locker room."

After a disastrous 2025, the Wings made a number of high-profile moves during the offseason, including hiring Fernandez to replace Chris Koclanes, who was clearly in over his head in his one and only year at the helm. They also re-signed All-Star guard Arike Ogunbowale, signed 2025 co-Defensive Player of the Year Alanna Smith, Jessica Shepard and Odyssey Sims and drafted Azzi Fudd with the No. 1 overall pick. 

While those moves looked brilliant in their opener -- at least on the offensive end -- the Wings have since lost two nail-biters to the Atlanta Dream and Lynx and have the fourth-worst defense in the league (110.2 defensive rating). Already, questions have been raised in the media about Fernandez's rotations, particularly his decision to bring Fudd off the bench, and his comments Thursday suggest there are internal concerns as well. 

Throughout his 10-minute postgame press conference, Fernandez repeatedly stressed the importance of defending, playing the game the right way and not worrying about minutes or roles. At multiple points he seemed exasperated about questions regarding playing time, and it's worth watching the video to get a sense of his frustration. 

There were five lengthy responses about his team's attitude and approach that were worth highlighting. Here they are transcribed in full.

'Body language never whispers'

"People can't be concerned -- really, really good teams and championship teams, they don't care who starts, they don't care how many minutes they play. They don't care if the ball's not going in for them, they can do different things on the defensive end. When we start doing that, and we don't get in our feelings -- because body language never whispers. Championship teams, you play for the guy next to you. And it doesn't matter if the ball's not going in, you can do so many other things. You can defend, you can share it, you can go get stuff off the glass. When that changes, then you don't lose these type of games."

'You gotta get through adversity'

"Doesn't matter how much I score, doesn't matter how much I play. If this thing's gonna change, it's gotta change first in everything that we do. It was all fun, it was all exciting, we're scoring 90, 100 points, everybody's having a good time, everybody's playing, now it's a lot different. You gotta get through adversity if you're not playing well yourself on the other things you need to do."

'Minutes here, minutes there'

"Minutes here, minutes there. Whatever minutes [Awak Kuier] gets, with her size, she can protect the basket. Correct? So, I don't know. Whatever minute she gets, or Maddy [Siegrist] gets, or [Alanna Smith] gets, or Fudd gets, just defend. Make use of your minutes, make shots, play the right way."

'The film's gonna convict'

"We'll have a good film session, because guess what? The film's not gonna lie. Film's not gonna lie. Coaches accuse, and even players accuse, but the film's gonna convict. Convict our effort -- did we get over ball screens, did we rotate, did we cover backside block, what was our effort? And then they gotta look at themselves and hold each other accountable in the film room and the locker room. And when that happens, you have a great locker room, and then things change. 

'There's selfishness in this locker room'

"It's real talk and it's accountability. That's what I told them. I go, 'there's selfishness in this locker room.' There is. And you gotta look in the mirror and be accountable on how you played. And don't get upset if you think that you should have played more, or you didn't play enough, or you didn't get the shots that you think you should have gotten. Really good teams, they don't give a shit about that. Know what they give a shit about? They give a shit about winning, because that's what matters."

Fernandez didn't name names during his most damning comments, but it does seem fair to infer that there could be issues in the backcourt, where there appears to be too many cooks in the kitchen between Paige Bueckers, Ogunbowale, Sims, Fudd and Aziaha James -- nevermind JJ Quinerly, who hasn't even gotten on the court yet. 

Aside from Fudd, all of those players are at their best with the ball in their hands, but it's impossible for them all to control the offense. Plus, Fudd's popularity, her relationship with Bueckers and her lesser-than-expected role to begin the season have put a magnifying glass on the team and Fernandez. 

Regardless of who Fernandez's comments were directed at, this was a stunning press conference for a new coach to give this early in the season, and it will be fascinating to see how the team responds. Fernandez has extensive experience at the collegiate level, where he led South Florida for over two decades, but this is his first job in the WNBA and pros are different from college kids. 

Such harsh public criticism, not only of their play, but their attitude, could motivate the Wings, but it could also make this a long summer in Dallas.