Li helps Wings take flight

With her instant fit at the Dallas Wings proving a boon for both sides, Chinese center Li Yueru has turned her WNBA career around, as fans and pundits laud her efforts to keep honing her game overseas.

As China's sole representative in the world's top women's league, Li has finally reestablished herself as a serious contender in the WNBA, following a slow start in the North American league, and then a short stint in Europe, after the 6-foot-7 (2.01-meter) center helped get the fallen Wings soaring again six games into her new adventure in Dallas.

Underlined by her rebounding prowess and defensive presence in the paint, Li's arrival in Dallas, since being traded from Seattle Storm on June 14, has injected fresh dynamism into a team that had languished dead-last in the standings prior to her arrival, helping Dallas rack up four wins in the past six games to improve its record to 5-13 overall, and start climbing back up the rankings — albeit one spot at a time.

Li's immediate chemistry with Dallas, a franchise led by All-Star guard Arike Ogunbowale and rookie sensation Paige Bueckers, was highlighted by her critical contribution of 11 points and nine rebounds off the bench in the Wings' 86-83 victory over the Connecticut Sun on June 21. She backed it up with a stronger double-double of 10 points and 15 rebounds in the face of nine-time All-Star Brittney Griner in Dallas'68-55 win over the Atlanta Dream four days later.

The 25-year-old easy-going, hard-playing Li has apparently won over her teammates and coach sooner than expected.

"It's really fun to play with her," Bueckers said of her partnership with Li after the win against Sun. "She's super smart, she has a high IQ. She understands the game."

"It's gotta be tough coming to a team almost halfway through the season, and still have a great understanding of how to play with us, so the chemistry will continue to keep building."

Chris Koclanes, the Wings' head coach, attributed Li's work ethnic, competitive drive, and particularly her willingness to blend in with her new surroundings, to her smooth transition on and off the court.

"She did not back down," Koclanes said of Li's aggressive play against Griner, one of the league's most dominant post players, in the game against the Dream. "She is incredibly smart and physical, just really good with her positioning. Really proud that she stepped up and answered that call."

Challenged by Li's size and power, Griner, who's averaged 17.4 points and 7.3 rebounds in 12 years in the WNBA, was held to just two points and six boards.

Li's presence as a rim-protector and rebounding specialist seem a perfect match with the Wings' defensive identity, while her pick-and-roll game with both Ogunbowale and Bueckers has clicked right into Dallas' offense over the past few games.

It's hard to imagine that she'd almost been cast out on her previous team, the Storm, where Li struggled to earn playing time.

Li is now averaging 6.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in 23.7 minutes over six games as a Wing, while she was merely given 8.7 minutes per game, averaging 2.8 points to go with 1.6 rebounds during the first nine games with Storm earlier this season.

"I came to the United States only for one reason, and that is to play basketball," Li explained her request for a trade from Seattle to Dallas, per an X post from Seattle sports reporter Percy Allen.

"When I only play 3-4 minutes in a game, that's a bit sad for me. I hope I can feel happy and excited every day, and I hope I can get some more time."

Now that she's back playing in the WNBA again, Li has pledged to use its competitive cauldron to help her stand tall for the national team.

Despite being runner-up at the 2022 FIBA Women's World Cup, the Chinese squad was knocked out of the group stage at last year's Paris Olympics, failing to reach the quarterfinals, much to the disappointment of hoops fans across China.

Former Chinese men's national team center Mengke Bateer, a member of the San Antonio Spurs'2002-03 NBA championship team, urged the governing body to encourage more Chinese talent to ply their trade overseas, despite the fact that the domestic clubs in China offer more lucrative contracts to top players than even the WNBA franchises.

"I think Li's commitment to staying overseas and playing in high-level international leagues was the right choice for her individual improvement," said Bateer, who coached Li when she played with WCBA's Inner Mongolia team.

"I wish more Chinese players would follow suit. Only by playing with the best can they catch up with the best, and, eventually, beat them on the international stage," said the retired legend.

Making her domestic league debut with the Guangdong Dolphins in the WCBA in 2015, Li was selected 35th overall by the Atlanta Dream in the 2019 WNBA Draft, but only played her first WNBA game in 2022 with the Chicago Sky following a pair of trades. She averaged 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds over 16 games with the Sky in a struggling season. She missed the 2023 season due to injury.

At international level, Li led China with team highs of 17.7 points and 11 rebounds per game at Paris 2024. She recorded the most points by a woman in Chinese Olympic basketball history since 1998 with 31 points against Spain on July 28, 2024.

Jiang Xinyu contributed to this story.