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Dallas Wings

The Dallas Wings are an American professional basketball team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Wings compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. The team is owned by a group led by chairman Bill Cameron. Greg Bibb is president and CEO. Brad Hilsabeck joined the Dallas Wings ownership group in March 2019 with the acquisition of Mark Yancey's interest in the Wings.

The team was founded in Auburn Hills, Michigan, as the Detroit Shock before the 1998 WNBA season began. It then moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, before the 2010 season and became the Tulsa Shock. On July 20, 2015, Cameron announced that the franchise would move to Arlington for the 2016 WNBA season.

The team qualified for the WNBA playoffs in eight of their twelve years in Detroit and in one of their six years in Tulsa. As the Wings, the team qualified for the playoffs in five of their ten years in Dallas. In 2003, 2006, 2007 and 2008 the franchise went to the WNBA Finals; they lost to Phoenix in 2007, but won the title in 2003, 2006 and 2008 over Los Angeles, Sacramento and San Antonio respectively.

The franchise has been home to players such as Deanna Nolan, one of women's basketball's all-time leading scorers, Katie Smith, Cheryl Ford, Swin Cash, Skylar Diggins, Odyssey Sims, Australian center Liz Cambage, Arike Ogunbowale and No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers.

The Shock were one of the first WNBA expansion teams and began play in 1998. The Shock quickly brought in a blend of rookies and veterans, but only qualified for the postseason once in its first five years of existence. The Shock went through two coaches (hall of famer Nancy Lieberman and Greg Williams) before hiring former Detroit Pistons legend Bill Laimbeer. Rumors arose that the Shock would fold after the team's awful 2002 season. Laimbeer convinced the owners to keep the team for another year, certain that he could turn things around. The Shock finished the next season with a 25–9 record and defeated the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Sparks in the 2003 WNBA Finals. Detroit became the first team in league history to go from last place one season to WNBA champions the next season.

After a couple of seasons of losing in the first round of the playoffs, the Detroit Shock returned to success and appeared in three straight finals from 2006 to 2008. They won the WNBA championship in 2006 over the Sacramento Monarchs and 2008 over the San Antonio Silver Stars, but lost to the Phoenix Mercury in 2007.

Tulsa had been mentioned as a possible future city for WNBA expansion, but efforts did not come together until the middle of 2009. An organizing committee with Tulsa businesspeople and politicians began the effort to attract an expansion team. The group was originally given a September 1 deadline, but WNBA President Donna Orender extended that deadline into October. The investment group hired former University of Arkansas head coach Nolan Richardson as the potential franchise general manager and head coach, and on October 15, 2009, the group made its official request to join the league.

On October 20, 2009, WNBA President Donna Orender, lead investors Bill Cameron and David Box, Tulsa mayor Kathy Taylor, Oklahoma governor Brad Henry, and head coach Nolan Richardson were present for a press conference announcing that the Detroit Shock would relocate to Tulsa. On January 23, 2010, the franchise announced that the team would remain as the Shock, but their colors were changed to black, red, and gold.

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