DALLAS – The Dallas Wings announced on Friday that they have signed free agent forward Monique Billings to a hardship contract.
Teams are eligible for hardship exceptions when they have fewer than 10 available players on the roster. The players may be unavailable for a minimum of three weeks, with reasons relating to injury, illness, or off-court matters.
The signing comes after Wings’ forward Natasha Howard sustained a broken foot in the May 15 season opener against the Chicago Sky. Howard will miss three to six weeks with this injury, leaving the Wings with eight available players.
In addition to Howard’s injury, the Wings announced rookie Jaelyn Brown is expected to miss a week of play after announcing Thursday that she would undergo a procedure to repair a displaced nasal fracture. Brown is said to have sustained this injury in training camp, but continued playing and even started in the home opener.
The Wings’ announced on Feb. 20 that all-star Satou Sablly had sustained a shoulder injury while competing for Germany at the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Brazil earlier in the month. Sabally underwent surgery soon after and is expected to return following the WNBA’s olympic break.
Billings was originally drafted to the WNBA 15th overall to the Atlanta Dream in the 2018 draft. Prior to being drafted, Billings attended the University of California – Los Angeles. In her senior season at UCLA, she became the UCLA all-time blocks leader.
During her six seasons with the Dream, Billings appareard in 176 games averaging 5.9 points and 5.8 rebounds. In the 2020 season, she averaged 8.5 points and 8.5 rebounds.
Billings signed a two year contract with the Los Angeles Sparks Feb. 2 before the team announced she had been waived on May 13.
After news of her signing broke, Billings took to X expressing her excitement in signing to Wings fans.
“One thing you can expect from me is hustle,” Billings wrote. “Hustling for rebounds. Hustling on defense. Hustling up the floor. I pride myself on that.”
Amara Bullard is a Marketing + Media student at Loyola University in Chicago aspiring to work in basketball operations.
