Alanna Smith injury: Wings star to miss rest of FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup with leg issue

The Dallas Wings entered the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup break as one of the hottest teams in the WNBA. But when their players return to action, the team could be without one of its best defensive players.

Alanna Smith — the defending Defensive Player of the Year — will miss the rest of the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup due to a lower leg injury, team Australia announced early Wednesday.

Smith played in just one game with Australia at the event, scoring 10 points and pulling down eight rebounds in just 12 minutes before limping off the court due to an injury. A timetable for her return has not been announced at this time.

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Smith, 29, has developed into one of the best defensive players in the WNBA. Following a 2023 breakout, in which she finished third in the Most Improved Player award voting, Smith followed that up by making the second team All-Defensive team in 2024 before sharing the Defensive Player of the Year award with A’ja Wilson in 2025.

Following that win, Smith joined the Wings in the offseason. She’s played a key role in the team’s resurgent defense, and is a reason for the team’s surprising turnaround in 2026.

The Wings won’t return to action until Sept. 17, giving Smith a little over a week to recover if she wants to play in the team’s first game after the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup.

Once WNBA play returns, the Wings have four more games left in the regular season before the playoffs begin.