The city of Hopkins has renamed itself and prepared hours of activities Friday to honor hometown hero Paige Bueckers’ WNBA debut.
Hopkins City Council members declared May 16 “Paige Bueckers Day” with a resolution approved last month.
Laila Imihy, special projects and initiatives manager for the city of Hopkins, recommended the resolution, calling Bueckers “one of the best to ever do it” in Minnesota, despite setbacks and injuries. Bueckers, who graduated from Hopkins High School in 2020, was named the WNBA’s No. 1 overall draft pick last month before being selected by the Dallas Wings.
“The City of Hopkins would like to honor her accomplishments and wish her the best of luck at the professional level by proclaiming May 16th as Paige Bueckers Day and renaming the city to Paige Bueckers, Minnesota for the day,” the city said of its resolution.
“Residents of Hopkins and the entire state of Minnesota are excited to watch the professional career of one of our own. ... The City of Hopkins wishes to congratulate Paige Bueckers on her success so far and wish her the best of luck as a future WNBA star,” the city’s resolution said.
Hopkins High School will host a watch party for Bueckers’ game against the Minnesota Lynx on Friday. The teams will play in Dallas at 6:30 p.m., and specials around Hopkins include themed cupcakes, discounted food and special drinks like “Paige’s 3-Point-Pale.”
Bueckers was named Minnesota Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year in 2018 and 2019 before completing a stellar career in college basketball. When asked about Hopkins’ resolution, Bueckers told reporters she was surprised the city honored her.
“I didn’t believe it at first. I thought it was fake news,” Bueckers said in an interview. “It’s crazy to me that they would name the whole city after me. But just to be able to give back to that whole city that’s given me so much, and for them to show love like that, I appreciate it, for sure.”
