Perhaps the most heartbreaking moment for women’s basketball fans since the 2024 WNBA regular season ended came from the beloved former UConn Huskies and current Seattle Storm guard. Nika Muhl tears ACL while playing abroad for the Beşiktaş women’s basketball team of the Turkish league.

This was a disturbing development for Muhl’s huge fan base. However, if there was one person who seemed confident that Muhl would bounce back from this injury better than ever, it was Paige Bueckers, Muhl’s former teammate at UConn.

After Muhl’s injury, buckers sent a message to her in her instagram storysharing a photo of them hugging on the court with the caption: “My strong strong twin. Nothing you can’t handle. Let’s do it… God speed! @nika.muhl.”

Bueckers has also suffered a torn ACL and therefore knows what comes back stronger This will be required of Muhl.

Muhl was finally able to repair his torn ACL through surgery over the weekend. and in it first publication Since the surgery, Muhl was seen posing in bed wearing sunglasses and cradling two cats, with the caption: “Day 1 with Mad Max and G let’s do it.”

The top two comments on this post belong to Bueckers, who gave Muhl a new nickname by writing “Big Purr.”

Bueckers then also added another comment that read, “Bed rest could never stop a good photo shoot.”

There is still a long road to recovery for Muhl, who will likely miss most (if not all) of the 2025 WNBA season.

But at least he has great friends like Bueckers to lean on.