2025 WNBA season preview: Phoenix Mercury

Last season, the Mercury finished seventh in the league with a record of 19-21. Their season ended following back-to-back losses in Minnesota in the first round of the WNBA playoffs.

Following the game, first-year head coach Nate Tibbetts sat on the podium fielding questions about what’s next for the Phoenix Mercury. He didn’t have the answers then, and unless he can see the future, he likely doesn’t have them now. But the Mercury have made moves in the offseason and strides as an organization to make their goal of a title a reality.

“I think there’s so much to be excited about in terms of this season, obviously the new faces on the floor,” general manager Nick U’Ren told reporters at media day. “We’re excited about the offseason we had … I think our staff is really, really in a great place.”

Who’s in? Who’s out?

The Mercury were the talk of the town this offseason for a multitude of reasons. From the beginning, with their brand new team facility available for its first full season of use, the franchise was tabbed as a premier free agency location.

The attention became even fiercer once Griner, a veteran center, announced she was leaving the Valley and signing with the Atlanta Dream for the 2025 season. Then came the major news: Taurasi announced her retirement after a 20-year career with the Phoenix Mercury.

While the loss of Griner and Taurasi is significant for the team’s representation, the two players also contributed heavily to the team in 2024. At 17.8 and 14.9 points per game, respectively, Griner and Taurasi were second and third on the team in scoring. They also clocked in at about 29 minutes per game each, marks that only ranked below Natasha Cloud and Kahleah Copper. 

Speaking of Cloud, she’s also in a new city for this season. Packaged in a blockbuster trade, Cloud was sent to the Connecticut Sun before finding her way to the New York Liberty. Her 11.5 points per game will be missed in some capacity. More importantly, the Mercury will miss her ability to manage the floor and distribute the ball, responsibilities of a point guard, a position the Mercury are severely lacking talent at, compared to other spots on the floor.

While the deal shipped Cloud off to a new team, it more importantly brought in two key pieces for this year’s squad: Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally.

Thomas has been one of the best players in the league for the last three seasons, capable of doing just about anything on the floor, as evidenced by averages of 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 7.9 assists in 2024. 

The six-time All-Defensive player is also a stalwart on defense, consistently locking up some of the league’s most talented perimeter and post players.

While Thomas adds value on the court, one of the most important assets she brings to Phoenix is her leadership. As an 11-year vet, Thomas has seen varying levels of success throughout her career and knows what it takes to be among the best in the league. 

“She’s a basketball wizard,” Tibbetts told reporters. “I’ve been super happy with how she’s been willing to speak up and use her voice in situations. You can say a lot of things about [Thomas], but the number one thing is, she’s a winner. Her teams win, and they win at a high level. That’s what we want, to win at the highest level here too.”

Thomas is hoping that the change of scenery finally gets her over the hump of winning a WNBA championship that stood in her way for so long in Connecticut.

“I’ve been very close a couple times, and I just felt it was time for a change and to attack it at a different way,” Thomas told reporters on media day. “I came here with a lot of new faces, a lot of hungry people, and it’s just going to be a lot of fun in an organization that’s known for winning, has multiple championships and just overall, a franchise that’s been at the top of this league for a long time. So, for me, I’m just excited to add to that history that we know the Phoenix Mercury to be.”

Sabally is another player who will have a critical impact on Phoenix’s 2025 fate. The 6’4 unicorn brings the versatility that Tibbetts craves on his roster. She’s capable of playing and defending nearly every position on the floor.

Last season, Sabally only played 15 games due to injury, but in that span, she averaged 17.9 points per game, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists. The 2024 Most Improved Player is looking for a return to her 2024 form that saw her make the All-WNBA first team and finish fifth in MVP voting.

The key consideration of Sabally’s impact is whether or not she can stay on the floor. The previous five years of her career have been riddled with injuries, preventing her from playing more than 17 games in every season except 2024.

“Last year taught me a lot about how fragile a career can be,” Sabally told reporters at media day. “Pushing through uncomfortable times really makes you stronger. We’re the pros at pushing through adversity, and I think I’ve been through a lot in my life, but it just really makes you appreciate times like this even more. … I’m just ready to go. I feel like I had an amazing year before last year. I feel like last year was just a little holdup, a little setback, but really a reset for everything, so that I can now just thrive in a new place.”

While not receiving as much attention as the other two additions, Sami Whitcomb has the potential to be the glue of this team, holding everything together. Joining as a free agent after spending the last two years in Seattle, Whitcomb is a sharpshooter with an elite basketball IQ who is capable of running the floor.

Want even more women’s sports in your inbox?

Subscribe now to our sister publication The IX and receive our independent women’s sports newsletter six days a week. Learn more about your favorite athletes and teams around the world competing in soccer, tennis, basketball, golf, hockey and gymnastics from our incredible team of writers.

Readers of The Next now save 50% on their subscription to The IX.

In just over 15 minutes a game last season, she averaged 5.0 points and 1.6 assists. Where Whitcomb finds her value is beyond the arc. She’s a career 36.1% shooter from deep and can knock down shots from multiple spots on the outside. In five out of her eight WNBA seasons, Whitcomb has converted on 35% or more of her 3-pointers and can fill a need for Tibbetts, who desires to be among the best 3-point shooting teams in the league.

Whitcomb also brings a wealth of knowledge and experience through playing in different systems. Between previous stints in Seattle and New York, she’s picked up tips from players like Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart and is using what they taught her to forge her own path as a leader in Phoenix.

“I’m happy to sort of take on some of that mental load and do some of the leading, some of the talking through stuff,” Whitcomb said at media day. “Obviously, there’s a lot of learning right now as well, so I’m trying to help facilitate some of that with some of the younger players. … I have learned so much from (Bird) over the years, and I hope that I can bring some of that in now.”

Other significant offseason additions include Sevgi Uzun and Kalani Brown. Both played significant time in Dallas before being packaged in the trade with Sabally.

With only three players returning from last year’s roster, and no picks in the 2025 WNBA Draft, U’Ren and company in the front office had their work cut out for them to fill the rest of the Mercury’s roster going into training camp. They did so by bringing in several overseas players including Monique Akoa-Makani, Anna Makurat and Shyla Heal. They also picked up a pair of undrafted rookies in Kansas State’s Temira Poindexter and Duquesne’s Megan McConnell.

“Our scouting department did a fantastic job,” U’Ren said. “And even though we had no picks, we treated it just like we would a draft if we had some. … We got multiple players that we had rated in our top 30 that just happened to go undrafted, and we were able to bring them to camp. So excited about our ability to see those players, and we thought we got some value, even though we didn’t have any picks.”

Most intriguingly, the Mercury also signed Alexis Prince, who the team drafted back in 2017, and Kitija Laksa. Prince is a 31-year-old listed as a fourth-year veteran. She played 18 games for the Mercury in 2017 and spent most of the 2018 season on the bench for the Atlanta Dream. She had on-and-off stints with the Sky in 2020 and 2021, but hasn’t landed anywhere else since until this season.

Laksa’s rights have bounced around from the Storm to the Wings since she was drafted in the first round of the 2020 draft. This offseason, the Mercury signed Laksa to a one-year, protected deal. The 6’1 forward is finishing her season in Italy and has yet to make her way over for training camp.

The new big three

With Sabally and Thomas joining forces with Kahleah Copper, the Mercury have a new big three looking to lead the way. Copper is coming off the best season of her career, in which she averaged 21.1 points per game at a 43.5% clip from the field. Copper was named an All-Star for the fourth time, along with making the All-WNBA second team and the 2024 USA Olympic roster. Going into 2025, the Mercury are hoping Copper builds off what she accomplished in 2024.

“[Copper] had an awesome year, but I hope when you ask her, she’ll tell you she wants to get better,” Tibbetts said. “We’re going to really challenge her to lead, not just by her play, but her actions, and then offensively, just like quicker decisions. Part of it last year is she had to do a lot off the bounce for us. And now this year, hopefully, there’s going to be quicker decisions by her. I think you’ll see the same Kahleah, but there’s going to be some things that she adds to her game.”

Now, the daunting trio of Copper, Sabally and Thomas looks to challenge opposing defenses night in and night out.

“It’s fun to see what they’ve sort of looked like already … and to think what can come beyond that,” U’Ren said. “I think their games all complement each other really, really well, and the good news is they make everyone else around them better.”

Copper, Thomas and Sabally each bring scoring ability to the offense in their own way. Copper is a dynamic player who can get to the rim, pull up from midrange or spot up from 3. Sabally’s height and length allow her to get crafty in the paint and work around other bigs to find the hoop. Thomas is a physical player who bullies her way into the paint and finishes strong at the cup.

Each player also has the ability to set their teammates up for success. Whether through passing or just the increased attention these players draw from opposing defenses, the Mercury’s big three will create opportunities not just for themselves but for those around them to get to their spots and knock down open looks.

“They’re so dynamic,” Whitcomb said. “They get into the paint so easily. They get downhill, and everyone just collapses around them. I anticipate I’ll get some of the most open looks I’ve had, probably in my career, because people will leave me to guard them. They just will. They’re too tough, they’re too good at the rim. So I’m excited about that, and I’m excited about hopefully, like I said, having some shot credibility, that hopefully people will guard me, and it’ll create those lanes for them.”

The trio is excited about playing together under Tibbetts, who’s designed an offense that looks to highlight each of their skill sets.

Positionless hoops

As the Mercury made their moves in the offseason, a major concern emerged about who would run the offense. As previously mentioned, the Mercury traded Cloud away in order to get Sabally and Thomas, and the majority of Phoenix’s offseason acquisitions were based in the frontcourt. 

And while they did bring in Whitcomb and Uzun, the prospects of one of them or Celeste Taylor consistently running the floor didn’t instill much hope in Mercury fans. Thomas, who’s known for her ability to distribute the ball, was also factored into the possible point guard solution.

However, the system that’s actually emerged through the first stretch of training camp is a positionless offense designed around spacing the floor and moving the ball, rather than stringent adherence to positional responsibilities.

“I think people have just become more skilled at everything,” Sabally said. “And I have always been a player where it’s like, oh, I don’t even know which position I’m at. I’m really versatile. And I love playing the point, bringing the ball up, I love posting up. And the same goes for [Copper and Thomas]. We have [Brown] shooting threes. … So just having that flow and that unpredictable movement of offensive players, obviously we know what we’re doing, but I think it’s really hard to guard that.”

Within this philosophy, the aforementioned players, along with Sabally and Copper, are all trusted to initiate the offense with the ball in their hands.

Instead of putting weight on the point guard position as a key metric of success, the Mercury are emphasizing the importance of the power forward position with two of the best in the league on their roster.

Thomas and Sabally can utilize their trademark versatility to get to their spots on the floor and create open looks for teammates by drawing defenders. Many of the same tactics used last season, such as driving and kicking and working in the pick-and-roll, are still in play for Phoenix, but with a stronger personnel that aligns with those actions, the Mercury are looking for a more effective, quicker-paced offense.

Still, within Tibbetts’ positionless world, there’s still space for Brown and Natasha Mack, who both have more traditional center tendencies. Tibbetts has designed a way for them to capitalize on their skills in the offense by opening up space in the paint for them to work with.

“This has been my greatest adjustment,” Brown said. “It’s positionless. No wrong move is a wrong move. You can flash, you can do whatever. You can get to the three. Nate has given me a green light, and he wants me to evolve. So I’m very happy about that. It’s very uncomfortable at first, but I think once I get it down, it’s gonna be better.”

It starts on defense

While Phoenix’s offense may be headed in a more innovative direction, Tibbetts’s overall philosophy is still relatively old school. He wants his team to go out and defend first, turning their defense into offense.

“What we want is a team that’s gritty and tough defensively,” Tibbetts said. “We want to fly around. It fits who [Thomas] is. It fits who [Copper] is, it fits who I am. We want to be disruptive, create turnovers, and then that allows us to play fast.”

Spearheading the team’s defensive efforts is Thomas, who has a knack for imposing her will on players she lines up against. Other players like Taylor and Sabally are also known for their defensive prowess.

---

Order ‘Rare Gems’ and save 30%

Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The Next and The IX, released his latest book on May 7, 2024. This deeply reported story follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers, from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers.

If you enjoy his coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout.

---

Even players on the roster who haven’t garnered a reputation for being lockdown defenders are committed to the idea that everything Tibbetts hopes to accomplish on the floor will be triggered by the team’s defensive intensity. Everyone is eager to play their role in making that happen.

“When you’re trying to play positionless basketball in up-tempo, it starts on the defensive end,” Thomas said. “You got to go out there and go into a different mindset … where you just try to do whatever it takes to stop whoever you need to stop. So for me, defense is part of my identity. I love to play defense. I take a lot of pride in it, and hopefully, my teammates, we can all go out there and be top three in defense this year.”

Year 2 for Tibbetts

Tibbetts’ return to Phoenix for Year 2 doesn’t carry as much familiarity as expected. He’s essentially starting over with a brand new roster to reacquaint himself with.

While a lot has shifted from last year to this one, Tibbetts still has his right hand on the floor to rely on in Copper. The pair has strengthened their bond in the last year, with Copper ready to fill a new role as Tibbetts’ extension on the floor.

“(Copper) is special,” Tibbetts said. “She means a lot to me and what we’re trying to do, and her growth over the course of the year, like, a year ago, she and I, we had just met for the first time, and our conversations, our relationship, our trust, is at the ultimate level. … My whole challenge to her this year is lead. And it’s not just with what you say, it’s what you do … and every day she has set the tone.”

Overall, Copper is helping the new players understand Tibbetts, his vision for the team’s style of play and the culture he’s looking to establish in Phoenix. With so many new players, the Mercury have a similar mission of trying to build chemistry quickly before the season gets underway.

The laughter, smiles and overt communication have been prevalent in Mountain America Performance Center throughout the duration of training camp. Players like Thomas, Whitcomb and Copper have stepped up as leaders, trying to get the whole team on the same page in preparation for the 2025 season.

With the newness of Year 1 in the rearview mirror, the Mercury’s external expectations have quieted. And while there’s still plenty of newness on the horizon for the season, Tibbetts, with a year of head coaching experience under his belt, is better equipped to handle it.

“I think just every situation isn’t new [this year],” he said. “I think [the firsts were] valuable lessons to go through, especially with the changes throughout the league. … I was one of the new ones, the young ones, last year, which is crazy. Now I’m probably one of the veteran coaches in our league, so I feel like I learned a lot last year, and feel a lot better.”

There’s no telling what’s in store for the Phoenix Mercury in 2025, but the team believes they’re positioned well to face it head-on. Tibbetts’ positionless experiment has drummed up some conversation, and only time will tell if his innovation is an indicator of change coming throughout the league or an overly ambitious redesigning of a game model that’s worked for decades in the WNBA.

---

Want more team-by-team previews for the 2025 WNBA season? Read them all here!