2009 Phoenix Mercury season
Women's basketball season in the United States
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The 2009 WNBA season was the 13th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Mercury won the WNBA Finals for the second time in franchise history. On June 6, the Mercury and LifeLock entered a multi-year marketing partnership to launch the first-ever branded jersey in WNBA or NBA history. A press conference was held at the NBA Store in New York City with Phoenix Mercury President and COO Jay Parry and LifeLock CEO Todd Davis to make the announcement.[1] The partnership ran through 2011, and the LifeLock name was on the front of Phoenix Mercury’s player jerseys and on warm-up suits. The Mercury and LifeLock ware the first to finalize such an agreement following the WNBA’s decision this off-season to make this opportunity available for its teams and sponsors. As part of the partnership, LifeLock offered a one-year complimentary membership to season ticket holders of all WNBA teams.[1]
| 2009 Phoenix Mercury season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Corey Gaines |
| Arena | US Airways Center |
| Results | |
| Record | 23–11 (.676) |
| Place | 1st (Western) |
| Playoff finish | Won WNBA Finals |
| Media | |
| Television | FSN Arizona |
Off-season
Dispersal draft
Based on the Mercury's 2008 record, they picked 5th in the Houston Comets dispersal draft. The Mercury picked Sequoia Holmes.[2]
WNBA draft
The following are the Mercury's selections in the 2009 WNBA draft:
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/Team/Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | DeWanna Bonner |  United States |
Auburn |
| 3 | 31 | Sha Brooks | United States |
Florida |
| 3 | 34 (from N.Y.) | Jessica Adair | United States |
George Washington |
Transactions
- July 17: The Mercury re-signed Penny Taylor.
- July 14: The Mercury waived Allie Quigley.
- June 3: The Mercury waived Alison Bales, Sha Brooks, and Laurie Koehn and claimed Ketia Swanier off waivers.
- June 2: The Mercury waived Yuko Oga.
- May 31: The Mercury waived Murriel Page.
- May 18: The Mercury signed Murriel Page.
- May 13: The Mercury waived Jessica Adair.
- April 30: The Mercury signed Laurie Koehn.
- April 20: The Mercury waived Kim Smith and A'Quonesia Franklin.
- March 26: The Mercury acquired Temeka Johnson from the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for a first-round 2010 WNBA draft pick.
- March 20: The Mercury traded Barbara Farris to the Sacramento Monarchs in exchange for A'Quonesia Franklin and Kim Smith.
- March 16: The Mercury has withdrawn its qualifying offer to Belinda Snell.
- February 11: The Mercury signed Yuko Oga to a training camp contract.
- January 30: The Mercury traded Kelly Miller and LaToya Pringle to the Minnesota Lynx in exchange for Nicole Ohlde.
- January 21: The Mercury acquired Alison Bales from the Atlanta Dream in exchange for a second-round 2009 WNBA draft pick.
- January 7: The Mercury signed Brooke Smith to a training-camp contract.
- May 7, 2008: The Mercury acquired a third-round pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft from the New York Liberty as part of the Leilani Mitchell transaction.
| Date | Trade | |
|---|---|---|
| March 7, 2008 | To Phoenix Mercury | To New York Liberty |
| third-round pick in 2009 WNBA Draft | Leilani Mitchell | |
| January 21, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Atlanta Dream |
| Alison Bales | second-round pick in 2009 WNBA Draft | |
| January 30, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Minnesota Lynx |
| Nicole Ohlde | Kelly Miller and LaToya Pringle | |
| March 20, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Sacramento Monarchs |
| A'Quonesia Franklin and Kim Smith | Barbara Farris | |
| March 26, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Los Angeles Sparks |
| Temeka Johnson | first-round pick in 2010 WNBA Draft | |
Free agents
Additions
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Subtractions
|
Roster
| 2009 Phoenix Mercury roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WNBA roster page | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Season standings
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix Mercury x | 23 | 11 | .676 | – | 12–5 | 11–6 | 13–7 |
| Seattle Storm x | 20 | 14 | .588 | 3.0 | 13–4 | 7–10 | 13–7 |
| Los Angeles Sparks x | 18 | 16 | .529 | 5.0 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 11–9 |
| San Antonio Silver Stars x | 15 | 19 | .441 | 8.0 | 10–7 | 5–12 | 10–10 |
| Minnesota Lynx o | 14 | 20 | .412 | 9.0 | 9–8 | 5–12 | 7–13 |
| Sacramento Monarchs o | 12 | 22 | .353 | 11.0 | 7–10 | 5–12 | 6–14 |
Schedule
Preseason
2009 Game Log: Preseason
|
Regular season
Postseason
| 2009 Game log: Postseason | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Western Conference Semifinals
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Western Conference Finals
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WNBA Finals
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Regular season statistics
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage | TO | Turnovers per game |
| PF | Fouls per game | Team leader | League leader | ||||
Player statistics
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeWanna Bonner | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Temeka Johnson | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Kelly Mazzante | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Nicole Ohlde | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Cappie Pondexter | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Allie Quigley | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Brooke Smith | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Tangela Smith | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Ketia Swanier | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Diana Taurasi | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Penny Taylor | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Le'coe Willingham | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
Team statistics
| Team | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PF | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix Mercury | .000 | .000 | .000 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 |
| Opponents | .000 | .000 | .000 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 |
Awards and honors
- Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of June 29, 2009.
- Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of July 6, 2009.
- Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of July 13, 2009.
- Diana Taurasi was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of August 10, 2009.
- Diana Taurasi was named to the 2009 WNBA All-Star Team as a Western Conference reserve.
- Cappie Pondexter was named to the 2009 WNBA All-Star Team as a Western Conference reserve.
- DeWanna Bonner was named Sixth Woman of the Year.
- Diana Taurasi was named to the All-WNBA First Team.
- Cappie Pondexter was named to the All-WNBA First Team.
- Diana Taurasi was named Most Valuable Player.