2025 Phoenix Mercury season
WNBA team season
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The 2025 Phoenix Mercury season was the 28th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the second season under general manager, Nick U'Ren, and head coach, Nate Tibbetts. It was the first season since 2012 without 11-year veteran and 2014 WNBA champion Brittney Griner under contract, who signed with the Atlanta Dream in free agency. It was also the first season following the retirement of 3-time WNBA champion and WNBA all-time leading scorer Diana Taurasi who spent all 20 of her WNBA seasons (2004–2014, 2016–2024) with the franchise. This was Phoenix's first winning season since 2021. They went on to reach the 2025 WNBA Finals, losing to the Las Vegas Aces in 4 games, in the first best-of-seven championship series in WNBA history.
| 2025 Phoenix Mercury season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Nate Tibbetts |
| Arena | Mortgage Matchup Center[a] |
| Results | |
| Record | 27–17 (.614) |
| Place | 2nd (Western) |
| Playoff finish | 4th seed – Lost in WNBA Finals 0–4 to Las Vegas Aces |
Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Club | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | ||||||
Transactions
Front office and coaching
| Date | Details | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
Trades
| February | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2 (Four-team trade) |
To Phoenix Mercury Alyssa Thomas (from Connecticut Sun) Satou Sabally, Kalani Brown, and Sevgi Uzun (from Dallas Wings) |
To Connecticut Sun Rebecca Allen and Natasha Cloud (from Phoenix Mercury) Jacy Sheldon (from Dallas Wings) 2025 No. 8 draft pick (from Indiana Fever) |
[1][2] |
| To Dallas Wings DiJonai Carrington and Tyasha Harris (from Connecticut Sun) NaLyssa Smith and right to swap third-round picks in 2027 draft (from Indiana Fever) Rights to Mikiah Herbert Harrigan and the 2025 No. 12 pick (from Phoenix Mercury) |
To Indiana Fever Sophie Cunningham and the 2025 No. 19 pick (from Phoenix Mercury) Jaelyn Brown (from Dallas Wings) | ||
Free agency
Re-signed
| Player | Date | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natasha Mack | January 17 | Training camp contract | [3][4] |
| Celeste Taylor | January 22 | [4][5] | |
| Amy Atwell | February 2 | [6] | |
| Murjanatu Musa | May 19 | Activated | [7] |
Additions
| Player | Date | Notes | Former Team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sami Whitcomb | February 2 | Details unannounced | Seattle Storm | [8] |
| Anna Makurat | February 7 | Training camp contract | Geas Basket | [9][10] |
| Lexi Held | PEAC-Pécs | [10][11] | ||
| Kathryn Westbeld | February 10 | TARR KSC Szekszárd | [10][12] | |
| Kitija Laksa | February 11 | One-year deal | Fenerbahçe S.K. | [13] |
| Murjanatu Musa | February 17 | Training camp contract | Tarbes Gespe Bigorre | [10][14] |
| Monique Akoa Makani | March 11 | Training camp contract | Charnay Basket Bourgogne Sud | [15] |
| Shyla Heal | March 13 | Tarsus Belediyesi Mersin | [16] | |
| Alexis Prince | March 20 | Elitzur Ramla | [17] | |
| Helena Pueyo | April 16 | Basket Zaragoza | [18] | |
| Julia Ayrault | April 17 | Michigan State Spartans | [19] | |
| Megan McConnell | Duquesne Dukes | [20] | ||
| June 3 | Rest of season contract | [21] | ||
| Temira Poindexter | April 18 | Training camp contract | Kansas State Wildcats | [22] |
| Haley Jones | June 1 | Hardship contract | Atlanta Dream | [23] |
| Kiana Williams | June 26 | Rest of season contract | Hefei | [24] |
| July 15 | 7-day contract | Free agent | [25] | |
| July 22 | [26] | |||
| August 13 | [27] | |||
| August 20 | Rest of season contract | [28] | ||
| DeWanna Bonner | July 8 | [29] |
Subtractions / unsigned
| Player | Date | Reason | New Team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charisma Osborne | — | Free agency – unrestricted | — | |
| Klara Lundquist | February 18, 2022 | Suspended – contract expired | — | |
| Monique Billings | December 6, 2024 | Free agency – unrestricted / Expansion draft |
Golden State Valkyries | [30] |
| Brittney Griner | February 1, 2025 | Free agency – uncoreable unrestricted | Atlanta Dream | [31] |
| Amy Atwell | February 13, 2025 | Waived | — | [32] |
| Diana Taurasi | February 25, 2025 | Retired | N/A | [33] |
| Julia Ayrault | April 25, 2025 | Suspended – personal decision | N/A – retained rights | [34] |
| Shyla Heal | May 7, 2025 | Waived | — | [35] |
| Anna Makurat | — | |||
| Helena Pueyo | May 9, 2025 | Suspended – personal decision | N/A – retained rights | [36] |
| Temira Poindexter | May 15, 2025 | Waived | – | [37] |
| Celeste Taylor | — | |||
| Murjanatu Musa | Suspended contract – temporary | N/A – retained rights | ||
| July 8, 2025 | Waived | — | [29] | |
| Megan McConnell | May 15, 2025 | Waived | — | [37] |
| June 26, 2025 | — | [38] | ||
| Alexis Prince | May 19, 2025 | — | [7] | |
| Sevgi Uzun | June 2, 2025 | Chicago Sky | [39] | |
| Haley Jones | June 8, 2025 | Dallas Wings | [40] | |
| Kiana Williams | July 10, 2025 | — | [41] | |
| July 22, 2025 | Released — end of 7-day contract | — | ||
| July 29, 2025 | — | [42] | ||
| August 20, 2025 | — |
Roster
| 2025 Phoenix Mercury roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Depth
Schedule
Preseason
| 2025 pre-season game log Total: 0–2 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May: 0–2 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–1)
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| 2025 pre-season schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Regular season
| 2025 game log Total: 27–17 (Home: 15–7; Road: 12–10) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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May: 4–2 (Home: 4–1; Road: 0–1)
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June
: 8–3 (Home: 3–2; Road: 5–1)
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July
: 4–5 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–4)
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August
: 8–5 (Home: 4–3; Road: 4–2)
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September
: 2–3 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–2)
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| 2025 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notes:
- Games highlighted in ██ represent Commissioner's Cup games.
Playoffs
| 2025 playoff game log | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First round vs. New York Liberty
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Semifinals vs Minnesota Lynx
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Finals vs Las Vegas Aces
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| 2025 playoff schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Conf. | Home | Road | Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | yx – Minnesota Lynx | 34 | 10 | .773 | – | 20–4 | 20–2 | 14–8 | 5–1 |
| 2 | x – Las Vegas Aces | 30 | 14 | .682 | 4 | 16–8 | 17–5 | 13–9 | 2–4 |
| 3 | x – Atlanta Dream | 30 | 14 | .682 | 4 | 15–6 | 16–6 | 14–8 | 3–2 |
| 4 | x – Phoenix Mercury | 27 | 17 | .614 | 7 | 13–11 | 15–7 | 12–10 | 4–2 |
| 5 | x – New York Liberty | 27 | 17 | .614 | 7 | 15–5 | 17–5 | 10–12 | 4–1 |
| 6 | cx – Indiana Fever | 24 | 20 | .545 | 10 | 13–8 | 13–9 | 11–11 | 4–1 |
| 7 | x – Seattle Storm | 23 | 21 | .523 | 11 | 12–12 | 10–12 | 13–9 | 4–2 |
| 8 | x – Golden State Valkyries | 23 | 21 | .523 | 11 | 9–15 | 14–8 | 9–13 | 3–3 |
| 9 | e – Los Angeles Sparks | 21 | 23 | .477 | 13 | 10–14 | 9–13 | 12–10 | 2–4 |
| 10 | e – Washington Mystics | 16 | 28 | .364 | 18 | 8–12 | 10–12 | 6–16 | 2–3 |
| 11 | e – Connecticut Sun | 11 | 33 | .250 | 23 | 7–14 | 7–15 | 4–18 | 1–4 |
| 12 | e – Chicago Sky | 10 | 34 | .227 | 24 | 4–17 | 6–16 | 4–18 | 1–4 |
| 13 | e – Dallas Wings | 10 | 34 | .227 | 24 | 4–20 | 6–16 | 4–18 | 1–5 |
Notes
- (#) – League Standing
- c – Commissioner's Cup winners
- y – Regular Season Champion
- x – Clinched playoff berth
- e – Eliminated from playoff contention
- Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings
Playoffs
| First Round: Best-of-3 | Semifinals: Best-of-5 | Finals: Best-of-7 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Golden State Valkyries | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Phoenix Mercury | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Phoenix Mercury | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | New York Liberty | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Phoenix Mercury | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Las Vegas Aces | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Las Vegas Aces | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Seattle Storm | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Las Vegas Aces | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Indiana Fever | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Atlanta Dream | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Indiana Fever | 2 | ||||||||||||
- Bold – Series winner
- Italic – Team with home-court-advantage
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 | ||||
Source:[43]
Regular season
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alyssa Thomas | 39 | 39 | 31.3 | 53.2% | 0.0% | 69.2% | 8.8 | 9.2 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 3.5 | 15.4 |
| Kahleah Copper | 28 | 28 | 26.9 | 42.4% | 37.7% | 85.2% | 2.9 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 2.2 | 15.6 |
| Satou Sabally | 39 | 39 | 26.6 | 40.4% | 32.1% | 82.7% | 5.9 | 2.5 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 16.3 |
| DeWanna Bonner | 24 | 1 | 24.4 | 42.6% | 32.6% | 86.6% | 4.3 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 10.9 |
| Sami Whitcomb | 43 | 20 | 23.9 | 38.5% | 36.1% | 85.2% | 2.6 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 9.1 |
| Alexis Prince | 1 | 0 | 22.0 | 33.3% | 0.0% | — | 8.0 | 1.0 | — | — | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| Monique Akoa Makani | 41 | 40 | 21.5 | 43.0% | 39.8% | 92.7% | 2.2 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 7.7 |
| Kitija Laksa | 33 | 5 | 19.0 | 36.7% | 31.7% | 81.3% | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 5.9 |
| Kathryn Westbeld | 43 | 24 | 18.4 | 35.8% | 32.1% | 78.1% | 2.5 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 5.1 |
| Natasha Mack | 34 | 23 | 18.3 | 57.3% | 0.0% | 47.2% | 5.8 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 4.7 |
| Lexi Held | 32 | 0 | 14.7 | 37.8% | 30.8% | 81.8% | 1.1 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.9 | 5.3 |
| Sevgi Uzun | 7 | 0 | 14.6 | 21.4% | 12.5% | 66.7% | 0.9 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.4 | 1.6 |
| Megan McConnell | 1 | 0 | 13.0 | 25.0% | 50.0% | — | 1.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | — | — | 3.0 |
| Kalani Brown | 29 | 1 | 12.8 | 61.5% | 37.5% | 77.1% | 4.0 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 5.1 |
| Haley Jones | 4 | 0 | 12.0 | 33.3% | 50.0% | — | 2.0 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 2.3 |
| Murjanatu Musa | 12 | 0 | 10.2 | 45.7% | 50.0% | 63.6% | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 3.3 |
| Kiana Williams | 11 | 0 | 9.7 | 42.5% | 34.6% | 50.0% | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.3 | — | 0.5 | 4.1 |
Playoffs
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alyssa Thomas | 11 | 11 | 36.7 | 50.0% | 0.0% | 65.1% | 9.0 | 8.8 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 4.1 | 16.9 |
| Kahleah Copper | 11 | 11 | 34.2 | 46.5% | 31.6% | 90.9% | 3.5 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 1.7 | 17.8 |
| Satou Sabally | 10 | 10 | 32.6 | 39.9% | 33.3% | 86.7% | 7.0 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 2.2 | 19.0 |
| DeWanna Bonner | 11 | 1 | 26.2 | 40.0% | 29.4% | 46.4% | 6.8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 9.1 |
| Monique Akoa Makani | 11 | 11 | 24.4 | 35.6% | 33.3% | 93.3% | 2.5 | 3.0 | 0.5 | — | 1.5 | 6.9 |
| Sami Whitcomb | 11 | 0 | 23.0 | 28.8% | 24.1% | 66.7% | 1.9 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 5.9 |
| Natasha Mack | 11 | 11 | 14.0 | 55.6% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.9 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.9 |
| Kathryn Westbeld | 11 | 0 | 11.6 | 43.3% | 37.5% | — | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 3.2 |
| Kalani Brown | 3 | 0 | 8.3 | 37.5% | — | 85.7% | 1.7 | — | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 4.0 |
| Lexi Held | 2 | 0 | 6.0 | 50.0% | 50.0% | — | 1.0 | — | — | — | 1.0 | 1.5 |
| Kitija Laksa | 2 | 0 | 4.5 | 33.3% | 33.3% | — | 1.0 | — | — | — | 0.5 | 1.5 |
| Kiana Williams | 2 | 0 | 3.5 | 100.0% | — | — | 0.5 | — | — | — | — | 1.0 |
Awards and honors
| Recipient | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alyssa Thomas | WNBA All-Star Reserve | July 7 | [44] |
| Western Conference Player of the Week | July 15 | [45] | |
| September 2 | [46] | ||
| AP All-WNBA First Team | September 12 | [47] | |
| WNBA Most Valuable Player Top 5 Finalist | September 19 | [48] | |
| WNBA All-Defensive First Team | October 8 | [49] | |
| All-WNBA First Team | October 10 | [50] | |
| Satou Sabally | WNBA All-Star Starter | June 30 | [51] |