Phoenix Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts, left, yells at an official after a foul during the third quarter of Game 4 of the WNBA Finals against the Las Vegas Aces Friday in Phoenix. (Photo by Rick Scuteri/Associated Press)

PHOENIX – From posting the second-worst record in franchise history in 2023 to defying the odds en route to a WNBA Finals appearance in 2025, the Phoenix Mercury have undergone one of the greatest transformations in their 29-season journey.

At the center of it all, through every trial and tribulation, has been coach Nate Tibbetts, who was ejected early in the Mercury’s 97-86 loss to the Aces Friday in Game 4 that solidified Las Vegas’ third championship win in the last four years.

Tibbetts, who received a double technical foul after arguing a foul call on Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani, voiced his distaste for the call and the league’s officiating that ultimately ended his team’s run for glory.

“It’s embarrassing,” Tibbetts said. “I think it’s one of the weakest double technicals ever. I didn’t even know that I got the second one, to be honest. We’re playing for our playoff lives.”

Battling adversity has been a theme for the Mercury throughout the postseason, but it’s also been one for Tibbetts, who has trekked a long and bumpy road to find himself at the helm of a playoff-caliber WNBA team.

After serving as an assistant coach in the NBA for teams such as the Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trailblazers and Orlando Magic, Tibbetts joined the Phoenix Mercury on Oct. 18, 2023, becoming the highest paid coach in WNBA history.

The hiring came with appraisal and scrutiny, with many calling the hire a questionable move considering Tibbetts’ lack of women’s basketball coaching. Newly appointed general manager Nick U’Ren, however, saw potential in Tibbetts.

“Nate’s vision for how he wants to lead this operation and organization, both now and moving forward, aligned so well with what we were looking for in a head coach,” U’Ren said.

Another person who took a chance on Tibbetts was guard Kahleah Copper, who was acquired in the same offseason via trade from the Chicago Sky.

“Kah took a chance on an organization that won nine games before she decided to come here,” Tibbetts said. “Nick had just taken over … a new coach from a different league that a lot of people weren’t excited that I was coming. She was willing to sit down with us and talk with us about our future together.”

Copper became a key piece of the Phoenix core in Tibbetts’ first season, averaging 21.1 points per game that helped her make the All-WNBA Second Team in 2024. In an offseason of unknowns after the Mercury’s early departure in the playoffs, Tibbetts knew the one constant was Copper’s role on his team.

Building around Copper, Tibbetts assembled a roster designed to match her energy. This included a 10-team trade that saw the additions of forwards Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally, ultimately forming Phoenix’s next “Big Three.”

The trio, who dominated the glass all season long, took a hit Thursday when Sabally was diagnosed with a concussion after a collision with Kierstan Bell in Game 3. Without the star power, Copper, Thomas and the rest of the team needed to elevate their play to remain in contention.

Copper dropped 30 points in Friday night’s defeat at Mortgage Matchup Center, a career-high postseason mark and her second-highest point total on the season. Though the team’s overall efforts weren’t enough, Tibbetts was pleased with Copper’s determination to fight in Sabally’s absence.

“She came out tonight and did an amazing job,” Tibbetts said. “Her leadership and growth as a player has been fun to watch, and I just love coaching her every day.”

While many would be quick to blame officiating for Friday’s loss, Copper knows that accountability for things such as turnovers, a total of 18 for the Mercury on the night, is where the problems lie.

“I didn’t speak to that this year,” Copper said. “That’s not what the wins and the losses are about, you know? One thing about us, we’re going to hold ourselves accountable. I didn’t speak to the officiating.”

For Tibbetts, though the ending was melancholy, the year as a whole served as a reminder of why he continues to grab the clipboard each and every day.

“This is a special year, it’s one of the funnest years I’ve ever had in basketball,” Tibbetts said. “For a new group to come together the way that we did and competed just says a lot about who’s in our locker room. Everyone bought into the vision.”

Buying into the fun were the “X-Factor” fans, who have since dropped their skepticisms of Tibbetts and welcomed the newest wave of passionate basketball in the Valley. Amid a sellout crowd of 17,071, Copper pledged her gratitude for the home fans and their impact on her journey.

“They were behind us, whether we were down 17 fighting for our life or up,” Copper said. “All season they’ve been there, so they’ve really been our sixth man.”

Time marches on, however, and so do the Mercury as they navigate through the next biggest challenge: the new collective bargaining agreement.

The avalanche of boos when league commissioner Cathy Engelbert presented Las Vegas its trophy suggests that the Oct. 31 deadline likely won’t be enough time to get a deal done. Tibbetts hopes that the deal, whenever it’s finalized, includes provisions for a more consistent officiating landscape.

“There’s change in this league,” Tibbetts said. “The product is continuing to get better, there’s more eyes on it and I think the officiating has to grow with the league.”

Change is at the forefront of the WNBA, but Tibbetts can rest assured that for the first time in his coaching tenure with Phoenix, he won’t need to make much of a change to his roster given the established leaders he already has.

And though the future remains a blur for the Mercury, from the CBA to free agency decisions, Thomas and others can always look back on 2025 as a year where they took a chance and were better off from it.

“Coming to a new team after being somewhere for 11 years, it was so much fun,” Thomas said. “It’s been a while since I had a season like this where it was just a lot of fun to come into work every day. I’m super grateful that I was able to have this opportunity and I wouldn’t have changed anything about this season.”