{"id":618399,"date":"2026-04-21T08:13:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T08:13:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/618399\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T08:13:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T08:13:11","slug":"phoenix-mercury-ready-for-preseason-tests-featuring-wnba-first-and-international-matchup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/618399\/","title":{"rendered":"Phoenix Mercury ready for preseason tests featuring WNBA first and international matchup"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHOENIX \u2014 The Phoenix Mercury<\/a>\u2019s preseason will be about more than just shaking off rust \u2014 it\u2019ll also be about excitement and discovery.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Mercury players DeWanna Bonner<\/a> and Kiana Williams<\/a> both emphasized the value of Phoenix\u2019s two upcoming preseason games \u2014 one in South Dakota and another against the Japanese national team \u2014 as opportunities to put themselves to the test with a reshaped roster.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The Mercury will first travel to South Dakota, a meaningful stop for head coach Nate Tibbetts, who has strong ties to the area. Assistant coach Megan Vogel also has connections to the state, adding another personal element to the friendly competition. It will be the first time a WNBA game has been played in South Dakota.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Head coach Nate Tibbetts leads practice at Mercury training camp for the 2026 season at Mountain America Performance Center on April 19, 2026, in Phoenix. \u00a9 Megan Mendoza\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s awesome,\u201d said Williams. \u201cI\u2019ve never been to South Dakota, probably never would have gone if it wasn\u2019t for the game on Saturday. Nate\u2019s all excited, and I know it\u2019s going to be a great crowd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like new beginnings, something new that we\u2019ve never seen before,\u201d Bonner said, describing how she feels about the trip.<\/p>\n

Beyond the excitement of the games, there is also a level of businesslike demeanor, as these matchups could help set an early tone for Phoenix as it looks to open the regular season on the right foot. Bonner stressed the importance of facing unfamiliar competition for that reason and continuing to build on what the team has established.<\/p>\n

\u201cChange the scenery and get out there and play against some different competition to see kind of where we measure up,\u201d she said. \u201cNot really looking to go out and have our best performance. We just need a measuring stick and see how we can keep building day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

That theme continues when the Mercury return home to face the Japanese national team, an international test that could challenge the club\u2019s pace, discipline and adaptability. These games provide an early glimpse of how the team is coming together under Tibbetts.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Fans cheer during player introductions in the WNBA semifinal playoff game between the Phoenix Mercury and Minnesota Lynx<\/a> at PHX Arena on Sept. 28, 2025. \u00a9 Joe Rondone\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n

While they won\u2019t tell the entire story of the season, the performances will be important as roster decisions are finalized before the regular season. For Williams, it\u2019s about being ready when those games arrive \u2014 not waiting for the pace to come to them.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s go time,\u201d Williams said. \u201cIt\u2019s coming at you fast and we\u2019re ready. We\u2019re locked in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The Mercury hosts training camp for the 2026 season at Mountain America Performance Center on April 19, 2026, in Phoenix. \u00a9 Megan Mendoza\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n

The preseason will be full of firsts for many of these players, a homecoming for two coaches, and a test of the foundation that has been laid so far.<\/p>\n

*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, and exclusive content. SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*Wendy Lopez is a reporter for Burn City Sports. You can follow her on her X account, @wlopezde<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PHOENIX \u2014 The Phoenix Mercury\u2019s preseason will be about more than just shaking off rust \u2014 it\u2019ll also…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":618400,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,16298,232270,167167,8456,736,232269,8455,3461,25953,30228,82,25836,630],"class_list":{"0":"post-618399","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-dewanna-bonner","11":"tag-japanese-national-team","12":"tag-kiana-williams","13":"tag-mercury","14":"tag-minnesota-lynx","15":"tag-mountain-america-performance-center","16":"tag-phoenix","17":"tag-phoenix-mercury","18":"tag-preseason-games","19":"tag-south-dakota","20":"tag-sports","21":"tag-the-mercury","22":"tag-wnba"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=618399"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618399\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/618400"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=618399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=618399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=618399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}