In the 2025 WNBA season, the Phoenix Mercury made it all the way to the WNBA Finals before losing to the Las Vegas Aces 4-0 in a best-of-seven series. Despite the loss, the team had grown to being in championship contention.
Fast forward to the 2026 WNBA season, the team finished 10th, missing the WNBA Playoffs completely.
“It’s been a long time since I haven’t been in the playoffs,” Alyssa Thomas said. “I haven’t felt this way in a long time. It’s something I don’t ever want to feel again, and next season will definitely be different.”
After a 100-82 loss to the Aces, the team officially finished 16-28 in a down year for the Mercury.
The first 10 games were not kind to the team, as they started off 2-8 which included a six-game losing streak.
“The first thing is look at the number,” said Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts. “See the areas that we struggled in, see some of the areas that we did well. Go back and kind of start to break down some of the games and rewatch some of the games. Get a feel for how it looked.”
Phoenix won two straight, only to drop four games in consecutive fashion.
Streaks were a bit too normal for the team, as Phoenix had a few too many instances of losing four straight games throughout the season.
“This season did not go the way we wanted,” Mercury general manager Nick U’Ren said. “It was disappointing. There’s no escaping that, there’s no running from that, there’s no excuses being made. Our fans deserve better. That work will start immediately.”
They had also lost certain players, whether that was via playing in other leagues or offloading them, such as Jovana Nogic and DeWanna Bonner.
The team offloaded Bonner to try and have her win a ring as she joined the Atlanta Dream, who are currently pushing for their first title.
“Super excited to watch them compete in the playoffs,” Thomas said regarding the Dream. “I think she was a perfect fit for their team; it’s been going really well. She brings a different presence as a veteran that they needed.”
However, come the trade deadline; Phoenix went for a blockbuster trade, as they traded for Kelsey Plum from the Los Angeles Sparks, sending multiple picks to get her.
Plum had been a great player for the Sparks, and while she looked to fit well in Phoenix, there was already a major issue, as Plum was on the final year of her contract, and would enter free agency as an unrestricted free agent.
“It’s big for us, just to get her here,” Tibbetts said regarding Plum. “Most conversations, I’ll eat between her and I, and we’ll have another one today, I’m sure we’ll have plenty more before the decision is made. She’s got a decision to make; we would love to have her here for the long haul.”
On top of that, her tenure so far in Phoenix has been plagued by injuries, including a lower leg injury that saw her miss the FIBA World Cup and the end of the season.
“No question, she wanted to be out there,” Mercury general manager Nick U’Ren said. “We wished that she was out there more, of course. That being said, she’s an incredible human, incredible teammate; she’s a critical player. We wanted that in our building, and we certainly hope this is her home moving forward.”
Despite the major setback, the fans have shown up in droves, selling games out, showing immense support and showing up with outfits for star player Kahleah Copper’s birthday.
“I love our fans,” U’Ren said. “The building was full last night, it was loud. I had multiple people over the last two games talk about the environment we had, and we were long out of the playoff race. They just care, they show up consistently and I can’t say enough about them.”
Another positive for the team was one covered by the entirety of the WNBA, with Diana Taurasi having her jersey retired and entering the Mercury Ring of Honor after a stellar 20-year career with the team.
Near the end of the season, younger players such as Kara Dunn, Maddy Westheld and Shay Ciezki were given more minutes as Phoenix looked to give them more playing time.
“Seeing their confidence,” Kahleah Copper said regarding the young players. “It’s a really hard thing to do. Nobody gives you the credit, and I’ve done it. Just sit on the bench and have to wait for your number to get called, and not only do you have to wait for your number to get called, but you have to be ready. It’s a very hard thing to do. To see them actually go out on the floor is even more special to see.”
Even then, finishing a season with no playoffs is a rarity for Phoenix, as the fanbase expects title challenges, let alone missing playoff basketball.
“When I decided to take this job, I knew what it was,” Tibbetts said. “I don’t think well go into rebuilds here. That’s just not our mentality; this is a profession that you get judged from wins and losses and we didn’t do our job this year.”
Despite the disappointing season and questions lingering, there’s no reason to believe the team doesn’t bounce back, especially with the likes of Copper and Thomas.
Thomas finished with 358 assists, a WNBA single-season record alongside being an MVP finalist, while Copper had her most productive season in the scoring department, averaging a career-high 21.5 points per game.
Alongside other players such as Sami Whitcomb, Lexi Held, Natasha Mack and many others, it could be a building block despite the disappointing end.