2024 Phoenix Mercury season explained

The 2024 Phoenix Mercury season was the 27th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association, and their first season under new general manager Nick U'Ren and head coach Nate Tibbetts. Prior to the season, interim coach Nikki Blue's contract was not renewed, and Tibbets was hired on October 18, 2023.^[1]

The season tipped off on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, against the Las Vegas Aces in Las Vegas.^[2] The Mercury would go on to lose that game 80–89. However, they would win the next three games, including a ten-point win at Las Vegas, and three-point wins over Atlanta and Washington. However, they lost their final four games of the month, including a game against Connecticut where they scored only 47 points. They ended May 3–5. They began June by defeating Los Angeles at home. They lost in Seattle before winning their next two games. They would lose to Las Vegas before winning their next two games. The Mercury lost two of their last three games in June to finish to month 6–4. They opened July with a loss before winning their next three matches, including two against Dallas. THe would lose two games, before winning the final game before the Olympic break against Washington. They finished July 4–3. Their up and down season continued after the Olympic break as they alternated wins and losses for the first five games of the month. They finished the month by losing two games to finish 3–4. They entered September in the hunt for a playoff spot and lost four of their first five games in the month. However, they defeated Chicago and Los Angeles before losing the final game of the season to Seattle. The Mercury finished the month 3–5 and the season 19–21.

Their record saw them finish seventh in the WNBA, which qualified them for the playoffs. They faced off against the second seeded Minnesota Lynx in the First Round of the playoffs. They lost both games in Minnesota to lose the series two games to zero. The first game was closer as it finished 95–102, while the second was 88–101. Their nineteen wins more than doubled their win total from a season ago. It was the second time they qualified for the playoffs and were swept in the First Round in the past three years.

Transactions

WNBA draft

See also: 2024 WNBA draft.

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	School/Team/Country
3	25	Charisma Osborne		UCLA
3	29	Jaz Shelley		Nebraska

Transactions

Date	Transaction
October 28, 2023	Hired Nate Tibbetts as Head Coach
January 17, 2024	Extended a Qualifying Offer to Sug Sutton^[3]
January 27, 2024	Signed Sug Sutton to a Training Camp Contract
February 1, 2024	Signed Natasha Cloud^[4]
February 3, 2024	Acquired Rebecca Allen in exchange for Moriah Jefferson^[5]
	Signed Christyn Williams to a Training Camp Contract
February 6, 2024	Acquired Kahleah Copper and the rights to Morgan Bertsch in exchange for Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, the third pick in the 2024 draft, Chicago's second round pick in the 2025 draft, Phoenix's 2026 first round pick, and the right to swap 2026 second round picks.^[6]
February 8, 2024	Signed Mikiah Herbert Harrigan to a Training Camp Contract
February 9, 2024	Signed Natasha Mack to a Training Camp Contract
February 13, 2024	Signed Amy Atwell to a Training Camp Contract
March 7, 2024	Signed Mya Hollingshed to a Training Camp Contract
March 15, 2024	Waived Kadi Sissoko
March 30, 2024	Re-Signed Brittney Griner^[7]
April 16, 2024	Signed Charisma Osborne and Jaz Shelley to Rookie Contracts
April 24, 2024	Signed Air Hearn, Bella Murekatete, and Desi-Rae Young to a Training Camp Contracts^[8]
April 28, 2024	Waived Desi-Rae Young
May 11, 2024	Waived Amy Atwell, Air Hearn, Mya Hollingshed, Bella Murekatete, Charisma Osborne, Jaz Shelley, and Christyn Williams^[9]
	Signed Liz Dixon to a Training Camp Contract from waivers
June 10, 2024	Waived Morgan Bertsch^[10]
June 13, 2024	Signed Charisma Osborne^[11]
July 2, 2024	Waived Liz Dixon
July 5, 2024	Signed Liz Dixon to 7-day contract
July 12, 2024
	Signed Celeste Taylor to 7-day contract
August 16, 2024	Released Celeste Taylor
August 18, 2024	Signed Monique Billings to 7-day contract^[12]
August 20, 2024	Acquired the rights to Klara Lundquist from the Washington Mystics in exchange for Sug Sutton and a 2025 3rd round pick^[13]
August 23, 2024	Signed Celeste Taylor to a second 7-day contract
August 25, 2024	Signed Monique Billings to a rest-of-season contract^[14]
August 30, 2024	Signed Celeste Taylor to a third 7-day contract
September 5, 2024	Signed Amy Atwell to a 7-day contract^[15]
September 6, 2024	Signed Celeste Taylor to a rest-of-season contract^[16]

Roster changes

Additions

Personnel	Signed/Trade	Former Team
Rebecca Allen	Trade	Connecticut Sun
Morgan Bertsch	Trade	Chicago Sky
Monique Billings	Signed	Dallas Wings
Natasha Cloud	Signed	Washington Mystics
Kahleah Copper	Trade	Chicago Sky
Liz Dixon	Signed	Connecticut Sun
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan	Signed	—
Natasha Mack	Signed	—
Charisma Osborne	Draft	UCLA
Jaz Shelley	Draft	Nebraska
Celeste Taylor	Signed	Connecticut Sun

Subtractions

Personnel	Reason	New Team
Morgan Bertsch	Waived	–
Skylar Diggins-Smith	Free Agency	Seattle Storm
Liz Dixon	Waived	–
Megan Gustafson	Free Agency	Las Vegas Aces
Moriah Jefferson	Trade	Connecticut Sun
Michaela Onyenwere	Trade	Chicago Sky
Shey Peddy	Free Agency	—
Jaz Shelley	Waived	—
Kadi Sissoko	Waived	—
Brianna Turner	Trade	Chicago Sky
Sug Sutton	Trade	Washington Mystics

Roster

Depth

Pos.	Starter	Bench
	PG	Natasha Cloud
	SG	Diana Taurasi
	SF	Kahleah Copper
	PF	Sophie Cunningham	Monique Billings Mikiah Herbert Harrigan
	C	Brittney Griner	Natasha Mack

Schedule

Pre-season

|- style="background:#fcc;"| 1| May 7| @ Seattle| L 59–85| Diana Taurasi (10)| Natasha Mack (7)| Brittney Griner (3)| Climate Pledge Arena
| 0–1|- style="background:#fcc;"| 2| May 10| vs. Los Angeles| L 85–98| Kahleah Copper (16)| Natasha Mack (4)| Sug Sutton (5)| Footprint Center
4,598| 0–2

Regular season

|- style="background:#fcc;"| 1| May 14| @ Las Vegas| L 80–89| Diana Taurasi (23)| Natasha Cloud (8)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Michelob Ultra Arena
10,419| 0–1|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 2| May 18| Atlanta| W 88–85| Kahleah Copper (38)| Natasha Mack (11)| Natasha Cloud (5)| Footprint Center
10,251| 1–1|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 3| May 21| @ Las Vegas| W 98–88| Kahleah Copper (37)| Sophie Cunningham (9)| Natasha Cloud (10)| Michelob Ultra Arena
10,374| 2–1|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 4| May 23| Washington| W 83–80| Copper, Taurasi (20)| Natasha Mack (9)| Natasha Cloud (10)| Footprint Center
7,474| 3–1|- style="background:#fcc;"| 5| May 25| Dallas| L 92–107| Kahleah Copper (32)| Diana Taurasi (5)| Natasha Cloud (12)| Footprint Center
8,339| 3–2|- style="background:#fcc;"| 6| May 28| @ Connecticut| L 47–70| Natasha Cloud (9)| Sophie Cunningham (9)| Kahleah Copper (4)| Mohegan Sun Arena
6,489| 3–3|- style="background:#fcc;"| 7| May 29| @ New York| L 78–81| Kahleah Copper (20)| Kahleah Copper (9)| Sug Sutton (7)| Barclays Center
9,182| 3–4|- style="background:#fcc;"| 8| May 31| @ Minnesota| L 71–95| Kahleah Copper (21)| Natasha Mack (10)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Target Center
7,035| 3–5

|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 9| June 2| Los Angeles| W 87–68| Diana Taurasi (31)| Natasha Mack (12)| Natasha Cloud (12)| Footprint Center
10,207| 4–5|- style="background:#fcc;"| 10| June 4| @ Seattle| L 62–80| Kahleah Copper (19)| Kahleah Copper (7)| Natasha Cloud (5)| Climate Pledge Arena
8,133| 4–6|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 11| June 7| Minnesota| W 81–80| Kahleah Copper (34)| Natasha Mack (7)| Natasha Cloud (10)| Footprint Center
9,052| 5–6|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 12| June 9| @ Dallas| W 97–90| Kahleah Copper (29)| Brittney Griner (7)| Cloud, Taurasi (7)| College Park Center
5,568| 6–6|- style="background:#fcc;"| 13| June 13| Las Vegas| L 99–103| Brittney Griner (25)| Brittney Griner (9)| Cloud, Sutton (6)| Footprint Center
9,325| 6–7|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 14| June 16| Seattle| W 87–78| Kahleah Copper (30)| Brittney Griner (9)| Natasha Cloud (8)| Footprint Center
9,444| 7–7|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 15| June 18| New York| W 99–93| Griner, Taurasi (19)| Diana Taurasi (9)| Kahleah Copper (7)| Footprint Center
9,824| 8–7|- style="background:#fcc;"| 16| June 22| @ Minnesota| L 60–73| Natasha Cloud (14)| Brittney Griner (7)| Natasha Cloud (5)| Target Center
8,769| 8–8|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 17| June 28| Los Angeles| W 92–78| Kahleah Copper (24)| Brittney Griner (11)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Footprint Center
14,363| 9–8|- style="background:#fcc;"| 18| June 30| Indiana| L 82–82| Brittney Griner (24)| Rebecca Allen (9)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Footprint Center
17,071| 9–9|- style="background:#fcc;"| 19| July 1| Connecticut| L 72–83| Copper, Griner (21)| Kahleah Copper (6)| Natasha Cloud (10)| Footprint Center
8,445| 9–10|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 20| July 3| @ Dallas| W 104–96| Kahleah Copper (34)| Brittney Griner (8)| Natasha Cloud (10)| College Park Center
6,129| 10–10|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 21| July 7| @ Los Angeles| W 84–78| Natasha Cloud (31)| Kahleah Copper (10)| Cloud, Copper (5)| Crypto.com Arena
11,618| 11–10|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 22| July 10| Dallas| W 100–84| Kahleah Copper (32)| Kahleah Copper (5)| Natasha Cloud (6)| Footprint Center
11,601| 12–10|- style="background:#fcc;"| 23| July 12| @ Indiana| L 86–95| Kahleah Copper (36)| Natasha Mack (9)| Celeste Taylor (5)| Gainbridge Fieldhouse
17,274| 12–11|- style="background:#fcc;"| 24| July 14| @ Connecticut| L 69–96| Kahleah Copper (17)| Brittney Griner (9)| Natasha Cloud (6)| Mohegan Sun Arena
8,910| 12–12|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 25| July 16| @ Washington| W 96–87| Brittney Griner (23)| Natasha Cloud (9)| Natasha Cloud (10)| Capital One Arena
12,586| 13–12|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 26| August 15| @ Chicago| W 85–65| Kahleah Copper (29)| Brittney Griner (9)| Cloud, Griner (6)| Wintrust Arena
9,025| 14–12|- style="background:#fcc;"| 27| August 16| @ Indiana| L 89–98| Kahleah Copper (32)| Kahleah Copper (8)| Kahleah Copper (6)| Gainbridge Fieldhouse
17,274| 14–13|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 28| August 18| Chicago| W 86–68| Diana Taurasi (23)| Sophie Cunningham (10)| Diana Taurasi (5)| Footprint Center
14,267| 15–13|- style="background:#fcc;"| 29| August 21| @ Atlanta| L 63–72| Kahleah Copper (22)| Cloud, Griner (8)| Diana Taurasi (4)| Gateway Center Arena
3,260| 15–14|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 30| August 23| @ Atlanta| W 82–80| Brittney Griner (22)| Sophie Cunningham (7)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Gateway Center Arena
3,260| 16–14|- style="background:#fcc;"| 31| August 26| New York| L 70–84| Brittney Griner (22)| Cloud, Griner (6)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Footprint Center
10,299| 16–15|- style="background:#fcc;"| 32| August 28| Minnesota| L 76–89| Cunningham, Taurasi (16)| Griner, Mack (7)| Natasha Cloud (8)| Footprint Center
9,482| 16–16|- style="background:#fcc;"| 33| September 1| Las Vegas| L 79–97| Brittney Griner (24)| Kahleah Copper (6)| Diana Taurasi (7)| Footprint Center
13,981| 16–17|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 34| September 3| Atlanta| W 74–66| Kahleah Copper (28)| Brittney Griner (8)| Diana Taurasi (5)| Footprint Center
7,639| 17–17|- style="background:#fcc;"| 35| September 5| Washington| L 77–90| Brittney Griner (15)| Natasha Mack (9)| Celeste Taylor (6)| Footprint Center
7,709| 17–18|- style="background:#fcc;"| 36| September 7| @ Seattle| L 66–90| Diana Taurasi (18)| Brittney Griner (8)| Natasha Cloud (6)| Climate Pledge Arena
14,066| 17–19|- style="background:#fcc;"| 37| September 13| Connecticut| L 69–88| Brittney Griner (26)| Brittney Griner (9)| Natasha Cloud (7)| Footprint Center
14,190| 17–20|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 38| September 15| @ Chicago| W 93–88| Brittney Griner (26)| Brittney Griner (10)| Natasha Cloud (11)| Wintrust Arena
8,577| 18–20|- style="background:#bbffbb;"| 39| September 17| @ Los Angeles| W 85–81| Cunningham, Griner (14)| Celeste Taylor (5)| Natasha Cloud (12)| Crypto.com Arena
11,294| 19–20|- style="background:#fcc;"| 40| September 19| Seattle| L 70–89| Brittney Griner (11)| Brittney Griner (8)| Copper, Taylor (5)| Footprint Center
11,333| 19–21

Playoffs

|- style="background:#fcc;" | 1| September 22| rowspan=2| @ Minnesota| L 95–102| Natasha Cloud (33)| Cloud, Griner (6)| rowspan=2| Natasha Cloud (10)| Target Center
8,524| 0–1|- style="background:#fcc;" | 2| September 25| L 88–101| Brittney Griner (24)| 4 players (5)| Target Center
8,769| 0–2

Playoffs

See also: 2024 WNBA Playoffs.

Statistics

Regular season

Phoenix Mercury Regular Season Team Statistics

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
Kahleah Copper	37	37	32.4	.435	.314	.807	4.5	2.3	0.8	0.1	3.0	3.3	21.1
	30	30	28.7	.579	.500	.777	6.6	2.3	0.5	1.5	1.8	1.9	17.8
Diana Taurasi	36	36	29.0	.400	.333	.857	3.8	3.4	0.6	0.3	1.9	2.6	14.9
	38	38	33.3	.397	.308	.826	4.1	6.9	1.4	0.6	3.0	2.7	11.5
Sophie Cunningham	40	21	27.8	.429	.378	.870	3.9	2.0	1.0	0.3	1.0	2.3	8.4
Rebecca Allen	18	18	24.8	.417	.352	.667	3.9	1.1	0.9	0.7	1.0	1.9	7.4
Monique Billings ^≠	13	2	18.1	.434	.286	.800	4.2	0.5	0.9	0.5	1.1	1.9	4.9
Natasha Mack	40	11	15.5	.573	.000	.579	5.0	1.1	0.7	1.2	0.7	1.4	3.8
Celeste Taylor ^≠	15	4	20.0	.317	.200	.563	1.8	1.8	1.0	0.6	1.4	1.1	3.5
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan	31	3	10.8	.412	.327	.550	1.5	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.9	3.2
Sug Sutton^†	22	0	14.9	.306	.270	.692	1.1	2.4	0.6	0.0	1.3	1.1	2.9
Morgan Bertsch ^‡	8	0	9.8	.222	.143	.875	1.5	0.3	0.0	0.1	1.1	1.3	2.6
Amy Atwell ^≠	6	0	9.8	.267	.231	.800	1.0	1.0	0.0	0.2	0.3	0.5	2.5
Liz Dixon ^‡	17	0	9.4	.379	—	.800	2.4	0.5	0.1	0.5	0.5	0.8	1.8
Charisma Osborne ^≠	2	0	5.0	.500	—	—	0.5	0.5	0.0	0.0	1.0	0.5	1.0

^‡Waived/Released during the season
^†Traded during the season
^≠Acquired during the season

Playoffs

Phoenix Mercury Playoff Team Statistics

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PF	PPG
Natasha Cloud	2	2	36.5	.543	.462	.833	5.5	10.0	1.0	0.5	3.0	4.0	24.5
Brittney Griner	2	2	29.5	.520	.500	.700	5.5	0.0	0.5	2.0	2.0	3.0	17.0
Diana Taurasi	2	2	29.5	.423	.389	1.000	3.0	2.5	1.0	0.0	3.5	4.5	15.5
Kahleah Copper	2	2	29.5	.407	.364	.600	4.5	2.5	1.0	0.0	3.5	5.0	14.5
Natasha Mack	2	0	13.0	.636	—	.000	3.5	0.5	0.0	0.5	0.0	1.0	7.0
Sophie Cunningham	2	2	31.5	.500	.429	—	4.5	3.5	1.5	0.5	0.5	4.5	6.5
Monique Billings	2	0	14.0	.800	—	.000	3.5	0.5	0.5	0.0	0.0	1.0	4.0
Celeste Taylor	2	0	14.0	.667	.500	—	1.0	2.5	0.0	0.5	0.0	0.5	2.5
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan	2	0	1.5	—	—	—	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Amy Atwell	1	0	1.0	—	—	—	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

Awards and honors

Recipient	Award/Milestone	Date awarded	Ref.
Natasha Cloud	WNBA All-Defensive Second Team	September 29, 2024	^[17]
Kahleah Copper	Western Conference Player of the Week	May 28, 2024	^[18]
	WNBA All-Star	July 2, 2024	^[19]
	2024 Olympic Gold Medalist	August 11, 2024	^[20]
	AP All-WNBA Second Team	September 22, 2024	^[21]
	All-WNBA Second Team	October 16, 2024	^[22]
Brittney Griner	Western Conference Player of the Week	June 18, 2024	^[23]
	WNBA All-Star	July 2, 2024
	2024 Olympic Gold Medalist	August 11, 2024	^[24]
Diana Taurasi	WNBA All-Star	July 2, 2024
	2024 Olympic Gold Medalist	August 11, 2024	^[25]

Notes and References

1. Web site: PHOENIX MERCURY NAME NATE TIBBETTS HEAD COACH. October 18, 2023. February 1, 2024. mercury.wnba.com.
2. Web site: 2024 Schedule - Phoenix Mercury. mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. March 3, 2024.
3. Web site: WNBA Transactions . acrossthetimeline.com . Across the Timeline . 20 April 2024.
4. Web site: PHOENIX MERCURY SIGNS WNBA CHAMPION NATASHA CLOUD. mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 1, 2024. March 3, 2024.
5. Web site: PHOENIX MERCURY ACQUIRES REBECCA ALLEN IN SIGN-AND-TRADE WITH CONNECTICUT SUN FOR GUARD MORIAH JEFFERSON. mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 3, 2024. March 3, 2024.
6. Web site: Chicago Sky Trade Copper, Bertsch to Phoenix, Acquire Onyenwere, Turner, Draft Picks. sky.wnba.com. WNBA. February 6, 2024. February 7, 2024.
7. Web site: 2024-03-30. Free agent Brittney Griner returning to Mercury, league says. 2024-03-30. ESPN. Josh. Weinfuss. en.
8. Web site: Phoenix Mercury Finalizes Training Camp Roster . mercury.wnba.com . . April 24, 2024 . May 11, 2024.
9. PhoenixMercury . May 11, 2024 . 1789432357667090943 . The Phoenix Mercury today waived center Bella Murekatete, forward Mya Hollingshed and guards Amy Atwell, Air Hearn, Charisma Osborne, Jaz Shelley and Christyn Williams..
10. Web site: Morgan Bertsch waived by Phoenix Mercury, according to WNBA transactions page. burncitysports.com. Burn City Sports. Justin. LaCertosa. June 10, 2024. June 11, 2024.
11. Web site: Mercury sign 2024 draft pick Charisma Osborne, waive forward Morgan Bertsch. arizonasports.com. KMVP-FM. June 13, 2024. June 13, 2024.
12. Web site: PHOENIX MERCURY SIGNS VETERAN FORWARD MONIQUE BILLINGS TO A SEVEN-DAY CONTRACT . wnba.com . WNBA . 18 August 2024.
13. 1826009734039658593. WashMystics. August 20, 2024. August 20, 2024. Trade Alert: We have acquired Sug Sutton and a 2025 third round draft pick from the Phoenix Mercury for the rights to Klara Lundquist..
14. 1827763281777553481. PhoenixMercury. August 25, 2024. August 26, 2024. The Phoenix Mercury today announced the signing of forward Monique Billings to a rest-of-season contract! .
15. Web site: Phoenix Mercury sign Australian Olympian Amy Atwell to 7-day contract. arizonasports.com. KMVP-FM. September 5, 2024. September 6, 2024.
16. PhoenixMercury. September 6, 2024. 1832117552849547604. The Phoenix Mercury has signed guard Celeste Taylor to a rest of season contract!.
17. News: Jack . Maloney . WNBA Defensive Player of the Year: Lynx's Napheesa Collier edges Aces star A'ja Wilson for first honor. CBS Sports . September 29, 2024 . September 29, 2024.
18. Web site: Phoenix Mercury's Kahleah Copper named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week. Dana. Scott. The Arizona Republic. May 28, 2024. May 28, 2024.
19. Rosters Set for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2024 on July 20 . WNBA . July 2, 2024.
20. Web site: Paris 2024 women’s basketball: Team USA rides its luck in roller-coaster final to win eighth consecutive Olympic gold . Olympics . August 11, 2024.
21. News: Doug . Feinberg . A’ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark are unanimous choices for WNBA AP Player and Rookie of the Year . . September 22, 2024 . September 22, 2024.
22. News: Fever's Caitlin Clark, Aces' A'ja Wilson named All-WNBA . ESPN . October 16, 2024 . October 16, 2024.
23. Web site: Brittney Griner named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week. burncitysports.com. Burn City Sports. Justin. LaCertosa. June 18, 2024. June 18, 2024.
24. Web site: Paris 2024 women’s basketball: Team USA rides its luck in roller-coaster final to win eighth consecutive Olympic gold . Olympics . August 11, 2024.
25. Web site: Paris 2024 women’s basketball: Team USA rides its luck in roller-coaster final to win eighth consecutive Olympic gold . Olympics . August 11, 2024.