 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(July 2014) |
| 2008 Phoenix Mercury season | |
|---|---|
| Coach | Corey Gaines |
| Arena | US Airways Center |
| Attendance | 8,522 per game |
| Results | |
| Record | 16–18 (.471) |
| Place | 6th (Western) |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 2008 WNBA season was the 12th for the Phoenix Mercury. The Mercury were not able to win their second consecutive WNBA Championship and became the first defending champion to not qualify for the playoffs.
On September 27, 2007, head coach Paul Westhead resigned and took a job as an assistant coach under P.J. Carlesimo for the Seattle SuperSonics. Assistant coach Corey Gaines was named the team's new head coach on November 7 of that year.
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | LaToya Pringle |  United States | North Carolina |
| 2 | 25 (from SA) | Leilani Mitchell | United States | Utah |
| 3 | 41 | Marscilla Packer | United States | Ohio State |
| April 22, 2008 | To Phoenix Mercury New York's third-round pick in the 2009 WNBA draft | To New York Liberty Leilani Mitchell |
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| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Antonio Silver Stars x | 24 | 10 | .706 | – | 15–2 | 9–8 | 10–10 |
| Seattle Storm x | 22 | 12 | .647 | 2.0 | 16–1 | 6–11 | 13–7 |
| Los Angeles Sparks x | 20 | 14 | .588 | 4.0 | 12–5 | 8–9 | 12–8 |
| Sacramento Monarchs x | 18 | 16 | .529 | 6.0 | 5–12 | 13–4 | 9–11 |
| Houston Comets o | 17 | 17 | .500 | 7.0 | 13–4 | 4–13 | 10–10 |
| Minnesota Lynx o | 16 | 18 | .471 | 8.0 | 10–7 | 6–11 | 8–12 |
| Phoenix Mercury o | 16 | 18 | .471 | 8.0 | 9–8 | 7–10 | 8–12 |
| Date | Opponent | Score | Leading Scorer | Attendance | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 17 | vs. Los Angeles | 94-99 | Cappie Pondexter (32) | 13,749 | 0-1 |
| May 20 | @ San Antonio | 76-81 | Cappie Pondexter (23) | 9,103 | 0-2 |
| May 22 | vs. Seattle | 83-87 | Diana Taurasi (23) | 7,059 | 0-3 |
| May 31 | @ Minnesota | 83-94 | Cappie Pondexter (31) | 6,914 | 0-4 |
| June 3 | vs. Washington | 98-93 | Diana Taurasi (29) | 7,561 | 1-4 |
| June 6 | @ Los Angeles | 85-79 | Diana Taurasi (29) | 13,142 | 2-4 |
| June 11 | @ Seattle | 77-83 | Diana Taurasi (37) | 7,483 | 2-5 |
| June 14 | vs. Detroit | 79-89 | Cappie Pondexter (28) | 7,696 | 2-6 |
| June 18 | vs. Connecticut | 102-81 | Diana Taurasi (32) | 4,478 | 3-6 |
| June 20 | vs. Chicago | 112-105 (OT) | Diana Taurasi (33) | 7,311 | 4-6 |
| June 22 | @ New York | 72-105 | Diana Taurasi (21) | 8,688 | 4-7 |
| June 24 | @ Washington | 98-90 | Diana Taurasi (31) | 6,662 | 5-7 |
| June 26 | @ Chicago | 89-79 | Kelly Miller (17) | 3,103 | 6-7 |
| June 29 | @ Connecticut | 87-80 | Diana Taurasi (25) | 9,518 | 7-7 |
| July 1 | @ Atlanta | 97-79 | Diana Taurasi (28) | 9,795 | 8-7 |
| July 5 | vs. New York | 83-93 | Diana Taurasi (25) | 6,481 | 8-8 |
| July 6 | @ Los Angeles | 80-91 | Kelly Miller (14) Cappie Pondexter (14) | 10,004 | 8-9 |
| July 8 | vs. Houston | 99-94 | Diana Taurasi (30) | 15,499 | 9-9 |
| July 10 | @ Seattle | 78-89 | Cappie Pondexter (20) | 10,454 | 9-10 |
| July 12 | @ Sacramento | 97-105 | Cappie Pondexter (33) | 7,044 | 9-11 |
| July 15 | vs. San Antonio | 87-97 | Diana Taurasi (23) Cappie Pondexter (23) | 6,451 | 9-12 |
| July 17 | vs. Los Angeles | 99-92 | Cappie Pondexter (27) | 7,981 | 10-12 |
| July 19 | vs. Atlanta | 110-84 | Diana Taurasi (21) | 7,913 | 11-12 |
| July 22 | @ Houston | 92-94 | Diana Taurasi (31) | 6,134 | 11-13 |
| July 24 | @ Sacramento | 74-83 | Cappie Pondexter (23) | 11,946 | 11-14 |
| July 25 | vs. Seattle | 94-80 | Diana Taurasi (31) | 8,323 | 12-14 |
| July 27 | vs. Indiana | 84-88 | Diana Taurassi (25) | 7,924 | 12-15 |
| August 28 | vs. San Antonio | 55-77 | Diana Taurasi (13) | 7,931 | 12-16 |
| September 3 | vs. Minnesota | 103-96 | Diana Taurasi (32) | 7,722 | 13-16 |
| September 5 | vs. Sacramento | 81-69 | Diana Taurasi (26) | 10,527 | 14-16 |
| September 7 | vs. Houston | 99-74 | Diana Taurasi (33) | 10,261 | 15-16 |
| September 9 | @ Detroit | 78-89 | Cappie Pondexter (23) | 7,495 | 15-17 |
| September 12 | @ Minnesota | 96-87 | Diana Taurasi (31) | 8,343 | 16-17 |
| September 14 | @ Indiana | 89-103 | Cappie Pondexter (23) | 8,776 | 16-18 |
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diana Taurasi | 34 | 34 | 31.9 | .446 | .360 | .870 | 5.1 | 3.6 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 24.1 |
| Cappie Pondexter | 32 | 32 | 31.3 | .413 | .313 | .846 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 21.2 |
| Tangela Smith | 25 | 25 | 28.9 | .417 | .348 | .867 | 7.0 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 11.1 |
| Le'Coe Willingham | 34 | 27 | 24.5 | .570 | .185 | .741 | 5.9 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 10.1 |
| Kelly Miller | 34 | 34 | 27.8 | .408 | .385 | .845 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 8.3 |
| Kelly Mazzante | 34 | 2 | 18.9 | .332 | .331 | .833 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 5.8 |
| LaToya Pringle | 29 | 7 | 13.0 | .448 | .000 | .824 | 3.5 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 4.4 |
| Barbara Farris | 34 | 8 | 16.3 | .463 | .000 | .698 | 3.8 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 3.5 |
| Olympia Scott | 6 | 0 | 11.5 | .364 | .000 | .000 | 3.2 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 2.7 |
| Yuko Oga | 23 | 0 | 7.3 | .351 | .000 | .941 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 2.4 |
| Allie Quigley | 14 | 0 | 7.1 | .333 | .182 | .500 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 2.1 |
| Willnett Crockett | 5 | 1 | 8.2 | .375 | .000 | .600 | 2.2 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.8 |
| Jennifer Derevjanik | 17 | 0 | 8.5 | .263 | .125 | .750 | 1.0 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.8 |
| Phoenix Mercury roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). One of eight original franchises, it was founded before the league's inaugural 1997 season began.
Diana Lorena Taurasi is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), and is considered to be one of the greatest players in WNBA history. She was drafted by Phoenix first overall in the 2004 WNBA draft. Taurasi has won the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award (2004), three WNBA championships, a historic five Olympic gold medals, one WNBA Most Valuable Player Award (2009), two WNBA Finals MVP Awards, five scoring titles, and three FIBA World Cups. She has also been selected to ten WNBA All-Star teams and fourteen All-WNBA teams. In 2011, she was voted by fans as one of the WNBA's Top 15 Players of All Time, and was named by the league to its 20th and 25th anniversary teams, respectively the WNBA Top 20@20 in 2016 and The W25 in 2021. Also in 2021, she was selected by fans as the league's greatest player of all time. On June 18, 2017, Taurasi became the WNBA all-time leading scorer and on June 27, 2021, became the first player to surpass 9,000 points. On August 3, 2023, Taurasi became the first player to score 10,000 career points. Her penchant for scoring in crucial situations has earned her the nickname "White Mamba", coined by Kobe Bryant. Taurasi is one of 11 women to win an Olympic gold medal, an NCAA Championship, a FIBA World Cup, and a WNBA Championship.
Penelope Jane Taylor is an Australian former professional basketball player and assistant coach. During her 19-year career, Taylor spent the most time with the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, where she won three championships. She also won the WNBL title with her first club, the Australian Institute of Sport, and played in China, Italy, Turkey and Russia. As part of the Australian woman's national team, Taylor won two Olympic medals and led the Australian Opals to a gold medal at the World Championships, winning tournament MVP honours ahead of teammate Lauren Jackson.
Corey Yasuto Gaines is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He played five seasons in the NBA, and was a four-time Israeli Premier League Assists Leader, in 1999 and in 2001 to 2003. He was also a former head coach of the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
The 2008 WNBA season was the 12th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. It was the first WNBA season with a franchise in Atlanta as the Dream were announced in late 2007.
The 2006 WNBA season was the tenth for the Phoenix Mercury. The Mercury drafted Cappie Pondexter with the 2nd pick overall in the WNBA Draft. They were close to qualifying for the playoffs, but lost to a tiebreaker to the Houston Comets and the Seattle Storm.
The 2009 WNBA Season was the 13th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. It is the first WNBA season without a Houston franchise, the Comets having folded in December 2008. The season ended with the Phoenix Mercury winning their second championship in three years.
The 2009 WNBA season was the 13th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Mercury won the WNBA Finals for the second time in franchise history. On June 6, the Mercury and LifeLock entered a multi-year marketing partnership to launch the first-ever branded jersey in WNBA or NBA history. A press conference was held at the NBA Store in New York City with Phoenix Mercury President and COO Jay Parry and LifeLock CEO Todd Davis to make the announcement. The partnership ran through 2011, and the LifeLock name was on the front of Phoenix Mercury’s player jerseys and on warm-up suits. The Mercury and LifeLock ware the first to finalize such an agreement following the WNBA’s decision this off-season to make this opportunity available for its teams and sponsors. As part of the partnership, LifeLock offered a one-year complimentary membership to season ticket holders of all WNBA teams.
The 2009 WNBA Finals was the championship series of the 2009 WNBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Indiana Fever, top-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, faced the Phoenix Mercury, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference. The Phoenix Mercury defeated the Indiana Fever 3 games to 2 to win their second WNBA Finals title.
The 2010 WNBA season was the 14th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association.
The 2011 WNBA season was the 15th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association.
The 2013 WNBA season was the 17th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on May 24, and playoffs concluded on October 10. The Minnesota Lynx won their second league championship, defeating the Atlanta Dream three games to none in the 2013 WNBA Finals. The year represented a positive turning point for the long-struggling league. Both attendance and television viewership were up, driven by an influx of talented rookies, multiple teams reported that they were near a break-even point, and at least one franchise announced that it was profitable.
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Minnesota Lynx are the defending champions. The regular season began on May 18, with the Phoenix Mercury hosting the Dallas Wings. The season ended with the Seattle Storm defeating the Washington Mystics 3-0 in the WNBA Finals. This was the third championship for the Storm. Seattle's Breanna Stewart was named regular season and finals MVP.
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season for the Phoenix Mercury franchise of the WNBA. The season tipped off on May 14.
Yvonne Turner is an American-Hungarian professional basketball player for the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for Sopron Basket of the EuroLeague Women, and the Hungarian women's basketball league. She previously played with the Nebraska Cornhuskers women's basketball team from 2006 to 2010. Turner played professionally outside of the U.S. as well, including time in Australia, Ecuador, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Spain, Turkey. In Hungary during the 2016–17 season, she led the EuroLeague in scoring while playing with Uniqa Sopron. She has played the Phoenix Mercury, Minnesota Lynx, and the Atlanta Dream during her time in the WNBA.
The 2018 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2018 season. The Seattle Storm won the team's third WNBA title, sweeping the Washington Mystics 3–0 in the best-of-five WNBA Finals.
The 2019 WNBA season was the 23rd season for the Phoenix Mercury franchise of the WNBA. The season tipped off on May 25, 2019 versus the Seattle Storm.
The Wubble was the WNBA's 2020 coronavirus pandemic isolation zone at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. The league, teams, and players used the season as a way to leverage advocacy for social justice.
The 2022 WNBA season was the 25th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association. The season began on May 6, 2022, against the Las Vegas Aces and ended in the 1st round of the WNBA Playoffs against the same team. The season was marred by a number of issues, including injuries and the absence of Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia on drug charges.
The 2023 Phoenix Mercury season was the 26th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the second season under head coach Vanessa Nygaard.
