PHOENIX — Down eight points and four players — including two of their big three — the Phoenix Mercury looked like they were fading fast with three minutes left against the Golden State Valkyries.
That’s why their 18–1 run to close the game felt so improbable. By the final buzzer, even they seemed unsure how they had pulled off the 86-77 victory.
“I’m not sure what happened,” Mercury coach Nate Tibbets said about Thursday’s game. “It was impressive, right?”
The win was a highlight in a grueling five-game, nine-day stretch — played without stars Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas, defensive anchor Natasha Mack and reinforcement rookie Megan McConnell — in which Phoenix largely survived, going 2–3 after Saturday’s loss to the Seattle Storm. They now sit at 6–4 overall, fourth-best in the WNBA and second in the Western Conference behind the undefeated Minnesota Lynx (9-0).
Tibbetts described the team’s recent stretch as chaotic, marked by mounting injuries and minimal practice time.
“I’ve kind of talked about our previous stretch … where our execution has gone completely downhill,” Tibbetts said. “Some of that is because we’re just kind of hooping at the moment with a lack of practice time and some of our playmakers who aren’t playing.”
What’s emerged in this stretch, though, beyond the wins and losses, is a team discovering new versions of itself — and players stepping into roles they’d never been asked to play. Satou Sabally, long a second option in Dallas behind Arike Ogunbowale, has taken over as the Mercury’s offensive hub and the steadying presence they’ve leaned on most.
“She’s a great leader,” Lexi Held said. “She’s somebody that you want to be on your side, especially when things aren’t going your way.”
Held, traditionally a combo guard, largely ran the point in the Mercury’s win over the Valkyries, stepping up and pouring in a career-high 24 points.
“I’ve been pretty pleased with (Lex) playing the point the last couple games,” Tibbetts said. “She handled it a ton tonight, which was great with some of the injuries we’ve had … She’s little but she’s fierce.”
Sabally went as far as to say that Held is in the running for the best rookie in the league, highlighting her defense. Held currently leads the WNBA in steal percentage (4%), measuring the percentage of defensive possessions where defensive players steal the ball, and is also leading all rookies in threes made (15).
“I would even make the case that (Held) could win rookie of the year,” Sabally said. “Not only on offense but on defense … defending relentlessly every single game … is something that should be highlighted.”
Murjanatu Musa, an undersized rookie center who previously played for France’s Tarbes Gespe Bigorre club, joined the Mercury early in the season and had limited practice time before her WNBA debut. She struggled in her first four games, but made an impact off the bench against the Valkyries with eight points and key rebounding plays.
“Some of these players are coming from overseas, second division, France, Hungary,” Tibbetts said. “Lex was talking about going to the rim, how everyone’s bigger … I think Musa is feeling some of that with some of the shots she’s been missing. Tonight was sort of the first time she looked comfortable and like herself.”
The Mercury will look significantly different once Thomas, Copper and Mack return — and so will the rotations in big moments.
But if this stretch has shown anything, it’s that adaptability isn’t just a survival skill for Phoenix — it might be part of what makes them dangerous.
The Mercury return to action Wednesday to host the Dallas Wings at 7 p.m.
“I think (this stretch is) really going to help us in the long run for everyone to be in positions that maybe they wouldn’t have been asked to be in,” Tibbetts said. “I think that (the players) are starting to understand what we’re looking for.”
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