PHOENIX – Through their first 10 games of the year, the revamped Phoenix Mercury hold a top-five record in the WNBA. Despite early success, countless injuries to pivotal pieces and a jam-packed schedule have caused frustration among Mercury players and staff.
Heading into Wednesday night’s matchup against the league-worst Dallas Wings, the Mercury have received some much needed rest and recovery during a three-day break in their schedule.
The Mercury’s matchup against the Wings is their only game this week, before playing four times in six nights once again beginning Sunday in Las Vegas.
Phoenix’s last game on Saturday against the Seattle Storm ended in a 12-point loss and capped off a tiring stretch of five games in eight days. Through the first 22 days of the regular season, the Mercury played more games than any other team in the league.
“Everyone has tough stretches in this league, that’s how it works … but for us to play nine games in 18 days is a lot,” Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts said before Saturday’s loss to the Storm. “We’re at nine games, and there are some teams that have only played six I believe.”
The Mercury’s schedule has also lacked variety. Their latest defeat to Seattle marked Phoenix’s third matchup against the Storm, but now both teams will have to wait until August to meet again. Additionally, Tibbett’s squad has played the Minnesota Lynx and Los Angeles Sparks twice each.
“I think it’s unfortunate that we’re playing them three times already,” Tibbetts said. “If you were to ask them, I’m sure they would like to see someone else early in the season.”
The Mercury’s gauntlet of a schedule has only been exacerbated by injury. Key contributors such as Alyssa Thomas, Kahleah Copper and Natasha Mack have all missed significant time with the team. Even Megan McConnell, brought in as a free agent to help aid the wounded roster, went down with a knee injury during her Mercury debut.
A few teams around the league have dealt with their share of injuries as well, but contrary to Phoenix, they’ve mostly had longer periods of rest. With multiple games crammed tightly together, the Mercury’s only option has been to weather the storm through increased bench minutes and production from a plethora of undrafted rookies.
Players like Monique Akoa-Makani have stepped up to help initiate the offense with injuries to lead playmakers, while the undersized but tough Murjanatu Musa continues to receive tougher assignments on defense.
“Even though we would love to have our players in … we have a good group and I feel like these are valuable minutes, a valuable time for them right now,” Mercury assistant coach Michael Joiner said.
The undermanned and overworked Mercury have shown resilience. Trial and tribulation have only sprouted opportunities for many on the roster to expand their roles. However, even in light of Phoenix’s early season success, some players have strongly voiced their discontent with the schedule.
“Cathy (Engelbert) added a lot of games and us as players, recovery is so important. We put our bodies on the line every single time,” Mercury forward Satou Sabally said of the WNBA commissioner. “We had nine games in 18 days, that’s not really responsible for a commissioner.”
Earlier in the schedule, Phoenix also had another tough slate of four games in six days. Although the Mercury have been hit the hardest, a few other teams such as the Lynx, Mystics and Storm went through similar stretches.
“Just making sure that all teams supply the necessary recovery tools, treat professionals as professionals, but also the league being able to work together with players and not just throw them out there,” Sabally said. “In previous years, it did look different for me and I know it’s not like that across the whole league.”
As the WNBA continues to expand in both makeup and popularity, scheduling conflicts will likely not go away. More teams in the league means more games to be played, and as the WNBA keeps growing schedules will continue to tighten up.
This season saw the introduction of the league’s first expansion team since 2008 in the Golden State Valkyries. As a result, Engelbert increased the total number of games each team plays to 44. In 2026, teams in Toronto and Portland will join the league, likely adding more games to the schedule again.
However, the season can only get so much longer, as the WNBA’s largest competitor in the EuroLeague Women begins its newly expanded season before the WNBA Finals conclude in October. The overlapping of these leagues’ schedules has historically caused issues with many players who compete in the EuroLeague Women during the WNBA’s offseason. With so many women’s basketball stars playing year-round, some players feel that the WNBA’s schedule is compressing rather than reflecting the expanding nature of the league.
As the league’s current collective bargaining agreement is set to expire two years early in October, scheduling will likely become a hot topic of discussion along with player salaries, roster sizes and more.
“I think this is a conversation that could also be important for the next CBA. It’s just a lot of things that we could clean up in terms of scheduling, but we persevered and we showed that we could do it,” Sabally said.
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