2020 Phoenix Mercury season

The 2020 WNBA season was the 23rd season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association. The season tipped off on July 25, 2020, versus the Los Angeles Sparks.[1]

2020 Phoenix Mercury season
Coach	Sandy Brondello
Arena	Originally: Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum Rescheduled to: IMG Academy gymnasiums, Bradenton, Florida
Attendance	0 per game
Results
Record	13–9 (.591)
Place	5th (Western)
Playoff finish	5th Seed, Lost in Second Round to Minnesota Lynx
Team Leaders
Points	Diana Taurasi – 18.7 ppg
Rebounds	Brianna Turner – 9.0 rpg
Assists	Bria Hartley & Diana Taurasi – 4.5 apg
← 2019 season 2021 season →

During the off-season, it was announced that Talking Stick Resort Arena would be undergoing renovations and the Mercury would be forced to play their home games at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum for the 2020 season.[2]

This WNBA season will feature an all-time high 36 regular-season games.[3] However, the plan for expanded games was put on hold on April 3, when the WNBA postponed its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] Under a plan approved on June 15, the league is scheduled to hold a shortened 22-game regular season at IMG Academy, without fans present, starting on July 24.[5][6]

The Mercury's season got off to a slow start, with the team losing its first two games. However, a four game win streak followed and the Mercury were 4–2. The Mercury only won two of the next seven games and were just under .500. The team then won its next six games to secure a playoff spot. After losing two of their last three games, they qualified for the playoffs as the fifth overall seed.

As the fifth seed, the Mercury played the Washington Mystics in the First Round of the playoffs. The Mercury won that a nail-biter of a game 85–84, and advanced to the Second Round. They faced off against the fourth seeded Minnesota Lynx and were defeated in another close match, 79–80 to end their season.

Transactions

WNBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	School/Team/Country
1	10	Jocelyn Willoughby	United States	Virginia
2	18	Te'a Cooper	United States	Baylor
3	29	Stella Johnson	United States	Rider

Trades/Roster Changes

Date	Details
February 11, 2020	Traded F DeWanna Bonner to Connecticut in exchange for the 7th and 10th pick in the 2020 WNBA draft in addition to a first round pick in the 2021 WNBA draft.[7]
February 12, 2020	Traded the 5th and 7th pick in the 2020 WNBA draft in addition to a first round pick in the 2021 WNBA draft to Dallas in exchange for Skylar Diggins-Smith.[8]
February 13, 2020	Re-signed C Brittney Griner[9]
	Signed G Bria Hartley[10]
February 19, 2020	Acquired F Jessica Breland and F Nia Coffey in exchange for G Briann January, the 17th pick in the 2020 WNBA draft, and the team's second round pick in the 2021 WNBA draft[11]
February 24, 2020	Signed C Kia Vaughn[12]
April 17, 2020	Acquired G Shatori Walker-Kimbrough from New York in exchange for the draft rights to G/F Jocelyn Willoughby.[13]
July 12, 2020	F Jessica Breland medically excused for 2020 season.[14]

Roster

Phoenix Mercury roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs F 51 Breland, Jessica 6' 2" (1.88m) 166 lb (75kg) 1988-02-23 North Carolina 8 F 10 Coffey, Nia 6' 1" (1.85m) 182 lb (83kg) 1995-06-11 Northwestern 3 G 9 Cunningham, Sophie 6' 1" (1.85m) 170 lb (77kg) 1996-08-16 Missouri 1 G 4 Diggins-Smith, Skylar 5' 9" (1.75m) 145 lb (66kg) 1996-08-16 Notre Dame 6 C 42 Griner, Brittney 6' 9" (2.06m) 205 lb (93kg) 1990-10-18 Baylor 7 G 14 Hartley, Bria 5' 8" (1.73m) 148 lb (67kg) 1992-09-30 Connecticut 6 F 12 Jenkins, Alisia 6' 1" (1.85m) – 1994-02-21 South Florida R G 5 Peddy, Shey 5' 7" (1.7m) 147 lb (67kg) 1988-10-28 Temple 1 F 11 Smith, Alanna 6' 4" (1.93m) 180 lb (82kg) 1996-09-10 Stanford 1 G/F 3 Taurasi, Diana 6' 0" (1.83m) 163 lb (74kg) 1982-06-11 Connecticut 15 F 21 Turner, Brianna 6' 3" (1.91m) 170 lb (77kg) 1996-07-05 Notre Dame 1 C 1 Vaughn, Kia 6' 4" (1.93m) 205 lb (93kg) 1987-01-24 Rutgers 10 G 2 Walker-Kimbrough, Shatori 5' 9" (1.75m) 140 lb (64kg) 1995-05-18 Maryland 3 East: ATL • CHI • CON • IND • NY • WAS | West: DAL • LV • LA • MIN • PHO • SEA

Head coach Sandy Brondello (Western Sydney) Assistant coaches Julie Hairgrove (Arizona) Chasity Melvin (North Carolina State) Athletic trainer Hannah Breck (Boston University) Strength and conditioning coach Derrick Nillissen (Iowa Wesleyan) Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured WNBA roster page

Game log

Regular season

2020 game log Total: 13–9
July Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 July 25 Los Angeles Sparks L 76–99 Taurasi (16) Griner (9) Diggins-Smith (6) IMG Academy 0 0–1 2 July 29 Indiana Fever L 100–106 Hartley (26) Tied (7) Tied (5) IMG Academy 0 0–2 3 July 31 Las Vegas Aces W 102–95 Tied (22) Turner (9) Taurasi (10) IMG Academy 0 1–2
August Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 4 August 2 New York Liberty W 96–67 Hartley (27) Turner (11) Taurasi (9) IMG Academy 0 2–2 5 August 4 Atlanta Dream W 81–74 Taurasi (20) Turner (7) Taurasi (6) IMG Academy 0 3–2 6 August 6 Chicago Sky W 96–86 Tied (22) Griner (8) Taurasi (6) IMG Academy 0 4–2 7 August 8 Seattle Storm L 68–74 Griner (20) Griner (8) Taurasi (5) IMG Academy 0 4–3 8 August 10 Dallas Wings W 91–79 Diggins-Smith (26) Griner (13) Diggins-Smith (7) IMG Academy 0 5–3 9 August 12 Chicago Sky L 71–89 Tied (15) Griner (6) Diggins-Smith (4) IMG Academy 0 5–4 10 August 14 Atlanta Dream W 96–80 Hartley (24) Griner (8) Hartley (5) IMG Academy 0 6–4 11 August 16 Dallas Wings L 89–95 Griner (29) Taurasi (9) Hartley (6) IMG Academy 0 6–5 12 August 19 Los Angeles Sparks L 74–83 Taurasi (19) Turner (7) Hartley (9) IMG Academy 0 6–6 13 August 21 Minnesota Lynx L 80–90 Hartley (24) Turner (9) Hartley (5) IMG Academy 0 6–7 14 August 23 Washington Mystics W 88–87 Taurasi (34) Turner (17) Hartley (5) IMG Academy 0 7–7 15 August 28 Washington Mystics W 94–72 Diggins-Smith (24) Smith (8) Taurasi (7) IMG Academy 0 8–7 16 August 30 Minnesota Lynx W 83–79 Diggins-Smith (25) Turner (15) Peddy (5) IMG Academy 0 9–7
September Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 17 September 1 Las Vegas Aces W 92–85 Taurasi (32) Turner (13) Tied (7) IMG Academy 0 10–7 18 September 3 Indiana Fever W 105–81 Diggins-Smith (28) Turner (12) Diggins-Smith (8) IMG Academy 0 11–7 19 September 5 New York Liberty W 83–67 Diggins-Smith (30) Turner (13) Turner (4) IMG Academy 0 12–7 20 September 7 Connecticut Sun L 70–85 Taurasi (19) Turner (8) Diggins-Smith (6) IMG Academy 0 12–8 21 September 9 Connecticut Sun W 100–95 Diggins-Smith (33) Turner (21) Taurasi (7) IMG Academy 0 13–8 22 September 11 Seattle Storm L 60–83 Walker-Kimbrough (24) Turner (11) Peddy (6) IMG Academy 0 13–9
2020 season schedule

Playoffs

2020 playoff game log Total: 1–1
First Round Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 September 15 Washington Mystics W 85–84 Diggins-Smith (24) Turner (11) Taurasi (6) IMG Academy 1–0
Second Round Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 September 17 Minnesota Lynx 79–80 Taurasi (28) Turner (14) Taurasi (9) IMG Academy 0–1
2020 playoff schedule

Standings

#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	Conf.
1	x – Las Vegas Aces	18	4	.818	–	8–2
2	x – Seattle Storm	18	4	.818	–	8–2
3	x – Los Angeles Sparks	15	7	.682	3	5–5
4	x – Minnesota Lynx	14	8	.636	4	4–6
5	x – Phoenix Mercury	13	9	.591	5	4–6
6	x – Chicago Sky	12	10	.545	6	6–4
7	x – Connecticut Sun	10	12	.455	8	7–3
8	x – Washington Mystics	9	13	.409	9	6–4
9	e – Dallas Wings	8	14	.364	10	1–9
10	e – Atlanta Dream	7	15	.318	11	5–5
11	e – Indiana Fever	6	16	.273	12	4–6
12	e – New York Liberty	2	20	.091	16	2–8

Playoffs

	First round: Single elimination (September 15)				Second round: Single elimination (September 17)				Semifinals: Best-of-five (September 20–29)				WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (October 2–11)
									1 Las Vegas Aces	3
									7 Connecticut Sun	2
					4 Minnesota Lynx	80
					5 Phoenix Mercury	79
	5 Phoenix Mercury	85
	8 Washington Mystics	84
													1 Las Vegas Aces	0
													2 Seattle Storm	3
	6 Chicago Sky	81
	7 Connecticut Sun	94
					3 Los Angeles Sparks	59
					7 Connecticut Sun	73
									2 Seattle Storm	3
									4 Minnesota Lynx	0

Note: Teams re-seeded after each round.

Semifinals

Team	1	2	3	4	5
1 Las Vegas Aces	62	83	68	84	66
7 Connecticut Sun	87	75	77	75	63

Team	1	2	3
2 Seattle Storm	88	89	92
4 Minnesota Lynx	86	79	71

WNBA Finals

Team	1	2	3
1 Las Vegas Aces	80	91	59
2 Seattle Storm	93	104	92

Statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game	RPG	Rebounds per game
APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game	BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage	TO	Turnovers per game
PF	Fouls per game		Team leader		League leader

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Diana Taurasi	19	19	28.1	40.9	36.5	91.2	4.2	4.5	1.0	0.4	18.7
Brittney Griner	12	12	31.8	49.7	0	80.9	7.5	3.0	0.3	1.8	17.7
Skylar Diggins-Smith	22	22	30.7	47.4	39.7	90.0	3.3	4.2	0.9	0.5	17.7
Bria Hartley	13	3	24.8	42.0	38.5	80.5	2.9	4.5	1.2	0	14.6
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough	21	10	19.0	42.9	43.1	92.0	1.6	1.5	1.1	0.4	7.3
Brianna Turner	22	22	27.9	57.9	0	64.3	9.0	1.8	1.1	2.0	7.2
Kia Vaughn	22	10	18.9	48.8	0	57.9	3.6	1.5	0.5	0.3	6.1
Alanna Smith	19	0	15.6	42.2	23.3	69.0	3.6	1.2	0.3	0.8	6.1
Sophie Cunningham	21	11	18.9	38.5	23.5	88.0	1.0	0.8	0.5	0.1	5.0
Shey Peddy	8	0	17.6	29.4	10.5	100	3.0	2.4	1.5	0.1	4.0
Alisia Jenkins	2	0	11.5	25.0	0	66.7	1.5	0	0	0	4.0
Nia Coffey	15	1	15.3	42.1	33.3	16.7	2.5	0.8	0.3	0.3	2.7

Awards and honors

Recipient	Award	Date awarded	Ref.
Skylar Diggins-Smith	WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week	September 8, 2020	[15]
Brianna Turner	1st Team All-Defense	September 29, 2020	[16]
Diana Taurasi	All-WNBA Second Team	October 4, 2020	[17]
Skylar Diggins-Smith

References

1. "2020 Phoenix Mercury Schedule". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
2. "Phoenix Mercury Change In Home Court For 2020 Season". All About Arizona News. July 25, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
3. "Atlanta Dream Announce 2020 Schedule - Atlanta Dream". dream.wnba.com. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
4. "WNBA Statement Regarding the Start of the 2020 Regular Season". 2020-04-03. Retrieved 2020-04-03.
5. "WNBA Announces Plan To Tip Off 2020 Season". WNBA. 2020-06-15. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
6. "WNBA announces plans for 2020 season to start late July in Florida". NBC Sports Washington. 2020-06-15. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
7. "MERCURY ACQUIRES THREE FIRST ROUND DRAFT PICKS FROM CONNECTICUT". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 11, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
8. "Mercury Welcomes Skylar Diggins-Smith to The Valley". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 12, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
9. "Brittney Griner Will Continue to Call The Valley home". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 13, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
10. Metcalfe, Jeff (February 13, 2020). "Phoenix Mercury continue roster remake, signing guard Bria Hartley". USA Today. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
11. "Breland, Coffey acquired from Atlanta in exchange for Briann January". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 19, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
12. "Kia Vaughn Chooses Phoenix in Free Agency". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
13. Metcalfe, Jeff (April 17, 2020). "Phoenix Mercury trade WNBA first-round draft pick for veteran Walker-Kimbrough". USA Today. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
14. "MERCURY'S BRELAND MEDICALLY EXCUSED FROM 2020 SEASON". mercury.wnba.com. WNBA. July 12, 2020. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
15. "Diggins-Smith, Bonner Earn Player Of The Week Honors For Week 6". wnba.com. WNBA. September 8, 2020. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
16. "Two Atlanta Dream Players And Seattle Storm's Alysha Clark Headline 2020 WNBA All-Defensive Team". wnba.com. WNBA. September 29, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
17. "A'ja Wilson And Candace Parker Unanimously Selected To 2020 All-WNBA First Team". wnba.com. WNBA. October 4, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2020.

External links

• Official website