WNBA Power Rankings: Mercury ride streak up the board

ByMichael Voepel

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

Five weeks into the WNBA season, the Phoenix Mercury are blowing away a lot of predictions.

Questions about their roster turnover, lack of established chemistry and guard play landed them at No. 7 in our preseason rankings with a 49.8% chance to make the playoffs. Now, the Mercury are already more than halfway to the BPI's projected 19.4 victories with 11 through their first 15 games, winning five straight to supplant the defending champion New York Liberty at No. 2 in the latest edition of our Power Rankings.

There was ample reason to expect a challenging start for the new-look Mercury. They said goodbye to two No. 1 draft picks who had become faces of the franchise -- Diana Taurasi (retired) and Brittney Griner (free agency) -- and returned only two players from last season inKahleah Copper and Natasha Mack, who were both sidelined with injuries to start this campaign.

But after trading for Satou Sabally and Alyssa Thomas in the offseason, that hasn't happened. Sabally leads the team in scoring (19.3 points per game) and rebounding (8.1). Thomas has brought her stat-stuffing ways from 11 seasons in Connecticut to Phoenix with averages of 14.4 points, 8.9 assists and 7.2 rebounds in 10 games after missing five with a calf injury. And despite playing only three games so far, Copper has been a strong leadership presence.

Thomas played in just one of Phoenix's four losses -- twice to each of the Minnesota Lynx and theSeattle Storm -- while Copper didn't play in any. That's not to take away from the Lynx, who remain our No. 1 team, and the Storm, who are back in the top five. But considering how well Phoenix has done despite not having the big three of Copper, Sabally and Thomas on court together much, look out for just how high the Mercury can peak.