WNBA: With Copper and Thomas healthy, Mercury embark on big road trip

For the first time in 2025, the Phoenix Mercury had all of Kahleah Copper, Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally available for the same game, and the result was what they had hoped: a 76-70 win over the Las Vegas Aces.

Copper, who led the Mercury in scoring last year at 21.1 points per game, missed the first 11 games of the season after undergoing a knee arthroscopy in mid-May, while Thomas had battled a calf injury that kept her out for a handful of games at the beginning of June. Phoenix performed admirably without the duo, getting key contributions from several complementary players alongside Sabally, but it was clear that the team’s ceiling would be limited until its stars got healthy.

As of last Sunday, that moment has come, although Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts is still preaching patience, especially when it comes to Copper’s reintegration into the lineup.

“I mean, it’s going to take a minute,” Tibbetts said after the Mercury’s win over Las Vegas. “The rotations are a little bit different just because Kah’s on a minutes restriction … she was running four-minute stretches and that’s not typically what she does.”

Copper played just under 18 minutes against the Aces, scoring 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field. Thomas, meanwhile, recorded another double-double of 14 points and 13 assists, but also committed seven turnovers in 29 minutes.

If we’ve come to expect one thing from the 2025 Mercury, though, it’s that even when they aren’t playing their best as a unit, one or two players will step up and help see things through. On Sunday, that player was veteran shooting guard Sami Whitcomb, who knocked down four of Phoenix’s nine 3-pointers and scored 18 points off the bench—a crucial contribution on a night when the Mercury shot just 38.4 percent from the field and 28.1 percent from deep.

Phoenix is now 8-4 and remains in fourth place in the WNBA standings. Given everything the team has gone through early in the season, that’s quite the achievement, and it will look even better if its current stretch of road games goes as planned.

A matchup against the Liberty highlights the Mercury’s ongoing road trip

The Mercury’s win over the Aces kicked off a four-game road trip, which will be their longest of the 2025 season thus far. Such stretches are daunting tasks for any team, but after seeing what he saw against Las Vegas, Tibbetts is optimistic.

“I think that’s why I’m excited about this road trip,” Tibbetts commented. “Our rookies have played extremely well. I mean, they’ve been awesome, but it’s just a it’s a whole another thing when you go on the road, and that’s why you got to have veterans like Sami.”

On the Mercury’s docket are games against the Connecticut Sun (2-9) and Chicago Sky (3-8), which, on paper, are favorable matchups. Phoenix’s game against the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty (10-1), who the Mercury have yet to play this season, will be considerably tougher; New York currently leads the league in both offensive (110.8) and defensive rating (91.3), and with a sizable frontcourt that includes Jonquel Jones (6-foot-6) and Breanna Stewart (6-foot-5), the Mercury may have a difficult time getting good looks at the rim.

Phoenix will obviously be relying on its transition game, which is typically fueled by Copper running the floor and Thomas distributing, to offset the difference in height. A healthy Natasha Mack should help, too; the 6-foot-4 center, whose rim-running and shot-blocking are her biggest strengths, began the season recovering from a back injury, but in two games since returning to the Mercury’s lineup, she’s averaged 4.5 rebounds, 2 steals and 1.5 blocks in 13.8 minutes played.