In the cutthroat world of the WNBA, where expectations can shift in the blink of an eye and one bad stretch can define an entire season, the Phoenix Mercury have emerged as the league’s most surprising and painful disappointment. Sitting at a dismal 2-6 record after just eight games—roughly 20 percent of the regular season—the Mercury aren’t just struggling. They are in full meltdown mode, a complete disaster that has fans, analysts, and even the players themselves searching for answers. What was supposed to be a competitive campaign built around veteran leadership and proven talent has instead turned into a nightly showcase of turnovers, defensive lapses, and offensive stagnation that culminated in one of the most embarrassing collapses in recent memory against the New York Liberty.
The latest chapter in this unfolding nightmare came on the road against a Liberty team that, while talented, wasn’t expected to run the Mercury off the floor in such humiliating fashion. For a while, it looked like Phoenix might have a fighting chance. They held a lead at 50-42 with eight minutes left in the third quarter and were still within striking distance at 55-49 with five minutes remaining. Then everything fell apart in spectacular fashion. The Liberty unleashed a 23-0 run that didn’t just swing the game—it exposed every single flaw in the Mercury’s current makeup. What makes this stretch even more jaw-dropping is that for a significant portion of it, Phoenix literally could not get a shot off. From 55-60 down to 55-72, the Liberty scored 12 straight points without the Mercury attempting a single field goal. Turnovers, fouls, backcourt violations, and offensive fouls piled up like dominos in a comedy of errors that no professional team should ever endure.
Let’s break down exactly how it unfolded because the play-by-play reads like a horror story. After a defensive rebound, Marine Johannes knocked down a three to tie things up. Then came a foul that forced a substitution. Yoyo Nogic missed a wide-open three that looked like a grenade—nowhere near the rim. Nogic turned the ball over. More missed shots followed before a brief Liberty basket. Then the real carnage: an offensive foul by one of the Mercury wings, a random foul on Kia Copper that gave the Liberty free throws, and another turnover. Nogic tried to answer with a three that was in the air and good, but a senseless foul wiped it away and added insult to injury. Free throws, an eight-second violation, a jump-shot and-one for Breanna Stewart, more turnovers, a backcourt violation, and easy baskets for the Liberty bigs. By the end of the quarter, the game was essentially over. The Mercury had been outscored 23-0 in a quarter where they couldn’t even muster a single shot attempt for critical stretches. It wasn’t that the Liberty were doing anything revolutionary. It was that Phoenix simply fell apart at the most basic levels—advancing the ball, protecting possession, and executing simple actions.
This wasn’t an isolated bad quarter. It was the latest symptom of a season-long disease. At 2-6, the Mercury are on the verge of slipping into last place if the Connecticut Sun take care of business against the Portland Fire. Think about that for a second: through 20 percent of the schedule, a franchise with championship pedigree and star power could be dead last. That’s not just disappointing—it’s alarming. And when you look at the individual performances, the picture gets even darker. DeWanna Bonner, the veteran forward who has been a cornerstone for years, is simply not the same player right now. At 39 years old, her game has declined sharply. She’s struggling to create, to finish, and to impact the game in ways that once came naturally. Calling her “terrible” might sound harsh, but the numbers and the eye test don’t lie. She’s a shadow of the player who helped carry this franchise in the past.
Kia Copper isn’t faring much better. Sure, she dropped 19 points in the Liberty loss, but the efficiency is brutal—shooting in the low 30s from the field and the teens from beyond the arc. That’s not sustainable for a team that needs reliable scoring from its guards. Copper looks washed in a way that feels sudden and concerning. She’s getting beat defensively, forcing shots, and failing to create the kind of separation that made her dangerous before. When your supposed veteran leaders are this ineffective this early, it creates a vacuum that younger or less experienced players simply can’t fill fast enough.
Even Alyssa Thomas, who has been one of the most consistent two-way players in the league for years, looked off in this game. Her patented triple-single stat line—points, rebounds, and assists in modest numbers—didn’t tell the whole story. She looked slow getting up the floor, hesitant in decision-making, and unable to push the tempo the way the Mercury desperately needed. The team struggled mightily to get the ball past half court for large chunks of the game. Without a true point guard on the floor, the offense ground to a halt repeatedly. Yoyo Nogic showed real flashes—she was milliseconds away from a huge shooting night, hitting two threes that were called back or just off due to moving screens or timing issues. Had those gone down cleanly, she might have finished 5-of-7 from deep and given Phoenix a real spark. But Nogic isn’t a natural point guard. She’s being asked to do things outside her comfort zone because the Mercury simply don’t have the personnel to run the show smoothly right now.
The supporting cast had its moments—Monique Calhoun and Natasha Mack looked serviceable—but they can’t carry the load when the stars are underperforming this badly. Myisha Hines-Allen barely saw the floor despite being a plus player in limited action. The lineup experiments, the constant turnovers, and the inability to execute basic offensive sets have left the team looking disorganized and demoralized. Effective field-goal percentage might have been decent at times, but free-throw misses, poor three-point shooting (which has been a season-long issue), and those killer runs have masked deeper problems.
What makes this situation especially painful is how avoidable so much of it feels. The Mercury entered the season with high hopes after adding talent and maintaining a core that had shown promise in previous years. Instead, they’ve looked lost from the jump. The lack of a clear floor general is glaring. When Alyssa Thomas decides she’s not pushing the ball or when Nogic is forced into a role she’s not built for, everything breaks down. Add in the age curve hitting Bonner hard and the rapid decline in Copper’s efficiency, and you have a recipe for exactly the kind of disaster we’re witnessing. Advanced metrics like expected points only make it worse—the Mercury lost by more than the final score suggested when you account for the quality of chances they created versus what they actually converted.
Fans are understandably frustrated and concerned. Social media has been flooded with reactions ranging from disbelief to outright anger. How does a team with this much experience and talent look this unprepared and uncoordinated this deep into the season? The Liberty game wasn’t an outlier; it was a magnification of issues that have been simmering since opening night. The 23-0 run wasn’t just a bad stretch—it was a symptom of a larger identity crisis. Without the ability to advance the ball, protect possessions, or create easy looks, the Mercury are forcing tough shots and turning the ball over at alarming rates. That kind of basketball doesn’t win games in today’s WNBA, where spacing, pace, and efficiency rule.
Looking ahead, the Mercury have real decisions to make if they want to salvage this season. Is it time to lean harder into youth and development? Can they find a way to get more out of their veteran core before it’s too late? Bonner at 39 is in the twilight of her career, and while no one wants to write her off completely, the reality of Father Time is staring the franchise in the face. Copper’s regression is the bigger red flag—talented players don’t usually decline this sharply this quickly without underlying issues. The coaching staff has to figure out a better way to create structure, especially in transition and half-court sets. Relying on Thomas or Nogic to handle primary ball-handling duties isn’t cutting it.
Yet it’s not all doom and gloom. There are small silver linings. Nogic’s near-miss shooting night shows she can be a difference-maker if the system plays to her strengths. Mack and Calhoun provide steady minutes. If the Mercury can stop the bleeding, string together a few wins, and avoid more historic collapses, they might still claw back into the playoff picture. The WNBA is a long season, and 20 percent in is early enough that a hot streak could change everything. But right now, the momentum is all negative, and the confidence looks shattered.
This early disaster also raises bigger questions about the franchise’s direction. The Mercury have been a model of consistency and competitiveness for years, but the current roster construction is exposing cracks that were perhaps papered over in previous campaigns. The lack of a true point guard has been a talking point all season, and the Liberty game proved why it’s such a critical need. Without someone who can reliably push the ball, make reads, and set up teammates, even talented scorers like Copper and Bonner look lost. The turnovers aren’t random—they’re the result of a system that’s asking players to do things they’re not naturally suited for.
As the Mercury prepare for their next games, the focus must be on fundamentals: ball security, getting the ball up the floor, and creating rhythm in the half court. They have the talent to be better than this. The question is whether they can find the chemistry and the mental toughness to turn it around before the deficit becomes insurmountable. For now, though, the label “complete disaster” fits all too well. A 2-6 start with a historic collapse on national television has left the Mercury at a crossroads. Fans deserve answers, and the team owes it to itself to deliver them on the court.
The broader league landscape only adds pressure. While other teams like the Sun are winning and climbing, the Mercury are sliding backward. If the Sun handle their business tonight, Phoenix could wake up in the basement—an unthinkable spot for a franchise with this much history. But basketball is funny that way. One good week, a couple of defensive stands, and a return to efficient shooting could flip the script. The Mercury have the pieces. They just need to stop the bleeding and remember how to play winning basketball.
For now, the story remains one of shock and concern. The Phoenix Mercury are a complete disaster at the moment, and until they prove otherwise, that label will stick. The 23-0 run, the endless turnovers, the veteran struggles—it’s all part of a larger narrative that has the basketball world watching closely. Will they right the ship, or is this the beginning of a painful rebuild? Only time—and the next few games—will tell. One thing is certain: the Mercury have hit rock bottom early, and the only way out is up. Fans are holding their breath, hoping for a spark that can turn this disaster into a distant memory.
