WNBA Offseason Primer: Phoenix Mercury

January 15 marked the official start of WNBA free agency. The WNBA released an official list of core players, reserved players, unrestricted free agents and restricted free agents.

With the help of The Summitt’s WNBA salaries database compiled by our own Howard Megdal, we’ll take a look at each WNBA team going into free agency, aiming to answer the following questions:

Which players are free agents?
Which players are still under contract?
Which players on the free agent markets would be good fits to add for 2018?

Phoenix ended up being a middling team in 2017, thanks in large part to the eight games Brittney Griner missed. The team went 3-5 in those contests.

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Griner played like a MVP candidate when active, suddenly raising the ceiling for the Mercury. While they may have initially expected to wait out the rest of Diana Taurasi’s career, seeing where the legend might take them, the 2017 season was about passing the torch to Griner. Throughout the entire season, it was clear that this became Griner’s team.

It ended in a run to the semifinal round of the playoffs, where the Mercury were swept by the Los Angeles Sparks. The epic game three saw a duel for the ages between Candace Parker and Diana Taurasi, but the Sparks’ depth won the series.

If the playoff run, understood best through the endless double team clinic Griner faced, highlighted anything for Phoenix, it was the need to find help. The team saw growth from players like Yvonne Turner and Stephanie Talbot through the course of the season. Turner scored 15 points in the opening game of the playoffs, while Talbot has the look of a potential stretch big in the very immediate future.

Phoenix needs to prioritize retaining some of its youth while also finding the requisite veteran competitors for a playoff run.

Now let’s break down Phoenix’s situation — current free agents, players still under contract and the status of their 2018 draft picks.

Unrestricted free agents (UFAs): F Camille Little, G Monique Currie

Restricted free agents (RFAs): G Kelsey Bone

Reserved players: F/C Emma Cannon, C Angel Robinson, G Yvonne Turner, F/C Cayla George, Sonja Petrovic, Marta Xargay

Core player: F DeWanna Bonner

Players under contract:

Griner through 2018
Alexis Prince through 2018
Danielle Robinson through 2018
Stephanie Talbot through 2018
Diana Taurasi through 2020 (maximum extension signed May 26, 2017)

2018 draft picks: No. 8, No. 20, No. 32

LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 12: Danielle Robinson

Adding some play-making and big depth will have to be the priorities for Phoenix, based on the players they are losing. Coach Sandy Brondello frequently uses non-traditional lineups with Robinson and another ball-handler or with Griner and another big. She was reluctant last season to go super small or go all in on spacing the floor, especially after Little, who was supposed to be the catalyst for those types of lineups, struggled to begin the year.

The big focus will be Bonner’s return after parental leave took her out of the 2017 season entirely. She will slide into Little’s spot and hopefully become the Mercury’s third scoring option. That one change could solidify roles elsewhere on the roster, making life easier for play-makers like Robinson and Talbot.

I expect the Mercury to continue down the line of relying on their youth to fill out the bench, especially with so many reserved players still not locked down. Here are a few options for them outside of their own players:

Cappie Pondexter: Could Phoenix welcome Pondexter back to Phoenix to replace Mitchell, whose shooting and passing became a core ingredient in their success at the end of last season? Pondexter’s scoring off the bench behind Robinson could be extremely valuable.
Carolyn Swords: The Mercury will likely target cheaper veterans thanks to their financial limitations paying two of the best players in the world. Swords could become Griner’s backup until Robinson, Cannon or George show they can handle that role full time.

The Mercury figure to be in the mix come playoff time once again, but their road toward the playoffs starts now.