If they play their cards right, the Phoenix Mercury could come out of Wednesday's game against the Minnesota Lynx as the reigning team in the league, a reality that wasn't necessarily predicted ahead of the season's beginning in May.
Granted, the team will be operating without Satou Sabally, Lexi Held, Kahleah Copper, and Monique Akoa Makani, but if DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas can continue their signature brand of mind-melding magic, Phoenix has a true shot at legitimately being the best.
The Mercury came into the 2025 season off of 19-21 record. That wasn't the worst in the league and it wasn't the best, but it was a far cry from their 15-6 record so far this season. In just about every way that truly matters, Phoenix has made no mistakes so far this year, and there's no reason to believe they'll start now.
A lot is up to DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas
It's no secret that Bonner, who signed with the Mercury in early July after departing the Fever last month, and Thomas (who are also engaged) play a very special kind of basketball together. Both are individually tremendous talents, and together they combine as one of the most unique duos in the WNBA to date. They're constantly aware of one another's positioning and can expertly feed the ball to each other almost effortlessly, making their games together incredible to watch no matter who you're rooting for.
The pair will be called upon to repeat their performance against the Valkyries if they hope to take down the Lynx again, especially since Minnesota will be operating at very near full power (the team will only be missing Karlie Samuelson, who is out for the rest of the 2025 season after injuring her foot). Bonner, who played her best game of 2025 against Golden state Monday night, finished last night's game with 22 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, and one steal in 29 minutes. Though she came off the bench, Bonner played more minutes than any starter besides Thomas and teammate Sami Whitcomb.
Thomas, who was named Western Conference Player of the Week Tuesday, hit a career-high 29 points in the Mercury's last game against the Lynx on July 9 while shooting 14-for-24 from the field and adding on 8 rebounds and 5 assists. She also racked up another double-double with 17 points and 11 assists.
Minnesota is unlikely to make things easy for Phoenix, especially since Wednesday's game will be played on their home court, but if the Mercury pull this one off, it's likely there will be no stopping them this season.