Mercury Rising: Phoenix Locks In For Stretch Run
Worst to first? Some stories seem almost too good to be true. In the case of the Phoenix Mercury, they’ve been too good for many to remember their 0-4 start this season.
Now standing sixth in the playoff race (13-14), the three-time WNBA champion Mercury appear limber for the stretch run, turning their rough start into a 3-0 turnaround since the break. So it goes when Diana Taurasi’s hot hand warms up an entire team. Fresh from her record-breaking Rio run, the five-time scoring champion is shooting 48 percent from deep in her three games back, lighting up then-league-best Sparks for 26 in a Phoenix win. That victory grows the Mercury’s resume of impressive wins this season, with the playoff-bound Liberty and East contending Dream nestled on the list.
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What’s been most key behind Phoenix’s turnaround? Their numbers aren’t representative of a lottery-bound squad. The Mercury rank top five in scoring (85.4, second), three-pointers per game (6.3, fourth), blocks (5.3, second), field-goal percentage (45.7, fourth), and free-throw percentage (83.2, third). Given their offense being held up by Taurasi’s scoring touch and DeWanna Bonner’s versatility, and Brittany Griner anchoring the defense with her league-best 3.1 blocks per game, the Mercury have the makings of a title contender.
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But unlike the 2014 championship squad, which averaged an identical 83.5 points, this year’s Mercury hasn’t boasted an elite defense. Phoenix allowed only 74.1 points during the 2014 regular season, and losing only one postseason game en route to their third title since 2007. This season, they rank last in three-point shooting defense (37.4 percent), seventh in rebounds allowed (34.3 per game) and ninth in scoring defense (84.1). Advanced metrics illustrate an even deeper point for Phoenix, as the Mercury allow 104.0 points per 100 possessions this season (eighth in the WNBA). Fortunately, coming out of the break, they’ve appeared to right their defensive ship, holding the Sparks 18 points under their season scoring average (66 to 84.6) on September 28th, and Indiana to 65 two nights later. Between those two bouts, the Mercury improved their points allowed and three-point shooting defense by one full percentage point. In their final eight games, they play only one top-five offense: those same L.A. Sparks on September 13th.
So as Phoenix prepares itself for another playoff run, their focus appears geared for a bigger prize. Champions know how to both raise and sustain their intensity as the stakes rise. And what better resources than two Olympic gold medalists (Taurasi, Griner) who proved pivotal in one of the most dominant gold medal runs in hoops history? Most telling has been Taurasi’s hot shooting translating from Rio to the WNBA stretch run, during which the Sparks and Lynx will certainly garner the most attention as the Western Conference’s powerhouse squads. But nothing is decided until the final game ends, and Taurasi’s teams know championship runs better than anyone else. It’s more about when you’re peaking.
In Phoenix’s case, the mercury couldn’t rise at a better time.