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Top Plays of the Day, 07/22/2026

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WILD ENDING: Los Angeles Sparks vs. Phoenix Mercury 07/22/2026

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WILD ENDING: Phoenix Mercury vs. Connecticut Sun (07/19/2026)

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WILD ENDING: Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury 07/13/2026

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Phoenix Mercury Top Plays vs. Indiana Fever

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WILD ENDING: Golden State Valkyries vs. Phoenix Mercury (06/09/2026)

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WILD ENDING: Portland Fire vs. Phoenix Mercury (06/05/2026)

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Phoenix Mercury Top Plays vs. Minnesota Lynx

5 Things I Like

When the season kicked off, would you have believed me if I told you that one of the top contending teams in the WNBA would be the Golden State Valkyries?
If you’re an avid member of Balhalla, then yes, you probably knew that. If not, you might be shocked to see that Golden State &#8211; following their extremely successful debut season in 2025 &#8211; are 5-3, and coming off an emphatic victory against the Indiana Fever this past week. They’re keeping pace with the Las Vegas Aces, Atlanta Dream, Dallas Wings, and Minnesota Lynx atop the standings and are doing so with a balanced attack led by Veronica Burton. 
This exciting surge has landed them at the front of my mind ahead of this week’s list of five things I really liked from Week 3 of the WNBA. 
<hr />
<h2>Golden State Soars Behind Defense</h2>
<div id="attachment_262152" style="width: 2010px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-262152" class="wp-image-262152 size-full" src="https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055.png" alt="" width="2000" height="1125" srcset="https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055.png 2000w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055-300x169.png 300w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055-1024x576.png 1024w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055-768x432.png 768w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144254.055-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px" />Veronica Burton #22 of the Golden State Valkyries</div>
The Valkyries’ defense was their biggest key to winning against the Fever in their second game in the same week. After a bit of a testy game between the two franchises, the Valkyries came into this game fired up and motivated to snag a win. Veronica Burton had a rocking five blocks against the Fever in addition to six rebounds, three assists, and a team-high 25 points. 
So far this year, the Valkyries are third in the league in defensive rating (101.6), second in net rating (7.3), and second in assists to turnovers (1.74). They’re playing highly efficient basketball with an emphasis on making their opponents feel them on the defensive end, and that has everything to do with the culture that Burton and head coach Natalie Nakase are establishing in the Bay. And, home game crowds are becoming a sneaky Sixth Player of the Year candidate. 
<hr />
<h2>Kiki Rice Enters ROTY Chat</h2>
While Olivia Miles might be taking a stranglehold of the Rookie of the Year race, we can’t be too quick to write off some other big-name picks from this year’s draft. Azzi Fudd just had quite a signature moment at Barclays Center in a huge Dallas Wings win over the New York Liberty, and Rice is continuing to thrive with bigger minutes for the Toronto Tempo. 
Rice, while averaging 27 minutes per game through nine games, is now averaging 13.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game. Her three-point shooting is what’s really separating her from the pack for the Tempo, hitting 40.6 percent of her three-pointers on a decent diet of 2.4 shots per game. 
Rice’s play on the floor is not that of a rookie &#8211; and that’s a great thing for Toronto. She plays with the confidence of a veteran floor general, unafraid of contact and ready to drag defenders into the paint with her to create offense. That’s a huge load off the shoulders of Brittney Sykes, Marina Mabrey, and Nyara Sabally. If we’re speaking to the impact of rookies on their teams so far, Rice needs to firmly be in the conversation following her four steal, 17-point, and six rebound performance against the Seattle Storm in the Tempo’s latest win. 
<hr />
<h2>The Impeding Horror of the Lynx</h2>
<div id="attachment_262154" style="width: 2010px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-262154" class="wp-image-262154 size-full" src="https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075.png" alt="" width="2000" height="1125" srcset="https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075.png 2000w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075-300x169.png 300w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075-1024x576.png 1024w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075-768x432.png 768w, https://cdn.wnba.com/sites/4/2026/06/Thumbnail-2026-06-01T144614.075-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px" />The Minnesota Lynx</div>
This is not a horror story, mind you, for fans of the Lynx. Rather, this is the sound of the horror that will soon be a fully healthy Minnesota team that’s already atop the league in the standings. Without Napheesa Collier or Dorka Juhasz playing a single minute so far in 2025. This is simply the result of a team with so much chemistry following a disappointing 2025 campaign, able to soar through the competition without their potential MVP. 
How is Minnesota achieving this success? 
A lot of it has to do with their defense. They’re averaging five blocks per game along with 8.5 steals and 37.6 rebounds, all while limiting their personal fouls committed to just 20.4 per game. With a 96.4 defensive rating, their impact is being felt. On the glass, they’re getting their work in, and that’s in major thanks to veterans Natasha Howard, Nia Coffey, and Courtney Williams. Their rebounding is preventing other teams from gaining second-chance scoring opportunities, which helps remedy their lack of size outside of Howard and Coffey in the frontcourt. 
Oh, and Miles is leading the league in defensive win shares as a rookie. 
Again, this impact is being felt without Collier in the lineup. A lot was made of the team losing both Alanna Smith and Jessica Shepard in the offseason, and so far, it looks like the Lynx didn’t think much of it at all. They’re going to be unbelievably potent when fully healthy, and that’s a scary idea for the rest of the league. 
<hr />
<h2>Can Monique Akoa Makani Save Phoenix?</h2>
The Mercury, despite entering this season with a healthy Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas, have looked worse for wear. They’re 2-7 headed into Commissioner’s Cup play, and they don’t have a ton of available answers to their woes. 
 
They’re middling in both defensive and offensive ratings and are allowing opponents to shoot 52.8 percent from the field. But they’re still doing a good job of forcing opponents to find their scoring outside of the paint &#8211; they’re only allowing them to score 32.7 points from there &#8211; but, that’s not really doing much to contribute to their win column. 
Phoenix’s star rookie from last season, Monique Akoa Makani, just got inserted into the starting lineup over their rookie this year, Jovana Nogic, to see if they can find any spark defensively. In two games played so far, she’s already the top Phoenix player in defensive win shares with 0.222, showing just how impactful she can be on that end of the floor as a starter. But can just one player really change the course of what has so far been a disappointing start to a potential contender’s season? Phoenix will need more than just her activity against guards to revitalize their team, although replacing Nogic in the lineup with her is a great start towards that goal. 
<hr />
<h2>Portland Megan Gustafson Says What We’re All Thinking</h2>
After a historic year for the Valkyries in 2025, it wasn’t anticipated that the next two expansion franchises on deck, the Fire and Tempo, could re-create that same magic. 
Let veteran center Megan Gustafson tell it, though, and you’d be a fool for having doubted these two teams’ ability to succeed in this league right away. 
Gustafson had an emotional press conference following the Fire’s win over the Fever on Saturday, telling reporters that she’s never felt as valued before in her eight-year WNBA career as she does with Portland. 
&#8220;I mean, we&#8217;re a bunch of overlooked players, and I think we all have a chip on our shoulder. I&#8217;ve really never been respected as a basketball player until I&#8217;ve gotten here, so I&#8217;m really thankful for this team, this organization. They really believe in me.”
Gustafson made these comments on the tail end of a historic evening from the Fire, with her 22 points contributing to the largest scoring game in their history (so far). The Moda Center was living and dying by every shot from Portland, and their excitement was probably helped along by the fact that the team looked so confident against a team like the Fever. 
These overlooked players who have made up these last three expansion teams have been written off for most of their careers. They’ve found new life and new opportunities with these new squads, to the point where even veterans like Gustafson feel like they’ve been revitalized.

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5 Things I Like: Week Three 2026

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WILD ENDING: New York Liberty vs. Phoenix Mercury 05/29/2026

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Monique Akoa Makani

NOTABLE: In her rookie season with Phoenix, was one of three players in 2025 (Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride) and one of five rookies in WNBA history to shoot at least 40% FG, 39% 3PT and 90% FT (min. 25 games played) … Knocked down the second-most three-pointers made (49) by a rookie in Mercury history, trailing only Diana Taurasi (62).
WNBA CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
• 2025 WNBA All-Rookie Team selection. • One of five rookies in WNBA history to shoot at least 40% FG, 39% 3PT and 90% FT (min. 25 GP). • Recorded the second-most three-pointers made (49) and fifth-most assists (111) by a rookie in Mercury history.*
WNBA CAREER STOPS
• 2025-present: Phoenix Mercury
WNBA CAREER TRANSACTIONS
• Re-signed with Phoenix on April 15, 2026. • Signed a training camp contract with Phoenix on March 11, 2025.
2025 WNBA SEASON (Phoenix Mercury)
• Appeared in 41 games (40 starts) during her rookie season. • Averaged 7.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 0.8 steals. • Shot 43.0% FG, 39.8% 3PT and 92.7% FT … one of three players in 2025 (Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride) to shoot at least 40% FG, 39% 3PT and 90% FT (min. 25 GP), becoming one of five rookies in WNBA history to accomplish the feat. • Ranked 10th in the WNBA in three-point percentage. • Recorded the second-most three-pointers made (49) by a rookie in Mercury history*. • Recorded the fifth-most assists (111) by a rookie in Mercury history*. • Led the team with eight games of three or more made three-pointers while shooting at least 50% from beyond the arc. • Began her career by making her first 26 free throw attempts, tied for the third-longest streak to begin a WNBA career.
2025 WNBA ROOKIE RANKINGS
• Per Game: First in FT%, third in assists and 3PT%, fourth in 3PM, seventh in FG%, eighth in points and steals. • Totals: Third in assists, fourth in 3PM, tied for sixth in steals and seventh in points.
KEY PERFORMANCES
• May 21-27 — Recorded three or more made three-pointers in four consecutive games, joining Diana Taurasi (2004), Kelsey Mitchell (2018) and Caitlin Clark (2024) as the only rookies in WNBA history* to accomplish the feat … Became the first Mercury rookie to score 10 or more points in at least four consecutive games since Brittney Griner (2013). • June 1 at Las Vegas — Became the first Mercury rookie since Dymond Simon (2012) to record at least 10 points, five rebounds and six assists. • June 19 at New York — Scored a career-high 21 points (8-12 FG) and joined Diana Taurasi as the only Mercury rookies to record at least 20 points and five assists while shooting at least 60% from the field.
2025 WNBA PLAYOFFS
(Phoenix lost to Las Vegas in the WNBA Finals) • Averaged 6.9 points, 2.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 0.6 steals in 11 games (all starts). • Recorded the third-most assists (33) by a rookie in a single postseason in WNBA history. • Logged the second-most minutes played (268) by a rookie in a single postseason in WNBA history. • Became the youngest WNBA rookie (24 years, 241 days) to start a Finals game since Ariel Atkins in 2018.
PLAYOFF KEY PERFORMANCES
• Oct. 3, Finals Game 1 at Las Vegas — Became the third rookie in WNBA history to record at least 10 points, two three-pointers and two steals in a Finals game. • Oct. 5, Finals Game 2 at Las Vegas — Became the fourth rookie in WNBA history to record at least seven assists in a Finals game.
SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CAREER (CAMEROON)
• Represented Cameroon at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket and the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket Qualifiers (held in 2024).
OVERSEAS CAREER
• 2025-26: Tango Bourges Basket (France) • 2022-25: Charnay Basket (France) • 2021-22: Nantes Rezé (France) • 2019-21: Lyon ASVEL Féminin (France) • 2018-19: Union Lyon (France)
OVERSEAS KEY AWARDS/TITLES
• French League Guard of the Year (2025). • All-French League First Team (2025). • French League All-Defensive Team (2025). • French LF2 Champion (2023).
PERSONAL
• Born in Edea, Cameroon, and grew up in Lyon, France. • Has two older brothers and one older sister. • Enjoys meditation, music (singing and dancing), movies and shopping. • Grew up playing soccer before switching to basketball. • Favorite player growing up was Maya Moore.
*Excludes the inaugural 1997 WNBA season.

Monique Akoa Makani is temporarily suspended.

Monique Akoa Makani signed a Contract with the Phoenix Mercury.

The Phoenix Mercury extended a Reserved qualifying offer to Monique Akoa Makani.

Fares well against Sparks

Returns Friday

Leaves for locker room

Registers 17 points in road loss

Logs 13 points in blowout loss

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