Phoenix

Mercury

Bonner recorded a double-double in her first start of the series. Her impact was less significant than her 25-point, 10-rebound Game 3, but the veteran forward still managed to provide some value on both ends of the floor. She finished as one of five Phoenix players to score in double figures and one of two to collect double-digit rebounds.

Copper went out swinging in the Mercury’s final game of the season. She repeatedly attacked downhill and put pressure on the Aces’ defense throughout, which was especially notable in her 13-point third quarter that helped get Phoenix back in the game. The former Finals MVP ultimately set a new personal best for points scored in a WNBA Finals game before fouling out of Friday’s contest late in the fourth quarter. She averaged 22.8 points through the four games and was arguably the Mercury’s most consistent scorer throughout the series.

Thomas had another balanced performance on Friday, impacting the game in several ways on the offensive end. The MVP finalist briefly left the contest late in the second quarter after colliding with the Aces’ Jewell Loyd when attempting to run through a screen. She eventually returned to begin the third quarter and helped the Mercury mount a spirited comeback attempt. Ultimately, Thomas’s production wasn’t enough, and her game-high nine turnovers were costly, accounting for half of Phoenix’s total turnovers. She finished her first postseason run with the Mercury, fittingly, having recorded a triple-double.

On the heels of a 25-point, 10-rebound performance in Wednesday’s loss to the Aces, Bonner will get the start in the Mercury’s must-win Game 4. She’ll replace Satou Sabally, who suffered a concussion in the fourth quarter of Game 3 before being ruled out for Friday’s contest. Bonner is averaging 9.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in 25.3 minutes per game throughout this 2025 postseason. She and the rest of the Mercury will need a strong outing if they hope to avoid elimination and send the series back to Las Vegas for Game 5.

Sabally left Wednesday night’s Game 3 of the WNBA Finals with 4:26 left in the fourth quarter. Her head collided with the leg of Aces forward Kiersten Bell as Sabally and Aces guard Jackie Young were fighting for a rebound. Young was assessed a personal foul for tangling up Sabally’s arm, but Bell’s contact with Sabally’s head was accidental. After Sabally was down for around 10 minutes on the ground following the collision, she left the floor with some help from teammate Kalani Brown and a member of the Mercury’s training staff. The injury is a major blow for the Mercury as they will enter Game 4 on Friday down 3-0 in an elimination game of best of seven series without one of their stars available to play. With Sabally out for Game 4, expect DeWanna Bonner to start in her place and for stretch big Kathryn Westbeld to get some more run off the bench.

For the second straight game, Thomas dealt with foul trouble although she still played in all but one minute of Wednesday night’s game. She picked up three of her five personal fouls in the second half and as a result was less potent on both sides of the ball. She also had difficulty taking care of the ball, turning the ball over three times which resulted in two Aces scores. She was just one assist off from yet another triple-double and distributed to four teammates in DeWanna Bonner, Kahleah Copper, Satou Sabally and Monique Akoa Makani. Thomas led her team rebounding the basketball picking up 12. She had two offensive boards, which moved her into a tie with league legend Lisa Leslie for eighth on the All-Time Playoffs offensive rebounds list with 127.

Bonner had her most productive game of the Finals on Wednesday night and took advantage of how the Aces guarded her. It also helped that Dana Evans fouled out with almost six minutes left in the fourth. Bonner was incredibly aggressive on drives overpowering and crossing up NaLyssa Smith multiple times in the second half. She also took advantage of her matchup with Megan Gustafson who she also was able to beat off the dribble in addition to firing and making a 25-foot step-back three-pointer over Gustafson’s outstretched arms. Bonner was also the Mercury’s most efficient player, only needing 11 shots to score over 20 points, although she attempted 13 free throws and missed four of them.

After a very quiet first three quarters, Copper turned it up in the fourth especially following Satou Sabally’s exit after her collision with Kiersten Bell. She scored 11 of her total 17 points in the fourth quarter alone in less than two minutes of play in the fourth. Copper not only took and made Sabally’s free throws after Sabally exited the game, but Copper had multiple and-one’s on drives to the basket in addition to a three-pointer that brought the Aces once 17-point lead down to just a single point.

Sabally had her highest scoring performance since Game 2 of the semifinals against the Lynx, a game the Mercury won. On Wednesday night however, this wasn’t the case amid Sabally’s most efficient shooting performance of the Finals series. She took advantage of her size advantage over the Aces guards early, but her teammates struggled to get her the ball to further exploit that size mismatch throughout the game. Sabally was less trigger happy, and found her teammates DeWanna Bonner, Kahleah Copper and Monique Akoa Makani on cuts to the basket and kick outs. Sabally’s solid performance was cut short. She left the game after hitting her head on Kiersten Bell’s leg with 4:26 left in regulation. The ESPN broadcast reported that Sabally was going to be evaluated for a concussion. Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts had no update on Sabally postgame.

Thomas had a relatively quiet game on Sunday as the Mercury dropped their second game of the series. The do-it-all forward barely made it to double figures as a scorer, while tallying her fewest assists of the postseason and tying a postseason low in rebounds. Thomas battled foul trouble throughout much of the game, which arguably could’ve taken away from her aggressiveness. Nevertheless, the MVP finalist has not had a dominant performance through two games in the Finals matchup, and Phoenix will likely need one of her signature performances in Wednesday’s Game 3 if it wants to avoid falling behind by three games.