Nate Tibbetts had a dream. A “Big 3” squad starring Kahleah Copper, Alyssa Thomas, and Satou Sabally. But before the WNBA season even tipped off, that vision had to crumble and fall apart. Now, as the Mercury gear up to break the 1-1 tie against a familiar foe, everyone is looking forward to whether a shorthanded squad can spark a win and pull ahead.
Phoenix opened the season on a strong note, dominating the Seattle Storm 81-59. Alyssa Thomas practically did everything as she dropped 20 points, 7 boards, 6 assists, and 2 steals. But Seattle wasn’t about to stay quiet for long. They regrouped, reloaded, and handed the Mercury a 77-70 loss in game two. Now, round three is here and the Mercury are back on their home court. Where is Alyssa Thomas, though? Will she suit up against the Western Conference’s fourth-best team? Or will Mercury’s 2nd-ranked status suffer in her absence?
Injury Report: Phoenix Mercury vs Seattle Storm
Unfortunately, sources have declared Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas out of the match against the Seattle Storm. The official Underdog WNBA account broke the news on X and posted, “Alyssa Thomas (calf) ruled out for Saturday.” The athlete has been sidelined for the last four matches owing to a left calf injury. Her return was listed as June 5 on June 3 and it is June 8 now. Naturally, fans are worried.
Alyssa Thomas’ absence hurts especially because she hasn’t missed a game since 2021 and even then, she played three games through an Achilles tear. And her presence had already been making waves in a roster that had just one returning player, who herself hasn’t been able to suit up yet.
Alyssa Thomas (calf) ruled out for Saturday.
— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) June 7, 2025
But she, of course, isn’t the only one on the injury report. Natasha Mack and Kahleah Copper remain out because of back and knee issues, respectively. Megan McConnell, who went undrafted this year but was later signed by the Mercury, won’t be joining them, too, because of a knee injury. AllThingsWNBA reported that she won’t return before 3-4 weeks.
With several key players sidelined during the regular season, the Mercury signed athlete Haley Jones under the league’s emergency hardship exception contract. And HC Tibbetts will be placing his hopes on Satou Sabally and Lexi Held’s shoulders. Speaking about Held, he said, “I’ve been pretty pleased with her playing the point here the last couple of games..I think she’s probably been more of a combo (guard), but she handled it a ton tonight, which was great with some of the injuries that we’ve had”.
Projected starters: Phoenix Mercury vs Seattle Storm
Here’s a look at the projected starting five for both teams:
Phoenix Mercury
Sami Whitcomb
Monique Akoa Makani
Kathryn Westbeld
Satou Sabally
Kitija Laksa
Seattle Storm
Skylar Diggins
Gabby Williams
Alysha Clark
Nneka Ogwumike
Ezi Magbegor
What will it come down to?
The Phoenix Mercury will be missing some of its strongest pieces ahead of Saturday’s tip-off. The roster is relying heavily on veteran Satau Sabally to bolster the team. Sabally has been dishing out a phenomenal performance with a total of 20.3 points, 8 rebounds, and 2.7 assists so far.
On the other hand, the Seattle Storm is on a balanced win-loss ratio after their latest 83-77 victory against the Dallas Wings. Skylar Diggins has scored an average of 16.8 points and 6.4 assists per game, while Nneka Ogwumike boasts of 9.8 rebounds per game so far. With promising and equally skilled players on both rosters, it all boils down to the statistics.
Mercury has higher rebound statistics at 33.0, 4.2 blocks, and 9.3 steals when compared to Storm’s 32.5 rebounds, 4.1 blocks, and 7.4 steals. Though Storm has more efficient scorers, Mercury boasts of powerful defenders. How they will use their pieces, though, will define who takes the crown.
However, Mercury don’t have the depth inside without Alyssa Thomas and might have trouble slowing down Ogwumike and Gabby Williams (14.5 PTS). A lot of it might come down to the energy on court as the team has gone 2-2 without her. Lexi Held, Kathryn Westbeld and Sami Whitcomb will need to step up defensively and majorly.
Lexi is someone who can be dangerous outside the paint and that’s exactly where Storm’s weakness lies. She would need to do her best there because based on Storm collapsed on A’ja, they will be looking to do the same with Satou Sabally. So, her defense here is going to be key in making sure Storm’s strategy doesn’t overpower.
As for the predictions, most are siding with Storm to win. “Our team has used the latest data to run 10,000 simulations of Saturday’s Seattle-Phoenix game,” said Dimers’ Chief Content Officer, Nick Slade.”By incorporating recent updates and various other inputs, we estimate that the Storm are more likely to win, while the Mercury have a lower chance of victory.”
Who are you rooting for?
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