Mercury to Lose Kahleah Copper for Start of Season After Knee Surgery News

There's a lot of intrigue about how the Phoenix Mercury will look this WNBA season, as they lost arguably the two biggest legends in their franchise's history.

These two legends are Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner. Taurasi retired after an incredible 20-year career in the WNBA, which included her being a three-time WNBA champion, a two-time WNBA Finals MVP, an 11-time WNBA All-Star, a five-time WNBA scoring champion, and a 10-time All-WNBA First-Team Honoree. All of these accomplishments came with the Mercury.

The other player who left the franchise was star center and Taurasi's partner-in-crime, Brittney Griner, who joined the Atlanta Dream in free agency after feeling uncertain that the Mercury wanted her back.

While these two icons are no longer in Phoenix, the Mercury did a good job retooling their roster by adding Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally this past offseason. They also still have certified bucket-getter Kahleah Copper on the roster.

However, Copper has been dealing with a lingering knee injury. And it was announced on Saturday that Copper will be missing an extended amount of time.

"Kahleah Copper to miss 4-6 weeks after undergoing knee arthroscopy," an X post from Underdog WNBA wrote.

Kahleah Copper to miss 4-6 weeks after undergoing knee arthroscopy.
— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) May 17, 2025

While it's perhaps good news that Copper won't be missing more than half of the season, this is still a brutal blow for Phoenix. Given how competitive it will be to earn a spot in the playoffs, it's crucial that all teams get off to a hot start — and this surgery will make it tough for Phoenix to do that.

Hopefully Copper can return to the court sooner rather than later.

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