How Future Mercury Players Locked Down The Big East

The Big East Defensive Player of the Year has had some great names attached to it, and some of them played for the Phoenix Mercury.

Oct 11, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Los Angeles Sparks forward Essence Carson (17) shoots in the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Lynx in game two of the WNBA Finals at Target Center. The Minnesota Lynx beat the Los Angeles Sparks 79-60. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images / Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

The Big East Defensive Player of the Year dates back to 1997, and Nykesha Sales won it two years in a row. After winning the award, she headed to the WNBA, and she played for the Orlando Miracle. Then, she spent some years with the Connecticut Sun.

Ruth Riley won the award after Sales, and she did it three times. She later won championships with the Detroit Shock.

After Sales and Riley, other players began to win the award, and there are some Phoenix Mercury ties.

Essence Carson won the award, and like Riley, she won it three times. Her first time winning it was in 2006, and she averaged 1.3 steals. She also averaged 8.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists. Then, she continued to contribute on both ends of the floor.

On Dec. 29, 2004, Essence Carson, of Rutgers, calls a play. Rutgers vs. Tennessee during the second half. / Tariq Zehawi / The Record / USA TODAY NETWORK

In 2007, Carson averaged 12.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.1 blocks. Then, she averaged 10.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals in her final season. She played during those years, and she locked down opponents in the process.

Carson wins championship with Western Conference team

Carson started her career with the New York Liberty, and she played went them from 2008 to 2015. Then, she joined the Los Angeles Sparks, and she won a championship. She averaged 8.1 points, two rebounds, 1.5 assists and a steal that year.

Oct 20, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Los Angeles Sparks forward Essence Carson (17) celebrates with the WNBA Championship trophy after game five of the WNBA Finals. at Target Center. The Los Angeles Sparks beat the Minnesota Lynx 77-76. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images / Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Eventually, Carson joined the Mercury, and she played with them for a year. She averaged 5.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists, and she played 23 games.

A few years after Carson won her third Big East Defensive Player of the Year, another player with Mercury ties won. Devereaux Peters won in 2011 and 2012, and after starting her career with the Minnesota Lynx, she played for the Indiana Fever and the Mercury.

Peters won two championships while with Minnesota, as the Lynx won in 2013 and 2015. The Lynx beat the Atlanta Dream in 2013 and they beat the Fever in 2015.

Notre Dame's Devereaux Peters grabs a loose ball during the NCAA Final Four game against Connecticut inside the Pepsi Center in Denver on Sunday, April 1, 2012. / Robert Franklin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Minnesota traded Peters to Indiana for Natasha Howard, and after her season with the Fever, she signed with the Mercury the following year. She signed seven-day contracts with Phoenix, and eventually, the Mercury signed her for the rest of the season.

The Big East has had some great defenders, and some of them made their way to Phoenix.

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