Will the Mercury Settle on a Starting Center?

The Phoenix Mercury have gone away from their usual starting lineup a few times lately, with Natasha Mack and Kalani Brown getting starts over Kathryn Westbeld. Will Phoenix settle on a consistent starting five or will they continue to mix it up?

Phoenix Mercury forward Natasha Mack (4) blocks a shot by Golden State Valkyries guard Carla Leite (0) during pre-season action at PHX Arena May 11, 2025. / Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

For the first two months of the season, the Phoenix Mercury appeared to have a settled starting frontcourt when the team was healthy. At the small forward, power forward, and center positions, they would start Satou Sabally, Alyssa Thomas, and Kathryn Westbeld.

The three players are within two inches of each other in height (Sabally is the tallest at 6'4" and Thomas the shortest at 6'2"), making the distinction between their positions minimal -- each of the three could comfortably switch across multiple positions on defense and Sabally and Thomas could both bring the ball up the court and initiate offense as well.

Westbeld started in her first 23 appearances for the team, but there have been changes since the team lost some steam and dropped games after the All-Star break. Natasha Mack got the start on July 25th against the New York Liberty and in their next two games against the Washington Mystics and Indiana Fever.

Westbeld was re-inserted into the starting lineup for their following matchup, a lopsided loss to the Atlanta Dream. Then, Kalani Brown, who spent multiple games out of the rotation entirely, got the start on Sunday against the Chicago Sky.

Jun 19, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Phoenix Mercury forward Kathryn Westbeld (24) shoots the ball against the New York Liberty during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images

Each of the three brings something different to the table and it'll be up to the coaching staff to decide how much to weigh consistency versus flexibility. Westbeld has cooled off lately, but is clearly the best outside shooter of the three and her quick release helps space out the floor for slashers like Alyssa Thomas and Kahleah Copper.

Mack is the best defender of the three, mobile enough to switch on to guards if she has to, and big enough at 6'4" to block shots at the rim. She blocked the 6'7" Kamilla Cardoso twice on Sunday. Finally, Brown is the biggest player on the roster at 6'7" and former NCAA champion, while the least mobile of the trio, has the best scoring touch inside. She's shooting a phenomenal 62.7% from the field for the season, albeit on low volume.

Jun 19, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Phoenix Mercury center Kalani Brown (21) posts up against New York Liberty center Nyara Sabally (8) during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images

Head coach Nate Tibbetts has said that he wants to experiment with different lineups over the final stretch of the season, and nowhere is that more evident than at the center position. Tibbetts has suggested that the team's lineups may change based on who they're playing against, suggesting that a towering big like Brown may get more time against teams with more size (like Atlanta), while they may go with a smaller look (Westbeld or Mack) against quicker teams.

It'll be a tricky balance to pull off for a team still trying to establish chemistry and work towards consistency, but it could pay off and make them a more difficult team to match up with in the postseason.

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