Mercury Stars Speak on Recent Defensive Lapses

The Mercury have lost four of five and their normally dominant defense has slipped a bit as of late. Can they get back on track before the end of a tough road trip?

Jul 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Mystics guard Sug Sutton (1) prepares to shoot the ball while Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper (2) defends in the first half at CareFirst Arena. Mandatory Credit: Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images / Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

Before the All-Star break, the Phoenix Mercury were had the third-best defense in the WNBA, an athletic unit that pressured opponents up and down the court, fought through screens, and forced more turnovers than anyone else in the league.

Since the break, the defense has hit a rough patch, giving up 90 points to the Atlanta Dream, 89 to the New York Liberty, and a season-worst 107 to the Indiana Fever.

Aside from a dominant showing in the second half of last Sunday's win against the Washington Mystics, the Mercs haven't been their usual selves on the defensive end. The team had been missing several players for an extended period of time before the break, but is now fully healthy. But that comes with its own complications, as multiple players have had to be re-integrated into the lineup, and some have even been on minutes restrictions as they work their way back from injuries.

Jul 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper (2) dribbles the ball while Washington Mystics guard Jade Melbourne (5) defends in the third quarter at CareFirst Arena. Mandatory Credit: Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images / Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

After the Fever game, star guard Kahleah Copper spoke on some of those struggles, "We are supposed to be hanging our hats on the defensive end, so we don't want to give up 107 points," she said. "Back to trust, back to trusting each other, trusting what's behind you and just sticking to our defensive principles."

She pointed out that the team's sense of urgency picked up toward the end of the game against Indiana ("defensive pressure, flying around") but said that the team has to nail the little things to play their usual brand of defense.

Jul 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Phoenix Mercury guard Sami Whitcomb (33) controls the ball in the second half against the Washington Mystics at CareFirst Arena. Mandatory Credit: Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images / Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

The Mercury were sloppier than usual on the offensive end at times too, despite pouring in 101 points. Sami Whitcomb chalked it up to miscommunications, saying "someone thinks someone's cutting then they're not...I think for us, we talked about slowing down and not letting them rush us." The good news for the Mercury is that these are the sorts of issues that tend to go away as a team gets more time on the court together. After all, this is a team that has only played 10 games with their top three players together.

"We'll watch film, but it's gonna be a gut check for a lot of us. We have to look in the mirror and give more...we know we're capable of it. We saw it the second half of that D.C. game. We know what it feels like, what it looks like...I know that we'll do that for the next part of this road trip," she said.

The Mercury's road trip closes out with games against the Atlanta Dream and Chicago Sky.

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