Phoenix Mercury face Las Vegas Aces for WNBA crown
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Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas and Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson, the league's MVP, will face off in the WNBA Finals. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images
No one was quite sure what the Phoenix Mercury would look like this season with an almost completely new roster, but as the WNBA Finals begin, they look four wins away from a national championship.
State of play: The Mercury and the Las Vegas Aces face each other Friday night in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.
- This is the first year in which the Finals are a best-of-seven series.
The big picture: The Mercury lost four of five starters in the offseason and brought back only two players — Kahleah Copper and Natasha Mack — from their 2024 roster.
Yes, but: Off-season acquisition Alyssa Thomas had an MVP-caliber season and has been a triple-double machine, becoming the first WNBA player to get eight in a year, which broke her own previous record of seven.
- Nicknamed "The Engine," she's a "do-everything forward" and the WNBA's "best-kept secret," according to Sports Illustrated.
- The trade that brought Thomas to Phoenix also landed Satou Sabally, a three-time All-Star who's been indispensable to the Mercury this year and had some huge moments in the playoffs.
- The Mercury's big three of Thomas, Sabally and Copper — a former WNBA Finals MVP in Chicago — could be a potent force against the Aces.
The other side: The actual MVP award went to Aces star A'ja Wilson for a record-breaking fourth time.
- She was also Co-Defensive Player of the Year for the third time.
- And don't sleep on Aces guards Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray.
Zoom in: The Aces are the favorites, according to the oddsmakers, but not by much.
- Las Vegas won three of four games against Phoenix this season.
What they're saying: "The team whose big three plays the best will win the title," predicted ESPN.
- The Aces had a tough time with a shorthanded Indiana Fever in the semifinals, noted CBS Sports, but they also have the league's best player, home-court advantage and championship experience.
Catch up quick: The Mercury faced a midseason slump, which included some injuries, but were able to bounce back.
- As the No. 4 seed, they knocked off the defending champion New York Liberty in the first round of the playoffs and top-seeded Minnesota Lynx in the second.
- Meanwhile, the Aces absolutely exploded after a slow start, winning 16 straight games to end the season and getting the No. 2 seed in the playoffs.
Flashback: This is the Mercury's first trip to the Finals since 2021, and if they win it all, it'll be their first championship since 2014. They've won three titles in franchise history.
- The Aces won back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023.
What's next: Game 1 starts in Las Vegas on Friday at 5pm.