Taurasi returns to the lineup, but Sky outlasts Mercury

By Scott Mammoser

PHOENIX – The Phoenix Mercury welcomed back Diana Taurasi on Sunday, but the Chicago Sky erased a 10-point deficit and used a 28-15 third quarter run to win, 94-86. Brittney Griner, the league’s scoring leader, recorded a season-best 34 points, four off her career high for Phoenix, which fell to 13-15 and still holding onto the final playoff spot in the WNBA. The Sky improved to 18-11, with Allie Quigley leading the way with 24 points.

After undergoing back surgery this spring, Taurasi appeared in 16 minutes of the July 12^th game at Connecticut, scoring five points. Sunday, she recorded 12 points in 22 minutes, although she was 2-of-13 shooting.

Mercury is still holding on for spot in playoff

“You forget how physically and mentally draining they are,” Taurasi said of her injuries, “when you are constantly rehabbing and constantly in pain. I need to get better if we have any chance of competing. It’s good to be on the floor, but overall, a pretty (poor) game for myself. I need to play better, whether I haven’t played or not.”

 Sancho Lyttle was also appearing in her first game for the Mercury since the same July 12^th game, in which she injured her knee. Lyttle missed the second half of the 2018 season with a torn ACL.

“It felt great to play again,” Lyttle said, “but you always feel bad when you lose your first game back. I don’t feel like I missed anything really. I wasn’t that tired, I didn’t play much minutes, but it could have been worse. We have a full team now, so we will go from here.”

In addition, DeWanna Bonner recorded a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Mercury. Courtney Vandersloot, the WNBA leader in assists, dished out 13 for Chicago. Diamond DeShields scored 18 points, and two Sky players posted double-doubles, with Cheyenne Parker notching 14 and 12, plus Astou Ndour 13 and 10.

“Even though the result isn’t what we wanted, it’s great to see Diana back on the court today,” Mercury coach Sandy Brondello added. “The more games we play, the better she will get. It’s good she came back now, with six games to go, so she can get back into her rhythm.” 

The Mercury will next play three games on the road, at New York, Atlanta and Chicago, each two days apart, beginning on Aug. 27. The team returns home for three games to conclude the regular season, the first on Sept. 3 against Seattle, the latter two versus Minnesota and Las Vegas. Those will be the only appearances for the Storm and Lynx in Phoenix this season. The Sky next plays at the Lynx on Aug. 27.

Mystics are no problem for Griner and shorthanded Mercury

By Scott Mammoser

PHOENIX - What was left of the Phoenix Mercury surprised the Washington Mystics in a 103-82 runaway victory on Sunday. The Mercury’s injury list is composed of a group that could form a sufficient starting five. Diana Taurasi is still out with her back injury and is now joined in street clothes on the bench with Sancho Lyttle (knee), Alanna Smith (ankle), Essence Carson (calf), and Briann January (foot).

Mercury defeat Mystics in runaway victory 103-82

Phoenix still had the WNBA’s scoring leader healthy as ever though. Brittney Griner opened the game with a first quarter for the ages, shooting 7-of-8 for 17 points, as the Mercury grabbed a 28-23 lead of which it never lost control. She ended with 26 points, nine rebounds and a game-high eight assists from the post.

“We knew we had to pick it up,” Griner said. “All of the stuff we have going on, playing with our pain, we need to put it all out there.”

Leilani Mitchell and Yvonne Turner combined to shoot 9-of-15 from downtown for 23 and 22 points, the latter being Turner’s career best. The Mystics (14-7) had won five straight, including a six-point win over the Mercury (11-10) in Washington last week, and were just about deadlocked with Connecticut for first place in the Eastern Conference.

“We’ve been really focused this week in practice,” Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. “It’s attention to detail and executing what we want. We have athleticism. We had tough losses to them, but it was close. Everyone knows that we are going to play, it’s not that we want to play with seven for the rest of the year.”

Elena Delle Donne and Emma Meesseman equaled one another for the Mystics’ lead in scoring with 18 points. The Belgian, Meesseman, came off the bench and recorded all of hers in 16 minutes on 8-of-12 shooting. Griner, DeWanna Bonner (who scored 10 on Sunday) and Delle Donne are the top three in the league in scoring. Kristi Toliver also recorded 12 points for the Mystics, while rookie Brianna Turner scored 12 in a starting role with Phoenix.

The Mercury brought back rookie guard Arica Carter to compensate for the injuries. Carter, from the University of Louisville, was waived after the second game of the season.

“Everybody is welcoming me back with open arms,” Carter said. “I’ve been at home (in Los Angeles) working out and trying to stay ready. I just want to do whatever the team needs me to do and keep learning.”

The Mercury will be at the Sparks on Aug. 8, before returning home to face the Dallas Wings at 7 p.m. on Aug. 10. The Mystics are at home against the Fever on Aug. 8.

Nurse and Charles come up big in Liberty’s win over Mercury

By Scott Mammoser

PHOENIX – Tina Charles pulled in a double-double of 23 points and 12 rebounds, and Kia Nurse scored 26 points, as the New York Liberty returned to .500 at 7-7 after Friday’s 80-76 win at the Phoenix Mercury (5-6). Brittney Griner led the Mercury with 30 points and eight rebounds, while Leilani Mitchell added 14 points.

“That was not our best game,” Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. “BG (Griner) was fantastic, but we just didn’t have enough contributors tonight. We didn’t execute as well as we wanted to, and that’s what happens when you’re not ready to play. That’s the greatness of the WNBA; anybody can beat anybody.”

The Mercury went up by as much as 17-4 in the first quarter, but the short-benched Liberty soon found the bottom of the basket.

Nurse knotted the game at 36-36, with 1:35 remaining in the first half. Essence Carson responded with a three for the Mercury, but Nurse answered with one of her own on the other end. Phoenix led 41-40 at the break, with Griner recording 10 of her points in the second.

Charles gave New York its first lead shortly after halftime, and the third quarter was a tightly-contested affair. Again, the Mercury led by one, 64-63, after the period, although Charles scored nine. The Liberty outscored Phoenix 17-12 in the fourth, with Reshanda Gray and Brittany Boyd, the former Cal stars, making big plays in the final minute.

The Liberty had four players missing from its lineup, who were playing in EuroBasket, as opposed to Phoenix’s one – Yvonne Turner. Turner’s Hungarian team plays Belgium on Saturday with the winner earning a spot in next year’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Sophie Cunningham started the first game of her WNBA career for the Mercury and notched personal bests in rebounds and assists of six and three. Brondello said Cunningham started because Carson’s back was bothering her.

“I’m just going to stay ready,” said Cunningham, who had 12 family members from Missouri in the audience. “I’m very lucky to have them here, for my first career start; I had no idea that I would have that.”

The Mercury’s next game is at 3 p.m. on Sunday versus Atlanta, while New York will play Las Vegas at home, the same time.

JD's Dime: The Greatest Arizona Sports Athletes of All-Time

Here's a topic that we probably won't see on ESPN, but it still deserves to be told. Currently, Arizona sports are not exactly the most talked in the world of Sports.

The Arizona Cardinals have been to, but have never won a Super Bowl. The Suns have been to, but have never won an NBA Championship series. The Diamondbacks do have a Championship even though they are barely legal to drink (team age, not players). And the Arizona Coyotes have been a part of Arizona sports for 22 years, have been to the playoffs eight times, and have only made it past the first round once.......but have not won a title.

But it hasn't all been bad in the sports world in Arizona. The Arena Football League has seen the Arizona Rattlers go to the ArenaBowl 10 times, while winning six titles. And the Phoenix Mercury have three titles in four appearances in the Championship series. So, as the magnifying glass is so rarely on the valley of the sun of late, it's time to take a look at some of the greatest Arizona sports athletes of all-time.

First, let me give out some "honorable mentions. Let's start with Nick Davila. As exciting as watching an Arena Football League game with the fans here in Phoenix, let's be honest. The AFL is just enough football to get us through to when college football and the pro game chatter starts up again. But even with that being said, Davila was the best quarterback in the Rattlers young history. He led the team to multiple AFL titles, threw for over 32k yards and more than 760 touchdowns and only 91 interceptions.

Next "honorable mention" goes to Steve Nash. That's right, it's blasphemy that Steve Nash doesn't make the list! But here's why.....

Yes, Nash is a two-time MVP. And yes, he's the team's all-time leader in assists with 6,997. But he only gets the honorable mention because I'm looking at both sides of the ball, and there was one point guard that may be named later for the Suns that had a better all-around game.

The final honorable mention goes to a gentleman that yes, was a big part of the Cardinals history, but it wasn't the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals history brings them from Chicago, to St. Louis, to Arizona. But they were all part of this team's history. And this guy played a big part. From 1966-1983 the Cardinals had a quarterback by the name of Jim Hart. And all he became was the all-time leader in franchise history in passing yards with over 34k, but he also has almost twice as many touchdown passes as any other quarterback in team history.

Now on to the list, counting down from 10-1.

10. Sue Bird; Phoenix Mercury- Bird is currently 8th all-time on the WNBA career scoring list with over 6,150 points. Bird is 4th in steals all-time with more than 650, and she is first in career assists with 2,831.

9. Paul Goldschmidt; Arizona Diamondbacks- "Goldy" makes the list for Arizona athletes because of what he did when he was here. Currently, in team rankings, Goldy is ranked 2nd in hits, 2nd in home runs, 2nd in RBI's, first in walks, and 2nd in steals.

8. Kevin Johnson; Phoenix Suns- "KJ" makes the list ahead of Steve Nash because of his overall game. Yes, he was 2nd in team assists, but he was 4th in steals (twice as much as Nash), and he was 3rd in points where Nash was 7th.

7. Walter Davis; Phoenix Suns- Davis is the Phoenix Suns all-time leading scorer. He's also 4th all-time in team assists, and 3rd all-time in steals.

6. Diana Taurasi; Phoenix Mercury- Diana Taurasi is the WNBA's career leader in points by more than 1,000!! She is 4th all-time in assists and also has played all 14 years of her career with the Mercury. During this time (as she's still playing), Taurasi has led the Mercury to three WNBA titles.

5. Luis Gonzalez; Arizona Diamondbacks- Gonzalez is the franchises all-time leader in games played, at-bats, runs scored, hits, doubles, home runs, and RBI's.

4. Alvan Adams; Phoenix Suns- Alvan Adams is the Phoenix Suns leader in rebounds and steals. He's 3rd in assists, and 2nd in points. He's also 4th in blocks, and first overall in fouls....by A LOT!! Hey, they give you them to USE!!

3. Randy Johnson; Arizona Diamondbacks- The "Big Unit" is ranked first overall in ERA, strikeouts (by over 1,000), games started, complete games, and shutouts. Oh, and he also scared the hell out of John Kruk during the All-Star game when he threw a fastball over his head. But he did manage to hit a pigeon with a fastball. True story.

2. Larry Fitzgerald; Arizona Cardinals- Larry should make this list just because of how nice of a guy he is. Plus, for as long as this team has been around, Fitz is the all-time leader in receiving yards by more than 8,000 yards! He's ranked 2nd all-time in NFL history. He's also 3rd all-time in receptions with more than 1,300. Fitzgerald is also tied for sixth all-time in career touchdowns.

1. Shane Doan; Arizona Coyotes- How does Doan pass Fitz? Because most people don't realize how great and how long of a career he had here in Phoenix. Doan wins the close race between him and Fitz on who is the most likable guy in the valley. During his 20-year career, Doan is now ranked first in franchise history in games played, first in goals, first in assists, first in points, first in power-play goals, and first in game-winners! But he is ranked second in penalty minutes.......so....yeah. He's still, to me, the greatest Arizona athlete of ALL-TIME!

JD's Dime: Why The Phoenix Suns Can't Win

It's been frustrating, to say the least over the last decade or so for Phoenix Suns fans. Every year around this time free-agency starts up, their is still hope in the air. There is hope that the Suns might actually put together a team that can make the playoffs and end the drought.

The path to winning starts with one big move and a huge change in culture on the court. In my opinion, there is a move that should coincide with this culture change, but it will never happen. I would go out and give Kevin Garnett whatever he wants to be an assistant coach and teach this team how to play DEFENSE!

I'm not even sure if KG wants to coach or if he even would if he was approached. But being a die-hard Boston sports fan, I'm sure of one thing. When the Celtics won the title in 2007-2008, it wasn't because they had the "Big 3" of KG, Pierce, and Allen. It was because they had a floor general who understood how team defense works and he had the mindset, voice, and energy to back it up. Kevin Garnett is why the Celtics took home the title that year, and he's why they had the #2 overall defense in the NBA.

The Suns don't have a defensive mindset, and they continue to bring in players who yes, are flashy on offense, but are horrible at defense. Out of the 53 NBA players who received votes for a spot on the 2018-2019 NBA All-Defensive Team, none were from the Phoenix Suns. That means that even though there are only two official All-Defensive teams per year, no Suns player would have made it even if they had 10 NBA All-Defensive teams.

And today, all the hype before NBA free-agency officially starts, has rumors of the Suns going after D'Angelo Russell. And guess what, Russell didn't receive any votes for the All-Defensive team either, but he did have a teammate that got a couple votes. So YAY, the Suns will be flashy, but they won't stop anyone.

Unless you are absolutely jacked with offensive players and play "decent" defense, then you're not winning anything. The Suns have not ranked better than 21st overall in Opponents Points Allowed in 16 straight years. As a matter of fact, in the last 20 years, only ONE team has won the NBA Championship while their defense was ranked worse than 20th.....the 2000-2001 Lakers, which was their second title of three straight. And the Lakers book-ended that title with championship team defensive ranks of 6th and 9th.

The numbers don't lie. Every team in the Western Conference with a positive +/- in team points scored vs points allowed made the playoffs in the Western Conference last year. As a matter of fact, EVERY NBA TEAM made the playoffs with a positive rating counting the Eastern Conference too. No team in the Western Conference with a negative rating made the playoffs.

The other problem that I see outside of team defense is that this is a team by name only. The style of play is not team basketball, it's individual hero ball with very little movement. That's why someone like Devin Booker can score 30 points or more 60 times in the last two years, and that only translated into 19 wins.

That's why it's okay to take a team photo around one player who scored 70 points in a single game with everyone else on the team surrounding him smiling. 70 points is a great feat, but what the hell is everyone else in the photo smiling about? You lost that game by double-digits. So yes, let's celebrate the one guy who actually did anything in Boston that night and have photo proof of everyone else who was there that did absolutely NOTHING. But that's the culture that we have here in Phoenix.

Hard work is not pretty, it's not exciting, but it gets the desired results. Insanity is "doing the same thing over and over again hoping to get different results." Refusing to bring in those "hard workers" and deciding to go for flashy instead has killed this organization. The bottom line is that I can't tell you one guy on the Suns right now that can match up and lock down (or at least neutralize) the other team's #1 player.

That's why I laugh at those that say today's players are more skilled than players in the 90's. Sure, Lebron James is the greatest player on the court today. But he's the greatest player in the worst defensive era in NBA history. That's why I think it's funny how he celebrated passing Michael Jordan in points........ While still being over 600 steals behind him.

There are still two sides of the court in today's NBA........I believe. But it seems like the Suns have completely forgotten that fact. Over the last five years, they have ranked T27, LAST, LAST, 28th, and 26th in overall defense (OPA). That means that the playoff drought will continue in 2019-2020 unless this culture changes in a hurry.


The sad part is that you don't even need a "great" defensive team to make the playoffs as "average" has worked. But the Phoenix Suns are MILES away from being average on defense. And again, it doesn't look like it's going to change anytime soon.

And please don't label me as a Phoenix sports hater since I'm from Boston. I'm currently growing my beard in SUPPORT of Phoenix teams (since I live here) to make the playoffs. And I can't shave it until either a professional sports team (men's NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB, or Alex Bowman) makes the playoffs! Yeah, let's see YOU do that! So I'm cheering harder than most for the Suns to be successful, or any Arizona team to be successful!

Jeff Demers
Phoenix Area Sports