Next week, the Phoenix Mercury and owner Mat Ishbia will unveil the team’s new $70 million practice facility — and they’ll pass down an honor to one of the franchise’s most iconic players as well.
The state-of-the-art facility features two practice courts, with Phoenix announcing Friday that the two courts will be named after guard and Mercury legend Diana Taurasi. The court will also feature a Taurasi-specific logo honoring the 11-time All-Star and three-time WNBA champion.
She’s dedicated her career to us for 20 years, now we’re dedicating the courts to our 3x WNBA Champion, 6x Olympian, and 11x All-Star!
The Phoenix Mercury and owner Mat Ishbia will celebrate the official grand opening of the Mercury’s new state-of-the-art, $70 million practice… pic.twitter.com/Ie4if0FGoR
— Phoenix Mercury (@PhoenixMercury) July 12, 2024
Taurasi has spent her entire 20-year WNBA career with the Phoenix Mercury, winning a WNBA MVP in 2009 and leading the team to championships in 2007, 2009 and 2014. The 42-year-old guard is the oldest active player in the league, but is showing no signs of slowing down, averaging 16.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season.
Ishbia, who bought the Mercury and the NBA’s Phoenix Suns in 2023, invested the funds to give the Mercury its own facility and move out of a joint facility shared with the Suns. The move will make the Mercury one of few WNBA teams with its own top-flight practice facility.
The Mercury play against the Indiana Fever on Friday night, one of three games remaining before the All-Star and Olympic breaks. The facility will be unveiled on July 18, coinciding with WNBA All-Star weekend being hosted in Phoenix. After a skills challenge and three-point contest on July 19, the U.S. Olympic team will face Team WNBA in the All-Star Game on July 20.
Ishbia told ESPN that the timing worked out well, both with All-Star weekend and with honoring Taurasi as an Olympic sendoff.
“It worked out perfectly: getting the WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix and being able to honor who I consider is the greatest of all time,” Ishbia said. “And she’s just a great person and great player. Putting her name on the court is something everyone will see in the future to always remember Diana Taurasi played here.”
After the All-Star Game, Taurasi and the other Olympians will head off to train before Paris. Taurasi will be attending her sixth Olympics, making her (along with equestrian McLain Ward) the most experienced Olympian on Team USA. She and the rest of the team will be chasing the United States’ eighth consecutive gold in women’s basketball.
Source Agencies
