# 2009 Phoenix Mercury season

The 2009 WNBA season was the 13th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Mercury won the WNBA Finals for the second time in franchise history. On June 6, the Mercury and LifeLock entered a multi-year marketing partnership to launch the first-ever branded jersey in WNBA or NBA history. A press conference was held at the NBA Store in New York City with Phoenix Mercury President and COO Jay Parry and LifeLock CEO Todd Davis to make the announcement. The partnership ran through 2011, and the LifeLock name was on the front of Phoenix Mercury’s player jerseys and on warm-up suits. The Mercury and LifeLock ware the first to finalize such an agreement following the WNBA’s decision this off-season to make this opportunity available for its teams and sponsors. As part of the partnership, LifeLock offered a one-year complimentary membership to season ticket holders of all WNBA teams.

## Off-season
### Dispersal draft

Based on the Mercury's 2008 record, they picked 5th in the Houston Comets dispersal draft. The Mercury picked Sequoia Holmes.

### WNBA draft

The following are the Mercury's selections in the 2009 WNBA draft:
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/Team/Country |
| 1 | 5 | DeWanna Bonner | United States | Auburn |
| 3 | 31 | Sha Brooks | United States | Florida |
| 3 | 34 (from N.Y.) | Jessica Adair | United States | George Washington |

### Transactions

* July 17: The Mercury re-signed Penny Taylor.
* July 14: The Mercury waived Allie Quigley.
* June 3: The Mercury waived Alison Bales, Sha Brooks, and Laurie Koehn and claimed Ketia Swanier off waivers.
* June 2: The Mercury waived Yuko Oga.
* May 31: The Mercury waived Murriel Page.
* May 18: The Mercury signed Murriel Page.
* May 13: The Mercury waived Jessica Adair.
* April 30: The Mercury signed Laurie Koehn.
* April 20: The Mercury waived Kim Smith and A'Quonesia Franklin.
* March 26: The Mercury acquired Temeka Johnson from the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for a first-round 2010 WNBA draft pick.
* March 20: The Mercury traded Barbara Farris to the Sacramento Monarchs in exchange for A'Quonesia Franklin and Kim Smith.
* March 16: The Mercury has withdrawn its qualifying offer to Belinda Snell.
* February 11: The Mercury signed Yuko Oga to a training camp contract.
* January 30: The Mercury traded Kelly Miller and LaToya Pringle to the Minnesota Lynx in exchange for Nicole Ohlde.
* January 21: The Mercury acquired Alison Bales from the Atlanta Dream in exchange for a second-round 2009 WNBA draft pick.
* January 7: The Mercury signed Brooke Smith to a training-camp contract.
* May 7, 2008: The Mercury acquired a third-round pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft from the New York Liberty as part of the Leilani Mitchell transaction.
| Date | Trade | Trade |
| March 7, 2008 | To Phoenix Mercury | To New York Liberty |
| March 7, 2008 | third-round pick in 2009 WNBA Draft | Leilani Mitchell |
| January 21, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Atlanta Dream |
| January 21, 2009 | Alison Bales | second-round pick in 2009 WNBA Draft |
| January 30, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Minnesota Lynx |
| January 30, 2009 | Nicole Ohlde | Kelly Miller and LaToya Pringle |
| March 20, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Sacramento Monarchs |
| March 20, 2009 | A'Quonesia Franklin and Kim Smith | Barbara Farris |
| March 26, 2009 | To Phoenix Mercury | To Los Angeles Sparks |
| March 26, 2009 | Temeka Johnson | first-round pick in 2010 WNBA Draft |

### Free agents
## Season standings

| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
| Phoenix Mercury $^x$ | 23 | 11 | .676 | – | 12–5 | 11–6 | 13–7 |
| Seattle Storm $^x$ | 20 | 14 | .588 | 3.0 | 13–4 | 7–10 | 13–7 |
| Los Angeles Sparks $^x$ | 18 | 16 | .529 | 5.0 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 11–9 |
| San Antonio Silver Stars $^x$ | 15 | 19 | .441 | 8.0 | 10–7 | 5–12 | 10–10 |
| Minnesota Lynx $^o$ | 14 | 20 | .412 | 9.0 | 9–8 | 5–12 | 7–13 |
| Sacramento Monarchs $^o$ | 12 | 22 | .353 | 11.0 | 7–10 | 5–12 | 6–14 |

## Schedule
### Preseason

2009 Game Log: Preseason
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceRecord
1May 272:00pm@ Sacramento74-70Quigley (15)Bonner, B. Smith (6)Quigley (4)ARCO Arena 6,3391–0
2May 3010:00pmSeattle61-58Johnson (13)Brooke Smith (6)Pondexter (6)US Airways Center 2,4212-0 :

### Regular season

2009 Game log: Regular season :
June
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceRecord
1June 610:00pmSan AntonioNBA TV KMYS90-79Taurasi (25)Bonner (11)Johnson (9)US Airways Center 13,5821-0
2June 1010:00pmNew York91-84Pondexter (26)5 players (5)Johnson, Taurasi (5)US Airways Center 5,0802-0
3June 1210:00pm@ Sacramento71-90Bonner (14)Bonner (5)Pondexter (4)ARCO Arena 6,4382-1
4June 1310:00pmSacramento115-104 (OT)Taurasi (31)T. Smith (7)Johnson (8)US Airways Center 7,1733-1
5June 1710:00pmMinnesota104-80Taurasi (38)Bonner (10)Pondexter (9)US Airways Center 6,5244-1
6June 1910:00pmLos Angeles89-81Pondexter (21)T. Smith (8)Johnson (7)US Airways Center 8,2555-1
7June 217:00pmSeattleNBA TV FSNA84-93Taurasi (25)Pondexter (5)Pondexter (6)US Airways Center 6,1815-2
8June 237:30pm@ San AntonioESPN287-91Pondexter (26)Taurasi (8)Johnson (5)AT&T Center 6,6925-3
9June 257:00pm@ Washington93-87Pondexter (24)Bonner, T. Smith, Taurasi (8)Johnson (6)Verizon Center 9,8086-3
10June 278:00pm@ MinnesotaNBA TV FSNA FSN-N80-109Bonner, Pondexter (19)Taurasi (8)Pondexter, Swanier (3)Target Center 5,9116-4 :
July
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceRecord
11July 110:00pmSeattle91-83Pondexter, Taurasi (22)Pondexter (11)Pondexter (8)US Airways Center 6,3417-4
12July 59:30pm@ Los AngelesNBA TV FSNA FSNW104-89Pondexter (21)Bonner (10)Taurasi (6)STAPLES Center 9,8728-4
13July 810:00pmChicago90-70Taurasi (22)T. Smith (13)Pondexter (6)US Airways Center 5,5979-4
14July 1110:00pm@ Sacramento107-105Pondexter (23)Bonner, Taurasi (8)Pondexter (8)ARCO Arena 7,79810-4
15July 153:30pmSacramentoNBA TV FSNA100-81Taurasi (22)Johnson (6)Pondexter (15)US Airways Center 11,59011-4
16July 1810:00pmDetroit97-90Pondexter (26)Pondexter, Willingham (7)Pondexter (8)US Airways Center 8,28812-4
17July 2210:00pmMinnesota86-99Pondexter (28)Bonner (10)Johnson (6)US Airways Center 7,36012-5
18July 264:00pm@ New York94-88Taurasi (34)Taurasi (13)Johnson (7)Madison Square Garden 11,21113-5
19July 287:30pm@ ConnecticutESPN295-80Pondexter (29)T. Smith, Taurasi (9)Johnson (7)Mohegan Sun Arena 7,73914-5
20July 307:30pm@ Atlanta76-106T. Smith (15)Taurasi (7)Swanier (5)Philips Arena 7,82714-6 :
August
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceRecord
21August 18:00pm@ Minnesota87-74Taurasi (20)T. Smith (7)Willingham (5)Target Center 6,63115-6
22August 410:00pm@ Seattle101-90 (OT)Taurasi (19)Pondexter, T. Smith (8)Johnson (7)KeyArena 6,72816-6
23August 810:00pmIndiana83-90Taurasi (15)Bonner, Taurasi (5)Swanier (6)US Airways Center 9,86716-7
24August 1310:00pmSan Antonio95-83Taurasi (29)Bonner, Taurasi (6)Taurasi (6)US Airways Center 6,52217-7
25August 158:00pm@ San AntonioNBA TV FSNA KMYS89-106Taurasi (21)Bonner (5)Johnson, Pondexter (5)AT&T Center 8,93317-8
26August 188:00pm@ Chicago106-99Taurasi (27)Bonner (10)Taurasi (7)UIC Pavilion TBA18-8
27August 2110:00pmWashington81-91Taurasi (16)Bonner (7)Pondexter (6)US Airways Center 9,15518-9
28August 2710:30pm@ Los AngelesNBA TV FSNW98-90Pondexter (26)Bonner (9)Johnson, Pondexter (6)STAPLES Center 9,58619-9
29August 2910:00pmConnecticutNBA TV WCTX95-84Taurasi (21)Taurasi (9)Taurasi (5)US Airways Center 9,97720-9 :
September
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceRecord
30September 17:30pm@ Detroit99-101Pondexter (25)T. Smith, Willingham (7)Taurasi (6)Palace of Auburn Hills 5,23920-10
31September 27:00pm@ IndianaNBA TV FSI106-90Pondexter (25)Ohlde (7)Johnson (6)Conseco Fieldhouse 7,44621-10
32September 510:00pmAtlanta100-82Bonner (20)Bonner (7)Taurasi (7)US Airways Center 10,42422-10
33September 1010:00pm@ Seattle92-84 (OT)Taurasi (24)Taurasi (8)Pondexter (8)KeyArena 9,08923-10
34September 133:00pmLos AngelesESPN278-81Johnson (14)Willingham (7)Taylor (4)US Airways Center 12,96823-11 :
All games are viewable on WNBA LiveAccess :

### Postseason

2009 Game log: Postseason :
Western Conference Semifinals
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceSeries
1September 179:00pm@ San AntonioESPN291-92Taylor (18)Taurasi (7)Taylor (6)AT&T Center 5,7210-1
2September 1910:00pmSan AntonioNBA TV106-78Taurasi (24)Bonner (13)Taurasi (5)US Airways Center 7,2671-1
3September 2110:00pmSan AntonioESPN2100-92Taurasi (30)T. Smith (8)Taurasi (5)US Airways Center 6,8962-1 :
Western Conference Finals
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceSeries
1September 2310:00pm@ Los AngelesESPN2103-94Taurasi (28)T. Smith (6)Taurasi (6)Pauley Pavilion 6,3891-0
2September 2510:00pmLos AngelesNBA TV76-87Taurasi (25)Pondexter (7)Taylor (5)US Airways Center 7,6281-1
3September 2610:00pmLos AngelesNBA TV85-74Taurasi (21)Taurasi (7)Taylor (4)US Airways Center 7,2262-1 :
WNBA Finals
GameDateTime (ET)OpponentTVScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation/AttendanceSeries
1September 299:00pmIndianaESPN2120-116 (OT)Pondexter, Taylor (23)Taurasi (9)Taurasi (6)US Airways Center 11,6171-0
2October 19:00pmIndianaESPN284-93Taurasi (20)Taurasi (7)Johnson (5)US Airways Center 16,7581-1
3October 44:00pm@ IndianaESPN285-86Pondexter (23)T. Smith (10)Pondexter (8)Conseco Fieldhouse 18,1651-2
4October 77:30pm@ IndianaESPN290-77Pondexter (22)Willingham (8)Pondexter (7)Conseco Fieldhouse 18,1652-2
5October 99:00pmIndianaESPN294-86Taurasi (26)T. Smith (8)Taylor (5)US Airways Center 17,3133-2 :

## Regular season statistics
### Player statistics

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| DeWanna Bonner | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Temeka Johnson | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Kelly Mazzante | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Nicole Ohlde | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Cappie Pondexter | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Allie Quigley | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Brooke Smith | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Tangela Smith | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Ketia Swanier | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Diana Taurasi | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Penny Taylor | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Le'coe Willingham | 0 | 0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.0 |

### Team statistics

| Team | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PF | PPG |
| Phoenix Mercury | .000 | .000 | .000 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 |
| Opponents | .000 | .000 | .000 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 | 00.0 |

## Awards and honors

* Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of June 29, 2009.
* Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of July 6, 2009.
* Cappie Pondexter was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of July 13, 2009.
* Diana Taurasi was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the week of August 10, 2009.
* Diana Taurasi was named to the 2009 WNBA All-Star Team as a Western Conference reserve.
* Cappie Pondexter was named to the 2009 WNBA All-Star Team as a Western Conference reserve.
* DeWanna Bonner was named Sixth Woman of the Year.
* Diana Taurasi was named to the All-WNBA First Team.
* Cappie Pondexter was named to the All-WNBA First Team.
* Diana Taurasi was named Most Valuable Player.