| 2022 Phoenix Mercury season | |
|---|---|
| Coach | Vanessa Nygaard |
| Arena | Footprint Center |
| Attendance | 7,974 per game |
| Results | |
| Record | 15–21 (.417) |
| Place | 4th (Western) |
| Playoff finish | 8th seed; Lost in 1st Round to the Las Vegas Aces |
| Team Leaders | |
| Points | Skylar Diggins-Smith – 19.7 ppg |
| Rebounds | Brianna Turner – 6.8 rpg |
| Assists | Skylar Diggins-Smith – 5.5 apg |
The 2022 WNBA season was the 25th season for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association. The season began on May 6, 2022, against the Las Vegas Aces[1] and ended in the 1st round of the WNBA Playoffs against the same team. The season was marred by a number of issues, including injuries and the absence of Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia on drug charges.
On December 6, 2021, the Mercury announced that they would not be renewing Sandy Brondello's contract and parted ways with her as Head coach.[2] On January 24, 2022, the Mercury announced that Vanessa Nygaard had been hired as Brondello's replacement.[3]
The Mercury got off to a quick start to the season, winning two of their first three games. However, that momentum did not last as they then went on a seven game losing streak. They ended May 2–7. They were able to end their losing streak in June and win four of their first six games that month. However, they lost three and won three of their final six to end the month 7–5. July was another up and down month as the team struggled to build momentum and couldn't build a streak. They finished the month 4–5. Diana Taurasi suffered a quad strain during their game against the Connecticut Sun on August 2. The Mercury announced that she would miss the rest of the regular season with the injury.[4] On August 11, 2022, the Mercury announced that Skylar Diggins-Smith would miss the final 3 games of the season for personal reasons.[5] Despite injuries to two of their prominent players, the Mercury entered the final day of the season with a chance at qualifying for the playoffs. Despite a final day loss and a 2–4 August record, the Mercury finished in eighth place in the standings and qualified for the final playoff spot.
The Mercury faced first seed Las Vegas in First Round of the playoffs. The first two games of the series were in Las Vegas and the Mercury lost both games, preventing the series from returning to Phoenix. Neither game was close with the Mercury losing by sixteen points in Game One and thirty-seven points in Game Two.