When Brittney Griner entered the league in 2013, the former-Baylor star quickly delivered on the high expectations that greeted her by bringing a WNBA championship to Phoenix in her second season. Averaging 15.6 points, 8 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game that year, Griner led the team with 6.8 win shares and was everything Diana Taurasi needed in a running mate.

Most assumed more league titles were sure to follow. But six chances have now come and gone without another Mercury appearance in the Finals.

Taurasi took a full WNBA season off (2015) and has been in and out with injuries, while Griner has been steadily doing her part in the paint. She’s been a WNBA All-Star every single year they’ve held a game; averaging 20-plus points in four of the last five years, she’s also led the Mercury in win shares in four of her eight seasons in Phoenix.

While her rebounding and defensive numbers have stayed consistent, they’ve dipped in recent years after she won back-to-back WNBA Defensive Player of the Year awards in 2014 and 2015. During those years, she set the record for most blocks in a season (2014) and average blocks per game (2015) — records which still stand today.

Given her skill, athleticism and game-changing height (Griner is listed at 6-foot-9), fans have come to expect Griner to dominate in the paint, night in and night out, season after season. Anytime she doesn’t take over a game, there’s a nagging suspicion that some next-level greatness has been left untapped.

During the WNBA’s 2020 “Wubble” season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., Griner unexpectedly left the WNBA bubble “for personal reasons” after just 13 of the Mercury’s 22 regular-season games. She eventually spoke about her departure several months later while at a USA Basketball camp in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics.

While maintaining a degree of privacy, she made it clear her decision was based on mental health, stating, “With everything I was dealing with, I needed to take that leave. It took a lot for me to make that decision.”

Months before Naomi Osaka pulled out of the French Open, igniting a maelstrom of public debate, Griner quietly sparked her own conversation by departing to take care of herself.

“I definitely used counseling a lot when I left,” she later said. “It’s helped me out tremendously. I think more people should be open to talking about mental health issues and finding that centerpiece with themselves.”

In addition to counseling, Griner was able to spend time camping, off-roading and working on her Jeep back in Phoenix. Given the year-round grind that’s required of WNBA players who also play overseas, those weeks of personal time were a rare opportunity for Griner. And they seem to have paid off.

After returning to the court at the start of 2021 to play once again with her UMMC Ekaterinburg team in Russia, Griner won a third consecutive EuroLeague title and then the Olympic gold medal with Team USA in Tokyo. In Japan, she started all six games and averaged 22.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and nine blocks, all while shooting the highest field goal percentage of anyone on the team.

But the biggest indicator of a refreshed mindset may be Griner’s performance in the WNBA this season. She is currently second in the league in points per game (20.8) and second in field goal percentage. She is leading the league in blocks and averaging a career best 9.5 rebounds per game. And she’s leading the Mercury in win shares. (Not a small feat given the star power of running mates Diana Taurasi and Skylar Diggins-Smith.)

And although WNBA fans aren’t in it for the slam dunks, the fact that Griner has dunked four times already this season, something she hasn’t done since 2014 and 2015, reveals just how fired up she’s feeling. One more and she’ll break her own record for most dunks in a single season.

IT'S THE YEAR OF THE @brittneygriner SLAMS BABYYY 🔥

WATCHHHHH OUT ‼️

💻 https://t.co/fnncD5G4m5 pic.twitter.com/05BN9v07wo

— WNBA (@WNBA) September 12, 2021

 Back at USA Basketball camp early in the year, Griner elaborated on why it was important for her to be open about taking care of her mental health.

“We really don’t talk about our feelings. Just put it in a box and forget about it, push it to the back,” she said. “That’s something that hurts us as a society honestly and is something that’s going to change with more athletes speaking up about it.”

After the Olympic break, Griner and the Mercury went on a 10-game win streak before losing to the top-ranked Connecticut Sun last Saturday. Given that eight of those wins came against the bottom three teams in the league, their upcoming final two games of the season, against the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces, will be a much better test of the team’s playoff readiness.

As of now, they are one win behind the Storm for a top-four regular season finish and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

If they go on a run this WNBA postseason, it will largely be thanks to Griner’s willingness to look after herself last year in the 2020 bubble. She invested in herself by taking a break, and now the Mercury may be the ultimate benefactors.

Tune in: The Phoenix Mercury take on the Seattle Storm this Friday at 10 p.m. ET on NBATV.

Two key upsets headlined Thursday's WNBA bill, sending the Phoenix Mercury soaring into third place in the league standings while the No. 6 Golden State Valkyries continued to outwit opponents.

The red-hot Mercury snagged their fourth straight win by taking down the No. 2 New York Liberty 89-81 on Thursday night, overcoming an 35-point performance from two-time MVP Breanna Stewart with five double-digit Phoenix scorers.

Meanwhile out West, the Valkyries stifled a surging No. 7 Fever, downing Indiana 88-77 in part by holding star guard Caitlin Clark to just 3-for-14 from the field — and 0-for-7 from behind the arc.

"We were being disruptive, we know that she doesn't like physicality, we know that she wants to get to that left step-back," Golden State head coach Natalie Nakase said about the Valkyries' strategy to effectively contain Clark.

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Though the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx and 2024 WNBA champions New York still hold court atop the table, Thursday's actions proves that other squads are making some unexpected in-roads.

Putting together an impressive road record are the Mercury, who will ride a 4-2 away record into their Saturday matchup against the No. 11 Chicago Sky — the last stop on a four-game road trip that's been perfect for Phoenix thus far.

Already flipping the script on expectations is Golden State, with the 2025 expansion team rising despite relying on a hodgepodge roster as several players compete at EuroBasket 2025. The Valkyries will aim to keep their winning momentum in their Sunday clash with the No. 12 Connecticut Sun.

How to watch the Mercury, Valkyries this weekend

Both of Thursday's victors will be back in action this weekend, with Phoenix facing Chicago at 1 PM ET on Saturday, airing live on ABC.

Then on Sunday, Golden State will host Connecticut at 8:30 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

In another weekend full of WNBA action, all eyes are on Las Vegas, as the No. 8 Aces will try to curb a two-game losing streak against two formidable opponents.

A successful weekend for Las Vegas could hinge on three-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson's potential return from injury, with the star forward recently upgraded to "questionable" after landing in concussion protocol last week.

Overall, the margin for error has narrowed in the middle of the WNBA pack, as talented teams continue to translate quality performances into consistency.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Friday at 10 PM ET (ION): The Aces will try to end their free fall in Friday's head-to-head battle with a Seattle side that can beat anybody at their best.

• No. 7 Indiana Fever vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Sunday at 3 PM ET (ESPN): Las Vegas next faces a Fever team still smarting from Thursday's away loss to the Golden State Valkyries, with both teams narrowly clinging to positions above the playoff line.

• No. 2 New York Liberty vs. No. 5 Seattle Storm, Sunday at 7 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The Liberty have a comfortable hold on second place, but with two losses in their last three games, New York is flirting with danger entering their Sunday game with Seattle — particularly if star big Jonquel Jones is out after suffering a knock to the ankle on Thursday.

Ultimately, there's no rest for the weary in the WNBA, as a series of difficult matchups can see a single error quickly slide into a losing streak.

The final NWSL weekend heading into the league's six-week summer break has arrived, giving teams one more chance to prove themselves before regular-season play pauses to make way for major international tournaments.

With a five-point gap separating No. 1 Kansas City from No. 2 Orlando in the NWSL standings, the Current will enter the break as the 2025 Shield frontrunners regardless of this weekend's results.

Despite Kansas City's grip atop the table, there's still plenty of room for movement both above and below the postseason cutoff line, as clubs across the NWSL look to wrap their midseason finales on a high note:

• No. 1 Kansas City Current vs. No. 10 Angel City FC, Friday at 8 PM ET (Prime): Angel City has a shot at launching themselves above the cutoff line on Friday, but they'll have to snap the Current's five-game winning streak to make it happen.

• No. 8 Gotham FC vs. No. 9 Bay FC, Saturday at 7:30 PM ET (ION): Gotham and Bay FC enter the weekend tied on points while staring at each other from on opposite sides of the playoff line — meaning a Saturday win for either club could set the tone for the rest of the 2025 season.

• No. 3 San Diego Wave FC vs. No. 4 Washington Spirit, Sunday at 10 PM ET (CBS Sports): The weekend's only top-table clash could see San Diego sprint back into second place — unless Washington leapfrogs the upstart Wave to claim the third-place spot.

The LPGA Tour has turned its attention to Texas, with the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship — the third major of the pro golf season — teeing off in Frisco to a flurry of first-round action on Thursday.

All of the sport's Top 100 athletes are participating in this week's event, including No. 1 Nelly Korda, who sits in a 14th-place tie with an even-par first-round performance, and surging US dark horse No. 50 Lexi Thompson, who tied for 10th in her Thursday return from a brief retirement.

However, leading the pack heading into Friday's second round is Thailand's world No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul, who finished the first day of competition atop the leaderboard with a score of 4-under-par.

Australia's No. 24 Minjee Lee also posted a strong start, capping Thursday at 3-under to sit in second place.

While the sport's best chase victory on the links, the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship is already making history off the green.

Not only is it the first-ever women's major to tee off at Frisco's Fields Ranch East, the tournament also increased its purse to $12 million on Tuesday — nearly tripling the $4.5 million prize pool from just four years ago and tying the US Women's Open for the LPGA Tour's highest payout in the process.

How to watch the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship

The third LPGA Grand Slam of 2025 continues through Sunday.

Friday's second round will air live on the Golf Channel, while coverage of Saturday and Sunday's final rounds will air across NBC and Peacock.