By the time Robert Sarver officially became majority owner of the Phoenix Mercury and Phoenix Suns in 2004, Diana Taurasi was a couple of months into her first pro season. The No. 1 pick of the Mercury in that year’s WNBA Draft, she would go on to finish sixth in the league in scoring and be named Rookie of the Year.

It was just the start of Taurasi’s WNBA career, one of the most storied in the league’s 25-year history. And for Sarver, a first-time sports team owner, Taurasi’s arrival that year was fortuitous.

“That was just luck on my part,” Sarver told Just Women’s Sports. “It’s likely I won’t ever have another player like that on my team. She is not only great for our franchise, but great for the sport.”

Lucky as it may have been, what Sarver set out to accomplish from there was purely intentional.

The Mercury, one of four remaining original WNBA franchises, captivated Sarver from the beginning. A lifelong Arizona resident and businessman, he says he went to games and got to know the players over the years, inviting them over to his house for cookouts.

So, when Sarver started looking into buying the NBA’s Suns from owner Jerry Colangelo, he also saw a unique opportunity for growth with the Mercury.

The organization had a tradition of success, having reached the playoffs in three of its first four seasons under coach Cheryl Miller. Building championship-level teams from that foundation, Sarver believed, would help grow the game for girls and women in the community. And Taurasi, a franchise-changing talent, would lead them there.

“We were able to use the entire weight behind the Suns’ organization to help develop the Mercury and take it to another level,” Sarver said. “I would say we kind of over-sized the allocation of resources in order to help build up the team and the organization because it was like a new business, the WNBA. It’s still relatively new for professional sports leagues, but back then it was only seven years old.”

With Sarver’s backing, the Mercury were the first WNBA team to sign a marquee jersey sponsorship deal with Lifelock in 2009. They’ve had jersey sponsorships every year since then, including a badge deal with PayPal starting in 2019.

Last November, the organization unveiled a $50 million, state-of-the-art training facility that the Suns and Mercury share. Funded by Sarver, the Verizon 5G Performance Center includes a gym, weight training, performance analytics and biometrics, a rest and recovery zone and nutritional services. Taurasi spent this past offseason training at the facility rather than playing another season overseas, as many WNBA players do to supplement their salaries.

“I feel like we’re on par with the Suns and how they treat us professionally on the business side of things,” Taurasi said. “I think we have that business support that a lot of teams don’t have in the WNBA. And you can tell when you come to our arena and you drive around the city of Phoenix, we’re a presence in the community.”

Taurasi signed a two-year extension with the Mercury in February and says she’ll keep playing as long as she still feels a drive to compete. The 38-year-old has won three WNBA championships and two Finals MVPs in Phoenix, but still wants to add to her legacy.

It helps that the Mercury have been able to recruit and retain stars like Brittney Griner, their No. 1 draft pick in 2013, and Skylar Diggins-Smith, who signed with Phoenix last offseason. All three players are making the WNBA’s maximum salary this season and next, before Taurasi and Griner become unrestricted free agents in 2023. The Mercury also traded for All-Star Kia Nurse in February and have developed 2019 first-round pick Brianna Turner into a frontcourt mainstay.

Between the roster continuity and on-court product, the Mercury have built one of the most loyal fan bases in the WNBA. They’ve finished in the top three for average fan attendance every year since 2013, per data from Across the Timeline, and they retained 96 percent of their season-ticket holders through the COVID-19 pandemic.

“They’re hardcore, too,” Taurasi said of the fan base. “Some seasons have been rough and they’ll let you know about it, but there’s nothing like having fans that are invested emotionally and want their team to win.”

This year, Phoenix fans will get to enjoy the championship game of the WNBA’s inaugural Commissioner’s Cup, an in-season competition that awards $500,000 in prize money to the winning team. The final game will be held at Phoenix Suns Arena on Aug. 12 and streamed on Amazon Prime as part of the league’s new multi-year partnership with the platform.

To WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, having Phoenix host the first Cup championship is fitting as the league celebrates its 25th year.

Engelbert has been asked repeatedly about the possibility of expanding the WNBA beyond its current 12 teams to create more room for talented players. An organization like the Mercury, she says, represents the standards of success the league would be looking for in future teams.

“If you’re going to expand, you have to find markets where women’s basketball will be supported, where you can build a loyal fan base and, with appropriate investment, you can make it a very successful franchise,” Engelbert said. “That’s how we think about using the Mercury as a role model for how to build a franchise and sustain it for, now for them, 25 years.”

Taurasi has been an integral part of both the investment and the payoff during her 17 years in Phoenix. And for now, as the Mercury get set for their home opener against the Connecticut Sun on Friday night, she doesn’t see herself finishing her career anywhere else.

“I just think it’s a special place to be,” Taurasi said. “This organization is committed to the Mercury and to winning, and those are two things that I value very strongly, that loyalty.”

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.