PHOENIX, AZ — The Phoenix Mercury held their 2022 Media Day on Wednesday that included several players, including 18-year WNBA vet Diana Taurasi.
Taurasi made it clear that when it’s time for her to close the chapter on her basketball career, she’ll know it and will let everyone else know.
“When you’ve been doing something your whole life like I have, it’s just not a decision that I think about until it’s literally time to go,” she said. “I’m still in the mindset of trying to get better. I look at it as a new challenge. I have to get back in the gym and do what I need to do. I’m still very present in the things I’m doing right now.”
Once last season concluded for the Mercury in the WNBA Finals, Taurasi took some time off and traveled, and now she’s returned with a renewed energy and fire that will keep opposing defenses on their toes this season. She looks to improve as she continues to put the hours in the gym leading not only verbally, but also by example. Entering her 18th season in the WNBA and playing at a high level is what is important, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
“I’ll let you guys know when I’m done because you’re not gonna see me anymore. When I’m done playing, I’m just going to stop playing. I’m not going to ease my way out,” Taurasi said.
“I want to play, and when I suck, I won’t play. Trust me, I’ll be in those workouts in the winter and be like, ‘Hmm, that’s it.‘”
Her new schedule should change in hopes of preserving her throughout the season while managing her practice times and conditioning.
“You have to be a little bit more strategic of the days and look at the schedule and see, well, ‘What days are going to be high days? What days are gonna be low days?’ There really is no day off,” Taurasi explained.
With some familiar teammates in Skylar Diggins-Smith, Kia Nurse, Sophie Cunningham, and some new weapons added to this arsenal in All-Stars Tina Charles and Diamond DeShields, Taurasi is ready to take any and all challengers this season with a fearless approach. The team chemistry is important to her and she understands in order to have an opportunity to compete for a WNBA championship, they have be on one accord on and off the court. Charles, the toughest post player in the league to guard, gives the team a solid defender around the basket and an offensive presence who can stretch the floor.
“Tina changes the whole dynamic of how we’re going to play. We know how the game is, it’s trying to get into the paint, trying to stretch the floor, shooting threes, and those are things we like to do anyway. With Tina on the court that just makes the spacing on the floor that much harder for the defense to guard,” Taurasi.
To get ready and hyped for the season, Taurasi has compiled a playlist of some of her favorite artist that include Cam’ron, Styles P (The Lox), DJ Quik, and Daz Dillinger (Tha Dogg Pound).
The Mercury are one of the favorites to get out of the Western Conference to compete for a WNBA title.
