Phoenix Mercury to acquire AlySsa Thomas via sign and trade with Connecticut Sun: Source

Another multi-time wnba all-star is on the go.

Phoenix Mercury ends a trade to acquire five-time all-star and two-time all-Wnba First Team Forward Alyssa Thomas from Connecticut Sun, a league source confirmed to The athletic.

The sun gave Thomas core designation earlier in January, which means that the only way Thomas was to be moved was via a signature that cannot be made official before the start of free agency on February 1st. ESPN was first to report the news of the agreement. A league source who was unauthorized to discuss the matter in public said Thomas chose to play for Merkur.

Thomas, 32, has spent his entire career in Connecticut after being No. 4 -Selection in the WNBA draft in 2014. She led the sun to two WNBA final performances and six consecutive WNBA -SemiFinal and magazines as franchise carrier in minutes, rebounds, assists, field goals, free throws and stealing. Thomas also has the WNBA record for triple-double with 15 including the postal season.

Thomas has previously signed with the sun twice in free agency in 2018 and 2021. However, as the standard of player experience has improved across WNBA, she has been a vocals of Connecticut’s lack of attitude, most recently called the organization to forced the sun to share the practice of practice with a Child’s birthday party during the playoffs.

Phoenix, on the other hand, boasts the latest practice facility in the league, a 58,000 -square -foot building dedicated exclusively to Mercury’s use. The promise of the plant was enough to lure Kahleah Copper and Natasha Cloud to Phoenix last season. They can now add Thomas to that list.

Thomas joins a list of five players under contract: Copper, Cloud, Rebecca Allen, Sophie Cunningham and Natasha Mack. The franchise was already ready for a transformative season of franchise -stalwarts Diana Taurasi and Brittney laughs the futures in flux. Taurasi is considering retirement and laughing is testing free agency for the first time. Thomas’ arrival gives Mercury an anchor in frontcourt regardless of laughing’s plans, though the two have some experience of playing together on the other unit of Team USA under Parisol.

This is the second equal season that Mercury and Sun have made an agreement when Phoenix acquired Allen from Connecticut in a sign and trade for Moriah Jefferson in 2024.

The Thomas trade also strengthens the sun’s current transitional period. Head coach Stephanie White left the franchise in late October to the Indiana fever, and it took until early December for the franchise to name former Belgium National Team coach Rachid Meziane as their new head coach. General Manager Morgan Tuck also goes into his first season in his role after receiving a promotion, with Connecticut’s former GM Darius Taylor, who moves to a new role as Chief Basketball Strategist and Director of Scout.

This story will be updated.

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(Photo: David Berding / Getty Images)