The Phoenix Mercury are finalizing a trade to acquire five-time All-Star Alyssa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun, ESPN’s Alexa Philippou reports.
Details of the trade including compensation were not initially reported.
Thomas, 32, has spent her entire 11-season WNBA career with the Sun after being selected by the New York Liberty with the No. 4 pick in the 2014 draft then traded to the Sun.
Thomas has been among the league’s best players and defenders for most of her career. She was the league’s steals champion in 2020 and rebounding champion in 2023. She’s a six-time All-Defensive team selection and was an All-WNBA selection and All-Star in each of the last three seasons. She led the Sun to appearances in the WNBA Finals in 2019 and 2022.
A 6-2 forward, Thomas averaged 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, a career-high 7.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game in 2024 while shooting 50.9% from the floor. She leaves a Sun team that earned the No. 3 seed in the playoffs last season and lost in the semifinals to the Minnesota Lynx. She joins a Mercury team that earned the No. 7 seed and lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Lynx.
Previously set to become a free agent, Thomas was designated before the trade as a core player by the Sun, giving Connecticut exclusive negotiating rights to work out a new deal with her. The core designation also gave Thomas veto power over any trade, meaning that she had to sign off on the deal to be traded to the Mercury. Details of contract negotiations on what’s ultimately a sign-and-trade deal were not initially reported.
