Kelsey Plum was brought to Phoenix with the hope that her arrival could help change the Mercury’s trajectory. However, the whole move seems not to have gone according to plan, as Plum’s arrival is yet to produce the kind of turnaround many might have expected. It’s no wonder, then, that WNBA analyst Rachel Demita finds ESPN’s WNBA player rankings, which place Plum in second place, rather confusing.
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Reacting to the ranking in a video she shared on her YouTube channel on Saturday, Demita questioned ESPN’s decision to place Plum so high on its July list. In fact, the way she sees it, ESPN may have purposely structured the ranking that way to get people talking.
“Who’s number two for July? Oh, Kelsey Plum. That, see, that’s weird,” Demita said. “This is where it starts getting tricky. And like, great job, ESPN, because you got us to talk about this article. But it is like maybe a little bit confusing because Kelsey Plum, her July rank is at two. She’s averaging 21.5 points per game, 5.4 assists per game.
“Obviously, she’s with the Phoenix Mercury now. She went from the LA Sparks. Their season was not great. Now, going to the Phoenix Mercury, it did nothing for the Mercury. Like, they were pretty much already out of playoff contention. But they have her ranked third on this ESPN list, and the July ranking is second. That’s very interesting,” she added.
Just as Demita pointed out, the Los Angeles Sparks were really not having a great season while Kelsey Plum was with them, and that remained the case right up until the time she left. By the time her trade went through on August 1, the Sparks were in 11th place out of 15 teams in the overall WNBA standings and held a 10–17 record. In fact, they were struggling heavily and stuck in a brutal six-game losing streak. So, considering the state of the team during Plum’s time there, it’s understandable why Demita is questioning the July ranking.
Even beyond the team’s performance, Kelsey Plum also did not actually play any game in the month of July for the Sparks. She spent the entire month on the injury report for Los Angeles while recovering from a lower left leg/calf injury she suffered on June 21. She did not return to action until after she was traded to the Phoenix Mercury, making her official on-court debut for the team on August 3, 2026. This, in fact, further casts more doubt on the said July ranking, which places Plum at the second spot in the entire league.
But then, it might be that the ranking was considering Plum’s performance so far in the season up until that point. And if that was the case, a high ranking does feel quite justifiable, although still not entirely convincing. Plum, by the end of July, which qualifies as her entire time with the Los Angeles Sparks this season, was averaging 23.9 points per game and 6.4 assists per game, while shooting 52.7% from the field and 38.3% from 3-point range across 12 games.
The numbers have, however, dropped considerably since making the switch to Phoenix. She is averaging 15.8 points and 2.8 assists per game. However, her injury has continued to linger, causing her to miss four of Phoenix’s last five games. The Mercury have also missed out on the playoffs.
It appears as if that drop in production has now reflected in the latest August ranking, as Plum now sits in the 15th position on that list. It’s now five games until the end of the season, as the whole league goes on a break for the FIBA World Cup. Perhaps these final games will end up being Kelsey Plum’s last with the Mercury, as she has not signed an extension yet, making her a pending unrestricted free agent at the conclusion of the 2026 season.