The Los Angeles Sparks traded Kelsey Plum midseason precisely because they did not want to risk losing her for nothing at the end of her contract. The Phoenix Mercury have now absorbed that same risk. And the only way they can change the outcome the Sparks feared is by convincing Plum to actually re-sign with the franchise, something Mercury legend Diana Taurasi appears to have already started working on.
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Speaking during a pregame media press conference on Sunday evening, a video of which the Mercury shared on their X page, Taurasi delivered a simultaneously bold and concise recruiting pitch for the WNBA star, who’s on a one-year contract.
“My pitch to Plum?… Where else would you rather be? You’ve tried the rest,” Taurasi told the media.
Plum’s current deal, a one-year, $999,999 contract she signed with the Sparks ahead of the 2026 season, is set to expire at the end of the season, at which point she will hit free agency. Her move to Phoenix has not changed that timeline. And when the trade went through, she was careful not to make any promises about what comes next.
“I was overwhelmed. All of this happened very fast, very unexpected. It’s been a crazy 48 hours but to be received like that by my teammates, from the staff, from the organisation, I’m just super grateful. As far as the long-term stuff, it sounds cliché, but I am just where my feet are,” Kelsey Plum said in the first week of August, via ESPN.
In order to land Plum, the Mercury gave up guard Monique Akoa Makani, a 2027 first-round and a 2028 second-round draft pick. That cost may prove too high in the long run if they can’t retain Kelsey Plum beyond this season. However, the move remains entirely understandable given the calibre of player Plum is and the numbers she has produced this season.
While with the Sparks, she was virtually carrying the entire offence, averaging 23.9 points and 6.4 assists per game across 12 games. Since arriving in Phoenix, a recurring left calf injury has limited her availability, but she has still averaged 17.3 points and 3.3 assists across four appearances.
It is no wonder Diana Taurasi is invested in the idea of Kelsey Plum staying. As a franchise legend who spent her entire 20-season WNBA career with the Phoenix Mercury, she has a vested interest in seeing the organisation build something worth believing in again. The Mercury currently sit 11th in the overall WNBA standings with a 13-23 record, effectively eliminated from playoff contention.
That context makes the re-signing pitch complicated. Players of Plum’s calibre tend to chase winning environments, and as things currently stand, Phoenix is not offering one.
Whether Diana Taurasi’s charm is enough to change Plum’s mind when free agency opens remains to be seen. But given the team’s current standing and trajectory, it will likely take considerably more than a well-delivered one-liner to convince Kelsey Plum that Phoenix is where her future belongs.