Nate Tibbetts moves up.
Phoenix Mercury's Coaching Message Lands Loudly After 15th Win of the Season phenxi originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
After back-to-back losses to the Las Vegas Aces and the Dallas Wings, the Phoenix Mercury have ripped off three victories in a row, including Monday night's thrilling 78-77 win over the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in San Francisco.
In front of over 18,000 fans in enemy territory, the Mercury, particularly Alyssa Thomas, showed tremendous poise down the stretch to come away with a win.
Thomas drained a free-throw with a second left in regulation to give the Mercury the lead and the team's 15th win of the season. More than that, Thomas' make from the charity stripe led to a big milestone for head coach Nate Tibbetts.
The triumph over the Valkyries was Tibbetts' 34th as the Mercury's head coach, thus moving him up to the fifth spot of the franchise's all-time coaching wins. He broke his tie with Carrie Graff, who called the shots for the team from the 2004 season to the 2005 campaign.
Phoenix also gave Tibbetts a shoutout for his accomplishment following the contest.
"He does it the right way - no shortcuts, all trust. He leads by lifting up his players. In just year two, Nate Tibbetts is now 5th in franchise history in wins!" the Mercury's post read, as they congratulated their head coach.
The Mercury hired Tibbetts in 2023, and it was reported that Phoenix made him the highest-paid coach in WNBA history, signing him to a deal worth over $1 million per year. That investment has yet to turn into a WNBA championship, but that could come as soon as the 2025 season. The Mercury are among the top teams at the moment in the league, as their 15-6 record is second-best overall in the standings.
Looking ahead, the Mercury will put their win streak on the line this coming Wednesday against the No. 1 team right now, the Minnesota Lynx, at Target Center in Minnesota.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: Basketball
