Diana Taurasi inducted into the Mercury Ring of Honor as franchise celebrates 20 years of excellence

PHOENIX (AP) — There's certainly a good case to be made that Diana Taurasi is the best player in WNBA history. For Phoenix Mercury fans, that case is already closed: She's undeniably the G.O.A.T. Taurasi was inducted into the Mercury Ring of Honor on Sunday at halftime of a game between the Mercury and Portland Fire, with the franchise retiring her No. 3 jersey and celebrating a superstar who has become synonymous with basketball in Arizona for more than two decades. “This place has made me who I am,” Taurasi said just before her banner was unveiled in the arena's rafters. “You guys let me grow, you let me fall, you let me get back up and gave me the space to become who I am today. Through the championships, all the good times and all the bad times, the loyalty you have given me is something I will take with me forever.” Two decades of excellence in Arizona Taurasi, 44, played for the Mercury from 2004 to 2024 and won just about every championship and award that is possible for a player. She's the WNBA's career scoring leader (by more than 2,000 points), an 11-time All-Star, a six-time Olympic gold medalist, a five-time scoring champion, a three-time WNBA champion, a two-time WNBA Finals MVP, the 2009 regular-season MVP and the 2004 Rookie of the Year. She said Sunday's honor ranks up there with her biggest accomplishments. “Today's a big one,” Taurasi said before the game. “Today feels different. When your number goes up there, you can't use it anymore, it's done. So if there was any little competitiveness still in me, I think today it goes up in the rafters with the number and it feels really good.” More than the sheer numbers, she's remembered for her fierce personality that resonated in Arizona, helping turn the Mercury into one of the WNBA's premier franchises. Taurasi was surrounded on Sunday by friends and family, including her wife Penny Taylor and their two children. She said she's lucky to have 20 years of friendships to celebrate — including her long relationship with the “X-Factor," which is the nickname for the team's loyal fan base. “When I walk into (the arena), I don't see strangers, I don't see employees,” Taurasi said. “I see friends, I see people I go to dinner with, I see people I text regularly with. This isn't just something where I showed up and said, 'Well, let's see what we can do here and then leave.'" “I treated this like my extended family. I think that's why walking in today — I'm really emotional.” Thousands of fans celebrate Hundreds of fans had gathered in downtown Phoenix more than two hours before the game — many wearing the No. 3 jersey Taurasi donned for two decades — even on an August afternoon with temperatures topping 105 degrees. Some took pictures in front of a mural featuring Taurasi on the side of the arena. The announced attendance was 16,513, a sellout and a testament to how much the WNBA has grown since she debuted with the Mercury in 2004 after a stellar college career at UConn. A string of tributes flowed throughout the evening, including from Suns star Devin Booker, former teammate Brittney Griner and recent football Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Larry Fitzgerald. Three-time WNBA MVP Sheryl Swoopes and 23-time gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps were also in attendance. Taurasi’s name was in lights several feet off one of the baselines, with some real, live goats grazing on hay. There was also a “Goat Plush Toss” where game staff threw toy goats into the stands. There's no doubt who fans in Arizona believe is the greatest WNBA player of all time. “When you're in the Valley, there's a reason you call her the G.O.A.T," Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts said. "We all believe that, the impact that she's made on this organization.” ___ AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball