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Two feuding WNBA stars — and former teammates — will face each other for the first time on June 4, when Diana Taurasi’s Phoenix Mercury will take on Skylar Diggins-Smith’s Seattle Storm.
Their feud stems back to at least May 17, 2022, when the two, then Mercury teammates, were seen arguing on Phoenix’s bench during the fifth game of the season. Neither player commented on the source of the disagreement between the two, but Phoenix’s then-coach, Vanessa Nygaard, chalked it up to playing the game with passion, with People magazine calling into question the team’s chemistry.
Following the argument, Diggins-Smith sat out the Mercury’s next two games. Later that season, Diggins-Smith was named to the WNBA All-Star Game, but Taurasi, then 39 years old, was not.
Diggins then appeared to take offense to Nygaard’s comments about the All-Star Game not being a true All-Star game “because Diana Taurasi’s not playing.” In a since-deleted tweet, Diggins-Smith replied to a video of Nygaard’s comment with a clown emoji.
“Tell us how you really feel, Skylar,” Yahoo Sports’ Jason Owens wrote at the time.
After sitting out the entire 2023 season surrounding the birth to her second child, Diggins-Smith took aim at the Mercury in a pair of August 3 tweets.
Diggins-Smith, who about to become a free agent, wrote that she had been locked out of the team’s practice facility and that she can’t use the Mercury’s “massage therapists, chiropractor, chefs, strength and conditioning, nutritionist accessibility, etc,” which, “EVERY other player has access to.”
On September 11, the day after the season ended, Taurasi, a 10-time WNBA All-Star and three-time WNBA Champion, was asked by a reporter if she’d be open to Diggins-Smith returning to Phoenix in 2024.
“Next question,” Taurasi replied.
Diggins-Smith signed with the Seattle Storm on February 1, 2024.
Skylar Diggins-Smith Felt ‘Guilty’ Returning to Basketball After Maternity Leave
In 2022, Diggins-Smith told People that she “felt guilty going back [to basketball] so quick” after giving birth.
“Nine weeks after I had [my son], I was in practice,” Diggins-Smith said. “Physically, I felt fine, but I was in this fog that I just didn’t understand what was going on. It was hard for me to explain my emotions. When you go through postpartum depression, you kind of get this feeling like you’re the only one going through this and you don’t really wanna ask for help.”
The Seattle Storm’s & Phoenix Mercury’s 2024 WNBA Seasons
The Phoenix Mercury have started the 2024 WNBA season with a 4-5 record. The Seattle Storm, on the other hand, are 5-3 on the year.
Taurasi, who will turn 42 years old on June 11, is averaging 17.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game with the Mercury. Skylar Diggins-Smith was averaging 14.4 points per game, through June 3.
News of Diggins-Smith’s signing made major waves during the WNBA offseason. She joined forces with Jewell Loyd and Nneka Ogwumike (who also signed as a free agent over the offseason) to form a formidable threesome in Seattle.
The Mercury and Storm’s June 4 contest will be the first of four matchups between the teams in 2024. The following three games will take place on June 16, September 7 and September 19.
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