The Phoenix Mercury are absorbing a second significant blow in the span of a few days. At 7-13 in the league, their playoff hopes are slipping fast. With forward Alyssa Thomas serving a one-game suspension, the team has now also confirmed that Natasha Mack will be sidelined for two to four weeks after sustaining a bone bruise in her left foot.

“Natasha Mack will be out after sustaining a bone bruise in her left foot,” Mercury confirmed in a press release. “She will be re-evaluated in two to four weeks.”

Mack offered her own update shortly after via Instagram

“Off the scooter now, we just bo**ng,” reads the post, as shared by Aya Abdeen on X.

The timing is difficult for a Mercury team already navigating a rough stretch. They sit at 7-13 this season, which is a significant step back from last year’s run to the WNBA Finals. Losing three of their last five games, the playoff picture already looks complicated heading into the week. Adding Mack’s absence to it makes the path even harder.

Mack has been solid this season as a two-way threat. She is averaging career highs across the board − 9.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 60.9% from the field. She leads the team in both rebounds and blocks, and has posted five double-doubles.

Coach Nate Tibbets flagged her importance directly after the June 22 loss to Indiana, even before this injury was confirmed.

“For us to be good, (Natasha) Mack needs to be good,” Tibbetts said, as per USA Today. “I don’t think she played her best tonight … she knows that, but we need her to be really good … we got to have her on the floor.”

That framing looks way more significant now. During the period Mack is expected to be sidelined, the Mercury are scheduled to face the Las Vegas Aces, Minnesota Lynx, Golden State Valkyries, and New York Liberty, teams that are well ahead in playoff contention. There is limited margin for the Mercury to absorb further losses across the run.

The depth question that Mack’s absence raises is part of a broader injury picture that has been plaguing the team throughout this season.

The Mercury Have Hit A Rough Patch

Mack’s injury is the most recent in a series of roster setbacks the Mercury have been managing. Guard Sami Whitcomb has yet to appear in a game this season due to a lingering left knee issue. Guard Monique Akoa Makani also missed the last four games with a hamstring injury.

The root cause of this traces back to the offseason. The Mercury lost Satou Sabally to free agency. Since her departure, Phoenix is left with no reliable option for defensive coverage and rebounding from a unit that already heavily relied on interior players. That responsibility has fallen primarily to Mack, DeWanna Bonner, and Kahleah Cooper. With Mack now unavailable, the Mercury’s ability to protect the boards and defend the rim takes a direct hit.

The numbers reflect the difficulty well. The Mercury rank fourth-worst in the league in defensive rating at 108.9, as per StatMuse. Kahleah Cooper has produced well above what might have been expected of her this season. But individual performances can never compensate for the positional and depth gaps that injuries create.

Addressing those gaps before the stretch run is the work ahead for mercury. In their current trajectory without Mack, Whitcomb, and Akoa Makani, it does not point toward them reproducing their 2025 run in any manner.