Phoenix Mercury forward Kahleah Copper to miss second straight game due to back injury
Copper suffered a back injury before the Mercury's loss to the Connecticut Sun. She is expected to be back soon.
Phoenix Mercury forward Kahleah Copper (back) will miss her second straight game on Sunday in her team’s meeting with her former team, the Chicago Sky, according to the team.
“We don’t think it’s anything serious. Obviously, there’s bigger games ahead,” Tibbetts said on Friday before the Mercury’s 88-69 loss to the Connecticut Sun. “We want to be smart.”
Tibbetts told reporters on Friday before the Mercury’s 88-69 loss to the Sun that Copper, who is the third-leading scorer in the WNBA (21.6 points per game), had injured her back in “the last 24 to 48 hours.”
“We just think this is the best move for her and our organization,” Tibbetts added.
Copper, who was traded to Phoenix in the offseason for the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, among other assets, is the third-leading scorer in the league (21.6 points per game) but is struggling since the return of the season post-Olympics. She is shooting 36.3% (25.9% from 3-point range) and averaging nearly five points fewer than her average, 16.9 points.
“I don’t know if (the Olympics) played a role in it or not,” Tibbetts said. “ … She’s had to do a lot for us offensively.”
The Mercury are 1-6 in their last seven games. Copper averaged 12.8 points in the five losses she played in and shot a combined 23-of-65 (35.4%) from the field.