{"id":276668,"date":"2025-05-18T02:07:39","date_gmt":"2025-05-18T02:07:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/18\/mercury-star-undergoes-knee-surgery-before-season-opener\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:08:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T17:08:25","slug":"mercury-star-undergoes-knee-surgery-before-season-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/18\/mercury-star-undergoes-knee-surgery-before-season-opener\/","title":{"rendered":"Mercury star undergoes knee surgery before season opener"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\" data-postid=\"4921318\" data-slug-id=\"2522495\">\n<div class=\"vidazoo-player-container\">\n<span class=\"vidazoo-close-btn  hidden \"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/cmc-predictor\/v2\/cross-icon.png?w=40\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" alt=\"close\"\/><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Phoenix Mercury announced on Saturday afternoon that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/us\/wnba\/kahleah-copper\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Kahleah Copper<\/a> underwent a left knee arthroscopy, forcing her to sit out for four to six weeks. Copper, who played in the preseason game against the Las Vegas Aces on May 6, was ruled day-to-day until the surgery was announced. The sweet-shooting guard will start her inaction against the Seattle Storm, her team\u2019s season-opening game.<\/p>\n<p><template id=\"also-read-articles-template\"><\/p>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<p>A few hours after the announcement came out, Copper gave her fans an update with an Instagram post on Saturday:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cTrust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Kahleah Copper missed only 37 games last year. She played in the Unrivaled, but her season was cut short due to a right leg injury. Copper suffered a left leg injury while preparing for her 2025 campaign with the revamped <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/us\/wnba\/phoenix-mercury\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Phoenix Mercury<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Copper\u2019s injury is a big blow to the Mercury, who saw the legendary Diana Taurasi retire in the offseason. Brittney Griner also left the team after 11 years to take her talent to Atlanta. Copper, last season\u2019s third-leading scorer, was expected to have a key part of the revamped team. Phoenix will lean heavily on new acquisitions, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/us\/wnba\/alyssa-thomas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Alyssa Thomas<\/a> and Satou Sabally, while Copper recovers from surgery.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h2>Natasha Mack joins Kahleah Copper on the sidelines<\/h2>\n<p>The Phoenix Mercury&#8217;s injury woes piled on before their season opener against the Seattle Storm on Saturday. Natasha Mack, who did not miss a game last season for the Mercury, joins Kahleah Copper on the sidelines. The center\/forward will be unavailable in the next three weeks due to a lower back injury.<\/p>\n<p>Mack returned to the WNBA in 2024 after a two-year hiatus. She averaged 3.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 assists per game. Following Griner\u2019s departure, she was expected to add depth to the frontline.<\/p>\n<p>Injuries to Kahleah Copper and Mack could force the Mercury to struggle in the opening two months of the season.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-post-rating-widget\">\n<p><template id=\"post-rating-feedback-modal-template\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-feedback-box\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-content\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-data\">\n<p>Why did you not like this content?<\/p>\n<p><textarea id=\"dislike-feedback-text\" rows=\"4\" placeholder=\"Please type your feedback...\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<button class=\"close\">Cancel<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"submit\">Submit<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-widget-parent hidden\">\n<div class=\"rating-parent-container\">\n<div class=\"rating-content-holder\">\n<p>Was this article helpful?<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-action-container\">\n<div class=\"like-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-like-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"like\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"like selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dislike-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-dislike-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"dislike\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-dis-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"avatar selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nThank You for feedback\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-author-info-parent\">\n<span class=\"about-the-author\">About the author<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-pic-holder\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"author-pic\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,&lt;svg width=\" height=\"100\"\/><rect width=\"100\" height=\"100\" style=\"fill:rgb(128, 128, 128);\"\/>&#8221; data-lazy=&#8221;https:\/\/keedag.sportskeeda.com\/user-pic\/574869-1717241309-200.jpg?w=200&#8243;<br \/>\nalt=&#8221;Michael Macasero&#8221; height=&#8221;72&#8243; width=&#8221;72&#8243;&gt;\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-bio-detail-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-bio\">\n<p class=\"author-bio\" id=\"author-bio-text\">\nMichael Macasero brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his coverage of basketball at Sportskeeda with over 18 years of diverse work experience. This includes stints at Convergys, Interpace and RunRepeat.<\/p>\n<p>Michael&#8217;s background in English and Journalism has provided him with the analytical skills and precision necessary for creating content, and he is a lifelong fan of the Boston Celtics. His favorite players include legends like Larry Bird and Michael Jordan, modern stars like Tim Duncan, and Nikola Jokic, as well as emerging talent like Victor Wembanyama.<\/p>\n<p>Michael respects Gregg Popovich, despite his contentious demeanor in interviews, and recognizes\u00a0Popovich&#8217;s genius in adapting his coaching style to maximize the talent on his roster over the years. Michael eagerly anticipates seeing how Popovich will structure the offense around emerging talent like Victor Wembanyama.<\/p>\n<p>Understanding the story and details is crucial to Michael&#8217;s reporting philosophy and he\u00a0believes overlooking details, particularly when pressed for time, can lead to misunderstandings and inaccurate conclusions.<\/p>\n<p>Aside from work, Michael&#8217;s children are his hobbies, and he also likes to go running, swimming and weightlifting.\n<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"author-know-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/author\/mikailmail051521-1\" aria-label=\"Author know more\">Know More<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<span class=\"publisher-name\">Edited by Michael Macasero<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/us\/wnba\/news-kahleah-copper-injury-update-mercury-star-undergoes-knee-surgery-season-opener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] The Phoenix Mercury announced on Saturday afternoon that Kahleah Copper underwent a left knee arthroscopy, forcing her to sit out for four to six<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":276669,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[180],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276668"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=276668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276668\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/276669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=276668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=276668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=276668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}