Mercury GM Defends DeWanna Bonner as Rift With Caitlin Clark & Co. Returns to Spotlight

The divorce between DeWanna Bonner and the Fever wasn’t the first messy split the WNBA has seen, but it certainly grabbed headlines. And so, while it wasn’t the ugliest, fans didn’t let Bonner forget what she had left behind. The story resurfaced after the Aces defeated the Mercury 97-86 on Friday night, claiming their third WNBA championship in four years. Amid all the drama, Mercury GM made sure to defend Bonner and give her the recognition she deserved, reminding everyone of her contributions to the team. 

Mercury GM Nick U’Ren called DeWanna Bonner “the perfect addition” to the team, saying, “This is the great part about sports. She gets to come back and play in front of the fans where she started her career. I think she was happy with how it turned out, and we certainly were too.”

And it made sense because despite the loss, the Phoenix Mercury had been one of the season’s biggest stories, bouncing back from a below-.500 finish last year to become immediate title contenders after a major roster overhaul. And Bonner has been a major part ever since she returned “home”. 

She is well-versed with the team and the city, having started her career with the Mercury in 2009 and played with them until she was traded before the 2020 season. This season, she has shown just how vital she is in the playoffs. Bonner leads the team in offensive rebounds with 72, passing Brittney Griner’s 69 to become the Mercury’s top postseason rebounder. She’s also the leader in defensive rebounds with 303, bringing her total playoff rebounds to an impressive 375.

But why did the GM feel the need to step in and remind fans of Bonner’s value to the Mercury? Because Fever fans hadn’t forgotten that she left their team after signing a $200,000 unprotected contract in February, the third-highest salary on the Fever behind Kelsey Mitchell and Natasha Howard. After the Mercury lost in the finals, some fans were brutal, reminding Bonner that she didn’t achieve the expected success in the new fit she thought would be perfect.

Fans rally against Bonner after Aces clinch victory

The Aces swept the Mercury 4-0 in the playoffs, and fans didn’t hold back on social media. One fan wrote on X, “DeWanna Bonner really talked all that shit against the Fever, all just to be the only team to not get a win vs the Aces in a playoff series this year.”

Bonner had explained her departure from the Fever by saying she didn’t feel she was in the right place or “fit,” to be exact. She even missed the last stretch with Fever’s for “personal reasons,” clearly unhappy with her role on the team. While she never spoke ill of the Fever or the organization, for fans, her decision to leave was enough to backfire on her.

One fan didn’t hold back on X, writing, “When DeWanna Bonner goes to bed tonight she can rest easy knowing she 1) Got benched for Lexie Hull, 2) Quit on the Fever to join ‘a real team,’ 3) Got swept by the Aces while the hospital Fever took Vegas to the brink. Goodnight 😉”.

The story has two sides: when Bonner joined the Fever, she earned a starting spot but was benched after three games in favor of Hull. The drama heated up when Bonner, now with the Mercury, tried to trash-talk her former teammate during a matchup. Despite the theatrics, Bonner’s Mercury fell short of a title, and fans compared her squad to an injury-plagued Fever—Clark, Cunningham, and others—who still pushed the Aces to a decisive Game 5 (unlike Mercury’s 4-0 loss) before narrowly missing out.

Another fan didn’t hold back, writing, “Caitlin told DeWanna Bonner to go to her bench. Now she can go back home a loser,” even attaching a gif of Clark. Before the eventual split, Clark appeared to be one of Bonner’s biggest supporters. During preseason games, Clark praised Bonner as one of the strongest voices in the locker room and even urged teammates to help her chase records and a ring before she retires.

In the season opener, Bonner went on to move into third on the all-time WNBA scoring list, putting up 7 points (2 of 9), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. But that was about it, since she went on to have career lows with the Fever. So, she made her own decisions about her future with the team, and while Clark might not have publicly responded, the fans certainly made sure their opinions were heard.

One fan joked on X, “DeWanna Bonner reportedly tried to quit on the Mercury and join the Aces during Game 4 halftime but was stopped by security.” Hilarious as it is, Game 4 was no laughing matter for Phoenix. Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts stood at center court, stunned, as chaos unfolded. With 2:41 left in the third quarter of their 97-86 loss in the WNBA Finals, Tibbetts received two quick technical fouls for arguing a call, making him the first coach in league history to be ejected in a Finals game. Kahleah Copper and DeWanna Bonner also got technical fouls in the fourth quarter, so it’s no surprise if a thought like that even crossed Bonner’s mind.

However, not all the comments were against Bonner. One Mercury fan fired back at Fever supporters, writing, “At least she was in the Finals. Where was the Fever? Oh yeah, watching it on TV!” The Indiana Fever had been knocked out of the 2025 WNBA playoffs by the Las Vegas Aces in a winner-take-all Game 5 in the semis. Despite battling five season-ending injuries, the Fever had shown real grit—winning the 2025 Commissioner’s Cup and making the playoffs for the second straight year. Still, this season, the stars just didn’t align in their favor.