Mercury Earns Shot at Taurasi

The Phoenix Mercury was the winner of the Diana Taurasi sweepstakes Wednesday, also known as the 2004 WNBA draft lottery.

Taurasi, a 6-foot senior forward for two-time defending national champion Connecticut, is the reigning Naismith player of the year. In last season’s NCAA tournament, Taurasi averaged 26.2 points.

She is averaging 21.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists after four games this season. She is shooting 65.2% from the field and 56.5% from the three-point line.

Taurasi and the rest of the top-ranked Huskies (4-0) will be in the Southland this weekend, playing at Pepperdine on Friday and against USC in the Sports Arena on Sunday.

Phoenix General Manager Seth Sulka must wait until April before selecting Taurasi or anyone else with the first pick of the draft. Until then, he’ll have the most popular phone number in the WNBA, with teams wanting to make all kinds of trade offers. Wednesday, following the lottery, Sulka did not sound like a man looking for a deal.

“This is just the beginning of another page in the history books for the Phoenix Mercury,” Sulka said on the team’s Web site. “Having the No. 1 pick in a draft this strong will immediately make the Mercury a more competitive ballclub.”

Following the model used by the NBA for its draft lottery, 14 numbered balls were placed in the lottery machine. Four of the balls were drawn to decide the top draft positions.

The six league teams that did not qualify for the 2003 playoffs -- Phoenix, Washington, San Antonio, New York, Indiana and Seattle -- participated in the lottery.

Phoenix, with the league’s worst record at 8-26, had the best mathematical chance (41%) of landing the top pick.

Washington will pick second and, even though the Mystics need rebounders, they probably will cast an eye toward Duke guard Alana Beard. Indiana will select third, where Stanford’s Nicole Powell, Penn State’s Kelly Mazzante, Duke’s Isis Tillis and Kansas State’s Nicole Ohlde are waiting to complement the Fever’s Tamika Catchings.

San Antonio, New York and Seattle will pick fourth, fifth and sixth, in inverse order of how the teams finished the 2003 regular season.

“I think a lot of people are assuming Diana Taurasi at this point, that she is the natural consensus to go No. 1 in this draft, but I have to tell you, the players that go one through four definitely could be No. 1 picks any other year,” Sulka said.

“Obviously if you look at Taurasi, she is really going to change this game. She has seen success at the collegiate level and will be thirsty to get her hands on another championship.”

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Lottery Order

Order of selections in Wednesday’s lottery for the first round of the 2004 WNBA draft:

1. Phoenix

2. Washington

3. Indiana

4. San Antonio

5. New York

6. Seattle