The Chicago Sky became first-time WNBA champions on Sunday afternoon thanks to a thrilling comeback win in Game 4 to take down the Phoenix Mercury. For Candace Parker, it was the highest of highs, as she was getting emotional before the final buzzer sounded and let it all out in the celebration at midcourt, as the future Hall of Famer got to celebrate a championship with her daughter in her first season with her hometown team in Chicago.
As with all championship celebrations, there’s the other side where the losing team feels dejected, having come so close to the ultimate prize only to fall just short of that goal. The Mercury were gracious in defeat on the court, as Diana Taurasi and others made their way through the masses on the floor to congratulate some of the Sky on their achievement, but afterwards the frustration of losing Game 4 in the manner they did, blowing a 14-point second half lead, set in.
The entire team declined to speak with the media, which led to questions about possible fines from the league for the team for bowing out of media responsibilities after the loss, and Alex Simon of The Next Hoops brought word that the Wintrust Arena visiting locker room door bore the brunt of Taurasi’s frustration in the wake of the loss.
https://twitter.com/teamziller/status/1449884394643025921
The door was severely cracked through the middle, which an eyewitness said came from Taurasi slamming the door multiple times. Neither the WNBA nor the Phoenix Mercury commented by time of publication.
In fairness to Taurasi, this doesn’t look like the strongest of doors, so it probably didn’t take an awful lot to break it. It was a tough series for the three-time champ, and particularly a rough Game 4 as she had 16 points on 4-of-16 shooting, as neither she nor any of her Mercury teammates could break free of their fourth quarter slump to stop the Sky’s 18-4 run to close the game.
