The atmosphere around Footprint Center on any given night for a Phoenix Mercury game is relatively the same with thousands of passionate fans cheering on their favorite team, but despite an 89-70 loss to the Seattle Storm on Thursday night,

When the game ended, the lights dimmed in the seating areas as the spotlight beamed on Taurasi at center court. Before she addressed the crowd, a tribute video for Taurasi played on the screen above. It was the same video that the Mercury social media account posted to X on Thursday afternoon, teasing a potential retirement announcement.