Sun trade three 1st-round picks to Mercury to sign star DeWanna Bonner

ByABC News
February 11, 2020, 10:59 AM

The Connecticut Sun on Tuesday added All-Star forward DeWanna Bonner in a sign-and-trade deal with the Phoenix Mercury.

Connecticut sent three first-round picks (Nos. 7 and 10 in 2020, and one in 2021) to Phoenix for Bonner, who signed a multiyear contract.

The Sun had acquired the No. 7 overall pick on Monday in a trade that sent Morgan Tuck and the No. 11 pick to the Seattle Storm.

Players who re-sign with their current teams can make a maximum of $215,000 under the new collective bargaining agreement, which was ratified last month. They can make a maximum of $185,000 if they sign with a new team. With the sign-and-trade, Bonner was eligible to sign the $215,000-per-year deal.

Bonner, a 10-year veteran who has played her entire WNBA career with the Mercury, is a three-time All-Star and three-time Sixth Woman of the Year. She won two WNBA championships with the Mercury. 

She averaged 17.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game last season.

The Sun advanced to the WNBA Finals last season but fell short to the Washington Mystics.

Bonner, 32, said in a statement that she is looking forward to helping Connecticut win its first title.

"I'm excited to play with this talented group and do whatever I can to help this organization hang its first championship banner," Bonner said in the statement. "Nothing is more important to me than winning."

Bonner, who was selected fifth overall by the Mercury in the 2009 draft, is ranked No. 1 in rebounds (2,072) and No. 2 in points (4,820) and games played (335) in Phoenix's franchise history.

"We drafted DeWanna in 2009, and together we won championships in 2009 and 2014," Mercury general manager Jim Pitman said in a statement. "We watched as she became a Sixth Woman of the Year, All-Star, All-WNBA player, and most importantly a mother. Ultimately, she has decided the next stage of her career does not include us and we wish her the best. She and her daughters, Cali and Demi, will always remain a part of the Mercury family."