How — and when — can Shey Peddy help the Phoenix Mercury?

Peddy, 34, is coming off her best WNBA season in 2022. She played in a career-high 34 games (24 starts), averaged a career-best 9.9 points per game, a career-high 3.8 rebounds per game and a career-best 3.4 assists per game. The four-year WNBA veteran adds depth for the Mercury at the guard position behind Moriah Jefferson, Sophie Cunningham, most likely Diana Taurasi and potentially Skylar Diggins-Smith, if she plays this year for Phoenix.

While the four guards ahead of Peddy should see more time than her, the future of Diggins-Smith in Phoenix is in doubt. She left the team late in the 2022 season and had multiple conflicts with team personnel last year. She is also pregnant which means she will miss significant time even if she does remain with the Mercury. Taurasi will be 41 in June and has only played in 72 of 124 games over the last few seasons. Peddy could be needed to step up if Taurasi is unable to make it through the expanded 40-game season.

The question mark around Peddy is how much she will be available this season. In an August 2022 playoff game with the Las Vegas Aces, Peddy ruptured her Achilles. According to the UT Southwestern Medical Center, athletes with ruptured Achilles tendons usually miss a season of play. However, Peddy shared an update on her status on Twitter in January saying she will probably be ready by the start of the season. The Mercury’s first game is at the Los Angeles Sparks on May 16 so if Peddy were to come back it would be just under nine months since her injury on Aug. 17. It would be a miraculous recovery and one that would for sure help the team.