The Phoenix Mercury just can’t catch a break. Rookie guard Jovana Nogic is leaving the team to captain the Serbian Women’s National Team through EuroBasket qualifying, and she won’t be back until the 2027 season. The team announced the move this week, calling it a mutual decision that lets her represent her country in the tournament set to tip off later this year.
Nogic was averaging 10.4 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists over 16 games. She made an immediate splash in her debut, scoring a franchise record for a rookie in her first outing against the Las Vegas Aces. That performance put the whole league on notice, and it looked like the Mercury had struck gold again with an international pickup.
But this departure isn’t a total shock. Nogic has been the face of Serbian women’s basketball for a while now, and EuroBasket comes around once every two years. Missing WNBA time to lead her national team is a choice plenty of international players have made before her. The Mercury knew what they were signing up for when they drafted her.
What the Mercury Lose Without Nogic
Phoenix is already banged up. Monique Akoa Makani, Natasha Mack, Sami Whitcomb, and even Alyssa Thomas all missed time recently — Thomas served a one-game suspension during a road trip. The Mercury have been rotating through injuries and absences all season, and Nogic’s exit just makes the rotation thinner.
She brought shooting and secondary playmaking that this team desperately needs. With her gone, more ball-handling responsibility falls on Thomas, Kahleah Copper, and Akoa Makani, who’s still developing that part of her game. Nogic modeled her style after a Hall of Famer, and while that’s a high bar, her confidence from deep and ability to create off the dribble won’t be easy to replace.
The Mercury are sitting at 7-13. That’s not great, but they’d been showing signs of life over the last two weeks. Losing a perimeter threat like Nogic right when things were starting to click stings. The front office didn’t have much to say when asked about her departure, which usually means this was already in the works for a while.
Nogic’s Statement on Leaving
“This was not an easy decision; I love Phoenix, our organization and our fans,” Nogic said in a team press release. “The Mercury community made me feel welcome from day one, and I look forward to returning to Phoenix next season.”
She’ll be eligible to rejoin the Mercury once Serbia’s EuroBasket run ends, likely in 2027. That timeline works for both sides. Phoenix gets a proven scorer back, and Nogic gets to lead her national team in a major tournament. For now, the Mercury have to figure out how to keep their playoff hopes alive without one of their most promising young players.
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