The 8,000-Point Club is Two Former Mercury Players

Tina Charles scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Connecticut Sun in their 79-65 loss to the Seattle Storm on Sunday. This performance pushed her career scoring total over 8,000 points, making her only the second player in WNBA history to reach this milestone, following league legend Diana Taurasi.

Despite the Sun's rebuilding season, the 36-year-old Charles has averaged 15.6 points per game this year for the franchise where she began her career in 2010. Her career total of 8,019 points is second only to Taurasi's 10,646.

Charles, like Taurasi, also played for the Phoenix Mercury. She signed with the Mercury in 2022 during a tumultuous season under new head coach Vanessa Nygaard. While the team made the playoffs, it was a strange season with only 15 regular-season wins and no postseason victories. Charles played alongside Taurasi and Skylar Diggins, posting the team's second-highest scoring average (17.3 points per game, plus 7.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists) and shooting well from three-point range (36.4%).

However, her time with the Mercury was short-lived. After just 16 games, Charles and the team mutually agreed to terminate her contract, and she joined the Seattle Storm. Nygaard declined to comment beyond stating Charles had "elected not to play" in some games and that both sides were ready to move on.

Charles clearly still has ability in 2025, but her future with the struggling Storm (currently 3-18 with a -15.6 point differential) is uncertain. While unlikely to catch Taurasi's points total, playing a few more seasons could solidify her sole possession of second place for a long time. DeWanna Bonner currently sits in third place on the all-time scoring list. Notably, the top three scorers in WNBA history are all either current or former Phoenix Mercury players.