There is a new member of the X-Factor, the Phoenix Mercury's fan base. The team announced Thursday that former Mercury standout Penny Taylor and her wife, current Mercury guard Diana Taurasi, had welcomed a son on March 1. The baby's name is Leo Michael Taurasi-Taylor. The release said he is healthy and at home with his parents.
Taylor retired after the 2016 WNBA season, having played 13 years in the league while averaging 13.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists. She was on the Mercury's championship teams in 2007, '09 and '14. With the Australian national team, Taylor won two Olympic silver medals, plus a gold and two bronzes at the FIBA World Championship, now known as the World Cup.
Taurasi, taking part in the U.S. national team's training camp in South Carolina in February, said then she was happily anticipating not getting much sleep during March Madness.
"I'm kind of in a new chapter in my life, and my career," she said, jokingly adding, "I'll take any advice anyone has."
Taurasi, who'll be 36 in June, will begin her 14th WNBA season in May with the Mercury, who drafted her No. 1 in 2004 after she won three NCAA titles with UConn. Taurasi, the 2009 WNBA MVP, has averaged 19.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists and led Phoenix to its three championships.
Taurasi has won four Olympic gold medals with the United States, plus two golds and a bronze at the World Cup. She has also played 13 years overseas