PHOENIX — Nate Tibbetts can’t recall watching a player smile while shooting the ball until Serbian basketball player Jovana Nogic was signed to the Phoenix Mercury after being scouted overseas.
“As long as she’s smiling, it keeps going in,” Tibbetts said on Friday after the Mercury picked up their first win at home on his 49th birthday. “She’s an elite level shooter. She has fun while she’s doing it.”
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Nogic has a lot to smile about lately. The 28-year-old rookie is off to a historic start and recorded four or more 3-pointers in three of her first four games in the league. That includes a 27-point outing in Phoenix’s win over the Chicago Sky on Friday, where she went 5-for-8 from deep and set a WNBA record for the most points by an undrafted rookie.
“It’s just fun being out there with (my teammates),” Nogic said. “I really just try to enjoy the moment because this is, I thought, a once in a lifetime opportunity for me. … It’s not every day you get to play with players like (Alyssa Thomas) … just letting the game come to me and have fun.”
Last week, Alyssa Thomas said the Mercury wouldn’t be overlooked as contenders if everyone was familiar with the elite players Phoenix brought in. Well, the cat’s officially out the bag about Nogic.
Mercury guard Jovana Nogic (29) celebrates a three pointer against the Sky during a game at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix on May 15, 2026.
JOVANA NOGIC: Meet the Mercury guard with an electric WNBA debut
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With Monique Akoa-Makani overseas and Sami Whitcomb recovering from a procedure on her left knee, a unique opportunity opened up for Nogic to make her mark in the starting lineup. She did so immediately with 19 points (4-for-5 3PT) in her first career start in Phoenix’s 99-66 dismantling of the defending champion Las Vegas Aces.
The performance was even more impressive considering she only had limited practice time with the Mercury before her WNBA debut. After winning a Russian title in late April, Nogic arrived in Phoenix in May ahead of the season opener and had to travel to Vancouver to get a visa the next day. “When I got back from Vancouver, we were flying to Vegas for the first game … that’s why I couldn’t practice with the team as much,” Nogic said.
But she proved her performance wasn’t a fluke. She recorded four more 3-pointers in Phoenix’s loss to the Golden State Valkyries, the second game of a back-to-back on the road. She came off the bench in Phoenix’s 88-84 home-opening loss to the Minnesota Lynx and scored only two points (0-for-6 FG, 0-for-2 3PT) in 17 minutes as teams started to adjust and game plan for her.
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“She had two big games, she’s on the scouting report. … There’s going to be nights where people get after her, challenge her and speed her up,” Tibbetts said Thursday, adding a day later, “That’s the fun part of coming into the best league in the world is that people start to recognize your strengths and how can we slow you down … but she’s a confident player and one of the lead shooters in our league.”
With each game, Nogic’s comfort has grown with her teammates, the team’s terminology and its system. She slid back into the starting lineup against the Sky on Friday and dazzled the sold-out crowd at Mortgage Matchup Center with no-look passes and 3s. She shot 6-for-11 from the field, 5-for-8 from 3 and 10-for-11 from the free throw line.
Nogic’s 64 points through her first four games marks the third most by any rookie in franchise history, according to the Mercury, trailing only Diana Taurasi (83) and Cappie Pondexter (85).
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“When your coach gives you confidence to shoot it and have the freedom to shoot it, it makes your job a lot easier as a shooter,” Nogic said.
But her shooting isn’t the only thing that’s impressed her teammates. Her improvement on the defensive end is “what I’m most proud of,” Tibbetts added. Nogic said the team’s defensive identity and toughness was impressed upon her as soon as she arrived in Phoenix, which has stuck with her.
“The first time that I got here… Sami (Whitcomb) was on the sideline…and the first thing she was told me is, ‘(Thomas) doesn’t care if you miss it, she cares if you play defense,’” she recalled Friday.
Nogic doesn’t have anything to worry about. Her defensive performance was approved by Thomas.
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“I mean she’s Serbian, so you know how they play defense,” Thomas said. “I’ve played against her. I know what she’s about. … I’m very familiar with her style of playing, just very excited to have her here. I think it’s players like this that get overlooked and missed and I think she’s been doing amazing things overseas, so just super happy for her to have this opportunity.”
Thomas added, “She’s more than ready and that’s what’s great about Phoenix. They go find players that have talent, that have been overlooked and bring them here. And I mean people are surprised when we have players come and shoot the way that they do, but that’s just credit to our staff.”
Phoenix has created its own niche in scouting international gems from overseas and it looks like the Mercury’s front office has done it again.
Reach USA TODAY National Women’s Sports Reporter Cydney Henderson at chenderson@gannett.com and follow her on X at @CydHenderson.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jovana Nogic: Phoenix Mercury rookie makes WNBA history
