When Diana Taurasi and Cappie Pondexter go up against San Antonio in an opening round WNBA playoff game Thursday, you won't see "Phoenix" or "Mercury" on their uniform jersey tops, except for the small team logo. Instead,
you'll see "LifeLock."
Going into the playoffs, the Mercury and their stars Taurasi and Pondexter are entering as the team to beat. The pair are the league's top two scorers, leading the club to the WNBA's best regular season record at 23-11. As the games tip off on ESPN2 -- the Washington Mystics made it and will host Indiana Thursday night at 7 -- the playoffs again will give the WNBA a much needed boost of television exposure after playing its regular during idle summer months.
Since June, Mercury uniforms have been adorned with the LifeLock name, a Tempe, AZ identity theft prevention company. The Mercury are even selling the jerseys that way at the WNBA online store, part of a multi-year marketing partnership with LifeLock. To boot, when existing jerseys with the Mercury name on the front are sold out, only those LifeLock ones will be available.
No other American sports team has gone so far as to actually place the name of a sponsor on its uniform instead of the team name.
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you'll see "LifeLock."