Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca will buy the Connecticut Sun for $325m and move the team to Boston. [Image: Flickr.com / John McClellan]
Heading to Beantown
The Mohegan Tribe is nearing a deal to sell the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun to Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca for $325m, who would move the team to Boston. Over the weekend, ESPN reported that the franchise would not relocate until the 2027 season.
Connecticut Sun President Jennifer Rizzotti did confirm that the deal is in progress, but that it has not been completed.
if it ends up being our last year here, we’re going to make sure we blow it out”
“I know there’s still uncertainty about the future, but our loyal fans, they’re excited to be able to watch this team grow and get into Year Two of this retooling of the roster and see where we can go. And if it ends up being our last year here, we’re going to make sure we blow it out,” Rizzotti said.
Both Rizzotti and Pagliuca acknowledged that nothing will happen if the WNBA Board of Governors does not approve the sale, though there has been no indication that it won’t. The $325m price tag would be a record for a women’s sports team.
Pagliuca has also committed $100m for a new practice facility.
WNBA is soaring
The possible sale and relocation of the Sun comes amid a massive popularity boom for the WNBA, which in turn has led to league expansion.
The WNBA recently announced the selection of a whopping five expansion cities starting next year. Portland’s and Toronto’s teams will begin play next year, Cleveland will start in 2027, Detroit in 2029, and Philadelphia in 2030. Three of those cities already had WNBA franchises previously: the Cleveland Rockers was one of the league’s original franchises in 1996, the Detroit Shock joined the league in 1998, and the Portland Fire was born in 2000.
The Rockers folded after the 2003 season, Detroit moved to Tulsa in 2010 (and then to Dallas in 2016, when they were renamed the Wings), and the Fire closed up shop after just three seasons.
Of the nine other cities that bid for franchises, Houston was told that it would eventually get one. The Houston Comets were one of the WNBA’s original eight franchises and won the league’s first four championships. The team disbanded after the 2008 season.
Each of the expansion franchises paid a $250m fee to join the league.
Long history in the league
The Connecticut Sun was one of the WNBA’s first four expansion teams, originally founded as the Orlando Miracle in 1999. The Mohegan Tribe purchased the franchise in 2003 for $10m and moved it to Uncasville, Connecticut, renaming it the Sun after the tribe’s Mohegan Sun casino.
The Sun plays at Mohegan Sun Arena on the casino property. In this new boom era for the WNBA, that the team plays in one of the smallest arenas in the league’s smallest media market was becoming a problem.
The Sun was the first WNBA franchise not owned by the NBA. The Mohegan Tribe was also the first Native American tribe to own a major professional sports team.
Though the Sun has never won a WNBA championship, it has been one of the most successful regular-season teams in the league, making the playoffs in 16 of its 22 seasons in Connecticut. It is currently in a significant rebuilding phase, currently sitting at just 5-22 after losing all five starters from last year’s team.
