The Connecticut Sun are moving to Boston... right? Well, maybe.
Celtics minority owner Jeff Paglicua agreed to a $325 million offer from the Mohegan Sun in July, a move that appeared to pave the way for the Connecticut Sun to move from Uncasville to Boston. But Front Office Sports soon reported the deal was never actually presented to the WNBA's board of governors this summer, and league officials followed up the announcement with one of their own: Boston isn't exactly high on their preferred list of cities.
On top of that, individual teams don't get to decide if they move or where they might move to, a league official told FOS in a statement.
The official clarified that in addition to Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia — who were each awarded WNBA expansion teams this year — nine other cities applied for their own teams, and those cities will be considered first. "No groups from Boston applied for a team at that time and those other cities remain under consideration based on the extensive work they did as part of the expansion process and currently have priority over Boston," the official explained.
Notably, when announcing the league's expansion plans in late June, Cathy Engelbert commented that Houston "would be up next, for sure" when it's time to look at more WNBA bids.
The Sun's future remains unclear
Rumors of a potential sale have followed the Sun all season. The team is currently 13th in the league with a 5-23 record, something that seems unlikely to dramatically improve with just over a month left in the season.
The list of cities that applied for a WNBA team also includes Denver, Nashville, and Miami — all locations that have received interest from both fans and athletes in the league. The $325 million offer also includes a $110 million investment into a future practice facility, which is likely a strong point of contention for the Sun's roster, who made waves in 2024 when they revealed they were sharing court space with a young child's birthday party as the prepared for the playoffs.
Paglicua also isn't the only interested buyer. A group led by Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry has explored the possibility of buying the Sun and keeping the team in Connecticut, and is reportedly in "active competition" with Paglicua's bid.
The team's president Jen Rizzotti has been noticeably reticent when asked about a potential move to Boston, telling reporters after the Sun's game Sunday she "can’t imagine that if there is an investment group at the right level in a great city, why anybody would not consider that to be a viable option."