The Connecticut Sun have had a disastrous offseason that saw all of their starters leave the team. DeWanna Bonner and Brionna Jones walked away in free agency, and Alyssa Thomas, DiJonai Carrington, and Ty Harris were all involved in trades. Losing all of those players was not only a big blow to the Sun but also to Marina Mabrey.
Marina Mabrey joined the Sun in an in-season trade, as the Chicago Sky granted her wish to play for a contender. The Sun were just that when Mabrey arrived in Connecticut. Alyssa Thomas was an MVP candidate, the Sun were the best defensive team in the league, and the core had led the team on several deep playoff runs before.
Things changed quickly, and after all other key players departed, Mabrey was left on a team that will have no other choice but to rebuild. Not surprisingly, Mabrey asked for a trade. The veteran has a history of asking for trades, but no one can really blame her for this one. Mabrey wants to win, and this is not the team she joined in 2024.
However, the Sun denied her trade request, and things quickly got heated between the front office and Mabrey’s agent. Now, things could get even messier.
The Sun’s 2025 season promises to be messy
The Mabrey situation is tricky for both sides, especially after what has already happened. Mabrey clearly does not want to be in Connecticut, and forcing her to play rather than trading her and Natasha Cloud for assets to help rebuild the roster is a bad look for the Sun that could hurt the team when it comes to attracting players in the future.
For Mabrey, requesting a trade was the best way to approach the situation, but now that the Sun have denied the request, things are a lot trickier. The cleanest way for Mabrey to handle the situation would be to play, do her best, and increase her value for the 2026 offseason. She could also take a page out of Jimmy Butler’s book, however.
Jimmy Butler wanted to leave the Miami Heat and basically gave the team no other choice but to trade him. He pulled several stunts, like walking out of practice, that prompted the Heat to suspend him. Having a disgruntled star player and being forced to suspend them is bad for team chemistry and does not lead to wins on the court. So, Butler eventually found himself on the Warriors.
If Mabrey takes a similar approach, things in Connecticut will soon get even messier than they already are, and it may not even be in Mabrey’s best interest. Not playing and creating locker room issues, would hurt Mabrey’s image, even if it gets her out of Connecticut, and every fan of women’s basketball knows that the conversation around female players trying to enforce their wishes can be much different than around male players doing the same.
The best-case scenario for both sides is that Mabrey shows up and plays her hardest, and the front office realizes that the team is just not good enough, and trading Mabrey to a contender looking for one more impactful player is in everyone’s best interest. The road there may not be easy, though.