The Connecticut Sun may already be eliminated from playoff contention, but they are trying their best to end the season on a high note. After winning four of their last five games, the Sun no longer have the worst record in the league. They have successfully overtaken the Chicago Sky and Dallas Wings.
A Sun team stringing together wins looks quite different from what fans saw to start the season. It took the Sun five games to get a single win. Ten games into the season, the Sun had only two wins. They were locked into a race to the bottom with the Dallas Wings.
For WNBA veteran and 2012 MVP Tina Charles, there’s no doubt that one particular player helped the team improve. After a 101-95 win, Charles raved about rookie Leila Lacan.
“Just her speed, her quickness, her relentlessness, just showing her toughness with her injury and still playing through it, just wanting to be there for us. Her offensive skill, her defensive capabilities—it really sets the tone,” Charles said in the postgame press conference. “Everything starts with the head and Leila’s really just been the difference as to why we’ve been able to improve and be better since she’s stepped foot in this and had a uniform on.”
Leila Lacan’s rookie season has been impressive
Leila Lacan joined the Sun late due to national team commitments. So far, she has played 20 games in the WNBA. The 21-year-old has been impressive in her debut season.
Against the Wings, Lacan recorded 22 points on 64.3% shooting from the field, three rebounds, six assists, and four steals. It marked her second consecutive 22-point game and the fifth time she got at least four steals in a game. For the season, Lacan averages 9.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 2.4 steals per game.
She has been a force on both ends of the court, pushing the pace, scoring, creating, and hounding opposing guards on defense. With Lacan on the court, the Sun look like a much more confident team. The team’s offensive rating improves from 95 to 99.2 with her on the court. Likewise, the Sun’s defensive rating takes a massive hit when Lacan isn’t on the court, going from 96.2 with her to 112.3 without her. While 20 games are still a relatively small sample size, Lacan has already left a significant mark on the Sun.
Lacan headlines a group of interesting young Sun players
When they lost their entire starting five in the offseason, the Sun were catapulted right into a rebuild and quickly amassed a group of promising young players. Aaliyah Edwards, who joined the team ahead of the trade deadline, Leila Lacan, Rayah Marshall, Aneesah Morrow, and Saniya Rivers are all 23 or younger. While the Sun sent one of their 2026 first-round picks (a lottery pick) to the Chicago Sky, they will still get to make two selections in the next draft and add more young talent to the roster. It may not be the next Rookie of the Year winner, but the Sun could find a diamond in the rough.