The Connecticut Sun‘s 2025 season was one of the worst in franchise history on paper, ending a seven-year streak of playoff appearances with an 11-33 record to finish in 11th place in the league.
But there was an overwhelming sense of hope inside the building as the first year of a massive rebuild came to a close.
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The Sun faced early growing pains with just two returners from 2024 on the roster under first-year head coach Rachid Meziane, who was hired without any prior WNBA experience. The team seemed destined for disaster during a franchise-record 10-game losing streak in June, but Connecticut recovered from the ugly start to establish a clear identity late in the season with wins in six of its last 13 games.
“This group has shown a lot of courage and resilience,” Meziane said after the team’s final game on Wednesday. “I think that for many teams in our situation, with our chaotic start … many would have broken under pressure, and we chose to fight to stay together … Tonight may mark the end of the season, but tonight is also the beginning of our future.”
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Young core sets tone for future success
The biggest victory for Connecticut in 2025 was in the WNBA Draft, where it acquired a pair of potential stars in guard Saniya Rivers and forward Aneesah Morrow. Rivers set franchise records for 3-pointers made and steals by a rookie averaging 8.8 points, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.9 blocks, and she became the first WNBA guard since Alana Beard in 2004 to record 100 stocks (steals plus blocks) in her rookie year. Morrow finished second among all rookies in rebounds and logged eight double-doubles for the Sun, averaging 7.7 points and 6.9 rebounds.
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Both rookies plan to play stateside to continue developing during the offseason — Rivers in Unrivaled and Morrow in Athletes Unlimited.
The optimism for Connecticut spiked even further after French guard Leila Lacan arrived in early July. The 2024 first-round draft pick was named to the Associate Press All-Rookie team after averaging 10.4 points, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals. She finished second in the league in steals per game behind only Defensive Player of the Year candidate Gabby Williams, and she was also 10th in total steals in just 25 games played. With a year of WNBA experience behind her and no national team commitments in 2026, there’s no telling how much better Lacan could be in her sophomore campaign.
It’s not just the pure talent of the Sun’s rookies that bodes well for the future; The group also quickly developed a palpable, genuine chemistry both on and off the court. After trading for second-year forward Aaliyah Edwards midseason, Connecticut has the foundation of a competitive starting lineup under contract for at least the next two years.
“It was so natural, and we just flowed,” Rivers said. “It wasn’t forced, and I feel like those are the most wholesome connections that are made, the ones that are just genuine … I’d heard horror stories before I got to the league about bad locker rooms, so I was just blessed coming in here as a rookie and be in in a great locker room, because obviously it’s a little less intimidating when you can come in and just be yourself.”
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Will key veterans return in free agency?
Much like last offseason, nearly all of Connecticut’s veterans will be free agents entering 2026.. The biggest question is star guard Marina Mabrey, who requested a trade that the Sun denied in February.
“I think perspective is everything,” Mabrey said during her exit interview Thursday. “At the end of the day, I get to do this job. I’m blessed to be in this league, to be the player that I am in this league … Maybe you’re not having everything your way, but there’s a lot of joy in what I got out of this year, and I learned a lot about myself. I feel like God just kind of put me in this position to keep me here, because that’s where I belong.”
Mabrey had an somewhat underwhelming year as a centerpiece of the Sun’s offense and never looked fully herself after missing 10 games due to a knee injury suffered in late June. She logged 14.4 points per game shooting career lows both from the field (36.7%) and from 3-point range (27%), also averaging 4.2 rebounds and four assists. Still, the veteran was an essential leadership voice on the rookie-laden roster, and she showed flashes of her ceiling down the stretch with four of her seven 20-point performance coming in the final 12 games.
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Mabrey hasn’t committed to a future with the franchise one way or another, but her comments late in the season indicate that she’s at least considering returning to the Sun in 2026.
“Everyone here in our draft class is a long-term play, so I think it’s just coming together and continuing to know that this (is the) start for maybe a championship in a few years,” Mabrey said after the team won five of seven games during a hot streak in late August. “So we’re just building off of that and seeing it as like, a three-year thing and not a one-season thing.”
Future Hall of Famer Tina Charles has indicated that she plans to play her 15th WNBA season in 2026, though she also made no commitments about where that will be. Charles, who averaged 16.3 points and 5.8 rebounds this season, has played for five different teams since 2020, and if she hopes to compete for a championship contender in the twilight of her career, Connecticut won’t be her best option. But if Charles’ top priority was a ring chase, she likely wouldn’t have signed with the Sun this season in the first place.
“I don’t know what my future is going to be like. I don’t know what it’s going to look like in free agency,” Charles said during her exit interview. “From where I was 10 years ago to where I am now, I’m thankful I can still impact and have great nights, and my so-so nights are still good … I’m thankful for the opportunity that I’ve had to be able to play and get into a groove and find my rhythm.”
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The other key piece the Sun will look to retain is center Olivia Nelson-Ododa, who hits restricted free agency after completing the final year of her rookie contract. Nelson-Ododa is the longest-tenured member of Connecticut’s roster, and she had a breakthrough season in 2025 averaging a career-high 8.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks while shooting 52.6% from the field.
Navigating league-wide offseason uncertainty
The biggest question around the WNBA right now is whether the 2026 season will happen at all with the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire on Oct. 31. Players have aired frustrations with the league’s proposals throughout the negotiation process, and WNBPA vice president Napheesa Collier said Aug. 26 that the parties were still “not close” to an agreement. Last week, the Democratic Women’s Caucus sent a letter to the WNBA demanding that it bargain in good faith and address the players’ need for fair compensation amid the league’s explosive growth.
The WNBA has never had an official work stoppage, but players association leadership has been clear the option is on the table. If an agreement isn’t reached by the Oct. 31 deadline, which seems increasingly unlikely, the sides could also agree to an extension to continue negotiations.
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The prospect of an extension is complicated by an impending expansion draft that needs to be held for the incoming Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire prior to the start of free agency. The league is unable to set a date or rules for the draft until an agreement is reached, as both expansion and free agency are dictated by the terms of the CBA.
The WNBA held its first expansion draft since 2008 in Dec. 2024 for the Golden State Valkyries, and each existing franchise could protect five players from selection. The Sun lost reserve guard Veronica Burton, who has blossomed into a star with the Valkyries and is favored to win the league’s Most Improved Player award.
“We plan as much as we can, but there’s the uncertainty and expansion and all that type of stuff … so you don’t want to plan too far with the roster, because you could lose it,” general manager Morgan Tuck said. “We obviously had to start over completely this year, so the goal is that we’re not doing that again … For us it’s kind of just staying the course, staying true to what we want and don’t get caught up in the meantime.”
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