The owners of the Connecticut Sun, who had tentatively reached an agreement to sell the WNBA franchise, are now assessing their options to salvage the deal, according to an ESPN report, after the WNBA balked at a planned move of the franchise to Boston.
The Mohegan tribe, which bought the former Orlando Miracle and moved it to Connecticut in 2003, struck a deal earlier this month in which Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca agreed to buy the club for a WNBA-record $325 million.
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Pagliuca hoped to move the Sun’s home games from Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, to Boston’s TD Garden, where the Celtics also play.
However, the league quickly stepped in and issued a statement emphasizing that “relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams,” and pointing out that other cities bid for WNBA expansion franchises at the beginning that would take priority over putting a team in Boston.
Sources tell ESPN the tribe intends to present multiple options to the league to facilitate the sale.
Those options reportedly include a full sale to Pagliuca’s group, a sale to a group fronted by former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, selling only a minority stake in the franchise or allowing the WNBA to purchase the club for that same $325 million price tag.
Connecticut Sun guard Saniya Rivers drives to the basket in an Aug. 13 game against the Chicago Sky at Mohegan Sun Arena.
Sources also tell ESPN that the WNBA has offered to buy the Sun for $250 million so it could then steer the franchise toward an ownership group in one of its preferred expansion cities.
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In the last three rounds of bidding for WNBA expansion franchises — which resulted in new teams in Cleveland (in 2028), Detroit (2029) and Philadelphia (2030) joining the league — Boston never submitted a proposal.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Connecticut Sun reportedly formulating options to salvage $325M sale
