The Connecticut Sun are looking at all options for the franchise’s future, including a potential sale, team president Jen Rizzotti said Tuesday.
The team is owned by the Mohegan Tribe, which runs the casino where the team has played since 2003. The Tribe bought the franchise for $10 million and relocated it from Orlando that year. The Connecticut franchise was the first in the league to be run by a non-NBA owner and also became the first to turn a profit.
Rizzotti, who took over in her current role four years ago, said that Mohegan’s decision was the move of “responsible business owners” and that “it’s more about being consistent about how they’re evaluating all of their businesses, the Connecticut Sun being one of them.”
The news was first reported Monday by Sportico, which said the team had hired investment bank Allen & Co to conduct the probe.
Rizzotti said that no decision has been made and that no timeline has been set. The team could be sold to an outside group or the franchise could bring on a minority owner.
“They want to make sure they’re doing what’s best for the organization as well as the WNBA,” she said.
Rizzotti went on to say that the ownership group has done a great job over the years.
“They do everything first class. They pride themselves on guest experience and attention to detail and true investment in the right ways. If the tribe decides they want to own this team, they’re as competitive, I think, as any ownership group in the league.”
The WNBA has experienced rapid growth the last few seasons and ownerships groups have been investing more into their teams, including player experiences. That has come in the way of practice facilities. The Sun are one of the few teams in the league that haven’t announced any plans for a new training facility.
Connecticut practices either at the arena in the casino or a local community center.
Despite the lack of facilities, the Sun have been one of the most successful teams in the league, making the postseason in 16 seasons, including a run of six straight semifinal appearances. But the team was hit hard this offseason with the entire starting five from last season leaving either via free agency or trade.
“We’re going to pour into this franchise as long as it’s here,” Rizzotti said. “And if it ends up not being the case, then we’ll worry about that when the time comes.”
Rizzotti met with the players and coaches Tuesday morning and asked them to stay focused on this season, which begins Sunday against Washington.
“They have their job, and our job is to put the best product on the floor,” said Tina Charles, who returned to the franchise this offseason after leaving in 2014. “We trust that they’re gonna do their jobs and make the right decision that will benefit the organization and the players and the coaches and the staff moving forward.”
The WNBA added a 13th franchise this year with the Golden State Valkyries beginning play. Toronto and Portland will enter the league next season as expansion teams. A 16th team will also be awarded to a city at some point soon.
The league hasn’t had a team relocate since 2017, when the San Antonio franchise moved to Las Vegas and became the Aces. The Sun played a regular-season game last year in Boston and will again play one there in July against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.
A group that includes former NBA player Michael Carter Williams expressed interest in February about bringing a franchise to Boston.
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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
