Connecticut may be in line to lose another professional sports franchise.
Decades after the Hartford Whalers moved to North Carolina, the Connecticut Sun — the state’s Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) franchise — may be heading to Boston.
The Boston Globe first reported on Saturday that a group led by Steve Pagliuca, minority owner of the NBA’s Boston Celtics, had reached a deal to buy the team and relocate it to TD Garden, where the Celtics play. The report cited “multiple sources involved in the transaction.”
The Globe said Pagliuca’s group bid a record $325 million for the Sun, while also stating it would contribute another $100 million for a new practice facility in Boston.
The Mohegan Sun, a subsidiary of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, has owned the team since 2003, when it paid $10 million to relocate the Orlando Miracle from Florida. A published report in May said the tribe had hired New York investment bank Allen & Company to explore selling the franchise.
The Connecticut Sun have sold out TD Garden for regular season games in each of the past two years, demonstrating a potential fan base in the region. TD Garden seats 19,600 for basketball compared to 10,000 at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
Following the Globe report, the Hartford Courant reported that an investment group led by Marc Lasry, a former owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, is trying to compete with the Boston offer in the hope of keeping the franchise in Connecticut by relocating it to PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford. The Courant said the bid from Lasry’s group also tops $300 million and includes building a practice facility for the team.
WNBA franchise values have soared over the past decade and even in the past few years. The WNBA awarded expansion franchises for a $50 million fee in 2023 and 2024, but the latest round of expansion teams were awarded in June for $250 million per franchise.
In the latest round, teams were awarded to Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia. Those teams will join other expansion franchises awarded to Portland, Oregon and Toronto. The five new franchises will expand the league to 18 teams.
Any proposed sale must be approved by the WNBA and its board of governors. The Globe reported, however, that a source said the league would rather save Boston as a potential expansion city in 2033.
The potential sale of the team comes as the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has been experiencing financial challenges. The casino operator announced in April it had an agreement to refinance its debt after warning of a possible default in January.
The Connecticut Sun did not respond to a request for comment.
