The Connecticut Sun is on the move, as the Mohegan Tribe reportedly sold the WNBA team to the NBA's Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta and his family on Friday, ending a sale saga that loomed over much of the team's 2025 season.
According to sources, the $300 million deal will set a new WNBA record, though the sum doesn't include a relocation fee.
The sale reflects the league's growing influence, after WNBA leadership blocked a $325 million bid to bring the team to Boston last August, among other front office interventions.
After acquiring the then-Orlando Miracle in 2002 and moving the team to Connecticut, the Mohegan Tribe has helmed the Sun since 2003.
"What I don't want people to forget is the Mohegan Tribe stepped up when nobody wanted a WNBA team and there were NBA owners folding franchises left and right," Sun president Jen Rizzotti told the Associated Press.
The team will see out the 2026 WNBA season in Uncasville, before tipping off under the revived Houston Comets name in 2027.
One of the eight original teams, the Comets won the first four WNBA championships behind basketball legends like four-time Finals MVP Cynthia Cooper and three-time league MVP Sheryl Swoopes, before ultimately folding after the 2008 season.
Both the sale and the relocation still face approval from the WNBA Board of Governors, with the Sun set to tip off its 2026 campaign on Friday, May 8th.
"My focus [now] turns to making this the best season we can have," added Rizzotti. "It's an opportunity to say thank you to [our fans]."
