The WNBA Is Blocking A $325M Sale, Relocation Of The Connecticut Sun

Billionaires are battling to buy the Connecticut Sun. But it’s the WNBA — not the market — standing in their way.

Over the past few weeks, multiple buyers have expressed interest in acquiring and relocating the franchise, which has been owned and operated by the Mohegan Tribe for the past 22 years. That includes Boston Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca and former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry, both of whom are offering $325 million to buy the team.

But despite the record-breaking price tag, the league is reportedly blocking the deal.

(Photo by Joseph Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

According to a report from ESPN, the WNBA recently made its own offer to purchase the team for $250 million — a full $75 million less than what Pagliuca and Lasry are willing to pay. The league’s pitch included a promise not to charge the buyer a relocation fee, which would allow it to move the team to a city of the league's own choosing.

The Mohegan Tribe said no. And that’s when things started getting ugly.

WNBA Wants To Move Team To One Of Its Preferred Expansion Cities

Pagliuca’s plan is to move the Sun to Boston and invest big. He's promised a $100-million, state-of-the-art practice facility in Boston’s Seaport District and made it clear that the team would play in TD Garden.

But the WNBA isn’t having it.

Shortly after news of this agreement between Pagliuca and the Mohegan Tribe broke, the league issued a pointed statement making clear that "relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams."

The league also took a thinly veiled jab at Boston, saying that while nine other cities were under consideration during the league’s most recent expansion process, "no groups from Boston applied for a team at that time" — and those other cities "currently have priority."

Both Steve Pagliuca and Marc Lasry have reportedly submitted $325-million offers to purchase the WNBA's Connecticut Sun.

(Getty Images)

Sources also said the WNBA was not on board with Lasry's plan to move the Sun to Hartford, Conn., which is just 45 miles away from the team's current home in Uncasville.

Rather, the league wants to hold out for a market of its own choosing: more specifically, Houston.

So to recap: the league doesn’t want the current owner to sell to someone willing to pay more money. It doesn’t want the team to relocate to a city willing to invest heavily. And it certainly doesn’t want to give up the opportunity to control where the next team lands — even if it means denying a record-setting offer.

The Mohegan Tribe Is Out

The Mohegan Tribe has owned the Sun since 2003, when they became the first Native American tribe to own a professional sports franchise. Since then, the Sun have consistently been one of the most successful teams in the WNBA — making the postseason in 16 of their 22 seasons, including six-straight semifinal appearances between 2019 and 2024.

But the current owners are ready to move on. And the tribe has made it clear they’re not happy about the WNBA blocking a sale that would bring in top dollar.

(Photo by Joseph Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

What makes this situation even crazier is that $325 million is by far the highest price tag ever proposed for a WNBA franchise. For comparison, the Golden State Valkyries — a 2025 expansion team — joined the league at a cost of $50 million. They’ve already become one of the league’s most successful franchises, selling out every home game this season.

Three more expansion teams were announced in June (Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia), who paid $250 million apiece for the privilege of hosting a WNBA franchise.

The idea that the WNBA would turn down more money, more investment and more star power just to retain control of expansion planning is baffling. And it doesn't seem very smart, either.

WNBA Is Getting In Its Own Way

The WNBA is already in a very public battle right now with its own players over revenue sharing and player salaries. The players have made it clear that they’re negotiating for the future — citing a $2.2 billion media rights deal that kicks in next year, five upcoming expansion teams and record-breaking viewership and attendance across the league.

MORE: WNBA Players Are Asking For More Money — Here's Why It’s Not As Crazy As You Think

But now, just one month after players wore "Pay Us What You Owe Us" T-shirts at the All-Star Game, the league is actively blocking a massive influx of cash from a top-tier ownership group for no reason other than control.

The WNBA is way out of line here.

They’re playing hardball behind closed doors, while the Mohegan Tribe is just trying to exit with a fair price. And instead of celebrating a win — a big sale, new ownership and a move to a major market full of rabid basketball fans — the league is holding out for a plan that benefits the WNBA front office more than the players, owners and fans.