Good news? Bad news? Or, a mix of both?
The Houston Comets are coming back! The Connecticut Sun are going away.
The long-rumored relocation of the Sun from Connecticut to Houston, with the concomitant revival of the Comets branding, is happening, as first reported by PaperCity Magazine
. Per ESPN, an official announcement is expected to be made on Monday.This outcome is not unexpected as, after the
final round of expansion teams were announced, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert expressed her affinity for Houston’s bid, led by the owners of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, Tillman Fertitta and his family, and signaled that the league would like to see a franchise return to the market.
The commissioner is getting her wish, with the Fertitta-led group purchasing the team from the Mohegan Sun Tribe for $300 million, and with no relocation fee.
The Comets are set to re-debut in 2027 as the Sun will set on the WNBA’s time in Connecticut during the 2026 season.
The manner in which the league has appeared to sternly (and Sternly) steer the Sun/Comets to Houston and the resistance to giving fair consideration to other viable alternatives—a group led by former Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca reached an initial deal to purchase the franchise and move it to Boston followed by a group headed by Milwaukee Bucks minority owner Marc Lasry subsequently offering $325 million to move the team to Hartford—has resulted in a situation that inspires mixed, contradicting emotions.
Yes, the Comets, the definitional franchise of the WNBA’s first era, are rightfully returning to the league. But to right that wrong, the WNBA is creating a new wrong, not only leaving the history of the Sun homeless but robbing Connecticut and the wider New England region of the franchise they supported, even in the lean years when the WNBA was widely considered a doomed-to-fail charity project.
In addition to the suspected backroom wheeling and dealing that permitted the stonewalling of richer proposals that would have kept the team in the northeast, the dubious affiliations of Fertitta adds a deeper sense of ickiness to this whole transaction.
As someone who was young, front-running basketball fan back when the WNBA launched in the late 1990s, I, of course, rooted for the Comets. A Cynthia Cooper jersey topped my Christmas list after the league’s first season. I agree that the Comets and their history belong in the league.
But, the desire to see the restoration of the Comets shouldn’t be achieved through a similar execution of basketball injustice.
The Sun haven’t been some downtrodden franchise wasting away in the wilds of suburban Connecticut; they’ve been one of the most successful and well-supported teams throughout their WNBA tenure. Keeping the Sun in New England in a larger city better suited to the changing financial realities of the WNBA, as well as the lifestyle preferences of players, would honor the legacy the Sun established and sustained.
Instead, the league is infatuated with the perceived credibility of NBA owners who, suddenly, love women’s basketball. Or more accurately, love the money they now believe is in women’s basketball.
For the sake of the league and players, let’s hope the Comets are a roaring success, restored with a degree of investment and intention that appropriately honors the original Comets.
Yet, it’s hard not to be skeptical. The going is great right now. But, the history of women’s sports is a movement of moments. The progress, overall, is upwards, but the trajectory features ups and downs. When the WNBA, inevitably, hits a rough patch, let’s hope Houston and Fertitta, as well as the other Johnny-come-lately NBA types that the WNBA has awarded expansion franchises to, are in it for the long haul.
If not, some franchise might be making the haul back to Uncasville…
What do you think?
Are you just excited about the return of the Comets, regardless of how it’s happening? Would you have rather seen the Sun stay in New England? Even if it feels a bit icky at the moment, do you think, in the long run, this is the right move for the WNBA? Beyond Houston, are you nervous about the overall influx of WNBA owners? And how would you like to see the WNBA preserve and celebrate the history of the Sun?
Share all your Sun-, Comets- and relocation-related thoughts below.
