Will WNBA let Steve Pagliuca steward Connecticut Sun? Or will
Will WNBA let Steve Pagliuca steward Connecticut Sun? Or will ownership stress get in way?Steve Pagliuca and Bill Chisholm have dueled over an expert basketball franchise’s future before. Now, with the Connecticut Sun up for sale, both owners are connected again.In March, the NBA’s Boston Celtics revealed that Chisholm, the handling partner of Symphony Innovation Group, would be the next owner of the historic franchise, purchasing the team at a $6.1 billion valuation– a then-record in the NBA.Advertisement Pagliuca
had been a Celtics minority owner given that partnering with the Grousbeck household in 2002 and had long been thought about a contender to get the franchise. When news was announced that he wouldn’t be the next majority owner, and Chisholm would be, Pagliuca penned a prolonged declaration reviewing his failed quote.”We have felt it was the best offer for the Celtics. It is a bid of true fans, deeply linked to Boston’s community, and we’ve been distressed to learn that we have actually not been selected at the same time,” he wrote.On Sunday night, Pagliuca released another statement– his first on X since March when he weighed in on his Celtics bid.Chisholm was not pointed out in Pagliuca’s declaration, however he appears to be looming over the WNBA group
‘s possible sale. This time, Pagliuca wants to purchase the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun. However will the WNBA let him? Or will conflicts– potentially with Chisholm yet once again– hold up the transaction?Advertisement Pagliuca is supposedly looking for to buy the Sun at a ladies’s expert sports team record$325 million sale price and would then invest$100 million in
a practice facility
. The franchise, according to the Boston Globe, might move to Boston as quickly as 2027, if a deal were to be completed. (Pagliuca stated in his declaration he wishes to keep the Sun in New England, and he specifically pointed out support from the governors of both Massachusetts and Rhode Island.)A record offer to an ownership group would seemingly be a coup for the WNBA– the last WNBA group to have a standalone majority sale was the Atlanta Dream in 2021 for less than$10 million– but the Sun transferring under Pagliuca’s watch appears to be facing some resistance.The WNBA stated in a statement on Saturday that moving choices are made by the WNBA Board of Governors. It included that no group from Boston was among the lots cities that bid for a growth group by the Jan. 31 deadline. A source with knowledge of the growth quotes sent likewise said Hartford, Conn., was not among the cities that bid for a team, though former Bucks owner Marc Lasry has actually subsequently bid to transfer the Sun to Connecticut’s state capital.Perhaps, most surprisingly, the WNBA stated that the Celtics’potential ownership group– led by Chisholm– has actually also”reached out to the league office and asked that Boston receive strong factor to consider for a WNBA franchise at the proper time.”(Chisholm’s deal is
still pending NBA Board of Governors approval.)Advertisement So Chisholm, the incoming steward of the Celtics, appears to now have an interest in a WNBA franchise in Boston at a later date. Pagliuca, an outgoing Celtics partner, is wanting to make relocations in the near term, yet he can do so just by getting approval from others in the league.A battle seems brewing between 2 power players. One that is specifically significant, as the WNBA just recently revealed 3 new expansion teams (in Detroit, Cleveland and Philadelphia ), with NBA ties. It all pleads the concern, why is the sale process striking a delay?Pagliuca has already explained his group’s offer undergoes getting required league approvals– probably not just approval of the preliminary sale, however also, via a different vote, to likewise to transfer the franchise. Without both, PagsGroup would not proceed.Boston appears like a rational place for the Sun to relocate. The franchise has already offered out games when it’s played at TD Garden in each of the previous two seasons, and multiple Sun players have expressed their assistance for playing in the city. Boston is one of the country’s top 10 biggest media markets, and it has proven basketball success. By 2027, the franchise could likewise be the home of college star JuJu Watkins
, as the Sun– with another substandard season next year– would be well-positioned to have the best draft lottery odds in what might become called The Watkins ‘Lottery.Advertisement” Boston is the perfect location for a WNBA team,”Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy, a former Harvard basketball point guard and worldwide professional player, said in a statement to The Athletic.”We are the hub of New England and the birth place of basketball. We have an incredible sports culture and strong enthusiasm for females’s sports. … This would be a great opportunity for our state, for the league and for the players.” That’s one political leader’s take, however internal league politics could prevent it from ever happening.
A brand-new NBA owner who just paid billions might not want another owner to steward an expert basketball franchise (in 2 leagues under the NBA umbrella)in the very same city.Then, there is also a potential for the WNBA to upset other professional basketball owners– a few of whom likewise have NBA ties.Last month, Gretchen Sheirr, the Houston Rockets president of company operations, told The Athletic that Houston will continue to pursue a group, after not being awarded
any of the three incoming growth groups in 2028, 2029 and 2030. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert particularly pointed out Houston as being “up next for sure.”She added:”There might be opportunities there.”The Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday that the city stays a contender to acquire
the Sun, while saying that the Houston expansion quote was at least$50 million short of the eventual$250 million expansion charges that the three just recently revealed groups are going into in with.Advertisement If the Sun were sold, it is n’t clear whether another existing WNBA franchise would be ripe for the Firecrackers’ownership group to purchase and transfer. Another round of growth appears years away, making it difficult for Houston, Boston or any other city to get into the WNBA.All of this seems partly why Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti stated Sunday that a sale by the Mohegan Tribe is”not rather at the finish line yet.” The Sun might rise in Boston quickly enough, however not before another clash. The next most exciting WNBA contest in the city will play out in boardrooms.This short article initially appeared in The Athletic.Boston Celtics, Connecticut Sun, NBA, WNBA, Sports Company 2025 The Athletic Media Business