"In 2002, the WNBA was struggling, desperate for almost anyone or any place willing to have it. Two franchises folded that offseason -- Miami and Portland. Nobody wanted them. Another, Utah, moved to San Antonio (and later Las Vegas). The failing Orlando Miracle were facing disbandment, as well, until an unlikely ownership group, the Mohegan Tribal Nation in Connecticut, stepped up with a unique plan."
"Over the next two-plus decades the plan worked, delivering stability to an unstable league (four additional franchises folded by 2009). Despite being in out-of-the-way Uncasville, Connecticut, the team consistently has drawn crowds, ranking fifth in average attendance as recently as 2022. Good partners. Great fans. And now, with big money flooding the sport, the WNBA is paying them back by ... doing everything it can to move the Sun as far away as possible."
"The Mohegan tribe is looking to cash in on its original purchase. That's both the tribe's right and some smart business. The team it initially bought for $10 million has attracted two, full-ask offers of $325 million, a record amount for the WNBA. One bid, from a group led by former Milwaukee Bucks minority owner Marc Lasry, would keep the franchise in Connecticut, with games shifting to Hartford and its 16,000-seat downtown arena undergoing a $145 million modernization."
In 2002 the Mohegan Tribal Nation purchased the struggling Orlando Miracle and relocated the franchise to Mohegan Sun, stabilizing the WNBA during a period when multiple teams folded. The Connecticut Sun drew steady crowds and ranked fifth in average attendance as recently as 2022. The Mohegan tribe is offering the team for sale after building value, seeking market returns on an initial $10 million purchase. Two full-ask offers of $325 million have emerged. One proposal would keep the team in Connecticut and fund a $145 million Hartford arena modernization; the other would relocate the franchise to Boston.
Read at ESPN.com
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