The plan would see the Sun rebranded to the Comets in time for the 2027 or 2028 WNBA season
The ownership group of the Houston Rockets is reportedly in talks to purchase the WNBA's Connecticut Sun and relocate the franchise, according to ESPN's Alexa Philippou and Ramona Shelburne.
Discussions have been on-going and Rockets ownership has increased its offer in order to get a deal done.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in July that the Houston market was "one we have our eye on" and that “Houston would be up next for sure. There might be opportunities there.”
Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta tried to bring an WNBA expansion team to Houston, but the league decided on Philadelphia, Detroit and Cleveland. This time around, the plan would be to move the Sun to Houston and rebrand them as the Comets for the 2027 or 2028 season, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In August, it was reported that a group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca had reached a deal to purchase the Sun from the Mohegan Tribe for $325 million, the highest price ever paid for a professional women's team. The deal needed approval from the WNBA's Board of Governors and would see Pagliuca spend $100 million on a new practice facility and move the franchise to Boston.
The league did not agree with Pagliuca's plan, saying "relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams and that cities that had already taken part in the expansion process would have priority over Boston.
The WNBA then reportedly offered the Sun $250 million to purchase the team, allowing the league to facilitate a sale to a preferred market.
The Houston Comets were one of the league's original teams and won the first four league titles from 1997-2000 led by Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson. Eleven years later, after no buyer stepped in with the team for sale, the WNBA disbanded the team and players were entered into a dispersal draft.
Originally the Orlando Miracle from 1999-2002, the franchise relocated to Connecticut in 2003. The Sun have made the playoffs in 15 of their 21 seasons and have reached the WNBA Final four times.
Category: General Sports
