The first team eliminated from this year’s WNBA playoffs was the Connecticut Sun, but since that point the girls have really turned things around and that is in part to a few things.
Tina Charles has been one of the best the team has had to offer all year. She leads the team in points, but no team in professional sports can win games without support all over the place. Charles has finally received consistent help from her wings.
A great center is hard to mess with, but for one to fire on all cylinders, there needs to be great wings. Without players who are a threat at the wing, then defenses can swarm in the paint, making Charles’ job much, much more difficult. Marina Mabrey and rookie Leila Lacan have been just what Charles (and the team) have needed in order to thrive and, most importantly, win games.
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Mabrey and Charles have been a pretty tough force all year, but there was still a piece to the puzzle missing. Lacan isn’t going to solve all of the problems that the Sun is facing, but it sure makes them a lot tougher to beat. They have won five of their last seven and almost took down last year’s champions- the New York Liberty. The team has really started to find a groove.
Lacan has now dropped back-to-back 22 point contests and led the Sun to their highest scoring game of the season with their win over the Dallas Wings. They finally crossed the double-digit win barrier after posting their first 100-point game this season. Charles was able to put up 18 of her own (more than what she is averaging) with an additional five boards and three assists in their six point victory.
Mabrey is the second-leading scorer on the team behind Charles and is the team’s best facilitator as she leads the squad win assists. She was able to contribute to the dominating trio with 18 points of her own in the Wings’ game. The three ladies accounted for 58 of the team’s 101 points in individual scoring. When you factor in the 11 assists between Charles, Mabrey, and Lacan then 70 of the 101 came at the hand of this dominating group.
Tina Charles becomes the first WNBA player EVER to record 200 career double-doubles 👏 pic.twitter.com/2WrQKEqTNi
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 23, 2025
Connecticut hasn’t had the easiest year as they lost all five-starters from last season. However, it is looking like they could be the real deal next year and the young crew could be a real problem for teams all over the league in the upcoming season.