A day after it was announced that a Steve Pagliuca led group made a massive $325 million offer to buy the Connecticut Sun from the Mohegan Sun tribe and move the WNBA team to Boston, the Celtics minority owner confirmed the reports and released an important update on social media.
Pagliuca shared a statement on X acknowledging that the PagsGroup felt compelled to clarify the status of the possible acquisition of the Connecticut Sun out of respect for the WNBA and NBA, despite their policy to decline to comment on transactions until they are completed.
The statement confirmed that an investor group led by PagsGroup, with support from Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey and Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee, has offered to acquire the Connecticut Sun with the objective of keeping New England’s WNBA team in New England.
“No transaction has been agreed yet,” the PagsGroup statement cautioned.
NBC Sports Boston’s Trenni Casey told NBC10 Boston on Saturday that there was a ton of support for the deal, but that for some inexplicable reason, the WNBA doesn’t seem to want it like everyone else, that they seem to feel like maybe Boston should have to wait in line like everyone else.
2A group led by Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca has reached a deal to buy the Connecticut Sun for a record $325 million and move the team to Boston, according to reports.
The league put out a statement Saturday, saying that moving a team was at the discretion of the WNBA and not individual franchises.
“Relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams,” the league said in a statement.
The Sun have played one regular season game at TD Garden each of the last two years, including one against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in July.
The league has announced five expansion teams that will begin play over the next five seasons with Portland (2026), Toronto (2026), Cleveland (2028), Detroit (2029) and Philadelphia (2030) joining the WNBA. Each paid a then-record $250 million expansion fee.
Nine other cities bid for expansion teams, including Houston, which the league singled out as getting a team in the future when it announced Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia in June. Boston did not.
“No groups from Boston applied for a team at that time and those other cities remain under consideration based on the extensive work they did as part of the expansion process and currently have priority over Boston. Celtics’ prospective ownership team has also reached out to the league office and asked that Boston receive strong consideration for a WNBA franchise at the appropriate time.”
The Sun are owned by the Mohegan Tribe, which runs the casino where the team has played since 2003. The Tribe bought the franchise for $10 million and relocated it from Orlando that year. The Connecticut franchise was the first in the league to be run by a non-NBA owner and also became the first to turn a profit.
The team announced in May that it was searching for a potential buyer for the franchise and had hired investment bank Allen & Company to conduct the probe.
In their statement Sunday, the investment firm said they admire the Mohegan Tribe for their great stewardship of the Sun, noting the tribe’s substantial time and resources that have been invested over the past two decades to build a strong New England presence for the WNBA.
“Our objective, should we acquire the team, is to honor that legacy, further invest in the team, grow its devoted fan base in the region, and build a championship team that players and fans continue to be proud of,” PagsGroup wrote. “Central to our proposal is enabling the Sun to play in larger capacity arenas in New England. We believe our record-setting offer and deep commitment to growing the WNBA in the region that is home to the most passionate basketball fans in the nation will significantly benefit the league, the team, and all its fans.”
The group’s record-setting offer is subject to obtaining the required league approvals, however, as is the case for all such transactions, they said.
“This approval has not been obtained thus far, and we cannot proceed without it,” PagsGroup clarified, adding that they will respect, cooperate with, and abide by all league rules and decisions on these matters.
“As passionate basketball fans and strong believers in women’s professional sports, we remain excited by this opportunity and would be honored to serve the the next stewards of this franchise, if the transaction can be approved,” PagsGroup said, concluding their statement by saying they look forward to continuing to work with the WNBA and NBA as the process unfolds.
It’s unclear when the league may make a decision on Pagliuca’s offer.
The WNBA has experienced rapid growth the last few seasons and ownership groups have been investing more into their teams, including player experiences. That has come in the way of practice facilities. The Sun are one of the few teams in the league that haven’t announced any plans for a new training facility.
Connecticut practices either at the arena in the casino or a local community center. Pagliuca’s record deal would also contribute $100 million for a new practice facility in Boston for the team
Despite the lack of facilities, though, the Sun have been one of the most successful teams in the league, making the postseason in 16 seasons, including a run of six straight semifinal appearances. But the team was hit hard this offseason with the entire starting five from last season leaving either via free agency or trade.
Connecticut is currently in last place in the WNBA at 5-22. The team sent out a letter to season ticket holders last week saying they’d still be playing at the casino next year.
The last team to be sold in the WNBA was in 2021 when real estate investor Larry Gottesdiener led a group that bought the Atlanta Dream for under $10 million. A year earlier, Mark Davis paid roughly $2 million for the Las Vegas Aces.