This is confusing because why would Pagliuca apply for an expansion team when he has a deal to purchase an existing team? And the Mohegan Tribe, owners of the Sun, want to sell to Pagliuca and prefer the team move to Boston, where the facilities and support would be exponentially better.

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Governor of Massachusetts Maura Healey has fully supported and endorsed Boston getting a WNBA for years and told the Globe the quickest way to make that happen would be relocation. Boston does not want to wait until another round of expansion in 2033, if that were to happen.

The league is expanding to 18 teams by 2030 and there is no guarantee that adding so many teams will be successful or financially viable to add perhaps two more by 2033. There’s a reason Boston did not apply for an expansion team. Pagliuca was working on a deal to buy the Sun and the other publicized Boston group, led by actor/director Donnie Wahlberg, lost one of its primary investors and was seeking more support for a potential bid.

Commissioner Cathy Engelbert has yet to comment on the situation, besides the league statement, but there obviously has been conversations between the league and other prospective buyers, such as Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, who could move the club to Houston and bring back the Comets, the league’s first dynasty.

There are many questions from that WNBA statement, including what does the league have against Boston? And if the Sun were to be purchased by, let’s say former Bucks owner Marc Lasry and moved to Hartford, would the league want another team so close in Boston?

Front Office Sports reported that Engelbert basically sat on the Pagliuca offer without presenting it to the Board of Governors, allowing the 30-day exclusivity window to expire and Lasry’s potential offer to serve as competition. The Tribe wants to sell, listened to all the glowing compliments from the two games played over the past two years in Boston, and the $325 million offer was too good to pass up.

It’s uncertain if the WNBA would be content with the Sun moving to Hartford and playing in PeoplesBank Arena, the former XL Center, which is undergoing a $138 million overhaul. It’s also uncertain what role new prospective Celtics owner Bill Chisholm has. He apparently spoke to Engelbert and suggested his group would be interested in financing an expansion team “at the appropriate time.”

Pagliuca, whose bid to buy the Celtics as the primary owner fell short, sought to shift some of those funds to bring professional women’s basketball to Boston for the first time. And that’s admirable.

And the deal with the Tribe was agreed upon but the WNBA appears to be punishing Boston for not applying for an expansion team. A team in Boston would appear to do wonders for the league and the rivalries. Boston-New York, Boston-Philadelphia, Boston-Los Angeles matchups appear more intriguing than Hartford replacing Boston.

And the WNBA decided to add two expansion teams in cities — Cleveland and Detroit — in which teams had either already folded or relocated, giving those locations second chances two decades later. Yet, Boston is going to have to wait at least eight years for their first chance if Engelbert and the league has its way.

There needs to be more detailed and sensible response from the WNBA and Engelbert. The great excitement generated from the potential of Boston getting a WNBA team was dashed quickly by the WNBA, as if there was something personal involved. And we’re still not sure if that’s the case because of the subsequent silence.

The Sun’s game at TD Garden in July was the second time the WNBA has sold out the Boston venue.Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff

A mind for the game

Business career can wait for Harvard’s Baker

Robert Baker never thought he’d been in this position. After averaging 4.5 points in 99 career games at Harvard, the forward began interviewing with investment banking companies following his graduation in 2020.

Then an opportunity to continue his basketball career sprung up, a contract offer from a Slovenian team, and Baker’s journey began.

Five years later, he was playing for the Pacers in the Las Vegas Summer League, having spent time in Slovenia, Puerto Rico, Japan, Germany, and the NBA G League. Baker is having a ball and was nothing but smiles playing among his brethren this summer.

“It’s cool to see everybody in the basketball community here,” Baker told the Globe. “It’s good to show what you’ve worked on throughout the year. Playing at Harvard and the way I played, the way my career went, it wasn’t that great. Being able to be out here, to be in Japan, to be in Slovakia, I hoped for it. I didn’t expect it. It’s been cool to see how far I’ve taken the game and hopefully I’ll take it a little further.”

Baker said he has worked feverishly on his game, becoming more of a 3-point shooter, getting a definitive role in offenses. He has persevered because he has changed his game, and his road continues, having signed with a team in New Zealand for next season.

He said he would love to stay in the States and earn money in the G-League but the more lucrative offers for fringe NBA players are generally overseas, so his bags are packed.

“It’s always tough missing birthdays, missing graduations,” he said. “My parents more so are like maximize your earning potential. I was supposed to be making such and such money but in the G League that wasn’t happening. I just had to tell them to bear with me, wait this out, these grind-it-out years and it’s going to come.”

There are no regrets. What’s more, Baker said he’s thrilled with his decision to pass on the business world to pursue his dream. He started less than half of his games at Harvard, never averaged more than 7 points, and yet here he is.

“The way I was playing I really didn’t think basketball would have been an option,” Bakers said. “I was doing interviews with Deloitte and other investment banking firms. I was ready to do that but COVID happened and I was given an opportunity to go to Slovakia, not a lot of money but I still loved the game and that’s what kind of carried me to play as well as I did.”

Baker has pride in his Harvard roots. Ivy League basketball has flourished in the past two decades with other bigger schools using Name, Image and Likeness money to attract talent and there are several Ivy players scattered around the NBA, G League and internationally, chasing their dreams like Baker.

“They are trying to poach guys from our great programs,” he said. “Hopefully we can fix that. There’s talent in the Ivy League. Definitely not what I expected but it’s wonderful. It beats an office for right now. I’m in my 20s, this is cool, playing basketball, making good money. I’ll take it.”

Baker (center) battles for a rebound against Puerto Rico during the FIBA AmeriCup Qualifiers.Ricardo Arduengo/Getty

ETC.

Doncic buys into Lakers culture

Last Sunday was the first day Luka Doncic was eligible to sign a contract extension with the Lakers and he quickly agreed to a three-year, $165 million package. That contract will take him to Year 10, where he can sign a mega extension only reserved for players with a decade of tenure.

After the shocking trade, Doncic has bought into the franchise culture and spent the offseason getting into premium shape, something he was heavily criticized for while in Dallas. The noticeably slimmer Doncic has worked on his diet and conditioning and appears ready for an MVP-caliber season.

Doncic is now the franchise cornerstone in Los Angeles as LeBron James begins what could be his final season with the Lakers. James was not at the press conference announcing Doncic’s contract but he did congratulate his teammate via FaceTime.

“This is an amazing organization and we have trust in each other so I decided pretty quick,” Doncic said. “It’s an honor to play with this organization. Many, many great players played here. Obviously, I want to add one more [championship] up there, so that’s what we’re working for.”

The Lakers spent the offseason making upgrades. Losing Dorian Finney-Smith was a blow, but they also signed Deandre Ayton to be their starting center, and added swingman Jake LaRavia and former Celtic Marcus Smart to bolster their roster.

The Lakers might not be ready to compete with Oklahoma City or Houston but the NBA hasn’t seen a slimmer Doncic play on the biggest stage.

“I think we have a great team; we have what we need to compete for a championship,” Doncic said. “I’ll try to win every game, no matter what. And we’ve got some new great guys on the team and we’re going to go for it. Being a Laker is an honor. And when you look at all the great names and see what they achieved, I want to be up there too one day.”

Of course, Doncic had to explain why he suddenly worked himself into the best shape of his career. The Mavericks made it clear that conditioning issues were one of the primary reasons they shipped him out and he appeared steadfast to play in his standard pudgy condition.

“It was like a fresh start for me,” he said. “Obviously, I was on my way to doing it but this was a fresh start and I had a little more time to get my mind off basketball and to go do other things. I’ll be able to do a little bit of everything, a little bit faster, so I think that’s going to be the best for me.”

General manager Rob Pelinka said a key player for the Lakers’ chances to push the Thunder and Rockets is Ayton, the mercurial center who has been dumped by the Suns and Trail Blazers. The hope is Ayton being around James and Doncic will unlock the player who was taken No. 1 overall in 2018, the same draft that produced Doncic, Trae Young, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

“In conversations with Luka, it was really important for us to get a rim, lob-catching center and we feel like getting Deandre Ayton is huge,” Pelinka said. “It’s going to unlock so much in Luka’s game and you can tell in the pick-and-roll reads, he’s the best in the world. I think Deandre is going to help.

“The thesis for our roster was to get younger. And being able to add Marcus Smart, defensive player of the year a couple of years ago, a chip on his shoulder to be back at that level and put the league on notice. Having players like that surrounding both Luka and LeBron that can defend multiple positions is really important. We like the upgrades we were able to make to the roster.”

Despite that, there is controversy hovering with the future of James, who for the first time in a decade did not extend his contract, instead opting into the final year, leaving the 2026-27 season in question. He released a statement essentially warning the Lakers to continue to boost the roster to a championship level. That was in June.

“All the interactions we’ve had with LeBron and his camp have been positive and supportive,” Pelinka said. “Very professional and [agent] Rich Paul has been great, dialogue has been open and professional. In terms of LeBron’s career, the No. 1 thing we have to do there is respect he and his family’s decisions in terms of how long he’s going to play. If he had a chance to retire a Laker, that would be great.”

Pelinka addressed the Lakers’ ability to make constant moves, avoid overspending and keep roster flexibility by avoiding the second apron. He made an indirect reference to the difficult situation the Celtics are enduring this summer, having to dump Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday to escape the dreaded second salary cap apron. The Lakers have the league’s sixth-highest payroll but remain in the first apron.

“Make no mistakes, we’re in win championship mode always and I don’t want to bore people with apron talk,” Pelinka said. “I think we have seen some teams get stuck in the aprons and once you get in them, it’s hard to get out of them. We want to make smart moves. To be in a position of flexibility instead of being stuck is really promising.”

Doncic recently agreed to a three-year, $165 million contract extension with the Lakers.Greg Beacham/Associated Press

After watching De’Aaron Fox sign a four-year, $229 million contract extension with the Spurs, four-time All-Star Trae Young is wondering when the Hawks will offer the point guard a maximum deal (he has two more years left on his contract). With a new front office, the Hawks don’t appear to be in a hurry. Young reacted on social media to the situation with star linebacker Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys, imploring teams to sign homegrown talent to avoid tenuous contract issues … Free agent Al Horford remains unsigned, although it appears to be a foregone conclusion he’ll sign with the Warriors. The Warriors have tried to bring back Jonathan Kuminga on an eight-figure deal but have added a team option to the second season, which has been the sticking point. Horford, 39, would be a welcome option to a thin frontcourt in Golden State but the Warriors want to figure out the future of Kuminga before signing Horford. A sign-and-trade deal is possible … The future of Giannis Antetokounmpo remains in limbo as the superstar is determining whether to stay in Milwaukee long term or perhaps request a trade to capitalize on his prime years in pursuit of a championship. The Bucks waived Damian Lillard for the express purpose of signing Myles Turner and also brought back Bobby Portis, Gary Trent Jr., and Taurean Prince. That doesn’t sound like a championship team but the Bucks’ front office has promised to continue to build a contender around their franchise player. There are several teams observing the developments in Milwaukee, including the Knicks, who could put together a package of veteran players and draft picks for Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo plans to play for Greece in the European Championship this month, then report to training camp with the Bucks.

Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.