WNBA’s Connecticut Sun Sold, Will Relocate

The WNBA has had no shortage of headline news in the past month and for the past year with its expansion efforts.

The latest major news nugget to drop involves the Connecticut Sun, who have existed in their current iteration since the 2003 season.

The team will be sold to the Fertitta family, who will be moving the franchise to Houston after the 2026 WNBA campaign. The Fertitta’s also own the NBA’s Houston Rockets.

Tillman Fertitta and family are purchasing the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun and moving them to Houston as the Houston Comets, per @alexaphilippou. pic.twitter.com/B1o96F1xBD

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 27, 2026

Reports indicate that the Fertitta’s plan to revive the Comets nickname when the franchise moves to Texas. The Houston Comets were the WNBA’s first dynasty, winning the league’s first four championships. Those teams featured basketball legends like Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson.

The Comets were in existence from 1997 through 2008, where Van Chancellor served as head coach in all but the final two seasons of that span.

Former Comets guard Roneeka Hodges reminisced about the exciting times that the Comets had in the 2000’s.

“We always had a good crowd,” she recalled. “The people of Houston loved the Comets. It was based on everything we had accomplished in previous years. The support was always there.”

There had been a groundswell of momentum for Houston to get a WNBA franchise back, whether it was through relocation of expansion.

“I think that if there’s a viable opportunity to bring it back, I think Cathy would take a look at it,” said former Comets player Tamecka Dixon in 2024.  “I think if an ownership group comes from that area and wants to bring a team back to Houston, I think Cathy (Engelbert) would take a look at it. She would have no choice. Because there’s already a foundation there.”

The Fertitta’s purchased the Sun for a record $300 million, which does not include a relocation fee according to reports.

They’ve purchased the team from the Mohegan Tribe, who has owned the Sun since 2003. The franchise landed in Connecticut after a previous relocation, when they were known as the Orlando Miracle from 1999 through 2002.

The franchise as a whole has never won a WNBA title, in Orlando or in Connecticut. The Sun did make the WNBA Finals four times while they were in Connecticut, with the most recent appearance coming in 2022 under head coach Curt Miller.

Monsters in the paint 😤 Another #WNBAFinals record in Game 3. #CTSun pic.twitter.com/yMOipXZ3O2

— Connecticut Sun (@ConnecticutSun) September 16, 2022

It’s going to be very interesting to see what the Sun do in their final season in Connecticut, with regards to roster management and the future. The WNBA has reached a tentative agreement with the WNBA Players Association, which guarantees that the 2026 campaign will be played. However, management has a decision to make about whether they want to build momentum in their last season in Connecticut with a win-now roster, or take a developmental year and invest capital back into the team once they move to Houston in 2027.

One of those decisions will involve the future of current head coach Rachid Meziane, who oversaw a disappointing 11-33 campaign in his first season in Connecticut in 2025.