Connecticut AG Questions WNBA Over the Sun Sale as Engelbert’s Latest Move Clouds League Position

Ever since the beginning, the debate’s been about the Connecticut Sun either staying in Connecticut or relocating to Boston. But nothing has been done yet. Reason? The W’s Board of Directors is interfering in between. But the Sun’s owners aren’t really backing down just yet. And when Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont told CT Insider, “When it comes to the Connecticut Sun, we’re late in the fourth quarter, we still have some catching up to do, but it’s not over until it’s over. We’re fighting like heck”—he meant it. Now the Sun’s AG’s got some serious steps to take!

But before we dive into the AG’s moves, let’s go through the background of this deal. The $325 million deal by Steve Pagliuca has been quite impressive, and no doubt the Mohegan Tribe wants to take it. But it was Cathy Engelbert who put a swift end to it, as she did not present his offer to the Board of Governors. That led to the exclusivity period between Pagliuca and the Mohegan Tribe to expire, and now a lot of other groups are eager to get a piece of the Sun. But AG is not willing to let that happen!

So, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong took a step forward and sent a letter to the W requesting all the documents relating to the potential resale of the Sun. He wrote in the letter that he’s “troubled” by the W’s reports, as the league “may be wrongfully blocking a sale of the Connecticut Sun … in a manner that may be anticompetitive and may violate state and federal law.” So, he’s not exaggerating here.

It’s because while the Mohegan Tribe owns the Sun, selling the franchise isn’t in their hands alone. They need the W’s board of governors’ approval to make this move, and that’s where the clash begins. As U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal mentioned in his letter, the W is trying to intervene so that the Mohegan Tribe sells the Sun for $250 million. Then, the league would resell the team to a buyer of its choosing, most probably the owners of the Houston Rockets. So, to save the Sun from such attempts, the AG’s got to understand everything better.

And he isn’t the only one. As Blumenthal also sent a letter to the commissioner urging her to let owners explore more offers to keep the Sun rooted in Connecticut. “Any further attempts by the WNBA to use its considerable governance and market power over the Connecticut Sun to limit or dictate negotiations with the state of Connecticut could be an unreasonable restraint of trade and interference with the market that would violate federal antitrust laws… will demand investigations and enforcement actions,” he wrote. And with his interference, the battle over the Sun’s future just got louder.

After Blumenthal, even Chris Murphy blasted W, saying, “It’s the tribe’s decision… the @WNBA should approve the Hartford deal. Keep the Sun in the Basketball Capital of the World.” Well, yes, fresh bids are coming in, too. At first, Steve Pagliuca came with a $325 million offer to move the team to Boston, then it was Marc Lasry, a Connecticut-based group offering the same price while relocating to Hartford.

But the most lucrative seemed to be the state’s offer as lawmakers joined the fray. Then, Gov. Ned Lamont proposed to tap pension funds alongside private investors to buy minority shares, a deal that includes a 10-year guarantee to keep the franchise in Connecticut.

But even with these offers on the table, W’s not interested. According to OutKick, the league rejected them all and is pushing instead to relocate to Houston with an outright $250 million buyout. Do you get the message? The league wants the Sun in a market of its choosing, not Connecticut’s. So these federal lawmakers are just attempting to keep the Sun in-state.

As Tong explained, the league “is demanding that the team be sold to the league itself at a price tens of millions of dollars below market value.” Well, they are! When the Atlanta Dream sale took place in 2021, they landed with an ownership deal between $7 to $10 million. But the Sun? They’ve got a lucrative option of $325 million with Pagliuca’s offer of $100 million for a new practice facility.

But….

Was it Cathy Engelbert who blocked the offer?

Hartford leaders have been pushing back against the WNBA’s handling of the potential sale of the Connecticut Sun. At a news conference outside the People’s Bank Arena, Mayor Arunan Arulampalam called the league’s actions “anti-competitive” and urged fans to contact the WNBA to “keep your hands off our team.” He emphasized, “It’s time for us in Connecticut to remind them what the value of women’s basketball is to the state and to this league. 

The controversy gained more attention after State Comptroller Sean Scanlon posted a video on social media, declaring, “The WNBA is trying to take our team away… against the will of the current owners and the fans.” Scanlon stressed that the Mohegan Tribe had expressed a desire to keep the franchise in Connecticut and that a $325 million offer to match Pagliuca’s offer was reportedly blocked by “powerful outside interests.” He added, “Approve this deal, keep this team in Connecticut, and let’s make sure that the Connecticut Sun stays in Connecticut.”

However, head to the DailyWSports and the hosts have an interesting bit of information for you.

When DailyWSports posted the video of Sean Scanlon, the post was reshared by Cathy on Instagram. Now, that was weird for the hosts, as they said, “The WNBA commish put her stance of approval on a post we made about how the NBA is f——with the Connecticut Sun“. They further added, “Like, can we just really quickly absorb that emotionally and say, To, as a commissioner of a league, say, oh, no, the league that I am in charge of is really out of line at the very best. And probably negligent, malevolent at the very most. malicious, torturous, manipulative“.

And they concluded with a pointed question – “But, Cathy, what are you doing?“. So, was that reshare a sign that Cathy had no part to play, or did she simply press the wrong buttons?