Former Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca to buy Connecticut Sun, move team to MA

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3 days ago

It's a good day for New England basketball fans, and a bad day for New England basketball fans. Let us explain, starting with the good news. Former Boston Celtics owner Steve Pagliuca has bought the Connecticut Sun, bringing a long-desired WNBA team to the City of Boston, per recent reporting from the Boston Globe's Gary Washburn. The bad news is it will come at the expense of fans in the state to the south that currently is home to the Sun, rather than via expansion. "Pagliuca will pay a record $325 million for the team, according to those sources, then contribute $100 million for a new practice facility in Boston for the Sun to relocate from Uncasville, Conn," writes Washburn.
Given the Nutmegger contingent of Northeast b-ball fans live in a state that still hasn't gotten over the loss of the NHL's Hartford Whalers several decades ago, we doubt this will go over well with Constitution State denizens. But in fairness, an ownership group willing to provide an arena and dedicated practice facility to the team, which often had to use Mohegan Sun tribal facilities instead, could have stepped up to keep the team in the state.
Massachusetts Governor and avid basketball fan Maura Healey weighed in on the move, saying the move "would be great for the WNBA," noting that "for a second year in a row, (there was) a sellout crowd at TD Garden."
"I also think it would be great for the Connecticut Sun to move to Boston and represent all of New England," she added.
In fairness, they aren't moving the team to North Carolina, nor does Pagliuca seem poised to rename the club the "Hurricanes," so it's possible Healey is correct that Nutmeggers can come to support the team without a bad taste in their mouth as well.
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Ex-Celtics owner Steve Pagliuca to buy Connecticut Sun, move team to MA