Tag: Connecticut Sun

Boston Celtics tied with Red Sox in new fan popularity survey for New England

It has been a long time since the New England Patriots were not the most popular pro sports team in the northeastern United States.

It has been a long time since the New England Patriots were not the most popular pro sports team in the northeastern United States, but for the first time in many years, they have been supplanted by the Boston Celtics.

The Celtics, who also have the Connecticut Sun, Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins competing for eyeballs over stretches of the NBA calendar, were recently voted the region’s most popular sports franchise in a recent survey by Channel Media and Market Research — with a catch. They tied the Red Sox with 19% of the vote, according to a recent article by MassLive’s Nick O’Malley.

Aptly called the “New England Sports Survey,” Channel Media and Market Research has been conducting this research since 2012, right about the time of the ending of the last era of Celtics title contention.

During that period, the Patriots have been dominant among fans, but their recent struggles and rebuild have taken the shine off some of that particular apple, opening the door for the Celtics and Sox to step through.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=590969556]

Dream guard Rhyne Howard feels future WNBA players won’t want to play overseas

While players have differing perspectives on staying home or playing overseas, the big change to seasons past is the choice.

Atlanta Dream guard Rhyne Howard will be staying in the United States this offseason due to multiple job opportunities. Howard recently joined the University of Florida women’s basketball team as an assistant coach and director of player personnel while also being selected as one of the new cohort of players for WNBA marketing and promotional agreements.

Howard played last offseason in Italy for Famila Wuber Schio, but she did not feel like overseas play was what she wanted to do in the offseason. Many players don’t have a choice when it comes to taking a break during the offseason or playing overseas because of financial reasons. However, more opportunities are provided to these players to keep them stateside if they want to stay.

“Just being able to have that (freedom) to not go overseas and also find things where I can still make money, it’s helpful,” Howard told Andscape. “Especially for this generation. I feel like a lot of kids in my generation, and the generation coming up are not going to want to play overseas as well.”

Former Connecticut Sun forward Brionna Jones, and current free agent, has spent seven years in a row overseas. This year, she has also been selected for a WNBA marketing and promotional agreement.

“I’ve been playing for seven years (straight) now. This is my first offseason not playing,” Jones said.

Jones shared the benefits of staying home during the offseason, although she is a proponent of playing overseas.

“The top one is just being able to spend time with my family and friends,” Jones said. “Then being able to work on things specifically without having to think about (having a game). Just being able to have that time in between, rest my body and do all the recovery that I need to do when the WNBA season starts.”

While players have differing perspectives on staying home or playing overseas, the big change to seasons past is the choice. Many players can now choose to stay home or play abroad. In years past, players did not have the opportunity to stay in the United States. More opportunities will continue to arise stateside with the increased influx of sponsorship dollars into the league and increased viewership.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]

Tiffany Hayes retires from WNBA, plans to continue playing overseas

Tiffany Hayes recently announced that she would be retiring from the WNBA after 11 seasons.

Connecticut Sun guard Tiffany Hayes won back-to-back national championships at the University of Connecticut and was selected 14th overall by the Atlanta Dream in the 2012 WNBA draft. Hayes recently announced on the “Counted Me Out” podcast that she would be retiring from the WNBA after 11 seasons.

“I really feel like I’m older now,” Hayes said regarding her decision to retire from the WNBA. “I’ve got a lot of stuff that I really always wanted to get into, but I’m so busy because I’m playing year-round. People don’t understand that’s a year-round thing we be doing overseas and the league. Plus my body, playing 11 seasons straight with no breaks, every year, two seasons in a year every time — that’s a lot.”

Since college, Hayes has essentially not had a break from basketball.

Hayes didn’t lose a game in college until her junior year, won two national championships, played 10 seasons for the Dream before heading to the Sun, and played overseas. She explained what she wants to do in her retirement from the league.

“I just figured I’d focus on one thing, and then in summertime, I can turn up my businesses, turn up time with my family and just live like that,” Hayes said. “I want to see how that goes.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]

Breanna Stewart wins WNBA MVP by a historically tight margin over A’ja Wilson, Alyssa Thomas

Breanna Stewart is a certified baller!

“Stew York City,” stand up. After the closest race in WNBA history, New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart is the 2023 Most Valuable Player.

The voting race for MVP was a gauntlet down the stretch, involving the upper echelon of league talent. Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson and Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas made outstanding cases for why they should win. Only 13 points separated Stewart and Wilson, and only seven votes separated Stewart and Thomas — the tightest three-way voting margin in league history, according to ESPN’s Alexa Philippou. Ultimately, voters chose “Stewie” for her ability to light up New York and the league.

Her quest for MVP started with the offensive prowess that landed her second-to-only Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd for the WNBA single-season scoring record.

This season, Stewart averaged 23 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. With the help of her leadership, the Liberty steamrolled their way to a franchise-best record of 32-8 and a Commissioner’s Cup win.

Stewart was also a defensive force to be reckoned with, as she averaged 1.57 blocks and 1.45 steals per game. Her disruption on the court earned her a WNBA All-Defensive team selection.

With efforts like that, the league couldn’t help but notice her magic.

Truthfully, Stewart is creating a resume that feels almost unreal.

In addition to the most 40-point games in a season and the most points scored in 30 minutes or less in league history, she is a two-time WNBA champion, a two-time WNBA Finals MVP, a five-time All-Star and now has two MVP trophies.

As the kids say, it’s lit. We have a lit-thuation happening! (That was probably too much, but I love a good pun.) Stewie is a hooper, and this award reflects that — hats off to you, Breanna, and the Liberty.

The celebration is flowing somewhere, and  Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” is blasting.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=117952]

WNBA playoffs predictions: Will the Liberty crush the Aces’ chances of winning back-to-back?

For basketball heads everywhere, the WNBA playoffs are an out-of-body experience.

The WNBA playoffs are here. This is when regular season records mean nothing, and wins mean everything. It’s buzzer beaters, emphatically blocked shots, “what did I just see?” moments and scoring so good you’ll need a pulse check.

For basketball heads everywhere, this is an out-of-body experience. The level of play is elevated, and so are the expectations.

Will the Lynx fly too close to the Sun? (See what I did there?) Will the Liberty crush the Aces’ chances of winning back-to-back titles?

Who wins? Who’s out?

These are your 2023 WNBA playoff predictions:

Sun snap Los Angeles’ win streak with big effort from Alyssa Thomas

The Sun’s leading scorer was none other than Alyssa Thomas, who finished with her 25th double-double of the year.

The Connecticut Sun snapped the Los Angeles Sparks’ six-game win streak in an 83-69 win on Sunday. The Sun’s leading scorer was none other than Alyssa Thomas, who finished with her 25th double-double of the year with 17 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two steals.

Thomas now has 282 assists this season and is 18 assists away from the single-season assist record held by Courtney Vandersloot, who had 300 in 2019. She wasn’t the only player to make some highlights in the win as DeWanna Bonner moved into sixth place all-time in scoring in WNBA history with her 12 points. She now has 6,815 points in her career.

Los Angeles was led by Azura Stevens, who tallied 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals.

The Sun’s next game is against the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Mohegan Sun Arena.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]

Multiple Connecticut Sun players make team history in loss to Minnesota Lynx

Sun players DeWanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas made some team history on Sunday in a loss to the Lynx.

On Sunday, the Connecticut Sun lost to the Minnesota Lynx, 87-83, but two players recorded impressive records in the process. DeWanna Bonner became the first player in franchise history to have back-to-back 30-point games.

Bonner scored 31 points and had five rebounds, two assists, three steals and one block. She also moved to 13th all-time in Sun history in rebounds, passing Jasmine Thomas (667).

Meanwhile, Alyssa Thomas recorded her fourth triple-double of the season and sixth in her career with 17 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists. Sun guard Tiffany Hayes also grabbed her 1,000th career rebound in the loss.

The Lynx shot 57.4% from the floor, which is the highest field goal percentage the Sun have allowed this season. The Sun are looking to bounce back at home on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET when they take on the Lynx in the second of a two-game homestand.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]

WNBA Twitter reacts to Alexis Morris’ comments about veterans and roster spots

While Morris’ underlying premise seems to be that the WNBA needs to expand, her tweets have caused a bit of a controversy on social media.

Coming off a national championship with LSU, Alexis Morris was drafted 22nd by the Connecticut Sun in the 2023 WNBA draft. She was in the league for one month before being waived by the Sun.

She recently shared her thoughts on the difficulty of transitioning from college to the pros.

“This is for the colleges and institutions: In order to grow the league, you have to prep the players for what’s to come,” Morris said. “In order to do that, you have to watch the league, you have to see the style of play, the systems that they’re running so that the adjustment and the transition for women college players to the WNBA won’t be so difficult.”

However, after being cut by the Sun, she shared some additional insights into her mentality on the league. While her underlying premise seems to be that the WNBA needs to expand rosters, her tweets have caused a bit of a controversy on social media. Her tweets seem to have been taken down, but a Twitter user took screenshots before they were deleted.

Here are what users on social media had to say about the Tweets:

Connecticut Sun players win Czech basketball championship

The team defended their 2022 title and have now won their 25th title and 13th in a row.

Connecticut Sun players Alyssa Thomas and Brionna Jones are making waves across the pond this offseason. Thomas and Jones won the Czech championship this year for ZVVZ USK PRAHA. They play in the Czech League, which is the highest level of basketball competition in the Czech Republic.

The team defended its 2022 title and has won its 25th title and 13th in a row. Jones was named the final MVP and had a double-double in the game.

“You never get tired of these feelings. We do it all because of them,” ZVVZ USK Praha coach Natália Hejková told journalists. “Before the match, I told the players not to underestimate anything. Unlike the match in Brno, it took us a while to get the locomotive going, but at least it was interesting for the spectators.”

Earlier in the month, Thomas was named the EuroLeague Women’s Defensive Player of the Year.

The 2023 WNBA season kicks off on May 19 with Connecticut playing in Indianapolis against the Indiana Fever at 8 p.m. ET.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]

What are the challenges for a first-year head coach like Joe Mazzulla?

Mazzulla and his peer helming the Connecticut Sun, Stephanie White, break it down for us.

The NBA is no place for head coaches to rest on their laurels unless they also happen to be the architect of a championship dynasty. Even then, the room for error is surprisingly small in many cases.

This is even more true for first-year head coaches, both in the NBA and WNBA, as the Boston Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla and the Connecticut Sun’s Stephanie White can easily attest.

The status of new coach can test the person at the helm of a team in a number of ways, from their relationships with the players, front office and the officials to how they get on with the media, ensure they don’t miss small but important details, or juggle competing interests.

And that’s just naming a few examples — if you want a better view of what it’s like to become a team in the league that is the pinnacle of your sport, listen to what White and Mazzulla had to say about it in a recent interview put together by the Celtics to such an end.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=590969556]