Wings 86, Sun 83: A night for what could have been

HARTFORD, Conn. - The best musical of the modern era is Hadestown and not Hamilton (although Hamilton is awesome), and if you know it, you know Orpheus "can make you see how the world could be in spite of the way that it is."

If you closed your eyes and imagined an alternate universe Thursday night, you saw how the future of the WNBA could have been in Connecticut: 14,000 people packing Peoples Bank Arena and most decidedly involved as the game went down to the wire. Excited plays, superstars grabbing the game by the throat down the stretch, a very good entertainment product minus perhaps the myriad and lengthy reviews.

Yes, the WNBA took some chances to keep the Sun in state, but this is the Basketball Capital of the World after all and are always going to support their team just as much (if not more) as any other team in the league, even as its growth continues unabated.

It was, of course, Paige Bueckers (and a little Azzi Fudd) that brought a decent amount of the 14,000 to downtown Hartford on a scorchingly hot summer day, and it was Bueckers that - perhaps somewhat unsurprisingly - took the game in her hands at the end. The Sun stumbled at the final hurdle again, as they have so many times in the last two seasons, but what if they had timed their recent downturn a little better and had enough ping pong balls to draft Bueckers (and maybe Fudd) where she’s so beloved? Could the WNBA have pulled the trigger on moving then?

These are all moot points in 2026, and it was sad to walk around downtown Hartford before the game and see all the bars and restaurants hopping with clients getting ready for the big contest. Was that sustainable for entire seasons? I guess we’ll never know.

And that makes me sad.

As for the game itself, it was another one the Sun should have won, but they couldn’t make any shots in the fourth quarter and Paige Bueckers is one of the best clutch players in the league, even at her young age.

The Sun (as the advanced stats point out) are much more competitive at this point in 2026 than they were at 2025, but they’ll have some big decisions somewhat sooner than later. It’s been great and helpful to have Brittany Griner back healthy, but the Sun have recently also listened to the screaming advanced analytics proclaiming Olivia Nelson-Ododa’s worth, as well as Charlisse Leger-Walker getting more accustomed to the league and being able to score where others on the roster cannot.

That all means less time for Saniya Rivers (who is sadly just an offensive liability) and Aneesah Morrow, and none for the likes of Reagan Beers and Gianna Kneepkens.

With the team at 4-16 and going nowhere, does it make sense to play them more to boost their worth going forward? But what is the motivation for a lame duck coach and a largely lame duck organization to do so?

It's a sad song. But we sing it anyway.

What else did we learn from a frustrating 86-83 loss to Dallas at the former home of the Whalers?:

 

1. Getting stops  - Ironically, this was here from the last recap I did, and the same still applies. The Wings got 31 points in the fourth quarter, much of it due to Bueckers’ heroics, but the Sun had done such a good job on Jessica Shepard and Sun killer Arike Ogunbowale to that point. But somehow things just change down the stretch and the Sun could not find a way to get a stop, at least without fouling. 

2. Hat tip to Leger-Walker - Yes, that was me who said a month ago that I didn’t see much of a future for Charlisse Leger-Walker in the WNBA, at least as a starter. But she is an exceptionally smart player and has some sneaky offensive skills, including being able to shoot, a rarity on the Sun. Her defense is still below average, but she was matched up with Paige Bueckers (with Leila Lacan guarding Ogunbowale), and did a decent job for three quarters. It’s pushed her ahead of Rivers and Morrow in the rotation for now (on cue this dropped today on Leger-Walker).

3. So many stoppages -  We know the WNBA has struggled with officiating, but I don’t think having reviews that take several minutes (one had the DJ play three songs before it was done) at every stoppage is a great solution. It dragged the game on, and thankfully for the WNBA it got the ending it did, but that was well over two hours into it, and the reviews (as for as I know) didn’t change anything in the end. There has to be a way to at least shorten them if we’re still going to do them.

Player of the game:  Leila Lacan - Lacan edges Griner for this with 18 points and 5 assists, although Griner played very well. However, Griner missed 3 free throws as well, which leads to….

Inside the numbers : 13 -  Number of free throws the Sun missed (although they did get to the line 35 times at least) as they continue to be the worst free throw shooting team in the WNBA, which can obviously cost you in games like this.

Under the radar: It was interesting to not see Lacan on Bueckers, but it seemed like the Sun wanted to force Bueckers to score and not be a distributor, at least early in the game.

Connecticut also had a massive advantage inside, you can see how strong a frontcourt of Griner, Nelson-Ododa, and Aaliyah Edwards is. They even took advantage of Fudd to get Kennedy Burke a couple of easy hoops, somehow attempting just 9 three-pointers in the entire contest. But Dallas adjusted in the fourth quarter, and the Sun - again - did not.

Meziane took some heat for not running the Sun’s final play sooner, but I don’t mind that as much with Bueckers on the other side. The play itself, however? Not sure what they were looking for. And the play at the very end which (needing a three) had Nelson-Ododa inbound to Griner? Just run Brad Stevens’ “Winner” like everyone else in the free world in that situation.

Quotable:  “They were a great crowd. It was a great environment. It felt like a home game in a sense, there were a lot of people rooting for me and our Connecticut alums. It was fun to play back in Connecticut, I really enjoy being here, I love everything about it." - Paige Bueckers

Next up: Monday at Minnesota, 8 p.m.