This Trade Makes Connecticut Sun Rebuild Through Draft More Difficult

A deal the Connecticut Sun made more than a year ago will likely keep the franchise out of the first five selection of the 2026 WNBA Draft.

Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey (3) drives the ball toward the basket against Atlanta Dream guard Rhyne Howard (10) during the third quarter at Gateway Center Arena at College Park. / Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

Rarely does it pay to lose. About the only thing it gets a team like the Connecticut Sun is a high draft pick. That won’t be the case this year, though.

The Sun finished with one of the worst records in the WNBA, winning just 11 games. They’ll be involved with the WNBA Draft Lottery, whenever that is scheduled. The league and its players must reach a collective bargaining agreement first.

But the lottery is really nothing more than a spectator sport for the Sun. Wherever Connecticut’s ping pong ball lands, it won’t belong to them, thanks to a trade made more than a year ago.

The Trade the Impacts the Sun’s 2026 WNBA Draft

David Butler II-Imagn Images

Seeking veteran leadership on the perimeter, the Sun worked out a deal with the Chicago Sky in the middle of the 2024 season. The Sun got guard Marina Mabrey and the Sky’s 2025 No. 25 pick. In return the Sun shipped Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson and the 2025 No. 10 pick overall. Plus, the Sky received one more pick in return — the right to swap 2026 first round picks.

Now, that doesn’t sound so bad because the Sky are in a similar boat — they’re in the WNBA Draft lottery as well. But, it’s not the Sky’s pick that is being swapped. When the deal was announced by the league, the swap is Phoenix’s 2026 first round pick acquired by Chicago prior to the 2024 season for Connecticut’s 2026 first round pick.

So, that swap kicks the Sun out of the lottery portion. In a draft that will likely feature UConn’s Azzi Fudd as the No. 1 overall pick, that’s a bitter pill for the Sun to swallow.

Connecticut does have two selections. The first is that Phoenix pick, which will be among the last four in the first round as the Mercury reached the WNBA Finals. The other pick is a selection also likely to be at the end of the first round. That stems from a trade the Sun made that included the Minnesota Lynx.

Two first-round pick is better than one. But, given that Mabrey is a free agent after the season and may not return, the Sun didn’t get much from their investment, at least this season.  

Not having a lottery pick robs the Sun from adding another elite young player to a core that could carry the franchise for the next few seasons. That core includes WNBA all-Rookie selection Leila Lacan, guard Saniya Rivers, forward Aneesah Morrow and forward Aaliyah Edwards.

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