UNCASVILLE — On the first day of WNBA training camp Sunday, there was a joyful atmosphere in the Connecticut Sun‘s practice that couldn’t have felt more different from the way the 2025 season ended.
It was a long and grueling day for the players, who arrived at Mohegan Sun for practice before 10 a.m. and didn’t conclude until nearly 2 p.m., but when the team finally broke down its huddle to end the session, everyone on the court seemed to have energy to spare. Second-year guard Saniya Rivers, who proclaimed herself head coach Rachid Meziane‘s favorite, even convinced the French head coach to perform the viral scuba dance with her.
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“There’s a great energy with us this season,” Sun forward Aaliyah Edwards said. “When I came at the end of last season, it wasn’t the best vibes, but I feel refreshed. I feel like we’ve got a great young group. We’ve got some great new additions, so it was a great day.”
Positivity was hard to come by for the Sun last year amid the franchise’s worst season in more than two decades. Connecticut finished 11th out of 13 teams going 11-33, and it set a record for the longest losing streak in franchise history dropping 10 straight from June 8 to July 6. It also suffered the second-largest blowout in WNBA history when it lost 100-52 to the New York Liberty in June, and the team couldn’t string together two wins in a row until mid-August.
The Sun are still rebuilding in 2026 with 11 newcomers including seven rookies on their training camp roster, but the team seems rejuvenated entering its second season under Meziane. The team’s young stars came into training camp with a new confidence, as did Meziane and his staff, and second-year forward Aneesah Morrow said practice flowed a faster pace Sunday than it ever did during camp in 2025.
“It’s a lot quicker than last year was,” Morrow said. “It’s really really fast, and we want to play fast and be able to knock down shots but also it push it in the (paint). The one thing for us is just being able to have a good all-around culture and just be happy for one another and have fun this season.”
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Meziane’s goals for year 2 are simple: “Winning, winning, winning.”
“I just want to make sure that we’re improving,” Meziane said. “We’re helping our young pieces to improve their game, and (we want) to just have some joy … (and) take a lot of pleasure to be together, to fight every night together, give our best every single night, and win games, for sure. I will pay more attention to the process, not really the outcomes but more how we show up every day.”
Former UConn stars embrace leadership roles
The Sun’s marquee free agent signing was 10-time All-Star Brittney Griner, who brings 12 years of WNBA experience, and the team will lean heavily on the veteran center’s leadership this season. But behind Griner, a pair of former UConn stars are also stepping up.
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No one knows the franchise better than center Olivia Nelson-Ododa, Connecticut’s longest-tenured player entering her fourth season in Connecticut. Meziane said Nelson-Ododa is someone he’ll lean on this year because of her history with the team as it embarks on its final season at Mohegan Sun before relocating to Houston in 2027.
“I think it’s just about embracing that (role) this year, especially with the young group we have,” Nelson-Ododa said. “They’re so eager to learn and get better and just be out here and compete. That’s all you can ask for from a group of rookies, so I’m really excited. This team looks so different … but it’s just about building in training camp and using these next two weeks to get better.”
Meziane said he’s also seen Edwards emerge as a more vocal presence on the court. The former Huskies forward says she felt “thrown into the fire” when she was traded to the Sun in the middle of the 2025 season, but she’s getting a fresh start with Connecticut this year that she intends to take full advantage of.
“It’s same energy, same intent, same relentless approach I’m just going to continue to bring each and every night, and encourage my teammates to follow along in that,” Edwards said. “I’m not really a rookie, I’m not certified as a vet yet, but I’m trying to step into that leadership role for this team this season and really make our mark in our push towards playoffs.”
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French standouts arriving late to camp
Two of the Sun’s key pieces have yet to report to training camp as they conclude their seasons overseas in France’s Ligue Feminine (LFB). Leila Lacan, the team’s 2025 first-round draft pick, was a breakout star for Connecticut after she joined the team late last July following the conclusion of the Eurobasket tournament where she played with the French national team. She averaged 10.4 points, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals, finishing top 10 in the league in total steals with just 25 game appearances.
Nell Angloma, the No. 12 pick in the 2026 draft, will also arrive late to her first WNBA training camp. The 19-year-old forward attended the draft in person in New York and made a brief stop in Connecticut afterwards to see Mohegan Sun and meet the coaching staff before returning to France.
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“I know them, and they’re smart players, so they will connect with the team very fast,” Meziane said. “Leila, last year you saw that she came and she fit with the team very fast, so I’m not concerned about that. I’m very optimistic.”
Angloma’s team, Lattes Montpellier, faces Lacan’s squad Landes for a two-game series in the LFB semifinals April 19 and May 2. The winner advances to the best-of-three championship series beginning May 9 — the day after the Sun’s opener against the New York Liberty. The latest the LFB season can end is May 17 if the series goes to three games.
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