The Connecticut Sun underwent a top-to-bottom rebuild during the 2025 WNBA offseason, and the team will get a first look at its new pieces when training camp officially begins on Sunday.
Connecticut lost its entire starting five via trade or free agency after reaching the league semifinals in 2024, headlined by All-Star veterans Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner and Brionna Jones plus 2024 most improved player DiJonai Carrington. Head coach Stephanie White also parted ways with the organization to accept the same position with the Indiana Fever, and Connecticut enters camp with just three returning players on its roster.
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The Sun made an unprecedented move hiring French head coach Rachid Meziane to replace White, making him the first full-time WNBA head coach from Europe and the only international head coach ever hired without previous experience in the league. Meziane has coached in France’s Ligue Feminine since 2006 and spent the previous five as head coach of Villeneuve d’Ascq, bringing the franchise to its first league championship in 2024. He served as Belgian women’s national team coach from 2022-24, leading the team to a gold medal in the 2023 EuroBasket tournament and a fourth-place finish at the Paris Olympics. He was also an assistant for France when it won bronze at the 2021 Olympics.
There are key differences in the style of basketball played internationally compared to the WNBA, but the Sun are betting the change of pace will give them an edge in the league’s new era of super teams and expansion. Meziane has some familiarity with top WNBA talent having coached against Team USA several times, and he has also worked both with and against American professionals playing in European leagues during the WNBA offseason. Training camp will provide a first look at how players without overseas experience respond to Meziane’s system and how quickly the first-year coach is able to translate to a new level of competition.
“He’s literally one of the most likable people I’ve ever been around,” Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti said. “I can’t tell you how much even my front office staff has connected to him in a way that is very different from what we’ve had in the past. He just wants to be a part of what we’re doing, not just on the court … He’s excited about what we’re building, and he’s open to being a part of all of it.”
Connecticut Sun enter new era in 2025 with introduction of head coach Rachid Meziane
Rookies out to make impression
Connecticut’s training camp roster is overwhelmingly young but loaded with talent. The team has three first-round draft picks competing this year: 2024 No. 10 pick Leila Lacan plus 2025 No. 7 pick Aneesah Morrow and No. 8 pick Saniya Rivers. The trio are all but guaranteed spots on the final roster, and the Sun are optimistic that all three will be able to play significant roles in their rookie seasons.
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“We’ve had such a veteran team that players that were ready to make an impact right way probably wouldn’t have fit, so I think it’s a little bit of a breath of fresh air to have this reset,” Rizzotti said. “We can welcome two players and have them envision that, if they put the work in … they can make an immediate impact. It was hard to promise that over the last four years because of the roster we had, so it’s kind of nice.”
Why WNBA Draft picks Aneesah Morrow, Saniya Rivers offer hope for Connecticut Sun amid rebuild
Lacan is a particularly exciting prospect for Connecticut after she remained overseas to prioritize her commitment with Team France during the Paris Olympics. The 20-year old guard began competing professionally in France in 2022 and has represented the senior national team since 2023, so she has plenty of familiarity with Meziane’s teams as opponents both in the Ligue Feminine and in FIBA competition.
The Sun have seven other rookies on their training camp roster, including 2024 third-round draft pick Abbey Hsu and 2025 third-rounder Rayah Marshall. Center Kariata Diaby has competed in France since 2018 and spent four seasons playing for Meziane with Villaneuve d’Ascq from 2020-24, and forward Amy Okonkwo is also making her WNBA camp debut after three seasons in the Ligue Feminine.
Familiar veterans start fresh
Former UConn center Olivia Nelson-Ododa is the Sun’s only returning player from their 2024 training camp, but the team isn’t starting completely from scratch with Marina Mabrey also back to provide a centerpiece for the offense. Connecticut acquired Mabrey at the 2024 All-Star break in a trade with the Chicago Sky, and despite an offseason trade request, the seventh-year guard seems fully reinvested in the team for the final year of her contract. Mabrey averaged 14.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists off the bench for the Sun over 16 games in 2024.
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UConn legend Tina Charles is back with the Sun in 2025 more than a decade after the team drafted her with the No. 1 pick in 2010. Despite one of the best resumes in league history, Charles has struggled to find a consistent team since 2021. She spent a year with the Washington Mystics before playing half a season with the Phoenix Mercury and finishing 2022 with the Seattle Storm. Charles went unsigned in 2023, then spent 2024 playing under former WNBA teammate Tanisha Wright with the Atlanta Dream. Back in Connecticut, Charles is by far the most experienced player on the roster and will need to be a mentor for the team’s young contributors.
The Sun are also providing a fresh start for 2018 lottery pick Diamond DeShields. The seventh-year guard was drafted by the Chicago Sky and made the all-rookie team her first year out of Tennessee, then earned All-WNBA honors in 2019 and helped the franchise to its first WNBA championship in 2021. But DeShields has struggled to find consistent minutes since undergoing spinal surgery to remove a tumor in 2019, then suffering a knee injury that sidelined her for the entire 2023 season.
“I knew I needed to come somewhere I was just going to be able to be on the floor, and a lot of room opened up here during free agency, and it was to my benefit,” DeShields said after signing with the Sun in March. “I see this as a really big opportunity for me. I’m really excited about being able to come here and step into a role that is one I haven’t necessarily had in the while.”
