For the second year in a row, TD Garden drew a sellout crowd of 19,156 for a WNBA game as the Connecticut Sun hosted Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever Tuesday night – a game Indiana ultimately won 85-77.
Combined with reports that the Sun’s ownership is exploring a sale of the team, the success of these games raises the question: Could the WNBA work in Boston full-time? And will the Sun, who currently play at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, eventually relocate here?
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey joined The Greg Hill Show Wednesday morning and made the case for the Sun to do exactly that.
“Boston should have a WNBA team,” Healey said. “It's the best thing for the players, the best thing for the league. I mean, two years in a row the Garden sold out. It was just hopping last night. Causeway had the feel of Bruins, Celtics playoff time. It was that packed. We've got the market. We're the greatest sports town in America, and we're also the place where basketball was invented, the men's game, the women's game, home to the Hall of Fame. We’re the hub, we’re the capital of New England, and the Sun should be in Boston. And everybody can come from other states to enjoy it, and we'll share the love and share the wealth.
“I mean, you know the dollars right now, the money and the marketing and the retail and the gear and the interest, it's so with the WNBA. It's just growing like mad. The sales yesterday were unbelievable. I think we've got great sponsorship opportunities here. We've got great interest. Hotels in Boston were sold out last night because of this game alone. So, I think it's just a no-brainer for the league. We absolutely need a team here. I issued a proclamation for whatever that's worth, just commending, celebrating the WNBA, and just affirming that as governor, I'll do anything I can to get a team here in Boston.”
Healey also pushed back on the idea that Tuesday’s game was only such a big deal because of Caitlin Clark, noting that the Garden also sold out last year for Connecticut vs. Los Angeles – a game without Clark.
“Absolutely,” Healey said when asked if Boston and TD Garden could support games without Clark. “Look at last year, right? We had the LA Sparks here last year, sell out, through the roof. That's a non-Caitlin Clark game. Obviously, Caitlin Clark draws an incredible number, and is just this unique phenom, but we've got the rest of the league, too. I mean, Paige Bueckers playing in Dallas. We've got such talent in that league. They sell out last year without Caitlin Clark. They sell out this year with Caitlin Clark. Absolutely, the interest is there. And women's professional sports in Boston, it's growing. We've got professional soccer and lacrosse and rugby and hockey. We gotta have basketball.”
Healey also said that she heard positive reviews of Boston from people within the Sun organization, further solidifying her belief that they would embrace a move to the city.
“I spent a lot of time with Sun players and management over the last couple days. They'd love it here,” Healey said. “They'd be pumped. They were pumped last night.”