Mercury welcome Sun with off-court headlines surrounding showdown

While the Phoenix Mercury have a chance to bolster their playoff positioning with the Connecticut Sun in town, that's not the story making headlines ahead of Tuesday night's matchup.

Off-court developments have instead taken center stage.

Multiple media agencies reported over the weekend that the Sun were sold for a record $325 million by the Mohegan Tribe to a group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca, who intends to move the team to Boston.

The franchise is not slated to play in Massachusetts until the 2027 season, according to reports. The sale is pending approval of the league and its board of governors.

Some of the Connecticut players viewed a game on July 15 at the TD Garden in Boston against the Indiana Fever as a preview of their future home environment.

"Honestly, I wasn't shocked; I kind of got that feeling when I went down to Boston to play in the arena," Sun forward Aneesah Morrow said of the pending sale of the team. "I feel like it would be great. Honestly, I love the arena, one of the greatest arenas that I was in, for sure."

Before the Mercury's 83-67 win at the Chicago Sky on Sunday, Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts announced that All-Star forward Satou Sabally is out indefinitely for personal reasons.

Sabally was scratched from the lineup less than four hours before the game against Chicago.

"This is a personal matter," Tibbetts said. "She's out for personal reasons, and we support her through this time and are excited to get her back when she's ready."

Connecticut (5-22) enters Tuesday's game with a 1-11 road record.

The Mercury (17-11) defeated the Sun 83-75 on June 18 in Alyssa Thomas' return to Connecticut, where she played the first 11 seasons of her WNBA career. Thomas had 14 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in the victory over her former team.

She posted a triple-double (10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists) in the win over Chicago on Sunday. Kahleah Copper, who made 4 of 6 shots from 3-point range, finished with 25 points.

Connecticut is coming off a split at home against the New York Liberty, pulling off a 78-62 upset win Friday before an 87-78 loss two days later.

--Field Level Media