HOUSTON — When Houston Rockets president of business operations Gretchen Sheirr first joined the organization as a ticket sales representative in the summer of 2001, her first task was to sell tickets for the Houston Comets’ “Drive for Five,” as the team began its quest for a fifth consecutive WNBA championship.
The Comets, who won the WNBA’s first four titles with legendary players Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson, never won a fifth before the franchise folded in 2008.
On Wednesday, May 13, the WNBA and NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale of the Connecticut Sun to a company led by Rockets owner Tilman J. Fertitta, who will relocate the franchise to Houston for the 2027 season. The team name will change to the Comets.
On Thursday at Toyota Center in downtown Houston, Sheirr sat onstage alongside Rockets vice chairman Patrick Fertitta, Tilman’s son, and officially announced the Comets’ return.
“To be able to sit on this stage and represent the Fertitta family and play a small part in bringing this franchise back, is fantastic,” Sheirr said. “And I look forward to the next ‘Drive for Five,’ hopefully coming up soon.”
Fertitta’s group reportedly bought the Sun for $300 million, a record figure for a WNBA team. The Mohegan Tribe first began exploring a sale of the Sun in early 2025 and came close to selling the team on two separate occasions — first to Boston Celtics’ minority owner Stephen Pagliuca and then to former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry. But the WNBA refused to approve either sale.
Houston submitted a bid for a WNBA expansion team during the last round but was not chosen. At the June 2025 announcement awarding expansion teams to Cleveland, Philadelphia and Detroit, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said Houston was “up next.”
Connecticut fans are upset about the WNBA’s decision to make that happen by moving the Sun to Houston.
“For us, our focus was on bringing the Comets to Houston whether it was through expansion or through relocation,” Patrick Fertitta said. “Whatever path became available to us is the path that we were going to aggressively take.”
Fertitta said his father has wanted to bring the Comets back since he bought the Rockets in 2017 and wished it could have happened sooner.
“It felt like the sports landscape in this town was incomplete with the void that was left after 12 seasons, and today that is filled,” Patrick Fertitta said.
The Sun are playing the 2026 season in Connecticut, after which the team will move to Houston. There’s still a lot to get done before then, including creating new branding, deciding which existing Sun staff will transition to Houston and renovating Toyota Center to accommodate the WNBA team.
Sacramento Monarchs center/forward Yolanda Griffith won MVP in 1999.
Connecticut Sun forward Jonquel Jones won MVP in 2021.
Los Angeles Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike won MVP in 2016.
Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings won MVP in 2011.
Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles won MVP in 2012.
Chicago Sky guard/forward Elena Delle Donne won MVP in 2015 and 2019.
Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi won MVP in 2009.
Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles won MVP in 2017.
Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart won MVP in 2018 and 2023.
Los Angeles Sparks forward Candace Parker won MVP in 2008 and 2013.
Minnesota Lynx forward Maya Moore won MVP in 2014.
Seattle Storm forward Lauren Jackson won MVP in 2003, 2007 and 2010.
Los Angeles Sparks center Lisa Leslie won MVP in 2001, 2004 and 2006.
Houston Comets guard Sheryl Swoopes won MVP in 2000, 2002 and 2005.
Houston Comets guard Cynthia Cooper won the MVP award in 1997 and 1998.
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson won MVP in 2020, 2022 and 2024.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Sacramento Monarchs center/forward Yolanda Griffith won MVP in 1999.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Sacramento Monarchs center/forward Yolanda Griffith won MVP in 1999.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Connecticut Sun forward Jonquel Jones won MVP in 2021.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Los Angeles Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike won MVP in 2016.
4 / 16
All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings won MVP in 2011.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles won MVP in 2012.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Chicago Sky guard/forward Elena Delle Donne won MVP in 2015 and 2019.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi won MVP in 2009.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles won MVP in 2017.
9 / 16
All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart won MVP in 2018 and 2023.
10 / 16
All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Los Angeles Sparks forward Candace Parker won MVP in 2008 and 2013.
11 / 16
All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Minnesota Lynx forward Maya Moore won MVP in 2014.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Seattle Storm forward Lauren Jackson won MVP in 2003, 2007 and 2010.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Los Angeles Sparks center Lisa Leslie won MVP in 2001, 2004 and 2006.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Houston Comets guard Sheryl Swoopes won MVP in 2000, 2002 and 2005.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Houston Comets guard Cynthia Cooper won the MVP award in 1997 and 1998.
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All-time WNBA MVPs, ranked 1-16
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson won MVP in 2020, 2022 and 2024.
Houston commits to Comets name despite trademark dispute
At Thursday’s news conference, the Comets name was everywhere: On two television screens flanking the stage, on the backdrop behind Sheirr and Fertitta and mentioned by every person who spoke.
The organization appears committed to the branding even though the WNBA is currently engaged in a trademark dispute over the Comets name, as first reported by USA TODAY in April.
Asked about the availability of the Comets name and whether team executives have a contingency plan, Sheirr said the organization feel they are on solid ground.
“We feel very good that we’re using Comets,” Sheirr said. “I won’t go into much detail – that process is run by the WNBA – but we feel very confident.”
Fertitta added it was “immensely important” to reboot the franchise with the Comets name.
“The Comets are so synonymous with women’s basketball and the WNBA in this town, and it just felt like it honestly didn’t make a lot of sense to go any other direction,” he said. “There is such a special brand and identity that already exists. There’s such history and nostalgia and for us, it wouldn’t feel right to have a different name, a different brand.”
Sheirr said the Comets plan to unveil a logo and uniforms in the fall, out of respect for the Sun and their fans during the final season in Connecticut.
Former Comets coach Van Chancellor, who led the team from 1997-2006, attended Thursday’s event with Thompson, a nine-time WNBA All-Star and the 2000 WNBA MVP. Cooper and Swoopes, the remaining core members of the Comets’ dynasty, were unable to attend due to prior commitments.
“To bring this team back as any other thing than the Comets would have been the greatest and biggest mistake in sports history,” he said. “This is the Comets. I wore the red tie today because the Comets are red. There’s no doubt in my mind that was the biggest no-brainer I’ve ever seen.”
Renderings of the Houston Comets practice court that will be built at Toyota Center ahead of the 2027 WNBA season. It is part of a $180 million renovation plan for the arena, which will soon house the Comets alongside longtime tenant the NBA’s Houston Rockets.
Will the Comets keep Connecticut Sun staff?
Sheirr said Houston business executives will meet with Connecticut Sun staff on Monday, May 18, to start discussions about which employees will move to Houston. While some existing Rockets employees will transition to the WNBA side of the organization, the Comets will have a dedicated operations structure.
“We’re hopeful that all of the Connecticut (staff) will have an opportunity to move here,” Sheirr said.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday after the sale was finalized, Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti said, “The feeling that I have been given so far is that everybody that’s working for this organization is welcome to go to Houston. … Coaches, players, they’re Houston property immediately, but it’s the business staff that gets a little bit tougher because we’re still here operating the business side of this organization while they’re about to get up and running down in Houston.”
Fertitta praised Rizzotti and Sun general manager Morgan Tuck for their leadership and expertise.
“There’s probably going to be a lot of change over the next year,” Fertitta said. “But I do know that they’ve got really good people over there (in Connecticut) who have been making really good decisions, and we’re excited to continue to work with that leadership that exists and start working on what strategy is going to make sense to get us back to the level of success that we all associate with the Comets.”
The Comets have already hired former ESPN writer Kevin Pelton as an assistant general manager and head of analytics. Pelton is spending time with Connecticut’s front office staff this season to aid the transition, Fertitta said.
The Comets will play home games and practice at Toyota Center, the Rockets’ downtown arena. In the next few months, the arena will begin renovations to construct locker rooms, a practice court and a weight room for the Comets to be completed by the end of the current WNBA season.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What’s next for the WNBA after Sun sale, Comets return in Houston?
