Mabrey's agent blasts Sun's decision to deny trade request
The Connecticut Sun have denied guard Marina Mabrey's trade request, and her agent is not happy about it.
"In this current age of women's empowerment and support of the players, the CT Sun threatening to force Marina Mabrey to play for them after her trade request is mind-boggling," said Marcus Crenshaw, Mabrey's agent, according to ESPN's Alexa Philippou. "Why would anyone try to force someone to play on their team when they don't want to be there? It's counterproductive in a ton of ways, and everyone we have spoken to is perplexed about how they are handling Marina after trading away Hall of Fame-caliber players.
"The coach parted ways. No free agents returned, and they are doing all they can to try and force Marina to stay when she clearly doesn't want to be there."
Mabrey made the request earlier this month after playing just 16 games with the Sun in 2024. She was traded from the Sky halfway through last season after asking out of Chicago in exchange for a 2025 first-round selection, a 2026 pick swap, Rachel Banham, and Moriah Jefferson.
Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti said the franchise believed it "wasn't in our best interest to move her because of the value that we gave up to get her, but also that we place on her."
Rizzotti added the club's reasons for holding on to Mabrey are "rooted in positivity."
"It's rooted in a desire to build around her, have her here, have her be the catalyst for what we want to do offensively, taking advantage of her versatility, knowing that the style that (coach) Rachid (Meziane) plays with will suit her game, and knowing that we can put her in an individual situation to be really successful as this current CBA closes and a new one opens," Rizzotti said.
Mabrey's displeasure only adds to the Sun's rocky offseason. Connecticut traded away Alyssa Thomas, DiJonai Carrington, and Ty Harris, while DeWanna Bonner and Brionna Jones left in free agency. As a result, the Sun are the first team in WNBA history to lose all five starters from their final playoff game in the ensuing season, per Philippou.
Connecticut also lost head coach Stephanie White, who joined the Indiana Fever.
Still, Rizzotti made clear Mabrey is a part of the Sun's plans.
"I think there's probably a lot of professional athletes that are on teams that they don't necessarily prefer to be on," she said. "I don't think that this would be an isolated situation. ... I think Marina is as competitive as they come. It's one of the reasons that we wanted her here.
Rizzotti added: "It might also be seen as counterproductive for us to give in to every single trade request, right? So I think sometimes you get put in a no-win situation, and I think we're trying to be as fair as we can to a lot of different constituents."
Sun general manager Morgan Tuck also said the team is looking to stay competitive and avoid as much turnover heading into next season and beyond.
Mabrey, 28, averaged 14.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and a steal with the Sun.