2022 Connecticut Sun season
WNBA team season
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The 2022 Connecticut Sun season was the 24th season for the Connecticut Sun franchise of the Women's National Basketball Association. It also was the 20th season for the franchise in Connecticut after relocating from Orlando. The season began on May 7, 2022, at the New York Liberty.[1]
| 2022 Connecticut Sun season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Curt Miller |
| Arena | Mohegan Sun Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 25–11 (.694) |
| Place | 2nd (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | 3rd seed; Lost in WNBA Finals to Las Vegas Aces |
Despite losing their first game of the season, the Sun won their next four games in a row. They then went 2–2 to finish out the month of May with a 6–3 record. They started June with a four-game winning streak and won six of their first seven games. However, they lost three of their last four in the month to finish with a 7–4 record. In July, the Sun won 3 of its first five, but then went on a four-game winning streak. The streak Chicago on the final day of the month. They finished 7–3 in the month and secured a spot in the post season on July 28. The Sun went on a tear in August, only losing one game, to eventual #2 seed Chicago, and finished the month with a 5–1 record. Their overall regular season record of 25–11 was one shy of tying a franchise record for wins. They were the third seed in the playoffs, finishiLas Vegas and Chicago. Brionna Jones was named the Sixth Player of the Year.
As the third seed they hosted a first round matchup against the sixth seeded Dallas. The Sun won the first game in commanding fashion, 93–68. However, they lost Game Two by ten points, forcing a Game Three in Dallas. The Sun controlled the game and won by 15 points to advance to the Semifinals. There they faced off against the second seeded Chicago Sky. Connecticut won the first game by five points in Chicago. They went on to lose games two and three and faced elimination in Game Four. The Sun won game four by 24 points to force a Game Five in Chicago. The Sun won by nine points and advanced to the 2022 WNBA Finals. They faced off against the first seeded, Las Veagas Aces. Las Vegas one the first two games in Connecticut, Game One by three points, and Game Two by fourteen. The Sun won game three in Las Vegas by 29 points, but couldn't carry the momentum into Game Four losing by seven points. The Aces won the series 3–1.
Transactions
WNBA draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/team/country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Nia Clouden |  United States |
Michigan State |
| 2 | 24 | Jordan Lewis | United States |
Baylor |
| 3 | 36 | Kiara Smith | United States |
Florida |
Trades and Roster Changes
| Date | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2022 | Extended Qualifying Offers to Natisha Hiedeman, Stephanie Jones, and Beatrice Mompremier[2] | |
| January 3, 2022 | Signed Natisha Hiedeman to a Qualifying Offer [3] | |
| January 4, 2022 | Signed Beatrice Mompremier to a Qualifying Offer [4] | |
| January 10, 2022 | Extended Jonquel Jones a Core Qualifying Offer [5] | |
| January 3, 2022 | Signed Stephanie Jones to a Qualifying Offer [6] | |
| February 1, 2022 | Signed Jonquel Jones to a Two-Year Deal [7][8] | |
| February 2, 2022 | Signed Courtney Williams to a Two-Year Deal [9][10] | |
| Signed Taj Cole and Joyner Holmes to training-camp contracts[11] | ||
| February 22, 2022 | Signed Yvonne Anderson to a training-camp contract[12] | |
| April 12, 2022 | Signed Alexus Dye, Delicia Washington and Aleksa Gulbe to training-camp contracts[13] | |
| April 14, 2022 | Signed Nia Clouden and Jordan Lewis to rookie-scale contracts[14] | |
| April 20, 2022 | Waived Alexus Dye, Delicia Washington, and Keyona Hayes[15] | |
| April 27, 2022 | Waived Jordan Lewis[16] | |
| May 2, 2022 | Waived Kaila Charles, Taj Cole, and Aleksa Gulbe[17][18] | |
| May 4, 2022 | Waived Stephanie Jones and Beatrice Mompremier[19] | |
| May 5, 2022 | Temporarily Suspend DeWanna Bonner due to Overseas Commitments | |
| May 14, 2022 | Activated DeWanna Bonner from the Temporary Suspension List | |
| May 31, 2022 | Signed Stephanie Jones to a Hardship Contract [20] | |
| June 4, 2022 | Released Stephanie Jones from her Hardship Contract[21] | |
| June 11, 2022 | Waived Yvonne Anderson[22] | |
| June 15, 2022 | Signed Jazmine Jones[23] | |
| June 24, 2022 | Waived Joyner Holmes and Jazmine Jones[24] | |
| June 26, 2022 | Signed Joyner Holmes and Jazmine Jones to 7-day contracts[25] | |
| July 3, 2022 | Signed Joyner Holmes and Jazmine Jones to their 2nd 7-day contracts[26] | |
| July 13, 2022 | Signed Joyner Holmes and Jazmine Jones to their 3rd 7-day contracts | |
| July 18, 2022 | Signed Bria Hartley[27] | |
| July 21, 2022 | Signed Joyner Holmes[28] | |
| July 27, 2022 | Signed Kiana Williams to a 7-day contract[29] | |
| August 3, 2022 | Signed Odyssey Sims to a 7-day contract[30] | |
| August 10, 2022 | Signed Odyssey Sims to a Hardship Contract[31] | |
Roster
| 2022 Connecticut Sun roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Depth chart
Schedule
Preseason
| 2022 pre-season game log | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May: 1–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–0)
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| 2022 pre-season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||
Regular season
Playoffs
| 2022 playoff game log | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First Round vs. Dallas Wings Won Series: 2–1
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Semifinals vs. Chicago Sky Won Series: 3–2
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Finals vs. Las Vegas Aces Lost Series: 1–3
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| 2022 playoff schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Standings
| # | W | L | PCT | GB | Conf. | Home | Road | Cup | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x – Las Vegas Aces | 26 | 10 | .722 | – | 15–3 | 13–5 | 13–5 | 9–1 |
| 2 | x – Chicago Sky | 26 | 10 | .722 | – | 15–3 | 14–4 | 12–6 | 9–1 |
| 3 | x – Connecticut Sun | 25 | 11 | .694 | 1.0 | 11–7 | 13–5 | 12–6 | 5–5 |
| 4 | x – Seattle Storm | 22 | 14 | .611 | 4.0 | 10–8 | 13–5 | 9–9 | 6–4 |
| 5 | x – Washington Mystics | 22 | 14 | .611 | 4.0 | 11–7 | 12–6 | 10–8 | 5–5 |
| 6 | x – Dallas Wings | 18 | 18 | .500 | 8.0 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 10–8 | 5–5 |
| 7 | x – New York Liberty | 16 | 20 | .444 | 10.0 | 10–8 | 9–9 | 7–11 | 6–4 |
| 8 | x – Phoenix Mercury | 15 | 21 | .417 | 11.0 | 7–11 | 11–7 | 4–14 | 3–7 |
| 9 | e – Minnesota Lynx | 14 | 22 | .389 | 12.0 | 8–10 | 7–11 | 7–11 | 4–6 |
| 10 | e – Atlanta Dream | 14 | 22 | .389 | 12.0 | 5–13 | 8–10 | 6–12 | 3–7 |
| 11 | e – Los Angeles Sparks | 13 | 23 | .361 | 13.0 | 6–12 | 7–11 | 6–12 | 3–7 |
| 12 | e – Indiana Fever | 5 | 31 | .139 | 21.0 | 2–16 | 3–15 | 2–16 | 2–8 |
Notes
- (#) – League Standing
- x – Clinched playoff berth
- e – Eliminated from playoff contention
- Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings
Playoffs
| First round Best-of-3 | Semifinals Best-of-5 | Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Phoenix Mercury | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Seattle Storm | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Seattle Storm | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Washington Mystics | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Connecticut Sun | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Chicago Sky | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | New York Liberty | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Chicago Sky | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Connecticut Sun | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Connecticut Sun | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Dallas Wings | 1 | ||||||||||||
- Bold – Series winner
- Italic – Team with home-court advantage
Statistics
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage | TO | Turnovers per game |
| PF | Fouls per game | Team leader | League leader | ||||
Regular season
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonquel Jones | 33 | 32 | 26.4 | .513 | .369 | .802 | 8.6 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 14.6 |
| Brionna Jones | 36 | 7 | 25.1 | .571 | .000 | .844 | 5.1 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 13.8 |
| DeWanna Bonner | 33 | 33 | 30.0 | .439 | .329 | .827 | 4.7 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 13.5 |
| Alyssa Thomas | 36 | 36 | 32.1 | .500 | .000 | .730 | 8.2 | 6.1 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 13.4 |
| Courtney Williams | 34 | 34 | 27.9 | .426 | .338 | .750 | 4.6 | 3.3 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 11.1 |
| Natisha Hiedeman | 36 | 31 | 25.0 | .431 | .411 | .800 | 1.8 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 9.1 |
| DiJonai Carrington | 36 | 2 | 17.5 | .414 | .306 | .750 | 3.1 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 6.8 |
| Jasmine Thomas | 5 | 5 | 21.8 | .267 | .385 | .923 | 2.2 | 3.0 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 6.6 |
| Odyssey Sims≠ | 5 | 0 | 18.2 | .333 | .273 | 1.000 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 5.8 |
| Bria Hartley≠ | 3 | 0 | 12.0 | .455 | .500 | .000 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 4.7 |
| Yvonne Anderson‡ | 11 | 0 | 9.2 | .462 | .400 | 1.000 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 3.2 |
| Nia Clouden | 28 | 0 | 8.9 | .340 | .414 | .588 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 2.1 |
| Joyner Holmes | 26 | 0 | 7.9 | .311 | .227 | .769 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 2.0 |
| Stephanie Jones‡ | 2 | 0 | 4.0 | .000 | .000 | 1.000 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Jazmine Jones‡ | 7 | 0 | 6.3 | .286 | .000 | .400 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.9 |
| Kiana Williams‡ | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
‡Waived/Released during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season
Playoffs
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonquel Jones | 12 | 12 | 27.0 | .507 | .414 | .829 | 8.4 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 14.9 |
| Alyssa Thomas | 12 | 12 | 33.5 | .474 | .000 | .576 | 9.5 | 6.3 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 12.3 |
| DeWanna Bonner | 12 | 12 | 31.5 | .341 | .294 | .886 | 5.8 | 3.6 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 12.2 |
| Courtney Williams | 12 | 12 | 27.1 | .415 | .318 | .667 | 3.9 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 10.3 |
| Brionna Jones | 12 | 0 | 21.3 | .522 | .000 | .711 | 4.0 | 1.3 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 10.6 |
| Natisha Hiedeman | 12 | 12 | 26.2 | .419 | .444 | .769 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 8.2 |
| DiJonai Carrington | 12 | 0 | 14.6 | .450 | .231 | .700 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 5.9 |
| Odyssey Sims | 12 | 0 | 13.8 | .436 | .286 | .875 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 3.6 |
| Nia Clouden | 7 | 0 | 4.6 | .444 | .500 | 1.000 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.9 |
| Joyner Holmes | 7 | 0 | 4.1 | .500 | .000 | 1.000 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 4.1 |
Awards and honors
| Recipient | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alyssa Thomas | Eastern Conference Player of the Week | May 23 | [32] |
| July 25 | [33] | ||
| Eastern Conference Player of the Month - May | June 1 | [34] | |
| Eastern Conference Player of the Month - July | August 2 | [35] | |
| WNBA All-Star Selection | June 28 | [36] | |
| All-Defensive Second Team | August 30 | [37] | |
| All-WNBA Second Team | September 15 | [38] | |
| Jonquel Jones | Eastern Conference Player of the Week | June 6 | [39] |
| WNBA All-Star Starter | June 22 | [40] | |
| All-Defensive Second Team | August 30 | [37] | |
| All-WNBA Second Team | September 15 | [38] | |
| Brionna Jones | WNBA All-Star Selection | June 28 | [36] |
| Sixth Player of the Year | September 1 | [41] |