2023 Connecticut Sun season
The 2023 Connecticut Sun season was the 25th season for the Connecticut Sun franchise of the Women's National Basketball Association. It was the 21st season for the franchise in Connecticut after relocating from Orlando. On November 22, 2022, the Sun announced that Stephanie White would be the new head coach for the franchise, after Curt Miller left for the same job with Los Angeles. White previously coached in the WNBA with the Indiana Fever, while most recently coaching for the Vanderbilt Commodores women's basketball team. The season started well for the Sun as they won their first three games of the year, including two in a row against Washington. They would lose their next game to New York, but would win the final game of the month to finish May 4–1. They started off June by winning four of their first five games and they would finish by winning four of six games. The end of the month also included a four game winning streak. The Sun finished June 8–3. July opened with a loss to Las Vegas but then the sun went on a three-game winning streak. A loss to Phoenix broke that streak, but the Sun followed it up with another three game winning streak. They lost the final game of the month to finish 6–3 in July. They won three games to open August, but followed that streak by losing three games. They ended their three game losing streak on August 20 with a win over Chicago and that win clinched the Sun a playoff birth. They ended the month winning three of four games to finish with a 7–4 August record. The Sun entered September having clinched their playoff birth and being safely in the third seed. The finished the season 2–2 including a final day loss. They finished the regluar season with a 27–13 record and were the third seed in the 2023 WNBA Playoffs. Their twenty-seven wins were the most in francise history. As the third seed in the Playoffs Connecticut would host the first two games of a three game series against the sixth seed Minnesota Lynx. Game one started out as a tight affair but Connecticut broke away in the second and fourth quaters to win the first game 90–60. Game two was a closer affair, with the Lynx leading by five points at halftime. Connecticut couldn't break into their lead after the half and eventually lost 75–82. In game three, in Minnesota, the Sun dominated the first half, leading by fifteen at halftime. The Lynx couldn't close the gap, as the second half ended tied. The Sun won the game 90–75 and the series two games to one. The Sun advanced to the semifinals to face-off against the second seed New York Liberty. In the first game of the series Connecticut used a strong second half to win 78–63. In game two, the Sun won the first quarter but the Liberty won the other three quarters and the Sun lost 77–84.